Can you pull this?
Posted on 05/23/2021 7:10:50 AM PDT by DoodleBob
So you’re thinking about trading in your gas-guzzling SUV for a futuristic, energy-efficient, quiet-as-a-nun-walking-through-the-Vatican fully electric vehicle? Mazel Tov! But you’re wondering how long it takes to charge an EV? Well, fine sir or madam, you’ve come to the right place.
The electron pit-stop offers different charge rates based on capability, type of charger, weather, temperature, how many cars are connected to the station, time of day, and your car’s battery capacity. As such, EV chargers often require a quick tutorial by the manufacturer or dealer. But just like pumping gas, after a few fill-ups it becomes second nature.
To make understanding EV jargon easier, The Drive’s crack How-To department is here to answer just how long it takes to charge an electric vehicle, along with a handful of other frequently asked questions about EVs.
Game?
Nearly every electric vehicle comes with a factory-provided charger, but manufacturers and third-party businesses offer faster, more efficient chargers, too. These can be installed by an electrician or be gas station-like chargers installed throughout the country.
Here’s a quick rundown of the type of chargers available:
Now that you have an idea of the types of chargers available, here are The Drive’s estimates of how long it will take your electric car to charge, variables notwithstanding.
While conventional gasoline pumps have a predetermined flow rate, which can be somewhat affected by the number of cars fueling up, a charger’s is subject to a great many more variables that affect how quickly its EV juice is dispensed.
Here are some variables that affect an electric car’s charge speed:
In the U.S., the national average cost per kWh is around $0.13 but can reach $0.32 per hour in Hawaii—aloha. On average, however, you’ll spend less charging your EV than you would fueling a gasoline-powered vehicle.
There are also costs associated with your selected charger. Standard Level 1 chargers are normally included in the price of a vehicle, but if you want a faster Level 2 charger, that’ll require more investment as they’re more than just a plug-and-play setup.
Tesla offers its Gen 3 wall charger for $500, and third-party chargers can range from $400 to $900, plus $1,500 to $2,000 for installation.
How far you can travel in an electric vehicle has become a sticking point, with many potential buyers citing “range anxiety” as the biggest hurdle to adoption.
Just like a gasoline-powered car, the estimated electric range varies from car to car. Consumers can get anywhere from 84 miles in a Fiat 500e to well into the 300-mile range in an EV like a Tesla Model 3 Long Range or Porsche Taycan.
Considering the average American’s commute is 16 miles, any of the current EVs offer more than enough range. Charging stations are also becoming more common along highways making long-distance road trips achievable.
Electric vehicles are still in their infancy and as such can still suffer from build quality issues that commonly affect the first-generation system. That will change.
As subsequent evolutions of the electric vehicle roll off the assembly line, EVs have the real potential to be more reliable than any gasoline-powered car. An electric car requires only a few moving parts, as well as few parts that require fluids that could be corrupted by the elements, fuel, particulates, or grease. Thus, electric cars won’t need as much maintenance and could triple a car’s longevity.
You've got questions, The Drive has answers!
A. As shown about, they'll supply about 30 miles of range in one hour. Though, at-home chargers are getting faster as the tech proliferates.
A. That would be either the Porsche Taycan or Audi E-tron GT, both of which ride on the same electrical architecture and can make use of the 800v ultra-fast charging.
A. You can and can't. Most manufacturers have built-in safe guards so that you don't overcharge your vehicle. Tesla actually released a patch that modifies its car's thermal loads and charge capabilities after a handful of cars spontaneously combusted.
A. According to GMC, it'll take about 10 minutes to restore 100 miles of range when the truck goes on sale in 2022.
Yeah, bring back the roadhouse whorehouses of the Old West with a modern twist. “Recharge you batteries at the ‘Screw ‘n Skiddadle’”.
To add 50kwh to a car in half an hour at 240 volts is something like 400 amps per car. Obviously higher voltages to recharging complexes are needed.
The Charlton area apparently has a 345 kilovolt transmission line in that area somewhat parallel to the Pike between Springfield and Worcester:
https://www.iso-ne.com/static-assets/documents/2020/04/new-england-geographic-diagram-transmission-planning.pdf
Can you pull this?
LOL -- There's at least one snowfall each winter that drops >2ft of snow on my driveway, often a few. Clearing 2 feet of snow, 10 feet wide minimum, for just shy of a half-mile, is roughly 50,000 cubic feet of snow to move. Don't forget, this is in thick hilly woods, there's no way to carry electricity to a discharged vehicle half-way down the slope. You CAN carry a gas can.
All-electric snow-plow pickup? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
“Yup. Charge it at night when demand is lower. If you have electric appliances and mechanicals that could be tricky to avoid overloading.”
Most lights and appliances are off when I sleep.
Many are saying “Charge your car overnight in the garage”
Well you better have good FIRE INSURANCE! How many electric cars have caught on fire in the garage and burnt the house down? A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. The electric cars are prone to fire. Check it out!
” The electric cars are prone to fire. Check it out!”
Less prone than gas cars. Check it out!
“Gas power rules!”
I’ve said a thousand tmes on FR: anything you plug into an electrical outlet is an APPLIANCE, not a car.
The 800volt battery platform on the Porsche is a big step forward to make fast charging work. But the public will be limited to accessible voltages up to 1000volts per the National Electric Code (and probably OSHA), as this considered low voltage 0-1000v (used to be 0-600v but was changed mostly to accommodate string solar configurations). I'm not an expert on EV's but I do understand that you can't change the physics of energy transfer.
“What happens when electric rates skyrocket?”
Like gas prices!
“Well you better have good FIRE INSURANCE! How many electric cars have caught on fire in the garage and burnt the house down?”
Garages used to be separated from houses until about the 1920’s.
Horseless carriages were considered very dangerous.
“The first state to offer auto liability insurance was Connecticut, in 1925. Connecticut required drivers to demonstrate financial responsibility in the event of an auto accident resulting in injury, death, and property damage....
Truly mandatory auto insurance became necessary in most states in the 1970s. Massachusetts was the first state (second to Connecticut’s financial responsibility statute and premise) to make auto insurance mandatory for drivers in 1927.”
https://www.autoinsurance.org/when-did-auto-insurance-become-mandatory
I would advise learning a good trade like barrel making or buggy whip manufacturing.
Not my post.
If my power goes out can I charge it with a gas generator? What if you are in a traffic jam in the winter and you have to run the heat or does it come with a Mr Buddy propane heater? If you run out of power does AAA tow you home or the nearest charge station? I am not against EV, but you can’t legislate technology advancements. This technology is not there yet. Toyota said Hybrid is the bridge to the technology being viable. The American car companies are jumping in with both feet because they know Uncle Sugar will subsidize them.
Fast charging will generally shorten battery life. If something goes wrong & the battery catches fire, good luck trying to put it out.
“I’m not an expert on EV’s but I do understand that you can’t change the physics of energy transfer.”
The reality of energy transfer is that most people don’t need to transfer it at 400 kw.
I got stuck driving north during the wildfires in NorCal driving up the 101. I didn’t realize it at the time until I saw the smoke and there were mile long lines of cars at gas stations and dozens of teslas on the side of the road. I filled up my glorious big diesel tank outside of San Fransicko and made it all the way to Crescent city Every city in between was literally shut down. No power, no gas, no groceries. The only things open were a few Indian Casinos that had their own generators and the marijuana shops. They got what they voted for good and hard.
Amazing what you can lean if you take the effort!
“Recharging speed really isn’t going to be important generally.”
To me, yes it will.
Drives in Texas, say, from DFW to Lubbock, got to stop and charge. If I have to take the time to stand there and charge a car longer than it takes to gas up, not for me.
Drive DFW to El Paso, no overnight stops on this one-day 9 to 11-hr drive. No decent restaurants for a break, and after passing west of Midland, no decent places for a meal, and fast food places are gawd awful. Again, if charging takes longer than filling up my car, EV not for me. I want to make my drive as soon as possible, not loiter around waiting for a charge.
Driving for me can be relaxing, more so than flying, but stopping is a pain.
Just me talking. . . .
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