Electric Vehicles

I don't really see the point of this. It's just adding complexity for the sake of it. As far as I can tell when you change gear it just changes some software parameters, there are no physical gears. Yet there's a clutch and the ability to stall?

The rates for charging when using a Shell Recharge card on the Shell Recharge network are reducing. For fast (7-22kW) charging you will now pay £0.62/kWh, whilst rapid (25-150kW) and ultra-rapid (150kW+) charging network will cost £0.81/kWh. Paying with contactless payment methods will remain the same.

As of November 1st a £0.35 transaction fee, with a maximum of £7.00 per month, is charged for all charging sessions.

Interesting changes for EV charging. Not many but some significant ones:

1. all new chargers above 8kw must have a contactless payment pad
2. all operators must offer a 3rd party payment option such as Elli or Bonnet ie subscription discount service
3. reports of service status of a machine must be 99% and above, and a statement to the Secretary of State for Transport yearly

Lots of "unconfirmed" on here.

Big fan of Electrek news, but I’d actually never heard of Formula Sun before.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/3415093

Survey will help gauge development and placement of public charge-points

About to get my first plug-in car, and have some questions.

I work in the software industry so I know that all apps eventually get discontinued or abandoned, so what happens to my home EV charger when the app it needs is no longer available?

Are there generic home EV charger apps that work with other brands chargers?

Can I just not install the app? I'm not saying I'd avoid installing it, but knowing how the charger would behave in this scenario is important information.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/3229618

Early signs suggest the fire was started accidentally

You should have seen twitter last night trying to ban all EVs. It’s become a strange website which is entirely irrelevant, but full of people’s onions. I bet the Daily Mail had a helicopter on standby as well, ready to leap on Robert Llewellyn

EV Point (EuroGarages' network) appear to have been added to Electroverse!

Some of their points used to show up as ChargePoint and compatible, but I don't think they ever worked.

This article is a couple of weeks old, but interesting stuff.

The first results of UK Power Networks’ Park and Flex Study have revealed the enormous potential of using long-stay car parks, such as those at airports, to help power the grid.

Early research in the study has found that more than 1.3 million homes could be powered by filling up electric vehicle’s batteries in long-stay car parks when energy is cheap and demand is low - and returning that power back to the system during peak times.

The study used advanced modelling alongside both UK Power Networks’ and energy specialist Baringa’s forecasts for the number of electric vehicles on Britain’s roads in the coming years.

With airport parking, details of a customer’s flight dates can dictate the exact length of a vehicle's stay which gives the network operators greater insight into spare power or capacity.

I'm very surprised that there isn't legislation requiring a way to stop the car if it does run away. (Although it's quite possible that's what the police used once they got in the car, and the user missed it in the panic)

Kinda like how you should know how to stall engine runaway on a diesel.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/5965151

Nissan to go all-electric by 2030 despite petrol ban delay::The carmaker moves ahead with its plan despite delays to the UK's ban on new petrol and diesel cars.

Electroverse is the Octopus Energy billing system where you charge using the app or card, rather than your contactless card, and it bills that energy use to your home electric bill. Previously companies such as Instavolt havnt allowed server access to other companies, but its the largest UK operator so its a real game changing approach which should allow EV drivers thousands more options. Most obviously McDonalds is partnered with Instavolt, so you can eat some shite while charging at many hundreds of their sites, and at the end of the month it will just show up on your house bill.

The next step is full plug and go, where you dont even use an app or card, just charge and leave. Tesla has this system and Ionity offers it to some vehicles. You have to set up the account at some level. The data transferred from your car to the charging unit is capable of handling billing, but as theres so many different EVs the coding required isnt there yet.

Powell Motor's 'The Homer' is the real peoples car

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/2698651

Nissan have clearly set their trajectory, and aren't changing.

As far as I can tell, nobody asked for or wanted this...

... Except the Daily Mail

More exciting news for anyone with an EV driving the M4 frequently. All new V4 machine design sites have the capability to pay without the Tesla app, by using your contactless card on the reader. Previous units didn’t have this panel, but the law is changing next year so all UK machines are able to process contactless.

So, there are currently x2 v4 sites open. There are 20 Tesla sites open to all vehicles and the key component is, they are significantly cheaper than for example Gridserve who own the chargers opposite these ones at Reading Moto Westbound.

Also note, the cable is long enough for Tesla charge points on the left rear side. It’s also long enough for most EVs but you may need to park slightly uncomfortably if your port is rear right side.

You can see these sites in the pinned topic of this discussion group.

Pretty niche news, but Tritium and Chargepoint machines are reporting on the Elli app (ie the pre 2023 machines). For those on the service it offers very good discounts but significantly Instavolt is a) the largest by unit number operator in the UK and b) have thus far refused or were unable to join discount subscription providers. Potentially this can point the way for other large providers and should mean fairer pricing all over.

Next year or lerhaps in 2025 all providers will begin to offer subscription providers access to the unit’s billing systems so this is a major step forward

100 years? Really?

How many 100 year old cars so we see on the roads today? A handful - most are in museums or only rolled out for vintage car festivals.

You could argue that there were less cars back then. Fair enough, but how many even fifty year old cars are on the roads? Even pre-2000 cars are rare, and easily identifiable due to the older format registration plate.

I think in 100 years nobody (or very few people - less than ten) is going to be regularly driving a Ford Zetec to the shops. They'll be in museums or driven on special occasions or to vintage car rallies.

BMW has announced plans for a major multi-million pound investment this morning in its electric Mini plant in Oxford, securing the long term future of Mini production in the UK.

The German carmaker will transform its existing factory through a £600m investment, creating 4,000 high-quality jobs in the process, after the government agreed to spend £75m in subsidies.

The new plant will produce two new next-generation electric car designs, the Mini Cooper and the Mini Aceman, with a third model being made in Germany.

It marks a major U-turn for BMW, who in October last year confirmed that production of its electric Minis would shift to China, in what was seen as a major blow to the British automotive sector.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch hailed the news ahead of the announcement, which takes total investment into the UK automotive sector to £6bn over the last two years.

Rishi Sunak said “BMW’s investment is another shining example of how the UK is the best place to build cars of the future.”

“By backing our car manufacturing industry, we are securing thousands of jobs and growing our economy right across the country.”

Kemi Badenoch said “today’s announcement by BMW, coming a week after electric vehicle production started at Stellantis’s site at Ellesmere Port, clearly shows that the government’s plan for the automotive sector is working.”

Only available in Japan at the moment, but posted due to the "what happens to the battery? They only last {insert silly low number of years here}" question/comment EV owners hear.