Quote:
Originally Posted by dvarapala
 100%
Did that once because I had to (brought Wifie's Bolt back from Kentucky and couldn't find a suitable auto transport company) but once was enough.  |
We take our EV from N. Alabama to St. Louis routinely to see family (425 miles door to door - 7h10m est on google maps). While the stops are longer than I'd like, having the 800v architecture means we can charge to 80% and get to the next leg of the trip in under 20 minutes. Enough time to grab a snack, use restrooms, and then get going. Still a longer stop than I like, but having it cost $0.00 to do so is awfully nice.
(It costs zero because when we got the EV, we got years of free DC fast charging. We still charge at home with our level 2 charger about once every 2 weeks or so using as much power as it takes to run a week's worth of laundry through an electric dryer).
We can stop in Clarksville, TN and Mt Vernon, IL for the charges, then stop just outside STL for a final charge for the time we're in STL, OR we can use our portable level 2 charger at my dad's place and slow charge it overnight. With the lack of DC fast chargers, we do have options and other places we can stop when needed or alter where we stop (Franklin, TN and Paducah, KY) for fast charging.
Ideal? No.
Fast? No.
Cheaper? Yes.
Comfortable? Yes.
Happy wife? Absolutely.
That last one makes it worth it to me.
And using her EV around town means we're not buying gas as often as before. Yeah, my truck still sees Costco and Home Depot runs, as well as travel trailer pull duty, but that's about it. So our monthly fuel costs are seriously lower too.
If weather is possibly bad or too cold, then we have my truck as a fallback, but the EV does make the trip nice and peaceful. Any EV with less than an 800v charging architecture that cant charge to 80% in 20 minutes is behind the curve.
EV's are still in the early adopter phase of the product lifecycle. ICE's are at the maturity point. There is a lot of innovation going on with EV's (motor design efficiencies, different battery components and design, etc) and just as the 800v architecture provides faster charging, I'm sure other innovations will make them less a pain in the ass. The early adopters get to deal with that - for better and for worse.
I don't see EV's as THE solution, but AN option. If it can reduce our dependence on oil, then it's something we can consider. But I'm not an EV diehard - my wife wanted it and got what she wanted. But I DO love to drive them - they're fast and fun. And as an IT guy, the tech is fun and interesting to me.
Then, Elon goes and blows up his Supercharger network team... THAT throws things into yet another mess. I personally hope the other networks (Electrify America, ChargePoint, EvGO, and others pick up those team members and work to make the other networks as good as the Tesla network has been). Overall, that could be a REALLY good thing for EV's.