Why and how to joyfully move our butts around town, without mucking the place up.

Tag Index

Pages with tag Electric Vehicles

  • 2020 Hyundai Kona Electric enhances navigation system and attracts eco-focused buyers with 258-mile range
  • Are drivers of gas-powered cars too fixated on 'range anxiety' when considering electric cars?: Many think that Range Anxiety is an overblown phrase meant to keep us stuck in a fear of running out of electricity. What's never mentioned are the gasoline car drivers running out of gasoline daily. What if a marketing genius at a car maker repurposed this fear of running out of gasoline into a fear of running out of electricity?
  • Can I use a generator to charge an electric car while driving it?: Many thinking about how to drive an electric car over long distances bring up the idea of attaching a gasoline/diesel generator and charging the car while driving. In effect this idea is a sort of Plug-in Hybrid car, so shouldn't such people just buy a PHEV? By definition an EV with a Generator is a Plug-in Hybrid, meaning the BEV can plug-in to the grid to recharge, and it has a second on-board power source (the generator), making it a Hybrid, that can recharge the battery pack. But a homebrew conversion of a BEV into a PHEV might not be legal.
  • Can a Tesla car use non-Tesla DC fast charge? Can non-Tesla car use Tesla Supercharger? DC fast charge compatibility: Surely when we arrive at an electric car charging station, we should be able to charge our car. Gasoline car drivers enjoy this sort of freedom. So long as they do not accidentally use the diesel or ethanol hose, but the gasoline hose, they can drive to any gas station and charge up. But when fast charging an electric car, drivers will find several charging connectors (CHAdeMO, CCS, Tesla), and need to know which charging connector is compatible with their car.
  • Can non-Tesla electric cars use Tesla EV chargers?: Tesla has developed a widely deployed electric car charging network, that only works for cars built by Tesla. This is good for Tesla, but it does not help those of us who do not own Tesla cars. We might see a marker in the PlugShare app, drive to that location, only to be confused by the charging connector, and unable to charge our car. Bottom line is that non-Tesla electric cars cannot use Tesla charging stations, but there are some fine points to consider. In some cases we can use an adapter to access some Tesla charging stations.
  • Can you plug an electric car into a regular power outlet?: Electric cars are recharged using a charging station. Some feel it would be oh so much simpler if we could just recharge from a simple normal power outlet. But that's not the way things were designed so let's talk about that.
  • Do electric cars have a separate battery or a starter motor like in combustion-engine cars?: Gasoline and diesel engines must be started before use, typically using a starter motor powered by the starter battery. With the 120+ years experience we all collectively have with those vehicles, we expect every car to have a starter battery and starter motor. So why do electric cars not have such a thing?
  • Do electric cars have alternators?: Every car has an alternator, and it's there to keep the 12 volt starting battery charged up. Right? Actually, no. How come electric cars don't have alternators that just recharge the battery while you drive? And since electric cars do not have alternators how do they keep the 12 volt battery charged?
  • Electrification and the evolution of Infiniti Design
  • Ford Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Edition
  • Ford Mustang Mach-E Interior Fact Sheet
  • Ford Mustang Mach-E Technical Specifications
  • Ford Mustang expands family: all-electric Mustang Mach-E delivers power, style and freedom for new generation: The long-awaited Mustang Mach-E is a challenge to Mustang purists who have a hard time grasping how a Mustang could possibly be an SUV. Whatever the brand name on the Mach-E, it has phenomenal attributes and could well be a worthy challenger to Tesla's crown. Ford has long been known for ho-hum electrified vehicles, and as an also-ran in the all-electric car sphere. This car, going by the specs, hits it out of the park. And if imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Ford is flattering the heck out of Tesla, implementing a Frunk, an all-glass roof and several other things.
  • How can we reduce the charging time of electric cars?: Is faster always better? We want faster electric car charging so we can more easily implement road trips. A direct substitute of electric car for gasoline would include a five minute recharge, and it's claimed everybody would willingly buy electric cars. What's preventing the automakers from implement 5 minute charging times?
  • How do I charge or refuel an electric vehicle?: Every kind of vehicle must be refueled or eventually they run out of power. A gasoline or diesel vehicle must be driven to a petrol/gasoline station, and refueled there. Electric cars do not require gasoline or diesel, so where are they refueled and how is refueling accomplished? Do you plug the electric car into a regular power outlet to recharge?
  • How do you find electric car charging stations on the go while traveling?: Electricity is everywhere but to recharge our electric car we need a charging station, and they're not as evenly distributed as are gasoline stations. Thankfully there are smart phone apps and other information resources to help find charging stations.
  • How far can one drive (or ride) an electric vehicle?: Every kind of vehicle has a limited range based on stored energy it carries on board. Gasoline vehicles carry only so many gallons of gasoline, limiting the driving range, and electric vehicles carry only so many kiloWatt-hours, again limiting the driving range. This question as written contains an embedded assumption that electric vehicles are limited while other kinds of vehicles are not.
  • How is a Tesla supercharger, or other DC Fast Charging, actually faster?: Of course we want to charge our electric car faster, since faster charging gets us to the destination faster. If your needs include a lot of road trips then an electric car supporting faster charging will get you there faster. The car manufacturers know about this, and the charging speed on Tesla's Supercharger network seems to have pushed the other electric car makers to work on faster charging. The signs point to ultra-high charging rates from many manufacturers, but at the present time Tesla's Supercharger network is faster than the typical fast charging for non-Tesla electric cars.
  • How long does it take to charge an electric car?: Surely a few electric car drivers have wondered how much longer it will take to charge their car. Charging an electric car takes as long as it takes. While speeding things up is not exactly possible, understanding what's going on will help with your patience.
  • How much does a home electric car (EV) charging station cost?: The most convenient place to charge an electric car, but that means buying and installing a charging station. Since we don't have to install home refueling for gasoline cars, this is something new electric car owners must do. Fortunately there are a range of choices from very inexpensive (almost free) to high powered (at a cost).
  • How much does cost to charge an electric car (EV) at home versus at a public charging station?: Not only is charging at home the most convenient place to charge, it usually the cheapest place to charge your electric car. Public charging station owners have to pay for many costs beyond the cost of electricity, and therefore must charge more to use a public charging station than it costs at home. But if you hunt around it's possible to find free charging stations.
  • Infiniti in the era of Electrification
  • Infiniti looking to bridge gap to mass EV adoption
  • Is charging an EV (electric car or electric motorcycle) the reason for not buying one?: Many people are reluctant to buy electric vehicles, and charging time or charging availability is often said to be what scares people off.
  • Jaguar designs all-electric vision Gran Turismo Race Car for the Gran Turismo Sport
  • Porsche adds the Taycan 4s to the electric family: Porsche is announcing the first update to the Taycan EV sports car lineup, the Taycan 4S. The 4S has a slower acceleration, 0-60 miles/hr in 3.8 seconds versus 2.8 seconds for the versions announced last month, further the 4S is a lot cheaper.
  • The fully electric XC40 SUV - Volvo's first electric car and one of the safest on the road
  • The history: Porsche, the electrical pioneer: In modern times Porsche is most known for ultra-powerful sports cars and high end race cars that rely on the power of internal combustion. Little known is the fact that Dr. Ferdinand Porsche, the founder of the company, got his start in vehicle design by designing both electric and hybrid-electric cars.
  • Webasto and Ford team up for Mustang 'Lithium': Battery electric muscle car lights up SEMA, signals future of performance: Ford is getting ready to show a "Mustang-inspired SUV" that is an electric vehicle. As a Mustang aficionado, I find that phrase completely foreign as Mustangs are supposed to be small sports cars not hulking SUV's. This prototype car is a Mustang. It is a one-off prototype rather than a production car. Who knows what horrors the Mustang-inspired-SUV will be?
  • What do you need to charge an electric car, and why is that?: Just as a cell phone requires a charging cord, an electric car or motorcycle requires a specialized charging cord. Even though electricity is everywhere, and we plug all kinds of things into regular power outlets every day, the powers-that-be decided to require a specialized charging cord for electric vehicles. There are clear technical reasons for this, and the requirement to use an electric car charging station is not a burden.
  • What happens if your Tesla car runs out of power in an area with no Supercharger stations?: It may seem that Tesla vehicles can only recharge at Tesla charging stations, and therefore cannot be charged if there are no Tesla Superchargers or Destination Chargers. The lengths Tesla has gone to provide excellent service to Tesla car owners helped to create this incorrect assumption. But, the reality is different. Showing wisdom, Tesla made sure that Tesla vehicles can recharge using standard charging systems by using adapters. Therefore Tesla electric cars can recharge at any charging facility, and Tesla car owners must learn how to do so.
  • What is an Electric Vehicle? Is a hybrid vehicle an electric vehicle?: I first heard about electric vehicles in 1994 when a roommate started on an electric vehicle conversion of a Volkswagen Rabbit. Even though he explained to me what he was doing, he showed me the metal brackets for the battery pack, I didn't understand. All I knew is never drove the VW Rabbit, and that he worked on it occasionally. I think this can happen for many, that we'll see something but not have the frame of reference to understand it. It's not enough to say an electric vehicle is powered by electricity if our mind doesn't grasp that cars can be powered by fuels other than gasoline or diesel. The last 120+ years of gasoline this and diesel that taught us all about liquid fuel (gasoline or diesel) bought at a gas or petrol station, that's stored in the fuel tank, and burned in an engine. Accepting electric vehicles means wrapping our heads around new facts - that the energy for our vehicles can come from electricity.
  • What is the difference between traditional Hybrid, Plug-in Hybrid, or All-Electric battery-electric vehicles?: When I first heard of electric vehicles the difference between hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and electric vehicles didn't make sense. We're accustomed to one kind of vehicle, where you pour a liquid fuel like gasoline or diesel into a tank then roar off into the distance. But as we delve into electrified vehicles, we learn there are three kinds, and that there are significant differences and tradeoffs between them. Namely, how much of your driving will be powered by electricity, and whether that electricity does or does not come from the electric grid. Put another way, the difference is primarily in how far you are willing to go to divorce yourself from gasoline. The traditional hybrid, and the plug-in hybrid (or PHEV), relies on gasoline, and uses gasoline to implement long range driving, while the all-electric vehicle uses no gasoline, and therefore relies on fast charging for long range.
  • What will it take for automakers to build affordable 250 mile range electric cars?: How much range in an electric car is "enough" that we stop yearning for "more"? Two-hundred-fifty (250) miles is as good a number as many. Until 2018 that much range required an expensive Tesla, and now that it's 2019 there are a few 250+ mile range EV's from several automakers.
  • What's the mechanism behind electric cars since they don't use fuel?: We collectively have 100+ years experience with cars being fueled with gasoline, and therefore understandably most of us think the only means to drive a vehicle is with gasoline or diesel or ethanol. Electric motors can be very powerful, and can perform just as well as vehicles powered by a liquid fuel. What makes a vehicle move is Energy. Energy comes in many forms, not just liquid fuels burned in an internal combustion engine.
  • When will electric cars be powerful enough to tow a trailer?: It seems many think that electric vehicles must be pitiful weak things, hardly able to leave the driveway much less handle a studly task like hauling a trailer. This is one of those times where reality is much different from stereotype.
  • When will the car companies make a flat-towable electric car?: Gas cars can be "flat towed" and many like to flat tow cars behind an RV when on a trip. Most electric cars cannot be flat towed. It does not matter what kind of car it is, there is a simple requirement for flat towing any car without causing damage to the car.
  • Where can I buy an Electric Vehicle (bicycle, motorcycle, car)?: It's not like you can just buy an electric vehicle at any old dealership, is it? Regular car dealerships do carry electric cars, and it is possible to just go to a dealership plunk down money and drive away in an EV. This was not always the case, as there were many years those of us wanting an electric car had to build our own. Buying an electric bicycle or electric motorcycle is a little trickier since they are not so widely distributed.
  • Why do people compare electric cars to gas cars when electric cars have no onboard energy source?: The 100+ years of mutual experience with gasoline powered cars has taught us to trust gasoline. This question demonstrates just one of the ways we collectively believe in gasoline over all other fuels.
  • Why is a special charging cord (J1772) required to charge an electric car?: Electricity is everywhere, available through power outlets in essentially every building. Why can't electric cars be recharged through a regular power outlet? Why can't electric cars simply use a regular extension cord? Why does recharging an electric car require using a specialized power cord with a specialized charging plug? A conspiratorially-minded person might think the special charging cord is meant to limit the spread of electric cars.
  • World premiere of the Porsche Taycan: Sports car, sustainably redesigned: Introduction/launch of the Porsche Taycan. Porsche hopes this car will open a new chapter in its history as the Volkswagen Group heads towards a full scale embrace of electric vehicle technology.