EV Thread

[nuttinnew]

assuming 30mpg in a petrol

Why so low?

Take that Daily Mail.

Always, I don't want to detract from it.

[Carlos]

Simply the last time I visited them was Jan 2020 in my M2.

Even my wife's new petrol Sportage wouldn't be much better.

[IanF]

Interesting..

[nuttinnew]

Simply the last time I visited them was Jan 2020 in my M2.

Even my wife's new petrol Sportage wouldn't be much better.

Ah, fair enough - Sportage sounds thirsty enough to justify using the M2 instead

[Explosive Newt]

I still have absolutey no idea whether I should fully charge my car or not. The only info Tesla want to give is that you should charge it fully about once a week but what is optimal for daily charging I have no idea. I currently go for 75% most of the time and only run it up to full when I am going to drive it immediately after.

[16vCento]

I'd say if you're not keeping it forever just charge it fully and don't worry about it.

Although only a PHEV, I fully charge the Kuga most days even if it's not empty, I'd rather have all the miles I can.

[Mito Man]

I still have absolutey no idea whether I should fully charge my car or not. The only info Tesla want to give is that you should charge it fully about once a week but what is optimal for daily charging I have no idea. I currently go for 75% most of the time and only run it up to full when I am going to drive it immediately after.

Which Model 3 do you have?

[Rich B]

I'd say if you're not keeping it forever just charge it fully and don't worry about it.

Although only a PHEV, I fully charge the Kuga most days even if it's not empty, I'd rather have all the miles I can.

kind of sums up why the second hand market for EVs is messed up - no one even knows whether they should be charging the batteries fully or not - yet the manufacturers are happy to quote full battery ranges.

[Barry]

If you don't need it full why worry about it, for daily use? I tend to just chuck a couple hours into it every few days, only 100% if I need the full range.

Also, if you're home charging I wouldn't worry about it either way, it's a trickle charge in real terms, so it shouldn't upset the battery too much.

[Rich B]

If you don't need it full why worry about it, for daily use? I tend to just chuck a couple hours into it every few days, only 100% if I need the full range.

Also, if you're home charging I wouldn't worry about it either way, it's a trickle charge in real terms, so it shouldn't upset the battery too much.

Fine if your daily usage is a predictable short journey, but I'd want to be keeping the battery full - in case a site visit was sprung on me some something. Is that bad for it?

[16vCento]

Yeah I wouldn't be messing about with a full EV, I'd just leave it in charge all the time at home and keep it full, I'd rather have the convenience than worry about what might or might not happen.

[Beany]

I'd expect any decent BMS to not charge the individual cells to 100% (as it's individual cells charging to 100% all the time that causes issues, along with high charge rates when near full), but to charge them to 85-90% and have that as the rated 'max charge' capacity.

That manufacturers aren't very transparent about this sort of thing is the real problem.

[Carlos]

As Barry says it's not an issue with AC charging just fill it up.

With the i3 the handbook even says you can charge to 100% on DC. The BMS tapers the load above 90% for you.

[Mito Man]

Most cars which aren’t Tesla’s have a bigger buffer so you can charge them to what is claimed to be 100% without problem. Not so on a Tesla however the charging display recommends what percentage, and you can charge above it for longer trips but you should’ve just leave it charged at 100% overnight. The idea is you set the time of departure and it charges it so it is at 100% as you leave.
The LFP cars are different and you need to charge them to 100% at least once a week or they lose calibration.
It’s all on the screen/app

[Barry]

If you don't need it full why worry about it, for daily use? I tend to just chuck a couple hours into it every few days, only 100% if I need the full range.

Also, if you're home charging I wouldn't worry about it either way, it's a trickle charge in real terms, so it shouldn't upset the battery too much.

Fine if your daily usage is a predictable short journey, but I'd want to be keeping the battery full - in case a site visit was sprung on me some something. Is that bad for it?

Yeah, in your case it's probably sensible to keep it topped up. Only bad if you're rapid charging it each time though, if just filling it every night at home, I wouldn't worry.

[mik]

Audi recommend (for the original E-Tron) that you charge to 80% for normal use, and only to 90% or 100% when you need to. This isn't any issue for normal day-to-day needs. We've probably charged it to 100% less than 10x since we got it, and that's generally done on a timer so it's complete 15-30mins before we plan to leave. It's easy enough to change the charge level via the app.

[Rich B]

Yeah, it's only really "what-if-ism" but I can't help thinking that level of confusion and fear mongering will really kill the 2nd hand market for EVs.

What if the battery is fucked and I need to spend £xxxx on a new one? Etc...

[Matty]

Do cars adjust their estimated range as they get older, or do they work like old mobile phones and laptops which report 8 hours use but only last 2?

[16vCento]

Two I3's I looked at both showed full charges but one showed 130 miles and the other 151, both similar mileage cars and both 69 plate cars.

I'd guess there's a lot to take onto account though, so I'm not sure without plugging it in and checking actual cell values how you would ascertain the health of it, I know Nissan have an indicator iirc showing how much of the original charge it can still take?

[Carlos]

There is an 8 year 100k miles warranty on lots of EV's, i couldn't find a single example of a hv battery failure in the uk on an i3 before buying mine.