Random EV thoughts.....

Gumbo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122479259#Comment_122479259

I had non EV tyres fitted to a Nissan Leaf (Michelins) and non EV tyres fitted to a Model 3 (Pirelli). On the Leaf, noticed no difference but that was a L24 back a good few years ago. On the M3 I noticed it a bit louder than other M3’s I was in at the time but there’s so many circumstances that could have caused that (Fremont built V MIC) etc

Id Have no hesitation fitting non EV tyres to an EV once the load rating and Speed rating are matched to OEM figures, 92Y for example.

In theory you may suffer less range or louder drive but That’s in factory testing conditions. On the road with Irish surfaces, radio on, kids battling in a royal rumble in the back seats, would you notice?

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122479497#Comment_122479497

I'm going to second this, got non EV tyres fitted to the Leaf years ago. There was maybe a 5% increase in consumption for a month or two and then I think the tyres wore in and lost a little bit of rolling resistance

There was a corresponding slight increase in road noise which again disappeared after a few weeks (or else I just stopped noticing)

From what I can tell there's a trade off between grip and efficiency with tyres. Increase one and you start losing the other

Personally I'd favour more grip since (as someone put it very succinctly earlier) the tyres are literally the only point of contact with the road. Generally when you need good road grip, you REALLY need it and I'm willing to sacrifice some range in exchange

the_amazing_raisin

Good news for anyone travelling on the M1 and looking for somewhere for the kids to burn off some energy, Applegreen have significantly improved the play area in the Lusk service stations

Looks like the bathrooms got redone as well so they're less of a horror show

Bad news is there's still a single charger at each service station, so you could end up with plenty of time to spare if there's a queue 🙄

Is it too much to ask to get good facilities and good chargers in the same place?

Flinty997

The M1 is one of my few regular long distance journeys. Apple Green used to be my go to stop. But no longer due to the lack of charging. My last time there someone was charging to 100% heading to Limerick or such. I'll not be stopping there in future.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122480144#Comment_122480144

Yeah it's very frustrating, there's Ionity in City north but that has nothing going for the service station

There's also Clonsaugh coming soon hopefully, but again not a place you'd want to spend any amount of time there

The Applegreen sites at least have some decent facilities (because TII probably forced them to) but a single charger per site

Unless you've a Tesla of course

If Applegreen would speed up their rollout, and increase the scope it would improve things a lot. At this stage 2 chargers per site isn't going to be enough when 5-6 is becoming the norm

And Applegreen don't even have 2 chargers per site 😬

Flinty997

City north is too close for me leaving Dublin heading north ish. Still there are some decent options further north just off the M1 on my route. Now I know to avoid AG I can plan around that..

Flinty997

When I got my EV there were a mixed set of no name tyres but decent reviews. One deformed (lowest load rating one) So I replaced them all with higher load rating sporty tyres. Definitely noticed a slightly stiffer ride and a slight increase in noise. The other half didn't notice. Ramps probably the only place I notice it.

JohnC.

insolvent Tritium is being acquired by Indian charging company Exicom

https://www.electrive.com/2024/08/08/tritium-to-be-acquired-by-exicom/

Exiled Rebel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122480247#Comment_122480247

The EV Charging arm of Applegreen has only been going a wet week. With 200+ stations in the country is it any wonder it's taking them so long to rollout chargers. I guess they identify the most lucrative sites and start there by dropping in a charger before moving on to the next.

For M1 travellers I can see on plugshare they are planning to install a charger at their M1 Balbriggan service station and slightly further off the motorway will be another charger at their service station at Balbriggan Shopping Centre. It should improve the situation.

Flinty997

"a"..."charger"...?

Exiled Rebel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122507939#Comment_122507939

Isn't it obvious it doesn't make financial sense to install more than 1 in a lot of these locations? Or at least it doesn't until EV's are a greater % of the fleet.

Entities like Applegreen, Circle K and eCars for example are not providing a public service. Where they install needs to make business sense.

zg3409

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122507955#Comment_122507955

Seasoned EV drivers will drive past single site chargers towards hubs where they are less likely to encounter a queue, a broken charger without another one next to it, and possibly a better food offering. In the future old small petrol stations that serve local gas guzzling owners will struggle to survive. Most EV drivers will charge at home or work, public charging will be expensive and avoided. Public charging will mostly be performed on longer inter city trips at hubs. Apartments will eventually get chargers and possibly supermarkets will join the game with 50+kW chargers. It's unlikely a local petrol station with no real grid connection and room for 10-30 cars will be viable even if they had chargers, the grid upgrade and usage would be low. The whole business model of drivers visiting once a week and buying groceries and overpriced coffee and moving on after 5 minutes may be a world away. My (very young) kids thought the red petrol station was a fire station, as they had never been there and did not know what a petrol station was ! ⛽ I want a hub 300km from where I live or 150km+ so I can top up when I need it. Everywhere within 150-200km of my home is home charger range.

Exiled Rebel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122508116#Comment_122508116

While I agree with what you say will happen in the long term the reality today is that we're still in the early stages of adoption. The transition as we're currently seeing involves the rollout of one or two chargers dotted around the place. They will either be pulled out in time or additional chargers dropped in to create hubs as EV's become ubiquitous.

Until then the business case of installing multiple chargers doesn't stack up for a lot of locations.

kirving

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122507955#Comment_122507955

In some ways, just installing a single charger is a very bad idea.

Even if it's utilisation is high, very quickly you get a reputation as full, and similar reputation issues if it's down for any reason. First impressions are everything, and it's hard to recover from that.

(There's a petrol station that I avoid, purely because they served me horrible sausage rolls once. Irrational but I'm not taking that chance when I'm hungry and on the way to work.)

The problem is though, it's very hard to justify that extra investment up front for more chargers. There's also the issue that the install price doesn't necessarily drop the more you install.

The first X number is probably cheap enough, but once you hit your electricity supply limit, it's a big step up to install N+1 chargers.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122508437#Comment_122508437

Sorry your out of touch....

This is the M1 one of the countries main motorways. And north Dublin coast, beaches are real black spots for chargers. It's crazy there are not more charging hubs on this route.

https://youtube.com/shorts/nDueTzZYqFg?si=wwb8jlbU4Wrf_aSW

https://youtu.be/Xw9aXDykHPo?si=e-f_2OsE3UfDkfXy

Exiled Rebel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122508466#Comment_122508466

As I said it's a transition. In a couple of years the M1 will be served with adequate charging infrastructure and this discussion will be long forgotten.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122508653#Comment_122508653

It's not a transition. The M1 route is lagging behind, due to Applegreens shenanigans.

It's quite something to advise people the best place to charge on a route is not at the motorway services.

Exiled Rebel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122508837#Comment_122508837

What shenanigans would these be? You seem to have some inside knowledge.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122508941#Comment_122508941

Not having enough chargers.

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122509364#Comment_122509364

and kicking out the competition more like

crl84

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122508653#Comment_122508653

It's a bizarre strategy. As mentioned above, people, including myself, give the M1 Castlebellingham services a swerve due to the single charger. If they put a second there, instead of a "transitional" single one elsewhere, and started to make a hub, they'd get plenty of business.

Is the single one at Balbriggan services going to entice any drivers on the M1? I doubt it. It's just going to be another sub-standard setup that M1 drivers generally avoid.

JohnC.

If Paulstown on the M9 can have 2, surely the M1 locations should have at least 2 too?

Ev fan

The letter of the day in the Irish Times yesterday was another negative spin on EVS. The context was it was a response to the article on 25% less EV sales here in 2024. Basically the gentleman was saying that older EV batteries like the phone batteries will have to be dumped in dumps here or failing that will have to be sent to Bongo Bongo land for all the nasty stuff to leach out there. Where do you start? Perhaps the Editor could get the motoring correspondent to do an informed article on battery repair and recycling. Jesus wept!

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122512985#Comment_122512985

Media is both Anti EV bias and milking it with click bait for some time now.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058325642/increase-in-anti-ev-media-articles/p55

Buddy Bubs

This one is pretty balanced.....shows EV are still doing well outside of Ireland

But most of the points raised are valid and it's a bit forward looking too, which is rare

https://www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2024/0815/1464996-electric-car-sales-ireland-2024-analysis-early-adopters-mainstream-consumers/

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122513256#Comment_122513256

Haven't looked at the embedded videos but it's likely they aren't in synch with the rte article. My problem with the rte article is it ignores the media role in spreading fud, it's effect on sales, price war effect on new and used prices and also taxis seem to embraced EVs with a passion.

But it's good to have a conversation about where the market goes from here.

joe1303l

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122513256#Comment_122513256

Definitely one of the more balanced factual articles out there in a sea of Clickbait and misinformation.

zg3409

There is still a few free public charge points...

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122513569#Comment_122513569

Eh, was that the correct screenshot? 🤔

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122509364#Comment_122509364

Even if they install the second charger at all their sites it's debatable if it'll be enough

Ionity seems to regularly have most of their chargers in use during the week. Just did a spot check and 3 chargers are in use on a random Saturday

Those Applegreen sites could probably support 8-10 chargers each and see a decent turnover of cars

Although between Ionity in City north and Toome, and Circle K in Clonsaugh I suspect they'll carve out the majority of charging business

TheMilkyPirate

Have an E golf here and the central locking has stopped working and I have to hold the key up to the steering column to start the car as keyless start has stopped working as well. I thought it might be the battery but the other key is the same? How do I change the battery in it can I do it myself or is it a dealer job?

zg3409

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122517627#Comment_122517627

Possibly both batteries are dead in both keys. It happened to us a few times, the main keys give a warning, and the spare keys rarely used have a flat battery. Beware there are lots of different battery sizes and types. They can be difficult to change and you could break the key. Bring it to a car parts place or a jewellery place and they will fit one for you.

zg3409

Its a bit tongue in cheek. Guys stole electricity from a rental property and left a massive bill. I can see people hogging free work chargers and some vehicles are already capable of powering your home from "stolen" work electricity. I could see free public chargers, there are a few, being used by locals to fill up daily, then powering their house or their crypto mining rig to save or even make money. If you get paid for export electricity in theory you could get cash back.

joe1303l

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122517627#Comment_122517627

Central working not working wouldn’t be related to a key fault, more likely a fuse blown. If it’s the remote locking thats not working and the coin type battery in the key is dead, then that’s an easy fix. Those key batteries rarely last more than 12months on a car with KESSY. Guide here on replacement for a MK7 Golf;

https://youtu.be/FVyLFuVqjlk?si=tbaYPYajQ1M7-2Ti

Flinty997

Batteries don't seem to last long, I'd also give strong odds both batteries are almost gone.

graememk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122517654#Comment_122517654

Something smells there.GPU mining alt coins doesn't have that sort of return unless electricity is ... Almost free.

Asic bitcoin. Same story they pull a lot of power.

Either bill was still too low, or the 100k is just made up.

slave1

surprised ye succumbed to that clickbait

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122517654#Comment_122517654

I've noticed recently that a lot of campsites have started specifically forbidding EV charging from the electric points for the pitches

Aside from the obvious possibility of overloading circuits, charging 50-60kWh would probably result in the campsite losing money on that pitch since they're often only a few euros extra

I remember a while back EV owners were sometimes allowed to use outdoor sockets in hotels or holiday homes. I've noticed that's dried up as well

I guess as you say too much freeloading has put an end to it all

There's a YouTuber, Will Prowse, in the US who was using an F-150 to do exactly what you described, charge at a free local charger and then use that to top up his battery back home. I'm pretty sure he only did it once or twice as a demo, but the possibility still remains

fits

Funnily enough I haven’t been charged at all for the public charging we used in France. All that nuclear and solar - they must be giving it away. Two weeks of free fuel.

slave1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122518782#Comment_122518782

Possibility wholly remains, plenty of free SuC Tesla's out there with nice big batteries that charge fast so you dont have to be there for hours, they were giving free SuC even up to last year

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122518782#Comment_122518782

How did you "notice" a lot of campsites.

Is there a website with a filter for all campsites. Might give a general idea if how many have those facilities or block them.

When I Google all I mostly get back are campsites advertising EV chargers on site. Which I guess makes sense. With plugshare you can see all the local chargers in France.

Flinty997

I assume when home batteries become more common the electric suppliers might have to re think it.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122519005#Comment_122519005

Just something I've observed when booking a few campsites recently

Pretty sure I saw it listed as a rule in Eurocamps

There's also been an increase the number of sites offering EV charging which is a positive

For example I'm pretty sure Roundwood campsite in Wicklow is installing a bunch of chargers for guests

I would say it's more common in the UK and France than Ireland unfortunately. Hopefully we catch up soon

EDIT: One hint for Eurocamps, you can filter for sites with EV chargers onsite. The same can be done for booking.com

Unfortunately the listings can be inaccurate at times so it's best to check a review site. Plugshare is a good one, there's also Zap Map in the UK and Chargemap in France

listermint

New EV tariffs across manufacturers based in China

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/aug/20/tesla-faces-lowest-duty-on-chinese-made-cars-exported-to-eu

Calahonda52

End of farming as we know it🐂

https://www.politico.eu/article/china-hits-back-at-electric-vehicle-tariffs-with-probe-into-eu-dairy/

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122530524#Comment_122530524

€1.8 billion doesn't sound like China was that big a market for the EU

Ireland alone exported €6.3 billion if dairy in 2023, presumably the overall EU industry is a multiple of this amount

Flinty997

Unfortunately chasing globalisation has made many reliant on Chinese trade and goods. The future is murky, especially with EVs.

zg3409

A guy in work today asked me if it was possible to change my EV wheel myself. I have a space saver spare and jack etc.

He heard from someone that EVs have motors in the wheels so you cannot change the wheel....Even the rare car that has these, it's still an ordinary wheel.

crl84

Was passing by McDonalds in Maynooth yesterday, and there's a few Instavolt charging units going in there, site has undergone a refurbishment in the last month or so.

I know Instavolt are all over the UK, but haven't seen any of their units in ROIreland before.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122534408#Comment_122534408

Sounds like the kind of guy I wouldn't trust to change a wheel

Incidentally you may want to stand back if he's ever operating any dangerous machinery like a kettle or a butter knife, might get a bit hazardous