I've driven exclusively electric cars at home for the last three years. While they certainly make me happier on a day-to-day basis, longer trips are much more stressful.
I look forward to the day of common 1000 volt architectures and megawatt charging.
Plugin hybrid is great for road trips. Ev only standard days and had for road trips
That said the latest Gen with 80% charging in like 10 minutes is crazy good. Once there are more chargers like that sounds it will make ev only just as quick as gas fill up
I managed to hit some v4 superchargers on my most recent trip, and 20 minutes from 14-78% was refreshing.
I take a 6 hour trip twice a month with my EV. It really isn't bad because I know where to stop. But the first few times was stressful just because there isn't the abundance of chargers.
But also there were two times I've had to wait for a charger and that really sucka.
I will say, for me, charging speeds are fast enough. Make everything 150+ kw and more of them at each location, and I think thats good enough for 90% of road trips.
Megawatt is so useless doe
I betcha that EV drivers pass by gas stations nearly every time they go on a drive, reminding them of the costs they no longer have to pay to keep their car moving.
It's not even the cost, it's never having to divert from my commute to put fuel in the car because I've been putting it off for a week and now it's both critical and more inconvenient than ever.
Until a road trip where they wish chargers were as obvious as gas stations. Enough exist to make the trip, but are not as common and are not on the beaten path so you need an app to find them.
When I make a road trip I'm often traveling on roads I've already looked up and I don't wasn't that voice yelling at me so I'm not using a GPS most of the time. We still use the gas car for road trips, but I often play the game "it had been 150 miles where is the nearest charger without using an app" I typically don't find it the next 50. An app would find one in sure but that isn't something I should need.
For short trips my EV passes them all and like you say I'm glad I'm not paying those prices. Until I pull into a charger because it is there and discover they have weird pricing systems. yesterday has would have been cheaper because I didn't know I would have to move so fast and so I paid a minimum charge more half hour worth of charge was worth. (The group tour said meet here I thought it was to unload not drive into normally of limits areas.)
Rented an EV once on a vacation. First time ever with an EV. Intentionally to force myself to learn. I spent the nights on that trip researching chargers and looking for charge stations on my path next day that can do fast charging. Definitely there was a bit of range anxiety throughout and slightly inconvenienced. But it was agood learning experience. Would do it again 😀
Not a compelling argument for an EV of you have to spend that much effort planning the trip. There is freedom knowing your gas car is never more than 15 minutes from a refuel - it costs a lot more for that, but it is also liberty knowing you can safely change plans on a whim.
I just took a decent trip in mine. It was fine.
Trips are absolutely doable. However they are not as easy.
this is... an interesting argument. as an EV driver, you're essentially saying 'I want giant signs and chargers on every corner' which is how you'd find them without needing a map. this seems unlikely to really ever happen because we simply have better options now, but I guess we'll see.
I guess Im old because having charging stations like gas stations where you can simply pay with cash or card and no app sounds so, so much better than the current situation.
You guess right. Unfortunately many of you around to drag down improvements for the younger generations.
EDIT: I read this comment as only wanting cash payment, which I find unreasonable. App use should be optional or non-existent, I agree (but connected infrastructure is necessary, just not having an app for each charging network)
I don't think charging stations requiring an app to use/pay is an improvement, but you do you I guess.
I’m dumb and read the comment to which I replied as only wanting paying with cash “with no card or app”… I’m all in for avoiding app fragmentation and just use one card (cash is a real stretch… pretty unreasonable).
UK has a law (or similar) that you have to be able to pay with contactless on new charger or older ones above 50kw
In a lot of European countries, rest stop signs (along the highways) announce what amenities are available at the rest stop. Those signs include symbols for things like toilets, restaurants, gas stations as well as charging stations. Here's a German example. Pretty solid solution in my opinion.
BC Hydro has been very good about adding high speed chargers on all the hwy routes and many gas stations also have added chargers. It keeps getting easier to use an EV although 90% of my charging is at home.
I'm old enough to remember when driving long distances in an ICE car had some of the same range anxiety due to low milage and small tanks, which is why there are abandoned gas stations all over the place. Imagine having as many charging stations around as there are, or were, gas stations?
Meanwhile in Ontario...the feds put chargers in, Doug Ford rips them out.
At the start, then they stop looking at the signs unless the gas prices have been in the news recently.
Around me avast majority of the chargers are at Sheetz. So you go from getting gas at Sheetz. To charging your car there. Same business and location.
I wouldn't recommend an EV to anyone that can't charge at home. Unfortunately, that excludes most people in apartments.
I can't charge at home and it's fine. Fifty minutes at a public charger twice a month isn't that much of an inconvenience.
I see the lineups at fuel stations in Russia and think about how happy I am to have solar panels and an EV.
EV owner. Can confirm.
gas cars: what companies push on us to suck in our gas and repair money
EVs: what customers really need to go from A to B.
The first year is great. Then it becomes the new normal and driving ICEs is only possible with physical discomfort.
I’m on vacation and rented a plug in hybrid. It’s been 4 days and my brain is still not quite grasping that I need to press the brake pedal to make it slow down.
Regenerative braking has to be the best innovation in driving in decades.
Public charging is still annoying as hell, though.
One pedal driving is the tits
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Electric Vehicles are a key part of our tomorrow and how we get there. If we can get all the fossil fuel vehicles off our roads, out of our seas and out of our skies, we'll have a much better environment. This community is where we discuss the various different vehicles and news stories regarding electric transportation.
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