Author Topic: Electric vehicles  (Read 1252 times)

0 Members and 2 Guests are viewing this topic.

Offline Granny

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1172
Electric vehicles
« on: November 04, 2019, 12:21:33 pm »
Petro Canada (owned by Suncor) is making cross-country EV travel a reality.

Petro-Canada’s electric highway reaches Swift Current
https://www.prairiepost.com/saskatchewan/news/petro-canada-s-electric-highway-reaches-swift-current/article_a8931816-e083-11e9-8a67-57d53fdec9d0.html
"Petro-Canada is building a network of electric vehicle fast charging stations along the Trans-Canada highway "

The ad I just saw on TV says "From the Rockies to the Maritimes"

Terrific! : )
« Last Edit: November 04, 2019, 12:25:55 pm by Granny »

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Like Like x 2 View List

Offline Queefer Sutherland

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10186
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #1 on: November 04, 2019, 07:35:18 pm »
20-30 minutes for a full charge.  Hope the industry can do a lot better than that soon.  It's a start though.
"Nipples is one of the great minds of our time!" - Bubbermiley
Dumb Dumb x 1 View List

Offline ?Impact

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2941
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #2 on: November 04, 2019, 07:47:35 pm »
20-30 minutes for a full charge.  Hope the industry can do a lot better than that soon.  It's a start though.

Most people will have their vehicle charge overnight in the garage, and rarely visit a gas station. The time wasted in gas stations from fossil fuel vehicles will be thousands of times that of EVs.

Offline wilber

  • Administrator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9118
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #3 on: November 04, 2019, 08:03:22 pm »
20-30 minutes for a full charge.  Hope the industry can do a lot better than that soon.  It's a start though.

Not to full charge, maybe to 80%. Charge rates decrease as charge level increases. 85KW Tesla takes 1hr to full charge, which is pretty quick as EV's go.
"Never trust a man without a single redeeming vice" WSC

Offline Queefer Sutherland

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10186
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #4 on: November 04, 2019, 11:04:14 pm »
Most people will have their vehicle charge overnight in the garage, and rarely visit a gas station. The time wasted in gas stations from fossil fuel vehicles will be thousands of times that of EVs.

Yes that's a good point.  Especially for local commuters.  I already see people charging Tesla's at their home.  But this is for the trans-canada highway, and any long distance trips along this route will need to wait 20-30 mins to fully charge.  Luckily most will leave their home with a full charge.

But it's still an entry barrier for now.  I expect more innovation will fix the problem in coming years. I saw an idea about instead of charging you'd be swapping batteries at a charge station so you can quickly be in and out probably even faster than filling a tank of gas.
"Nipples is one of the great minds of our time!" - Bubbermiley

Offline ?Impact

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2941
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #5 on: November 05, 2019, 10:12:27 am »
any long distance trips along this route will need to wait 20-30 mins to fully charge

True there is an issue for long distance driving, but depending on how far you can drive between charges it would make a good point for a rest stop. I know some people, especially in groups with multiple drivers, just drive and drive; but most of us need to stop for bathroom, food, and fresh air after a few hours anyway. Hopefully there will be bathrooms near these stations, and a restaurant or picnic bench would be helpful. You can plan your route by that, and today no need for tiptiks as you can do most of it on your GPS/phone anyway. When doing long-distance solo drives I often have a camping mat, pillow, and sleeping bag in the back (I have an Subaru Outback, so plenty of room) for a cat nap as well.
« Last Edit: November 05, 2019, 10:14:28 am by ?Impact »

Offline wilber

  • Administrator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9118
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #6 on: November 05, 2019, 10:27:02 am »
Long trips will just take longer with EV's, I think people will just have to adjust if we are to transition completely. The characteristics of Li batteries will always make it take five times longer to refuel regardless of the charging system and even the longest range Teslas under ideal conditions can barely match the range of an IC car. Also, until charging stations become as common as gas stations, EV drivers will have to plan on a greater reserve to avoid running out, which will make their practical range even less.

As long as you rarely make long trips, they are practical now although I see there have been some cases of charge station rage in the news.
"Never trust a man without a single redeeming vice" WSC

Offline ?Impact

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2941
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #7 on: November 05, 2019, 10:35:31 am »
Also, until charging stations become as common as gas stations, EV drivers will have to plan on a greater reserve to avoid running out, which will make their practical range even less.

Agreed that infrastructure is a limiting issue. The alternative to a greater reserve however is to plan ahead. As I pointed out earlier, we used to do that with the triptiks from the auto-club, but today that can be done by your GPS or phone.

Offline wilber

  • Administrator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9118
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #8 on: November 05, 2019, 10:50:00 am »
Agreed that infrastructure is a limiting issue. The alternative to a greater reserve however is to plan ahead. As I pointed out earlier, we used to do that with the triptiks from the auto-club, but today that can be done by your GPS or phone.

Planning ahead usually means stopping early on at least one leg of your trip. It can also happen with IC vehicles but not as much.  Also if you get to a charge station and there is a line, you could be in for a good wait. Tesla supercharging stations have a lot of outlets but only Tesla's can use them. The first thing EV manufacturers need to do is come up with a universal charging standard so all EV's and PHEV's can use the same facilities.
"Never trust a man without a single redeeming vice" WSC

Offline ?Impact

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2941
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #9 on: November 05, 2019, 10:51:48 am »
The first thing EV manufacturers need to do is come up with a universal charging standard so all EV's and PHEV's can use the same facilities.

IEC 62196 Type 2 connector

Offline wilber

  • Administrator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9118
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #10 on: November 05, 2019, 11:19:41 am »
IEC 62196 Type 2 connector

Tesla uses a proprietary connector, you would need an adaptor. So far Tesla hasn't given an approval for one as far as I know.
"Never trust a man without a single redeeming vice" WSC

Offline Omni

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 8563
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #11 on: November 05, 2019, 11:28:35 am »
Speaking of electric vehicles, the last I heard Harbor Air, Richmond BC, is planning to test fly an electric powered Beaver this month, and then continue along the path to certification and a first commercial flight by 2021. All that going well, they will then begin converting all their fleet of 40 planes to electric powered. The bulk of their business being short haul, harbor to harbor commuter traffic, it would seem to be the perfect operation to adopt the new technology.   
Like Like x 1 View List

Offline ?Impact

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2941
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #12 on: November 05, 2019, 11:37:04 am »
Tesla uses a proprietary connector, you would need an adaptor. So far Tesla hasn't given an approval for one as far as I know.

From what I understand you can plug a Tesla into the Type 2 system (not all pins used), but you can't use the Tesla supercharger for other cars.

Offline wilber

  • Administrator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9118
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #13 on: November 05, 2019, 11:37:54 am »
Speaking of electric vehicles, the last I heard Harbor Air, Richmond BC, is planning to test fly an electric powered Beaver this month, and then continue along the path to certification and a first commercial flight by 2021. All that going well, they will then begin converting all their fleet of 40 planes to electric powered. The bulk of their business being short haul, harbor to harbor commuter traffic, it would seem to be the perfect operation to adopt the new technology.   

I agree, an almost ideal place to try it.
"Never trust a man without a single redeeming vice" WSC

Offline wilber

  • Administrator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9118
Re: Electric vehicles
« Reply #14 on: November 05, 2019, 11:39:56 am »
From what I understand you can plug a Tesla into the Type 2 system (not all pins used), but you can't use the Tesla supercharger for other cars.

That's what I mean. Tesla limiting the use of Superchargers to Tesla's only may be a good selling point for his vehicles but it hurts the adoption of EV's in general.
"Never trust a man without a single redeeming vice" WSC