cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/39237699

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This is a bit of navel gazing as I've now had my id.4 for just over a month. We've only managed a mere 350 miles. While we've had the car it's been enjoyable. Prior to pickup I had an l2 installed at home, since I live in a fast charger black hole. We had a major issue in the first week, and It spend the entire month of July at the dealer being serviced. It was pretty disappointing. The loaner wasn't the id.4 I purchased, and has really left me concerned about the longevity of this purchase. Any other new EV owners out their learning the ropes? I've yet to take my first big road trip in it because it was broken :(.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/39156813

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I think I've done my research, but damn if I can find what I'm looking for in the US. Even talked to my installer, who had nothing.

From what I can tell, my sole option for V2H, using the vehicle's batteries to back up the house, is the Ford Lightning. Maybe the Mach-E?

In fact, what I'd actually like is a CAR. Not a crossover, not a SUV. An actual CAR.

• The Lightning is WAAAY too much "car" for me.
• Best I can tell, Polestar is only "testing" V2anything.
• Kia/Hyundai only has V2L.
• Volkswagen ID4? I'm unclear.
• Mini has nothing.
• Leaf has something, but leaf is too little for being useful in terms of KwH.

Again, I'm in the US. And I already have an Enphase solar install, so I can't totally switch to some other sort of turnkey soup to nuts solution. I don't have batteries for the house, and want a vehicle that can be that as well as a mode of transport.

I'm also not an electrical engineer, so what that guy in this forum who built his own rack of components to make V2H work with his Ioniq is not something I can do.

Any help?

This is just a rant… maybe a discussion starter

Margins on 2nd hand and new electric cars are thin, gone are the days where you could get 25% off a new car, and thin margins mean lower commission.

Servicing costs are minimal so no kickbacks for selling the servicing plans.

People are wise to paint protection and alloy wheel cover that cost more than a refurb.

EV buyers tend to make better decisions and are more likely to be cash buyers or finance elsewhere, so no kickback for selling a finance plan.

Manufacturers still selling higher margin hybrid and ICE vehicles mean they are the real target for salespeople.

Manufacturers also want to shift their ICE inventories and new products so they are still pushing the FUD on electric, and myths like “EVs will be obsolete once Hydrogen cars come out, you may as well get an ICE car in the meantime.”

I’ve had a really bad customer experiences at Toyota, Honda and now Kia dealerships.

I know people will suggest the Tesla online sales model, but Musk is just ruining the brand to the point where I can’t buy or recommend one.

So now I’m going to do all my own research, find the exact car I want, and contact the dealer/seller directly while avoiding as much interaction as possible.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/38967716

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A CNN reporter spent more than two hours waiting for EV chargers — thanks to "ill-mannered charger hogs who don't respect EV etiquette."

[T]o protect batteries from damage, charging speeds slow way down once batteries get beyond 80% full. In fact, it can take as long, or even longer, to go from 80% charged to completely full than to reach 80%. Meanwhile, lines of electric vehicles wait behind almost-full cars. I was waiting behind people with batteries that were 92%, 94% and even 97% full, as I could see on the charger screens. Still, they stayed there. I made my own situation worse by giving up on one location and going to another with more chargers, but there were even more EVs waiting there.

Given that a lack of public charging is turning many consumers off to EVs, according to multiple surveys, this is a major issue. Both Electrify America and EVgo said they are rapidly expanding their networks to, as EVgo's Rafalson put it, "skate ahead of the puck," trying to make sure there are enough chargers to meet future demand... "I think what you're seeing is demand for public fast charging is really skyrocketing," said Sara Rafalson, executive vice president for policy at EV charging company EVgo, "and I would say we've been really at an inflection point in the last year, year and a half, with demand...."

Electrify America, one of America's biggest charging companies, is experimenting with a solution to the problem of charger hogs who can make it slow and unpleasant to travel in an EV. At 10 of the busiest EV fast charging stations in California, Electrify America has enacted a strict limit. Once a car's batteries are 85% charged, charging will automatically stop and the driver will be told to unplug and leave or face additional 40-cent-per-minute "idle time" fees for taking the space. It's similar to something Tesla vehicles do automatically. When a Tesla car, truck or SUV plugs into a particularly heavily-used Supercharger station, the vehicle itself may automatically limit charging to just 80% "to reduce congestion," according to Tesla's on-line Supercharger Support web page.

In that case, though, the user can still override the limit using the vehicle's touchscreen. There will be no getting around Electrify America's limit.

Electrify America's president points out an EV driver could need a full charge (if they're travelling somewhere with fewer charges) — or if they're driving an EV with a relatively short range. So the article notse that some EV charging companies "have experimented with plans that charge different amounts of money at different times to give drivers incentives to fill their batteries at less busy hours...

"For the time being, let's just hope that EV drivers who don't really need to fill all the way up will learn to be more considerate."