Unhappy with owning an EV in Ireland

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387519#Comment_120387519

while we are at it whats the large suv with a charging point in the nose?

DownByTheGarden

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387580#Comment_120387580

What is the point of this post?

Here we go again blaming the owner rather than the infrastructure. Jumping to conclusions and telling someone they are an idiot or should buy a new cable to charge their car at one charger at particular time of a particular day, without knowing exactly what the space situation was at that charger at the time the poster witnessed it.

Ive been in situations where i had to practically do gymnastics to get the charge port close enough to plug into the charger because of cars in the way. Why they hate on the poster who witnessed someone having to do that? I just dont get the whole black and white attitude of people here.

liamog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387788#Comment_120387788

The poster claimed its impossible to rely on public charging infrastructure and used the example of a person having to do a 3 point turn on a one way street as the reason why it's so inconvenient.

Apparently it's perfectly acceptable to go to the effort of installing a home charger but not the much easier effort of buying an AC cable that's suitable to fulfil the charging requirements of your car. Charging layouts at DC do need to improve, but on-street AC charging layouts are very easy to workaround simply by owning the correct equipment.

waterwelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387702#Comment_120387702

I think it was a BMW. Maybe charge point was front left passenger side.

I didn't really pay much heed, it was the car parked wrong way on a one way street that caught my eye.

DownByTheGarden

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387832#Comment_120387832

Ive benn driving EVs over 10 years. I agree that the charging infrastructure is woeful and its getting worse. Should I buy another cable and all my problems are solved? Well if only id known that years ago. Silly me.

liamog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387851#Comment_120387851

If you were regularly reliant on using an on street AC charger and had to constantly perform awkward manoeuvrers would you spend money on making that easier by buying a longer cable?

There's an AC charger near my partners house that I sometimes use. I do a quick 3 point turn to put my charge port next to the pavement. Personally I don't find such a basic vehicle operation to be inconvenient. I would be surprised if a poster on a motors forum did.

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387846#Comment_120387846

the only bmw suv with a charging port at the front is a the x5 plug in hybrid, so in that scenario we can probably assume it was someone who really wanted the parking space rather than needed to charge....

AndyBoBandy

Yep…

I stopped at this hotel in Eindhoven last summer for a quick top up…

24 Superchargers

3 CCS units (1x 50kW & 2x 300kW)

1 CHAdeMO unit

16x AC 22kW

The Tesla parked nose in was charging on AC (same as the Zoe), as the SuC spaces are on the other side of that hedge

waterwelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387909#Comment_120387909

Or they had little or no petrol?

Maybe somebody driving a BMW X5 would go to all that trouble to use the parking space rather than just go into the multistory car park adjacent to it.

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387952#Comment_120387952

personally i avoid multistorys like the plague. Anyway the fact its a phev makes the anecdote less impactful dont you think.

waterwelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387974#Comment_120387974

Not really, whether it was PHEV out of petrol or an EV out of electricity the driver was faced with the same dilemma.

Bit silly of a PHEV being caught out like that though, seeing as having a tank of gas is to avoid these scenarios.

...Ghost...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120388016#Comment_120388016

Someone driving a BMW and parking like a moron. That's not news 😉

I reckon BMW stopped supplying 5M cables and gave out the 2M cables as they tend to cost cut literally everywhere. Charged the buyer an extra €500 too for the pleasure.

Garzard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120386287#Comment_120386287

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120386302#Comment_120386302

I'll take this advice and those of the earlier replies on board. It's been a bit of a learning experience and up until now I've been keeping to the rule of thumb of 20-80% when charging on a normal day - obviously leaving it sit to 100% for a longer road trip. If it makes hardly any odds though to the battery long term, I'll do the same for the round trip commutes going forward and let the thread know how it goes.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120386712#Comment_120386712

Your point about public chargers - lack of capacity is definitely a problem at shopping centres. All the points in The Square, Tallaght anytime I've been there would be occupied and with a queue. A lot of PHEV's in the spaces usually, which I did find kind of frustrating I admit while I was still getting used to driving EV last year. It's still one place I avoid charging at.

My local chargers are now in Kells and I've never had to queue at the fast points when I've needed them on occasion. Though it was funny the other day at the Park Rí FC points when a queue formed immediately after I'd plugged in. The FCP right up the road at the Supervalu never seems to have anyone at it, so to save them from waiting, I directed the person behind me up that way once I'd checked on my app it was free - local EV driver and they were completely unaware it existed.

ELM327

Park Ri is a great spot. Used to be my local fast charger hub. By choice. I had a home charger but had a hack to get ecars for free that worked for over a year.

The other kells charger is limited to about 44kW total and 37kW if someone plugs into the AC.

If I lived near a fast charger, especially if I had a long range car and free or reasonable priced fast charging, it's perfectly doable to not have a home charger. Where I am now, there's no fast charger for 20-30 minutes and thats only a 50kW SPOF.

smax71

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120390676#Comment_120390676

The problem is that if a whole lot of people were in the same boat then it might not be so doable. The only reason public chargers are in any way accessible at present is that anyone with a home charger will avoid like the plague due to higher price of public charging. It's perfectly doable of course, albeit a bit inconvenient, to survive on public charging only but, given that most people buy EVs solely to save money, there would be no incentive to ditch the ice

Old diesel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120383887#Comment_120383887

For me it's simple - the charging network should be there for ALL EV drivers to use....

Regardless of whether you use it once a year or daily 7 days a week....

We all need to share the network but this idea of don't use the charger in case someone else might want it is flawed thinking....

Your friend has as much right to use that charger as any of us......

liamog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120394302#Comment_120394302

No network is going to survive on customers who use it once a year. Network build out will follow demand, the demand will come from the people who use it once a week. I totally agree with you, people should be encouraging all use so that it grows to everyone's benefit.

traco

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387250#Comment_120387250

No idea what type or charger this is but James Terrace in Malahide is one way with nose in parking and its common to see cars reveresed in facing the wrong direction to traffic flow. Its a wide street but still a bit of a silly arangement.

eagerv

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120395542#Comment_120395542

Waterford has a few similar. Not ideal..

josip

...

liamog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120395542#Comment_120395542

It's another AC charger where the cable provides the flexibility that the layout doesn't.

AndyBoBandy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120395542#Comment_120395542

It’s an ESB eCars AC22, and that road is 1 was so those spaces are a ball ache to reverse into… (I’ve never used it but driven past it plenty of times…)

it’s as bad as the eCars 50kW DC charger in Bolton St carpark in Waterford.. we’ll it’s actually worse as you are pulling into the space from a road as opposed to being in a carpark…

...Ghost...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120395809#Comment_120395809

That would be nice and convenient to reverse into as long as there is no bus stopped at the bus stop. I didn't know that CP was there. Lovely Michelin Star Indian Restaurant right beside it (Jaipur). Parking anywhere in Malahide is a PITA the majority of times. It's the only place I have ever seen "age friendly parking" spots. Bit of a nonsense really, as there is no requirement to abide by the "request".

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120394302#Comment_120394302

I took from the post that the friend was using the CP every evening for longer than needed. I see supermarket chargers as ideal use to top up the battery while shopping, rather than a destination charger. Locals using it is fine unless they are leaving it plugged in long after their battery is full, which is commonplace at my local Tesco....especially by PHEV owners.

AndyBoBandy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120397107#Comment_120397107

Parking anywhere in Malahide is a PITA the majority of times.

Id normally agree with this, but I have a boat on the marina there and get a parking permit as part of the marina fee’s…

but a good shout for parking in Malahide would be in the castle, and then walk down to the town…

Gumbo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120395542#Comment_120395542

I’d that spot wasn’t ICE’d the ID could drive in forward and plug in easily.

mrm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120387788#Comment_120387788

I dont see any 'hate' for the poster in question during the exchanges (strong word, your choice), but what I do see is that poster being called out on some dubious posting and rightly so. One example is that poster confirms they have a 'rare' trip to make and offer 3no. options to avoid public charging, that same public charging we all have managed to charge our EVs with (I dont see the litany of EVs abandoned on the side of roads with zero charge), and they state in the same post that they understand (via social media, experience, word of mouth, Boards.ie posts) that public charging is best avoided but then say it is fine for occasional use but not practical as primary source - all in the ONE post about a rare trip (that they cannot organise public charging but might organise charging with the hosts neighbour). They also state they don't use public charging because their driving profile doesn't warrant it, therefore may have to take the diesel. That's akin to stating they don't use petrol stations outside of their own town because they only do rare trips to other locations (if we need a comparison, try get fuel at any country town petrol station during lunch time - every pump is usually full with cars of individuals in getting soup and a ham sangwidge - I have experienced this regularly).

Another of their posts relates to watching a driver having to undertake a 3 point turn (think about the time this would take) on a one way street to access a charge space, and declaring they couldn't contemplate that on a regular basis. That's one space, not the layout template to every charging space in the country. Yet when asked what car was involved (remember the time taken viewing this) with the difficult charge port location they couldn't be assured which car they witnessed, while watching a full three point turn. Just absolute tripe posting, and frankly not believable. Boards.ie is a really good source of discussion but when sh1te like this is posted to inform the thread, particularly by one poster, it should be called out.

There is a genuinely important discussion needed regarding choosing an EV at this time given the public charging network deficiencies, but that discussion is not helped whatsoever with dubious posting that only exposes itself as pure bullsh1t. I have an EV for 1 year now (and a diesel second car for 8 years), following a lengthy period of arguing against the EVs. I have had only good experiences with it, in particular on those rare occasions it takes a journey beyond the daily local trips - about 20 minutes total waiting time for public chargers to become free, one unfortunate occasion of difficulty at a charger with expiry date on the card on the easygo account. It all involves having the wherewithal to adopt accordingly to own an EV if you really want one. This is contrasted by the other poster on this thread who complained about owning an EV and only charging to 80% for daily trips but complaining that this did not provide sufficient range...then charge to 100% and drive the car as required! They had to be told this. It might be not that EVs aren't for everyone, but more a case not everyone is for an EV. With that case the issue is not EVs but the prospective owners. Nonetheless, I fully agree with your own point on the thread that if you do not have home charging I would seriously consider if an EV is a good choice, all things considered. Financially, I dont believe so (fuel price per KM is working out about the same now with public charging).

traco

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120397728#Comment_120397728

Thats an MG Taxi I think.

Site used to be ICE'd a lot a few years back but not much now. Wardens are all over Malahide. They could add a dividing line to the space and make it clear its for two EV cars also. Often see Model S cars parked at. I'll be through there later today so will see what if there is anything odd happening.

donkey balls

My Neigjbour has an ID3 (Company car) she absolutely hates the car the range is supposed to be 300km, When she drives down to Wexford in order for her to get back to Dublin she needs to charge down there. Now she doesn't rally the car around, The company changed over due to the BIK at the time being zero.

Her work colleague has an ID4 and travels to Cork for work, They normally stop at Cashel services to charge the car to make it to Cork and do the same for the return Journey, Another bug bearer she has is if the heating is put on the battery level drops fast.

I was offered ok money on my A6 Quattro against an Audi E tron it was a 2021 but I was told the range was about 260km.

I've also seen lots of AUDI PHEV that would be fairly newish 21/22 reg? With 2 previous owners being the norm why would people be changing a relatively new car ?

tinytobe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118622341#Comment_118622341

I don't like an EV either.

The price and value of EVs isn't very good, plus the main issue is the limited range. I also dislike it that the battery is at the bottom of the car.

And then one is depended on various raw material from countries like Congo for Cobalt and others, who knows when they have another uprising or revolution.

EVs won't have a breakthrough, unless the range gets wider and battery technology changes substantially. Also the charging network needs to be one standard and one and the same tariff across Europe.

Also, why should I buy an EV in Europe when China and India is heavily investing in more and more coal power plants?

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120458696#Comment_120458696

You've got a fair amount of nonsense in one post. Sprinkled with some what abouttery.

Why would charging tariffs be the same across Europe, are fuel prices?