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It has a tethered Type 1 cable. While we wait for a new charge point to be installed, can I use an adapter to charge the car via the Type 2 socket? Will I die? And more importantly, will the battery die?
No problem I have been using an adapter for 18 months Type 1 - Type 2. V well made, doesn't get hot or wobble.
Bit more about the moveable charging stations used for the race:
https://kempower.com/arctic-race-of-norway-2022-kempower/
Looks like they were transported by EV and the power itself originated as hydroelectric power.
Looks like they were transported by EV and the power itself originated as hydroelectric power.
In the case of Norway, all their electrical generation is hydroelectric. If you're charging off a grid that includes fossil fuel generation, your EV is being charged by burning fossil fuels.
If you’re charging off a grid that includes fossil fuel generation, your EV is being charged by burning fossil fuels.
Thing is, whilst that sounds bad, it isn’t necessarily.
An EV is around four times more efficient than an ICE vehicle. So using a diesel generator to charge an EV, you could roughly have four EVs being charged enough to do the same range each as a single diesel car from the same amount of diesel.
So yes, it’s still burning fossil fuels, but it’s making vastly better use of them.
Another EV rental for the girlfriend, this time a new Leaf. What in all that's holy, is the idea behind a pedal parking brake? Just leave it be ffs! And that drive mode knob on the console, what a terrible terrible thing it is to use. I wish car makers would be clever in the right areas. To sit in it felt a bit dated and a bit cheap. She much preferred the Corsa in the way it drove. She did mention as default, the regen braking was much stronger than in the Corsa. I assume that could be changed. Left for Warrington again this morning, lets see what the range damage is on her return.
In the case of Norway, all their electrical generation is hydroelectric. If you’re charging off a grid that includes fossil fuel generation, your EV is being charged by burning fossil fuels.
Sure, but I think someone earlier was saying they must have been using diesel or some other liquid fuel generator directly.
In this case they were able to power 127 cars using 18 mobile chargers (plus whatever local charging infrastructure was already in place) without using any liquid fuels generators.
But yeah, it would be quite a scale-up to go from the Arctic Tour to the Tour de France. Especially if they are going to insist on having the end of one stage and the start of the next hundreds of kilometers away from each other.
What in all that’s holy, is the idea behind a pedal parking brake?
Those have been around since forever in automotive terms, not least when cars had bench seats and column mounted gear shifters. My Prius had one, I think most or all Mercs do. It frees up a lot of space in the centre console so you can put your cup holders and storage in there. It takes a day or two to get used to it then it's no issue.
The drive select knob - again that's common. Why have a big clunky lever when you don't need it to operate anything mechanical? Now we're freed from that design limitation there are all sorts of options. I've had a dash mounted knob that works like the Leaf one on the Prius; our Hyundai had simple buttons (that was bad because you had no feedback they'd engaged, and my wife thought she'd pressed D but hadn't and rolled backwards clipping a wingmirror); the Merc has a little steering wheel mounted one like an indicator, which I really like. I think BMWs and Jags have a rotary knob.
To sit in it felt a bit dated and a bit cheap.
Hmm, I think mine is fairly plush, but then I came from the Hyundai which was not. I've no complaints there. It was certainly the plushest of the cheaper EVs I've tried by some distance.
Now we’re freed from that design limitation there are all sorts of options. I’ve had a dash mounted knob that works like the Leaf one on the Prius; our Hyundai had simple buttons (that was bad because you had no feedback they’d engaged, and my wife thought she’d pressed D but hadn’t and rolled backwards clipping a wingmirror); the Merc has a little steering wheel mounted one like an indicator, which I really like. I think BMWs and Jags have a rotary knob.
My car has a rotating, illuminated crystal ball for a gear selector. It’s simultaneously the most pointless and the most awesome thing ever.
An EV is around four times more efficient than an ICE vehicle.
Not if it's powered from a fossil fuel powered generator. A thermal power station will only have thermal efficiency of 50% tops, probably much lower. Then the electricity has to be used to charge the battery, which will lose 10% or so. Then the battery has to be discharged to power the electric motor. So, if you look at how much of the energy value of the fuel is delivered to the wheels of the car, an EV is probably going to be twice as efficient, not four times.
I don't mind the Corsa e drive selector thingamajig. It works ok and is like a gear stick. I sometimes think that pushing it forward should put the car into drive but it doesn't, I need to pull it back to go forwards and push forward to go back 😭
What in all that’s holy, is the idea behind a pedal parking brake?
As well as freeing up space in the center console, your leg is much stronger than your arm. For people who aren't very strong, it's easier to crank on a parking brake with your leg than your arm.
molgrips
Those have been around since forever in automotive terms, not least when cars had bench seats and column mounted gear shifters. My Prius had one, I think most or all Mercs do. It frees up a lot of space in the centre console so you can put your cup holders and storage in there. It takes a day or two to get used to it then it’s no issue.
I think they are probably OK in automatic cars, but a PITA in a manual.
When I worked in Germany, one of the pool cars was a Merc C-Class with a manual gearbox. I was there for 6 months and probably drove that car once a fortnight.
I used to hate driving it. It gave me proper anxiety, every time we had to stop on a hill.
Footbrake to a stop
Clutch-in while stopping
Into neutral
Keep right foot on brake
Check car is really in neutral.
Take left foot off clutch & depress parking brake with clutch foot.
Gingerly lift foot off pedal, remembering it's not the clutch
Breath sigh of relief.
Lights are changing......mild panic rises.
Left foot on clutch
Into gear
Biting point
Fumble around for stupid brake release lever on the dashboard
And woe betide being in stop start-traffic on any kind of hill because you couldn't just yank on the handbrake as you would if it was in the correct place.
Bleurgh. Stupid thing.
Also if you pressed the parking brake too hard with your foot (we're talking one ratchet click too far, here), it was almost impossible to pull the parking brake release lever. Which was fun while being beeped at in the middle of Munich when the lights had changed and we couldn't move.
Didn't your Merc have auto-hold? Mine (a 2013) does by default. It doesn't keep you still on the flat but if you are on any kind of slope it applies the brakes for you until you move off. I assumed they added that feature specifically for manual cars because they removed the hand brake. Perhaps yours was broken or someone had disabled it.
PS Hi Perchy
An EV is around four times more efficient than an ICE vehicle. So using a diesel generator to charge an EV, you could roughly have four EVs being charged enough to do the same range each as a single diesel car from the same amount of diesel.
Say what 🤣 you do realise that a diesel generator is just a much larger diesel engine than in a car don't you?
Edit - sorry not necessarily much larger, can be smaller, the same size or larger - it's just the ones I work with are generally much larger so I was forgetting about the little ones.
A diesel generator will be more efficient than the one in your car though - a bit.
Agreed, maybe 40% instead of 30% but the statement I quoted is pure bollox.
molgrips
Didn’t your Merc have auto-hold?
In 1999? Nope. It didn't.
Agreed, maybe 40% not 30% but the statement I quoted is pure bollox.
Yes. For an EV charged with a fossil fuel powered generator to be 4x as efficient as an ICE car, it would basically have to be 100% efficient. That would mean that the generating plant would not emit any hot exhaust or require any cooling system, and that the battery and motor in the EV never give off any waste heat.
A diesel generator will be more efficient than the one in your car though – a bit.
That will depend a lot on the generator. A cheap portable backyard generator, probably not compared to a hybrid ICE car. An enormous industrial generator will be much more efficient but you won't be hauling one of those around following a bike race.
Anyone have any experience with living with a Beamer ix40? I've got the green light for a new car at work (I've had 14 years out the Mondeo so got my money's worth) and it makes no sense to me to buy a hybrid from a tax perspective. Lease costs over two years are also much higher for hybrids it seems than full electric.
Trouble I'm having is finding anything big enough and some deals on the iX40 are tempting. Reviews suggest range ain't the best but if anyone has a longer term view? Unfortunately iX50/iX60 are not happening...
A diesel generator will be more efficient than the one in your car though – a bit.
Actually, it will be a lot more efficient, as it will (should) be running at it's most efficient point on the load/speed map whereas the car engine mostly runs at really low load factors. One of the reasons that hybrids are more efficient then pure ICEs.
I was looking into home chargers, but it just occurred to me, do I also need a smart meter to get the cheap tariffs?
I know the chargers have SIM cards so assume they can be monitored by the electricity supplier but will that work ok with the billing for home non EV use if you have a dumb meter and manually send the readings every month?
You will need a smart meter. Which is a bit irritating for me as Octopus are currently saying they won't install one due to my location not being covered by the network.
you won’t be hauling one of those around following a bike race
I don't think you'd need to either. A car with a 200 mile range at 50mph would require half the energy to do 200 miles at 25mph. You'd only have to charge every 3 days, even with bikes on the roof
I was looking into home chargers, but it just occurred to me, do I also need a smart meter to get the cheap tariffs?
I know the chargers have SIM cards so assume they can be monitored by the electricity supplier but will that work ok with the billing for home non EV use if you have a dumb meter and manually send the readings every month?
Yes unless you have an old economy 7 meter (the one that has a day and night reading)? That can give you a lower ovenight rate but still not as low as the smart tariffs.
E.g. we m0ved from Octopus' e7 tariff when we got our smart meter. The overnight e7 rate is currently 16.4p and the smart tariff is 7.5p.
A car with a 200 mile range at 50mph would require half the energy to do 200 miles at 25mph
No. You'd do a quarter the work against air resistance, but half against rolling resistance and you'd still have to cover the fixed costs of AC and the car systems so probably like 30% or something.
Mega moan... The super cheap Podpoint chargers (14p/kWh) in the lidl carpark down the road have been REMOVED from the public Podpoint charging system, ffs....
Oh all 4 are still there.. 🙄
But no longer available for public use... Apparently (a friend heard from a friend etc) they're for Lidl staff use only now... WTAF....
4 chargers. Wasted.
Effing step back in the whole idea, if you ask me...
DrP
You’d do the same work against rolling resistance (to a reasonable approximation). Half the power (due to half the speed) but for twice as long.
Oh yes. Maths fail.
Does anyone have experience of using charge place Scotland chargers without the RFID card? I've signed up, registered a bank account for a direct debit but won't have time to get a card prior to using the network. Can I charge using the phone app assuming I have a phone signal?
Thanks in advance.
Can I charge using the phone app assuming I have a phone signal?
Yes, I’ve used it a few times. Even in Torridon where there was no phone signal, but the nearby bar had Wi-Fi.
Sadly, most if not all chargers you now have to pay for.
Thanks for the reply.
Looking at the app there seems to be a few free 22kw chargers around the Ayrshire area where I might be heading soon.
Should be ok to go for a walk whilst the car tops itself up.
You’d do the same work against rolling resistance (to a reasonable approximation). Half the power (due to half the speed) but for twice as long.
Its a quarter of the power but for twice as long, so half the aero load overall. Rolling resistance is lower at lower speeds, but admittedly not halfed, they seem to have their windows down so no Aircon needed.
It's hard to do the maths exactly but charging every 3 days seems like a reasonable stab
Does anyone have experience of using charge place Scotland chargers without the RFID card? I’ve signed up, registered a bank account for a direct debit but won’t have time to get a card prior to using the network. Can I charge using the phone app assuming I have a phone signal?
Thanks in advance.
I've had no issues with the newer chargers on the network using the app but IME some of the older ones struggle to work via the app. e.g. The ones on the east side of my village are older and you need the RFID and the newer ones on the other side work via app or RFID. Mostly you should be OK but RFID is definitely the more solid option
Looking at the app there seems to be a few free 22kw chargers around the Ayrshire area where I might be heading soon.
East Ayrshire and East Renfrewshire have free public charging, for now….
Went to my folks on Sunday in the Leaf. I put it on the granny charger when we got there, because we ended up doing an extra 15 miles or so on the way out. If we hadn't, I think we might have scraped there and back on one charge but it would have been tight. As it was, with the granny charge there was enough. 4.7 miles/kWh on A roads according to the car, but according to the app we got about 4.4. Either way that's not bad. The remaining mileage and %age stayed pretty consistent all day which I think means our battery is in fairly good nick. About 153 miles of range with 4 people in the car is fairly decent when the WTLP is 163 and the car's 4 years old. Most people seem to report much lower range than that.
I have been clocking up the miles in the Corsa e recently. 538 miles @ 4.7m/KW , average speed 31mph. A decent 100 miles was on faster A roads and motorways the rest on country roads. Happy with those numbers.
Just done 110 miles on the m6 and the car said 4.1m/KW. Covered another 77 miles on fast A Roads and upped the numbers to 4.3m/KW with an average speed of 46mph.
Used a free charger to add 10kw of power whilst looking round a small town.
2nd free charger didn't want to connect.
Enjoying the Corsa e a lot.
Really enjoying our iX1 as well. Providing you can charge at home and don’t often need to do 250+ mile journeys I can’t see a reason you’d pick the ice version? (On the assumption you have it on pcp/lease where the monthly cost is similar).
Even if you have to charge away from home a few times, it's still way cheaper than ICE if you can charge at home the rest of the time. As I said before, our fuel savings pay for half the car payments. If we'd bought an ICE for the same outlay we'd be on a much older and objectively worse car.
It has been beaten up a bit; I replaced the broken bit of undertray for £50 and half an hour's work and now I am waiting for a wheel bearing to arrive from Autodoc. But the battery seems ok which is good.
And as I've said before, stopping on long trips isn't really a hardship unless you are in a big hurry.
Driving from the south coast to Durham soon for a uni drop off, so I’ve been checking out ultra rapid chargers. The new 12 charger Gridserve 350kW Super Hubs look great up the A1!
Jus5 changed our second car and got an MG4 through my work scheme. It’s very orange!
I used the A1 gridserve chargers at Blyth and just north of Grantham with no issues or queues. They were busy tho.
Only issue was my other half ordered a Greggs online at what she thought was the charging station only to find out that it was a few miles away at another store!
A1 is good these days, I tend to plan a stop at Markham Moor - no single massive hub but 4 at the Shell then a few other Instavolt sites close by.
If you're CCS then Newark services has 12 new 150kw chargers under Welcome Break's own brand.
Thanks - will investigate those too.
Just driven along the Electric Brae and was hoping to add a few miles of charge to the car. Added 0. 😭