Electric Car Experiences

[f4eru]

Single module replacement a third party costs much less.
Tanking in gas in a diesel car can also cost 20 000 $  in repair.
A broken timing belt in a comparable high end  ICE car also.

[SilverSolder]

Single module replacement a third party costs much less.
Tanking in gas in a diesel car can also cost 20 000 $  in repair.
A broken timing belt in a comparable high end  ICE car also.

Dynamiting your car is definitely expensive!

[not1xor1]

It I don't know if Renault have been striving for cost savings or weight saving but it looks as if they have gone a little too far on the ZOE... https://www.itv.com/news/meridian/2021-12-10/car-crash-tests-sees-zero-rating-for-renault-model-but-how-safe-is-your-car

On Saturday in the afternoon I left my new ZOE (just 3 months old) connected to a Heidelberg wallbox (at 12A). The next morning all the lights were flashing and the doors would no longer open. After pressing the key open / close buttons several times, I managed to turn off the lights and open the car, but nothing worked anymore. So I was forced to call for assistance to have it transported to the workshop. I'm afraid I won't have it back before January... 

[DougSpindler]

GM is having serious issues with Bolts and Volts.
Exploding batteries with the Bolt.
Shift to Park with the Volt.  Took the dealer nearly 2 months having my car for nearly 2 months before I got the car back.

[aheid]

Not strictly EV related... our i3 got hit by another car in an intersection recently.

We got hit almost square on the rear wheel, so only minor damage to the body panels and rear door were visible. Not a mark on the rims. However the impact was big enough that our car got thrown a meter or so away and rotated 90 degrees in the process...

When the repair shop started repairs they noticed a crack in the carbon fiber monocoque, and with that the car written off. So now we're gonna spend xmas looking for a new car...

To make this a bit more on topic, I'll note what we really liked about the i3:

- No center console blocking driver and passenger seats. So handy when parking in tight spots to be able to easily scoot over to the passenger side to get out, for example. Also nice for putting stuff, like a purse etc.

- Physical knobs and buttons for important stuff. This is going to be a real pain point with potential candidates it seems. As an example, i just watched a video about the new Hyundai Ioniq 5, need to navigate two menus to get to a "button" on the touch screen to operate the seat warmers... wtf?! We live in Norway, seat warmer settings will be changed many times per day for at least a third of a year. Also winter = gloves and/or dry hands, neither which work particularly well with touch sensors.

- For a city car the range was all we needed. We've been on multiple holidays with it and had no issue with the range. While we'll likely get a car with a longer range, it won't be at the top of our list.

- Excellent turning radius, very practical in a city car.

[SilverSolder]

Not strictly EV related... our i3 got hit by another car in an intersection recently.

We got hit almost square on the rear wheel, so only minor damage to the body panels and rear door were visible. Not a mark on the rims. However the impact was big enough that our car got thrown a meter or so away and rotated 90 degrees in the process...

When the repair shop started repairs they noticed a crack in the carbon fiber monocoque, and with that the car written off. So now we're gonna spend xmas looking for a new car...

To make this a bit more on topic, I'll note what we really liked about the i3:

- No center console blocking driver and passenger seats. So handy when parking in tight spots to be able to easily scoot over to the passenger side to get out, for example. Also nice for putting stuff, like a purse etc.

- Physical knobs and buttons for important stuff. This is going to be a real pain point with potential candidates it seems. As an example, i just watched a video about the new Hyundai Ioniq 5, need to navigate two menus to get to a "button" on the touch screen to operate the seat warmers... wtf?! We live in Norway, seat warmer settings will be changed many times per day for at least a third of a year. Also winter = gloves and/or dry hands, neither which work particularly well with touch sensors.

- For a city car the range was all we needed. We've been on multiple holidays with it and had no issue with the range. While we'll likely get a car with a longer range, it won't be at the top of our list.

- Excellent turning radius, very practical in a city car.

Doesn't sound like it takes much of an accident to write a car off these days?

[aheid]

Doesn't sound like it takes much of an accident to write a car off these days?

It did come as a bit of a surprise, though I definitely thought it surely would be more than just bodywork damage. After all the 1300 kg worth of car was thrown around by the impact, it wasn't shoved.

[coppice]

Doesn't sound like it takes much of an accident to write a car off these days?

It did come as a bit of a surprise, though I definitely thought it surely would be more than just bodywork damage. After all the 1300 kg worth of car was thrown around by the impact, it wasn't shoved.

Composite and laminated structures can be very troublesome in accidents. They are usually super strong, but when the stress gets too much for them they don't fail with much grace. For a seriously expensive composite structure, like the body of a 787 aircraft, being able to minimise the chance of an impact writing off the entire aircraft is a key issue in making the product viable. I assume BMW only built the i3 that way because they didn't expect it to reach high volume.

[abquke]

Hiya. New to forum. I got a 2020 Chevy Bolt last October and have been super happy with it. Particularly happy lately with having an EV along with household solar.

[NiHaoMike]

[SilverSolder]

Hiya. New to forum. I got a 2020 Chevy Bolt last October and have been super happy with it. Particularly happy lately with having an EV along with household solar.

Sounds like the ideal combination! 

What kind of range are you getting?

[abquke]

Sounds like the ideal combination! 

What kind of range are you getting?

I'll charge to 80% per recall suggestion and be a tick or so the 50% mark in a week of ordinary commuting. I'm stingy with power, so mileage may literally vary.

[abquke]

Or to answer more precisely. I'm quoted 280 miles on a full charge, but that's an estimate based on driving behavior.

[DougSpindler]

Or to answer more precisely. I'm quoted 280 miles on a full charge, but that's an estimate based on driving behavior.

What about when the temperate changes?  The range on my EV drops by nearly 50% when the weather gets cold.

[abquke]

Yeah definitely less when it's cold. I don't recall the figures from this past winter though. That being said, I'm in the southwest US and probably don't have "cold" winters according to a lot of the rest of the US.

Range is also affected by use of the heater or A/C too and I'm a power-stingy engineer too.

[DougSpindler]

I am in the San Francisco Bay Area where temperatures rarely drop below 32F/0C.  The first winter we had the car we were shocked by the decrease in range, nearly 50% over 3 months.  We thought for sure something we had a defective battery.  But come about February the miles were increasing.  And by March, it was back to full range.

I just saw a picture for gas prices in Northern California, Mendocino County where it $9.80 gal or $2.58 L.  I think price for gas in Europe is $1.70 L

[abquke]

I'm going to laugh all the way to the bank... just as soon as these solar panels are paid off

[SilverSolder]

I have a hybrid car, it gets dramatically worse economy during winter as well.

No such thing as a free lunch....

[DougSpindler]

I'm going to laugh all the way to the bank... just as soon as these solar panels are paid off

I smile as a drive past gas stations.  I watched as a guy who filled his mussel car with gas, spending $130.  He was so made he then peeled out of the gas station burning rubber.  Between the gas the tire wear I bet that cost him a few dollars he probably doesn't have.

[abquke]

The salt in the wound is that most EVs can probably accelerate faster than those stock muscle cars

[DougSpindler]

The salt in the wound is that most EVs can probably accelerate faster than those stock muscle cars

That's the reality, but in the deranged minds of muscle car owners the louder the car, the faster it is.

[coppice]

That's the reality, but in the deranged minds of muscle car owners the louder the car, the faster it is.

Many governments are trying to enforce quieter cars with new regulations. However, what is happening in Europe right now seems stupid. Electric cars are failing the proposed standards, just on tyre noise. Super quiet tyres are possible, but they waste energy. I assume more balanced specs will be used in the final standards.

[DougSpindler]

That's the reality, but in the deranged minds of muscle car owners the louder the car, the faster it is.

Many governments are trying to enforce quieter cars with new regulations. However, what is happening in Europe right now seems stupid. Electric cars are failing the proposed standards, just on tyre noise. Super quiet tyres are possible, but they waste energy. I assume more balanced specs will be used in the final standards.

Something I learned is the louder tires result in less efficiency.  (How much I do not know, but it makes sense.)  Tire noise requires energy.  The louder the tire noise requires more energy leaving less to power the car.

[coppice]

That's the reality, but in the deranged minds of muscle car owners the louder the car, the faster it is.

Many governments are trying to enforce quieter cars with new regulations. However, what is happening in Europe right now seems stupid. Electric cars are failing the proposed standards, just on tyre noise. Super quiet tyres are possible, but they waste energy. I assume more balanced specs will be used in the final standards.

Something I learned is the louder tires result in less efficiency.  (How much I do not know, but it makes sense.)  Tire noise requires energy.  The louder the tire noise requires more energy leaving less to power the car.

Sound takes very little energy. Soft quiet tyres, squidge as they roll and get warm. That wastes a lot of energy.

[DougSpindler]

That's the reality, but in the deranged minds of muscle car owners the louder the car, the faster it is.

Many governments are trying to enforce quieter cars with new regulations. However, what is happening in Europe right now seems stupid. Electric cars are failing the proposed standards, just on tyre noise. Super quiet tyres are possible, but they waste energy. I assume more balanced specs will be used in the final standards.

I would agree.  Look at the size of the battery in wireless ear buds.


Something I learned is the louder tires result in less efficiency.  (How much I do not know, but it makes sense.)  Tire noise requires energy.  The louder the tire noise requires more energy leaving less to power the car.

Sound takes very little energy. Soft quiet tyres, squidge as they roll and get warm. That wastes a lot of energy.