Electric Car Purchase

[chisag]

13 minutes ago, CFreddie said:

With all these complaints about the heat in AZ, I'm surprised you still live there! 

But seriously, I haven't had to use public chargers much, especially in my area where they really only offer the "slow" version.  Definitely agree with Jamie - home charging in a garage is the way to go!

 

... No complaints, just facts. I complained about snow and cold so this is what I signed up for. And it's only about 2-3 months then heaven for 9 months. Winter here is about as good as it gets. 

... I get FREE DC charging for 3 years at Electrify America so when I am near any EA stations, I usually get a free charge. But I won't even bother if the temps are over 100* in the sun and I can only get 10% in 30 minutes. At night even 100* seems like 85* without the sun and I can usually charge around 50%. But I hear ya on home charging and I have the EV plan for reduced rates between 11:30pm and 5am so I just plug mine in and program my GV60 to start charging then. I am only 4 months in so still learning as I go ...

[chisag]

26 minutes ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

I've been charging at home to avoid that. 

Sucks that it happened for you that way. There is certainly more planning involved in having a electric which isn't a bad thing, but for sure is not for everyone.

 

... Thanks, I guess sometimes FREE isn't exactly free. I have had good experiences with the DC chargers until this time and it was my first with intense heat. I had to go there anyway so figured a free top off was a good idea. Looks like I will be charging at home in the summer and using DC when convenient during the rest of the year, at least until my free 3 yr charging with Electrify America expires. Doing research it seems DC charging isn't the best idea for battery longevity but every now and then and stopping at 80% seems to be OK. 

[Middler]

It's killing me to wait, but the next update on the Model Y will be substantial, not the usual evolutionary updates. I had one ordered in Jan, but cancelled once I understood what's coming. I want one yesterday, already have the home charger installed, but I may have to wait another 6-9 months... 

[chisag]

1 minute ago, Middler said:

It's killing me to wait, but the next update on the Model Y will be substantial, not the usual evolutionary updates. I had one ordered in Jan, but cancelled once I understood what's coming. I want one yesterday, already have the home charger installed, but I may have to wait another 6-9 months... 

 

... Haha I went through the same thing. Ordered the Mach E and then cancelled 9 months later when they hadn't started building it and ordered my GV60. It arrived 10 months later but when I went to pick it up it was the more expensive Performance model with less range and I had installed my home charger too. Mine finally came in 5 months later with the charger sitting money in my garage. But I got the EV I really wanted and I'll say this. It was worth the 2 year wait.  

[funkyjudge]

10 minutes ago, Middler said:

It's killing me to wait, but the next update on the Model Y will be substantial, not the usual evolutionary updates. I had one ordered in Jan, but cancelled once I understood what's coming. I want one yesterday, already have the home charger installed, but I may have to wait another 6-9 months... 

Just curious, which home charger did you install?  I have a Volvo T8 Recharge plug-in hybrid and really need to upgrade my electrical wiring and have a charger installed in my garage or on the outside wall outside of the garage. I have been looking at various ChargePoint and Autel models.

[chisag]

23 minutes ago, funkyjudge said:

which home charger did you install?

 

... I use a JuiceBox 40 and it works great. Got mine from my Utility Company for $399 so maybe yours has a deal? Costco also carries them:

https://www.costco.com/juicebox-40-amp-electric-vehicle-charging-station-with-nema%2C-20-ft-cable.product.100574926.html

[funkyjudge]

11 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... I use a JuiceBox 40 and it works great. Got mine from my Utility Company for $399 so maybe yours has a deal? Costco also carries them:

https://www.costco.com/juicebox-40-amp-electric-vehicle-charging-station-with-nema%2C-20-ft-cable.product.100574926.html

That is actually another one that I have considered.

[GaryF]

On 5/26/2022 at 9:30 AM, fixyurdivot said:

This is a pretty solid "stake in the ground".  Doubt we'll see such a ban here in the US (at least in most our lifespans), but eventually the technology and infrastructure will probably not require one anyway.

Recharge time requirements are still a big hinderance to folks choosing all electric.  Level 3 (fastest) chargers are not the norm and certainly not at peoples homes where most recharging is done.  Even with L2 chargers at home the average recharge time is ~8 hours for most 2022 model cars.  For anyone considering an all electric, spend some time thoroughly researching this.  Much like salesman who tell folks "oh heck yeah, this truck can haul that RV no problem"... don't rely solely on them for answering the recharge and range questions.

As a Florida home owner as well as GA, we’ll know when the infrastructure can support when coastal regions can evacuate for a pending hurricane. I have nothing against EV’s but doubt I’ll ever own one in my lifetime.  I did see a recent survey that the 4 ‘most American built cars’ are Tesla, Tesla, Tesla and Tesla.  GM, Ford and Chrysler are not in the top 10. 
 

 

Edited June 27, 2023 by GaryF

[Middler]

12 hours ago, funkyjudge said:

Just curious, which home charger did you install?  I have a Volvo T8 Recharge plug-in hybrid and really need to upgrade my electrical wiring and have a charger installed in my garage or on the outside wall outside of the garage. I have been looking at various ChargePoint and Autel models.

I just added a top tier commercial grade NEMA 14-50 outlet and a commercial grade 240V 50amp circuit/breaker ($485 by a professional electrician). I also bought the Tesla mobile connector ($230) and I’ll charge at 32 amps, wanted a safety factor, and that’s more than fast enough for charging overnight even 0-100% (which I’ll never do). I’ll leave the mobile connector plugged into the wall outlet to avoid insertion/removal cycles. And I can also take the mobile connector on road trips if needed to charge at 120V or 240V.

Maybe TMI but I didn’t choose a Tesla wall charger or any other hard wired unit because I wanted the flexibility to charge any EV. When I had it installed in Feb, no one other than Tesla was using the NACS connector, that’s all changing now (2024-25) with adoption by Ford, GM, Rivian and Volvo (so far), so the Tesla wall charger may be universal enough now.

Buddy of mine bought a Charge Point unit to charge his Ioniq 5 at home. He likes it, but he paid $1500 and he’s stuck with the dumb CCS connector. Yes, there’s a NACS adaptor but that just makes the plug more unwieldy.

If I was installing a wall unit today I’d seriously consider one with a NACS plug and a CCS adapter if needed for the time being (vs a CCS plug with a NACS adapter).

[Golf2Much]

1 hour ago, GaryF said:

As a Florida home owner as well as GA, we’ll know when the infrastructure can support when coastal regions can evacuate for a pending hurricane. I have nothing against EV’s but doubt I’ll ever own one in my lifetime.  I did see a recent survey that the 4 ‘most American built cars’ are Tesla, Tesla, Tesla and Tesla.  GM, Ford and Chrysler are not in the top 10. 

@GaryF I hear ya!  Living at the end of US1 in Key West an electric vehicle would be perfect down here.  When you live on a 2x4 mile island and don't drive to America very often, you don't put too many miles on a car.  My wife's four-year-old Honda CRV has less than 15K miles on it.  However, my biggest EV fear would be evacuating for a hurricane in it, running into a problem on just one of the 42 bridges in the Keys and getting stuck when it hits.  Yes, it could happen with a gas-powered car too.  But there's a better chance for getting gas if I was close to empty than competing with others for a limited number of charging stations.  

[revkev]

It’s crazy how expensive handicap vehicles have become. Disgustingly crazy!  I could by a low level Mercedes for what they want for a three year old Pacifica with 40k miles on it.  When we saw the price of used ones I said to my wife, “we are getting a new Sienna, hybrid.”  

 

So I went on a National Search.  Meet Vincent the van from a dealer in Nashville, TN. This bad boy has a range of over 600 miles - I love the hybrid technology.   He was only 10K more than the stupid 3 year old Pacifica with 40K miles on it.  

 

I really wanted a hybrid, I really wanted a Toyota and am happy we purchased this one.

[Golf2Much]

17 minutes ago, revkev said:

Meet Vincent the van. This bad boy has a range of over 600 miles - I love the hybrid technology. 

Hybrids offer the best of both worlds.   I'm pretty certain our next vehicle will be a hybrid.  It takes advantage of being semi-electric and offers a better chance of outrunning a hurricane if need be.  

[revkev]

2 minutes ago, Golf2Much said:

Hybrids offer the best of both worlds.   I'm pretty certain our next vehicle will be a hybrid.  It takes advantage of being semi-electric and offers a better chance of outrunning a hurricane if need be.  

My house is good to a CAT 4 but any threat means my way fe and daughter run - they did last year for Ian. 

[funkyjudge]

4 hours ago, Middler said:

I just added a top tier commercial grade NEMA 14-50 outlet and a commercial grade 240V 50amp circuit/breaker ($485 by a professional electrician). I also bought the Tesla mobile connector ($230) and I’ll charge at 32 amps, wanted a safety factor, and that’s more than fast enough for charging overnight even 0-100% (which I’ll never do). I’ll leave the mobile connector plugged into the wall outlet to avoid insertion/removal cycles. And I can also take the mobile connector on road trips if needed to charge at 120V or 240V.

Maybe TMI but I didn’t choose a Tesla wall charger or any other hard wired unit because I wanted the flexibility to charge any EV. When I had it installed in Feb, no one other than Tesla was using the NACS connector, that’s all changed now with adoption by Ford, GM, Rivian and Volvo (so far), so the Tesla wall charger may be universal enough now.

Buddy of mine bought a Charge Point unit to charge his Ioniq 5 at home. He likes it, but he paid $1500 and he’s stuck with the dumb CCS connector. Yes, there’s a NACS adaptor but that just makes the plug more unwieldy.

If I was installing a wall unit today I’d seriously consider one with a NACS plug and a CCS adapter if needed for the time being (vs a CCS plug with a NACS adapter).

Thank you for that comprehensive response! It includes a few things that I hadn’t thought about ( particularly regarding the NACS vs CCS plug issue.

[GolfSpy_APH]

Interesting to see and hear all the different view points for and against EVs. 

Crazy how regional dependent they are as well. 

[Middler]

9 hours ago, Golf2Much said:

Hybrids offer the best of both worlds.   I'm pretty certain our next vehicle will be a hybrid.  It takes advantage of being semi-electric and offers a better chance of outrunning a hurricane if need be.  

We’ve had 4 hybrids and they’re great, but my next car will be a BEV. Just as smart folks with ICE vehicles make sure they have a full gas tank ahead of a hurricane, BEV owners make sure they’re fully charged. In fact many BEV owners who charge at home have a “full tank” via overnight chargers every morning. While chargers may have lines of unprepared, so will gas stations. Does anyone evacuate so frequently it’s a primary purchase decision?

[revkev]

1 hour ago, Middler said:

We’ve had 4 hybrids and they’re great, but my next car will be a BEV. Just as smart folks with ICE vehicles make sure they have a full gas tank ahead of a hurricane, BEV owners make sure they’re fully charged. In fact many BEV owners who charge at home have a “full tank” via overnight chargers every morning. While chargers may have lines of unprepared, so will gas stations. Does anyone evacuate so frequently it’s a primary purchase decision?

I do apologize as I'm late in the game but if you live on the coast in a place like Florida it needs to be a primary consideration - yes.  We bought our house based on flood zone, storm safety features and ease of evacuation just in case.  Having written that there is a good deal of advanced warning for these storms.  My wife and daughter will go early if it looks like we are in the cone of uncertainty and its going to be CAT 3 or above.  

[Kanoito]

Glad we don't have hurricane concerns in Europe, hell... even snow storms are decreasing with each passing year.

Regarding hybrid cars, just wanted to share this: we got GLE Coupe hybrid since we didn't have any experience with EV and for long trips it would be a safer bet. After 2 years and 2-3 long trips with the kids, yes, the petrol engine is more convenient, but you can tell efficiency is affected negatively. It's pretty obvious, a hybrid car needs to carry 2 sets of hardware + battery and that's unnecessary dead weight. Seeing we got adequate charging infrastructure on German highways with IONIQ, I think we'll opt for a full EV Audi Q8 or similar once the lease is up.

On the other hand, my Q4 as a commuter for 20km per day is perfect, probably similar to the ID.4 experience, except that I don't have to worry about the ugly dash and side panels

[revkev]

5 minutes ago, Kanoito said:

Glad we don't have hurricane concerns in Europe, hell... even snow storms are decreasing with each passing year.

Regarding hybrid cars, just wanted to share this: we got GLE Coupe hybrid since we didn't have any experience with EV and for long trips it would be a safer bet. After 2 years and 2-3 long trips with the kids, yes, the petrol engine is more convenient, but you can tell efficiency is affected negatively. It's pretty obvious, a hybrid car needs to carry 2 sets of hardware + battery and that's unnecessary dead weight. Seeing we got adequate charging infrastructure on German highways with IONIQ, I think we'll opt for a full EV Audi Q8 or similar once the lease is up.

On the other hand, my Q4 as a commuter for 20km per day is perfect, probably similar to the ID.4 experience, except that I don't have to worry about the ugly dash and side panels

Interesting on many counts. Does your hybrid have the option to go EV? We can run the Toyota as a straight EV if we want. I’m nervous about running the battery down too far so haven’t tried that yet. 
 

Also there is currently no straight EV disability vehicle option, at least in the US. They’ve yet to figure out how to work around the battery to properly install a lift. It’s only been an option in hybrids for the past few years.  We are very happy to have entered that world. 

[Kanoito]

48 minutes ago, revkev said:

Interesting on many counts. Does your hybrid have the option to go EV? We can run the Toyota as a straight EV if we want. I’m nervous about running the battery down too far so haven’t tried that yet. 
 

Also there is currently no straight EV disability vehicle option, at least in the US. They’ve yet to figure out how to work around the battery to properly install a lift. It’s only been an option in hybrids for the past few years.  We are very happy to have entered that world. 

Yes! Actually this is one of the reasons we chose the GLE Coupe, it has a range of about 62 miles pure electric. So for daily use (wife going to work, picking up kids to school, taking them to golf training, etc.) it's enough. Matter of fact, I think she's been driving 90% electric for the past 2 years.

[Nihonsei]

On 5/25/2022 at 6:59 AM, jddaigneault said:

We have an order in for a Mustang Mach E. We live in SoCal and have solar panels on the house, so with gas prices it makes a ton of sense for us. I agree with @Shankster, I am looking forward to self charging cars!

F1 has recharge under braking and Formula E is a bit more advanced, being all electric. Not sure how that would relate to braking under normal driving speeds but I trust there will be some processes worth waiting for in the next 5 to 10 maybe?

 The strongest point, I think, by the both of you!

[GolfSpy_BEN]

Earlier this year my vehicle spent a couple of weeks at a body shop for repairs, during that period the rental company put me in an EV. A Hyundai Kona, specifically. Overall the experience was positive and I will give serious consideration to an EV for my next purchase. The lone negative was charging related. As it was a temporary situation, I had no viable in home charging capacity. The cord they supplied with the vehicle plugged into a wall outlet and after 8 hours, would increase the battery by 20-25%. As I was driving 100 miles roundtrip daily for work, it meant every 2 days I would spend a couple of hours at the Electrify America station to bring it up to a full charge. However, the driving experience was exceptional, so if/when I buy an EV I will definitely have to sort out the home charging piece.

[GolfSpy_APH]

13 minutes ago, Nihonsei said:

F1 has recharge under braking and Formula E is a bit more advanced, being all electric. Not sure how that would relate to braking under normal driving speeds but I trust there will be some processes worth waiting for in the next 5 to 10 maybe?

 The strongest point, I think, by the both of you!

Most EVs already have a brake regen mode. 

I have found I can over the course of a normal cycle regain about 8-12% not a lot, but better than nothing!

[revkev]

1 hour ago, Kanoito said:

Yes! Actually this is one of the reasons we chose the GLE Coupe, it has a range of about 62 miles pure electric. So for daily use (wife going to work, picking up kids to school, taking them to golf training, etc.) it's enough. Matter of fact, I think she's been driving 90% electric for the past 2 years.

Excellent! It’s about 5 miles to work for me so I will adopt that strategy. I care a good deal about being a steward of the creation around me. 

[revkev]

How many of you have charging stations at your golf club? Many of the clubs here do. 

[roland49]

I am on my second Toyota Rav4 hybrid. 40mpg. As a hybrid, no charging is required, plenty of power and good gas mileage

[George Kelley]

I just bought a Kia EV6; and I am learning that it is  stressful finding charging stations when traveling beyond local commuting. There needs to be more non-Tesla charging stations along normal highway routes. It is grossly inadequate and often the stations you find are not working.

[revkev]

30 minutes ago, George Kelley said:

I just bought a Kia EV6; and I am learning that it is  stressful finding charging stations when traveling beyond local commuting. There needs to be more non-Tesla charging stations along normal highway routes. It is grossly inadequate and often the stations you find are not working.

Amen to that - if we want to transition from fossil fuels we should consider adding these pronto. Plus it would create jobs. I thought it was telling that Kanito has an ample supply of stations. 
 

I would also be nice to see R and D develop longer life batteries. 

[chisag]

2 hours ago, Ben Joest said:

However, the driving experience was exceptional, so if/when I buy an EV I will definitely have to sort out the home charging piece.

 

 

... Reading many reviews and estimates where you place your charger makes a huge difference. I know some have long distances between junction box and garage but I am lucky enough to have my junction box on the outside of my garage so the electrician was able to just drill through the wall and install my 220 outlet. It cost $445. My Juicebox 40 was on sale for $399 through my Utility company. So a total of $844 to charge at home and I will recoup that well within 2 years with the added convenience of never waiting in line for gas. Just plug Ian overbite about once or twice a week and I am charged to 80%. 

[Kanoito]

16 hours ago, revkev said:

Amen to that - if we want to transition from fossil fuels we should consider adding these pronto. Plus it would create jobs. I thought it was telling that Kanito has an ample supply of stations. 
 

I would also be nice to see R and D develop longer life batteries. 

Charging stations here are standardized and universal, so not the proprietary ones Tesla uses, not sure if they are compatible?

EDIT: just check, most charging stations in Europe use Type 2-Mode 3, which is the same type Tesla uses in addition to CCS for fast charging, so it seems they are compatible and readily available.