The all things EV chat thread

[BubbaP]

I know the price of secondhand EVs has dropped recently, but they are still quite a bit more expensive than an equivalent petrol car. Think carefully about how many miles you need to travel before you recoup that difference. At less than 5000 miles per year, it could be a long time.

Obviously there are lots of makes and models out there, I hadn't even considered a full EV until I spotted the exact same model, spec & lower mileage were coming up cheaper than the petrol version. That's when I looked more closely.

 

[Hobbit]

Eco tyres: how are they different? | RAC Drive

Have you ever wondered how modern eco tyres differ from normal rubber? Well, as you’d imagine, it’s interesting science.

www.rac.co.uk

That's just eco tyres tho, rather than EV tyres which are the empires new clothes

Eco tyres work and are what I'd put on my EV

Saw an article yesterday saying the ‘special tyres’ for EV’s is a con. Whatever extra wear may occur due to the extra weight is more than offset by the automatic transmission giving smoother gear changes and improved traction during acceleration.

 

[PJ87]

Saw an article yesterday saying the ‘special tyres’ for EV’s is a con. Whatever extra wear may occur due to the extra weight is more than offset by the automatic transmission giving smoother gear changes and improved traction during acceleration.

Yeah it's pure money grab by tyre companies tapping into the lack of understanding of EVs by A the general public and B actual dealerships

 

[BubbaP]

A company that sells home chargers are bound to say that

I'm with Bob on this. Suspect the 'scare stories' more relate to poor behaviour or equipment.

Easy to find a company with an alternate view..


@ColchesterFC I had a perhaps similar 'might move in near future' thought which played into not fitting a full charge point right now. Will probably cover 7 to 8K a year in the EV also.

 

[PJ87]

I'm with Bob on this. Suspect the 'scare stories' more relate to poor behaviour or equipment.

Easy to find a company with an alternate view..
View attachment 52471

@ColchesterFC I had a perhaps similar 'might move in near future' thought which played into not fitting a full charge point right now. Will probably cover 7 to 8K a year in the EV also.

It's not the chargers themselves that are the problem

When was your plug last checked?

They liken it to using an oven because it's constant 2.1kw hour but rather than its own dedicated socket that's been signed off for that. It's using the rest of that circuit ..

Majority of melted plugs come from the sockets themselves overheating

Best way to do if you are going to use a granny charger is to get a commando socket installed and use on that but if doing that go a proper charger anyways.

For example

granny charger advocates, please read.

www.speakev.com

Also granny chargers are becoming optional extras , lots of cars don't come with them.

For the sake of a socket install which is about £900 the ability to unlock 7.5p charging on octopus intelligent it's worth the investment imo . Or ovos drive anytime

 

[BubbaP]

It's not the chargers themselves that are the problem

When was your plug last checked?

They liken it to using an oven because it's constant 2.1kw hour but rather than its own dedicated socket that's been signed off for that. It's using the rest of that circuit ..

Majority of melted plugs come from the sockets themselves overheating

Best way to do if you are going to use a granny charger is to get a commando socket installed and use on that but if doing that go a proper charger anyways.

For example

granny charger advocates, please read.

www.speakev.com

Refer you to post 5358
Which of course you replied to

Post in thread 'The all things EV chat thread' https://forums.golfmonthly.com/threads/the-all-things-ev-chat-thread.107236/post-2717611

 

[PJ87]

Refer you to post 5358
Which of course you replied to

Post in thread 'The all things EV chat thread' https://forums.golfmonthly.com/threads/the-all-things-ev-chat-thread.107236/post-2717611

Indeed. However I've since read further on it and adjusted my opinion on the matter

Whilst 10amp in theory would be fine. Having seen some burnt out sockets and seen the ones we use at work crack from the use they go through it's a bit risky imo to souly relay on them.

If you are using it on a socket that's just EV charger on it, like you have it run from your garage from example and that's all you run from your garage that's a lot safer than running from your house where your tumble dryer is running

Which when I replied to your post you have a seperate garage circuit and use an EV rated plug so that's much less of a risk

But how about plugging in just a standard socket out your living room would you recommend it?

 

[jim8flog]

Do you really need a home charger?

No.

However they pay for themselves in about a year at worst unless you can get cheap rate for all electric use.

I am with OVO and they only offer cheap EV charging not cheap off peak electric for all things.

Also using a 2kw charger for me would mean charging more often to keep within cheap rate periods if they were available. Say 11pm to 6am , 7 hours at 2kw = a 14KW charge, whereas 7 hours at 7 kW means a 49KW charge.

 

[jim8flog]

Saw an article yesterday saying the ‘special tyres’ for EV’s is a con. Whatever extra wear may occur due to the extra weight is more than offset by the automatic transmission giving smoother gear changes and improved traction during acceleration.

to the best of my knowledge EVs do not have gears.

 

[jim8flog]

When it comes to ratings for 13a sockets and continuous use such as in EV charging there is some arguments some say it is 8 amp and others 10. Some say you should have a dedicated socket specificly labelled for EV use.

The age of the sockets can be a very important factor as plastic degrades over time.

One point that was made when I looked it up was that very few new devices heaters etc are now rated at 3kw most are around 2.2kw

 

[PJ87]

When it comes to ratings for 13a sockets and continuous use such as in EV charging there is some arguments some say it is 8 amp and others 10. Some say you should have a dedicated socket specificly labelled for EV use.

The age of the sockets can be a very important factor as plastic degrades over time.

One point that was made when I looked it up was that very few new devices heaters etc are now rated at 3kw most are around 2.2kw

For pure clarity I do use a granny charger when at work. And if my home charger failed I would park down my garage and use that socket (as there is only a freezer on it) and charge down there until I could get it fixed

I'm not saying it's completely unsafe. However I would (like electrify say) have the circuit and socket checked by a sparky before using as a perm solution

However if you are getting things checked anyways, that added to granny chargers are less common as standard now (Corsa and Kia didn't come with one, Kona did) I'd say it's worth the extra to just get a home charger and take advantage of like you say OVO charging

 

[jim8flog]

My garage circuit was not on a ring just a spur.
An EV charger and a freezer would probably overload a spur
If yours is the same I would be careful and as you say have a Sparky check it.

 

[PJ87]

My garage circuit was not on a ring just a spur.
An EV charger and a freezer would probably overload a spur
If yours is the same I would be careful and as you say have a Sparky check it.

My garage isn't on a spur, it's on a dedicated feed from the consumer unit with armoured cable on a 32amp breaker

Made sure when the consumer unit was replaced that he fed the garage as part of the work as we discovered the previous owner had been running the whole thing off lighting cable. This however proves what I've been saying. If I had just plugged into the garage when it was on lighting cable (that we did not know about) that would have caused some damage

People can easily do this without knowing using a granny cable which is why I'd recommend a full EV charger or least a sparky check before using a granny permanently

 

[bobmac]

I had a perhaps similar 'might move in near future' thought which played into not fitting a full charge point right now.

That was my thought.
Wait until you move and then get the home charger, solar and batteries as you'll be changing your electric supplier anyway. And if you want to get the EV before you move you could charge from home. It would be a good idea to get a sparky to check your wiring/socket.
You might even find the house you buy has a home charger already fitted, especially if it's a newish house.

 

[PJ87]

That was my thought.
Wait until you move and then get the home charger, solar and batteries as you'll be changing your electric supplier anyway. And if you want to get the EV before you move you could charge from home. It would be a good idea to get a sparky to check your wiring/socket.
You might even find the house you buy has a home charger already fitted, especially if it's a newish house.

On the flip side if you get a charger now it's linked with raised asking price for a house.. as it's EV ready

Plus if anything happens and a move is pushed down the road he would benefit from the charger longer.

 

[bobmac]

On the flip side if you get a charger now it's linked with raised asking price for a house.. as it's EV ready

Plus if anything happens and a move is pushed down the road he would benefit from the charger longer.

Pros and cons on both sides.

 

[road2ruin]

I know there was great interest in it at the time especially in the Daily Fail et al and I’m sure they’ll be keen to report on the findings from Bedfordshire Fire Servie about it he Luton car park fire….

“The vehicle involved was diesel-powered – it was not a mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid or electric vehicle.”

A very disappointing outcome for some……

 

[cliveb]

I know there was great interest in it at the time especially in the Daily Fail et al and I’m sure they’ll be keen to report on the findings from Bedfordshire Fire Servie about it he Luton car park fire….

“The vehicle involved was diesel-powered – it was not a mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid or electric vehicle.”

A very disappointing outcome for some……

Surely the most disappointing thing is that a brand new multi million pound car park was totally destroyed as a result of one car catching fire.
Wouldn't you think that such a facility should have systems in place to avoid that?

 

[PJ87]

I know there was great interest in it at the time especially in the Daily Fail et al and I’m sure they’ll be keen to report on the findings from Bedfordshire Fire Servie about it he Luton car park fire….

“The vehicle involved was diesel-powered – it was not a mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid or electric vehicle.”

A very disappointing outcome for some……

It suited the agenda at the time to blame electric cars. Soon as it happened there was more speak that it was an EV than concern for people involved.

As with everything else the truth got in the way of a good story and the actual report into it gets buried

Much like the report being buried that people actually like low traffic neighbourhoods as they feel safer where they live than before.

Pathetic really.

On another note I've got the wife's car down to 56% finding it hard to actually get the range down enough to warrant a charge , she's out in it tomorrow with eldest and we are going for dinner so might take it and then charge.

One thing I am still even now getting my head around is seeing 130 miles left or whatever it is .. when in a petrol car I never let it get that low but now my thinking is its plenty etc

 

[Bunkermagnet]

When it comes to ratings for 13a sockets and continuous use such as in EV charging there is some arguments some say it is 8 amp and others 10. Some say you should have a dedicated socket specificly labelled for EV use.

The age of the sockets can be a very important factor as plastic degrades over time.

One point that was made when I looked it up was that very few new devices heaters etc are now rated at 3kw most are around 2.2kw

Nearly all overheated sockets/burnt plugs I have seen have all been down to lazy plug pin recievers of loose wires in a plug. Any making/breaking of a 240v connection will create an arc and by nature heat.