Random EV thoughts.....

traco

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120103732#Comment_120103732

Another cut of 5k on the standard M3 takes it into the 30's technically. I know its the very top but that never stopped the MarCom guys. Probably a strecth but I think its all bit exciting again. I though the whole new car scene had gotten a little dull, be it EV or ICE so its nice to see things getting a bit of a shake up.

ltd440

I suppose t will take a little while for used car prices to drop, the cheapest tesla i could find on donedeal today is a 4 year old model 3 for nearly 40k

liamog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120103296#Comment_120103296

Not sure the established players will see it that way, right now they are still maxing out their production capacity and are able to sell vehicles at a premium.

They aren't selling lower margin cars because that would be leaving money on the table. The move from Tesla and the entry Chinese brands will likely change the approach and lead to better consumer value.

traco

BMW, Merc and Audi might still be considered premium but for me it would only be their top end offerings. Their lower cost cars aren't really that special anymore. VW, Skoda, Seat etc will struggle to carve a niche for themselves as the Asian products are as good if not better.

I did some shopping last year and the ID4 didn't appeal at all, the Enyaq was a nicer car and felt better but I thought the EV6 was better than all of them. I came away with the conclusion that it would be Korean or Tesla for me down the road based on all I looked at.

I agree they are maxing their position at the moment but if you really start looking at whats out there the difference isn't all that great. What really registered with me was the iX3, nice car but definitley not an 80k car.

So the Teslas, Hyundais and Kias are really excellent cars and as good and premium as I think is needed for anyone me included.

For transparency and to help understand where I come from on cars - my daily is a Skoda Superb estate with 240k miles on it and is used to hammer motorways regularly for work. I have two weekend toys an S600 for luxury and Boxster S for handing fun.

Berty

How I shopped for my current car was to point out cars to my wife. I tried twice to get her to go to delearships(big financial commitment after all) so instead I would say "what do you think of that car over there?" Now I did test her by pointing out the same car on different days and Yep don't you know it she would say "No, I don't like that car" even though days beforehand she'd say "oh, I really like that one". Shocker eh

She doesn't like Tesla, I don't even think she knows that it is only available in Elec, just doesn't like it. We have a, since new, 2016 Leon FR Diesel, and by god it has served us well. An excellent car being traded in for a PHEV. We have tried for quite a while to order different cars. Eventually had to cancel a Taracco order(Diesel in 2021) as they decided to only make Tiguans because of the higher margin and same parts. I still have a Formentor on order, meant to be built in 2-3 weeks, but Cupra want me to pay €7,600 more for it(Happy new year phone call). So I've my Tucson instead. Model 3 pricing in the past 24hrs got me thinking but I can't really be going back haggling with people on trade in values. It was painful enough a few months ago. So painful one Hyundai dealer offered me €4,500 less than the other guy. Everybody else was within a few hundred but 4.5k................come on.

PHEV will suit us, the missus likes the Tucson(or so she said on alternate days when asked) and our Mileage(with my working from home and no longer visting clients) I only do 38kms a day Mon-Fri. Nuisance of the PHEV Tucson is that it really doens't like operating in full EV mode when the AC or even heating is on.

Gile_na_gile

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120104094#Comment_120104094

It's been hovering at that price for ages. A few others on DD cut their prices to the 37k-41k EUR range, albeit the 37k eUR one has 90k km on it. After a period of adjustment, those 2019s should be 32-33k, 2020s about 35k, and so on. It'll take a while for a few dealers to assume the hit they are facing. Probably easier for private sellers who can delist (like a 212 in blue today which was now priced just above new!) or just accept the new market offering.

JohnC.

For fans of drifting and tofu delivery on mountain passes

https://mobile.twitter.com/supergtworld/status/1613696929937891330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1613696929937891330%7Ctwgr%5E0f8e0e09a2db7b03784144d4742a1c2835d67e10%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rllmukforum.com%2Findex.php%3Fapp%3Dcoremodule%3Dsystemcontroller%3Dembedurl%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2Fsupergtworld%2Fstatus%2F1613696929937891330%3Fs%3D20

Alkers

For fans of vans and the public horrifically overpaying for things (if the blurb is true)

https://www.donedeal.ie/campers-for-sale/transit-fully-electric-4-100km/32968597

mfceiling

Pulled in to the rathfarnham shopping centre and there's 4 chargepoint AC chargers.

Clearly marked with green paint on the ground. Obviously not clear enough for the lazy prick in the 181 megane who couldn't possibly walk an extra 10 metres in the empty carpark to get to Dealz.

He pulls out and literally 30 seconds later an oul one in a banger of a corsa pulls in and takes a spot.

I'd love to see clampers take a much more active role in policing EV only spots.

Dubwat

You do wonder about people sometimes. There's a charger in Finglas (Mellowes Rd) just off the front entrance of a Sports / Exercise centre. You'd think people could park in the correct car park and walk 20 metres before exercising instead of ICEing the charger (& disabled bays)? Oh no...

Car park is Council-owned and opposite a Garda station so, in theory, clamping/ticketing could be enforced.

snor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120117323#Comment_120117323

my neighbour was clamped

in that carpark outside Tesco for being over the white line so hopefully they will start clamping at the charging spaces. There is some very questionable parking in that car park!

snor

Loved this one 🤣

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120117867#Comment_120117867

Trying to get there before the off license closed 😂

snor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120117897#Comment_120117897

Consumed 🥲their purchases before they left I think 💭😬

eagerv

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120117867#Comment_120117867

Had to zoom in a bit on pic, it looks as though the car is balancing on a wall, but front wheels look to still be on the ground. Don't know the site, but is there a kerb on the upper side with a big drop off on lower side?

snor

It’s a lowish wall with a drop to the path below. I honestly do not know how they managed it - remember seeing the pictures last year.

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120117323#Comment_120117323

Funny, that spot is usually never iced. I'm there a lot.

mfceiling

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120118997#Comment_120118997

I've seen it iced a fair bit. It's usually the tracksuited "I'm only running into Dealz" brigade. Even though there are numerous other spots nearby.

cannco253

https://insideevs.com/news/631916/sony-honda-lease-afeela-ev-5-10-year-terms/

”The question will come down to whether people will be willing to commit to a lease with a term as long as 10 years. Some shoppers may just want to buy it outright or finance it, so we'll have to wait and see if Sony Honda Mobility has a plan for people interested in purchasing.

The Sony-Honda reps went on to share that if an Afeela owner is subscribing to the car and wants to pay less money on a monthly basis, they can simply refuse to accept certain software updates. If they stick to the original monthly fee, they'll get all the subsequent updates for the full term.”

the_amazing_raisin

https://electrek.co/2023/01/17/worlds-largest-electric-ferry-can-transport-you-and-2000-friends/

Quick Google search reveals that this has more capacity than the Dublin Swift and about 40km more range than required to go from Dublin to Holyhead

I'm looking forward to one day taking an electric ferry to the UK and then driving electric all the way to Europe (assuming I can't get a green hydrogen powered ferry to France)

EDIT: Bit of fun, I did some rough calculations on how much energy is in 400 tonnes of batteries and came up with between 36MWh and 66MWh assuming LFP batteries

Assuming a 2 hour break between crossings you'd need a 15-35MW charging system, going through approximately 6-12 MCS connectors

I wonder what the economics of a 150MWh battery at either end would be to save on the grid connection costs. I imagine the difference between day and night electricity prices are quite significant when taking about megawatts

josip

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120128115#Comment_120128115

Would it be suitable for the Irish Sea? Between Argentina and Uruguay it will only have to traverse the River Plate estuary. You might have to settle for ammonia :)

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120128176#Comment_120128176

Well as it is the Swift can only go in good weather. It seems to shut down in winter, presumably for maintenance but I also suspect the weather is too unreliable

AndyBoBandy

The Swift is already electric……. As are most modern ships….. the issue is they just carry around their power station on board with them (as well as fuel to run the power station)…. So going all electric is great in theory but during the day when these lads will charge up it would be mostly fossil fuel powering them up…..(if it’s a really windy day these boats can’t sail) and that’s before we even mention the grid implications of 35MW of additional demand for a 1-2 hour period each charging session….

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120128563#Comment_120128563

Yeah there's definitely some shore based infrastructure needs to be thought out

It's not all that bad though, for example the Swift seems to do 4 crossings per day, 2 each way

Assuming it's got a 50MWh battery onboard, you're looking at roughly 200MWh

So I wonder does it make sense to charge the ferry overnight, then have a 50MWh battery at either end for the top up before the next journey

You could then fit into a much smaller grid connection, say 5MW and save considerable money over the difference in wholesale electricity prices

You also have the advantage that you can do the old grid balancing side hustle with that battery, or use it to supply power to the rest of the port

At the moment it looks like wholesale electricity prices are around €160/MWh at night and €250 during the day. So a difference of around €4,500 per crossing in electricity costs seems like a good return (€8,000 Vs €12,500)

I read somewhere the Swift uses around 13,000 litres of diesel fuel per crossing. Assuming an overall cost of around €1/l that's €13,000 per crossing. I know marine diesel is cheaper and I assume Irish Ferries get some sort of bulk purchase discount, not to mention a VAT refund

So there's a definite argument for charging the ferry during the night. Also give the port has potential for generating energy onsite (wave & wind power) the savings could be even better

I imagine if I told some ferry operators they could save 50% in fuel costs they'd be having a crisis in their underwear with the excitement

josip

Just wait until you told them the expected CAPEX outlay 😀

AndyBoBandy

Modular batteries on the back of trailers that can be towed on & off the boats.

When empty batteries are taken off the ship, they go offsite to be charged up (wherever the grid is best suited to charge them… overnight even)..

So as soon as the ship pulls in you simply do a battery swap, you have enough batteries to cover all your days operations and they get charged up again overnight on renewables…

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120128912#Comment_120128912

Very true, but at some point Irish Ferries will need to trade their ships in for something newer. And it's likely that emmisions rules will restrict or heavily tax the use of marine diesel

So the choice then is get an LNG ferry (no LNG terminal in Dublin), get a hydrogen ferry (doesn't exist yet) or get an electric ferry

Overall Irish Ferries would probably prefer hydrogen since it would suit their longer range ferries, but given the cost savings of electric propulsion it might win out for the smaller ferries

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120129248#Comment_120129248

I kinda feel like this introduces as many problems as it solves

You'd probably be looking at around 10-15 shipping container sized battery trailers for the ship. You'd need time to disconnect them, swap them out and secure and connect the new ones, plus a whole set of safety checks

Sounds like there's an hour or so of work involved at least and you still have to unload and load the ferry

In that time you may have been able to recharge from a shore based battery, since you're already buying additional batteries than you need

ELM327

Battery swappings as an idea is about as silly as hydrogen.

The best use of this would be simply using batteries and charging them. If the delta between day and niight electricity supports it - buying onshore batteries to load shift may make financial sense too.

slave1

Agree, although China seem to be doing it it is nothing I'd be interested in.

Only real peak interest for me in the Nio clone of the Model 3 with the 150kW battery, that would be near 1,000kms real world range and a huge battery dump for PV