Electric cars?

Calls for a national EV 'Authority'.

SirRumpole said:

Calls for a national EV 'Authority'.

Task force call to fuel electric cars

Australia is nearing a tipping point for electric vehicles but needs a national task force to ensure no area is left behind, a Sydney summit has heard.

thenewdaily.com.au

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Yeah some more useless wind making group populated by mates' network and dropping report after report..at long last an opportunity for our green activists to partake in the pig trough feeding frenzy...can not wait...

Took delivery of the BYD ATTO3 extended range today.
Not without its problems, the online nature of the execution leaves a little to be desired, we were orignally sent to the Dandenong dispatch centre only to find it was an hour and a half away in Brooklyn.
Notwithstanding that, the run through the features was very thorough, and the guy answered all technical questions.
Used half the rang getting home, during which it drove well, was very quiet (not surprising), and although the interior is at best "gaudy", it has comfortable seats and the aircon worked efficiently.
Biggest dissappointment is the lack of in car apple play, though there is supposed to be an update available "very soon" to fix that.
Its probably not the ideal car for us, but at a $16,00 changeover price, was good value.
I have no doubt that in three years when we will look at the next upgrade, the EV world will be markedly different.
Looks like we will probably cancel the order for the Volvo.
Mick

mullokintyre said:

Took delivery of the BYD ATTO3 extended range today.
Not without its problems, the online nature of the execution leaves a little to be desired, we were orignally sent to the Dandenong dispatch centre only to find it was an hour and a half away in Brooklyn.
Notwithstanding that, the run through the features was very thorough, and the guy answered all technical questions.
Used half the rang getting home, during which it drove well, was very quiet (not surprising), and although the interior is at best "gaudy", it has comfortable seats and the aircon worked efficiently.
Biggest dissappointment is the lack of in car apple play, though there is supposed to be an update available "very soon" to fix that.
Its probably not the ideal car for us, but at a $16,00 changeover price, was good value.
I have no doubt that in three years when we will look at the next upgrade, the EV world will be markedly different.
Looks like we will probably cancel the order for the Volvo.
Mick

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Nice ??.

Keep us updated .

An interesting take on things EV

Belli said:

An interesting take on things EV

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In your own words, why is it interesting?

Went to the Big smoke for the weekend and took the BYD for its first big run of about 450kms.
Things I learned:
1. A lot of the charging stations require you to bring your own type 2 to type 2 cable. I had ordered one, but was not yet delivered.
really restricted our places to charge.
2. Running on the relatively flat freeway at 110 kmh chews into the range a fair bit.
3. Need to be very careful with speed management as we will get caught speeding very easily - the speed is deceptive.
3. On the way back, came via the Melba highway thru Yea to Seymour thru the winding hills.
Hilly country also reduces range. The plus side is the BYD handles well, and I took a couple of turnes posted with an advisory 80 kmh speed at somehwta higher speeds, and it stuck to the road like it was on rails. Little front wheel drive under/oversteering when you gun the accelerator mid curve. The low centre of gravity with all those batteries under the floor produced very little body roll.
My wife had a turn and she described it as "fun", and thought it actually out performed her CX5.
The down sides are firstly, the cruise control is a bit finicky, not at all intuitive, but I guess we will get used to it.
Secondly, with all of the front plumbing, wiring and control boxes open to the air, there is no "frunk" in the front of the car for storage wich seems a bit of a waste.
Will be measuring it up and making something out of Carbon Fibre that I can attach to the frame to provide a little extra storage.
So, initially at least, we are both pretty pleased with the car, and look forward to a little more long term testing.
Mick

mullokintyre said:

Went to the Big smoke for the weekend and took the BYD for its first big run of about 450kms.
Things I learned:
1. A lot of the charging stations require you to bring your own type 2 to type 2 cable. I had ordered one, but was not yet delivered.
really restricted our places to charge.

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That is one of the major benefits of Tesla, I do a lot of interstate driving and the Tesla supercharger network makes this a dream. if I had to rely on the other branded chargers I don't think it would be as enjoyable.

Are you used to regenerate braking yet? range can be extend quite a bit if you find a great balance between knowing when to accelerate vs coast vs regen.

Value Collector said:

That is one of the major benefits of Tesla, I do a lot of interstate driving and the Tesla supercharger network makes this a dream. if I had to rely on the other branded chargers I don't think it would be as enjoyable.

Are you used to regenerate braking yet? range can be extend quite a bit if you find a great balance between knowing when to accelerate vs coast vs regen.

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Tried the regen braking at different settings driving in traffic in the city. The max setting made it a little jerky, so went back to normal.
It made very little difference on freeway driving.
However, setting it to the max while driving through the hills was really good, hardly had to use the disc brakes at all.
Was a lot of fun to drive, but have no idea as to how much regen braking added to the range.
Mick

mullokintyre said:

Tried the regen braking at different settings driving in traffic in the city. The max setting made it a little jerky, so went back to normal.
It made very little difference on freeway driving.
However, setting it to the max while driving through the hills was really good, hardly had to use the disc brakes at all.
Was a lot of fun to drive, but have no idea as to how much regen braking added to the range.
Mick

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Yep, most people find regen to be jerky at first, but once you get the hang of it it becomes smooth.

(At atleast that’s how I find it with the Tesla because it’s interstates with the foot pedal, I am. It sure how the BYD uses it)

While rising petrol prices are accelerating the transition to electric vehicles in many overseas countries, Australia remains stuck in the slow lane.

The Albanese government has introduced tax breaks intended to make EVs more affordable, but drivers who have already made the switch say the nation needs to do more to embrace the electric revolution. Nadia Daly reports.

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9 weeks of Atto 3 ownership and it’s a joy to drive. So here’s my pre-Christmas snapshot:

Originally played around with its 3 driving modes – ECO, Normal and Sport – to see how they went, but now keep it in “Sport” as it just took a bit of time to get used to the accelerator’s sensitivity. After nearly 2000 km I average almost 15kW/100km so would get 400km range on the theoretical worst setting. That average has included several trips across the border on the M1 to get to surf beaches – roughly 300km round trips – and the rest pretty much suburban driving using the M1 as an artery.

As I haven’t yet driven far enough on a single trip to warrant using a commercial charger, I worked out that it costs $45 for 1000km plugged into a household powerpoint on our electricity plan. Our local supermarket has 2 free-to-use A/C powerpoints in dedicated EV bays, so each week I get 6-8kW for nix while I shop.

Regen braking has only 2 settings, and both are relatively soft, so one pedal driving is not on. However, it seems BYD has deliberately made this “feel” like driving an ICEV, so the crossover is only really noticeable due to its silence. Almost forgot to mention how the brakes were very “grabby” to begin with but, like with the accelerator, after a few weeks you get used to its sensitivity.

Comfortably fits 3 surfboards and 3 adults, and also fitted in 2x2.4metre wardrobe flatpacks from Ikea without a problem. Backseat passengers have been impressed with the comfort and legroom.

Visited AliExpress for some optional extras, including mats, mudguards (probably not good for aerodynamics, but economy still is pretty good), door-edge buffers, and a console tidy. The Atto 3’s console is way too deep, so the custom-made console tidy sits as a cover, allowing decent sized items to be stored (“hidden”) underneath it. Also picked up boot liners from Aldi really cheap and cut them to size.

Cruise control has a few tricks to it. I press “set” then immediately use the scroll-down knob left of it when I want to cruise at a particular speed. This knob is scrolled up or down to adjust speeds higher or lower and uses 5kph increments, which caught me out a few times as I expected smaller increments. The adaptive cruise control settings are great for heavy highway traffic and let you adjust the “gap” to whatever you feel comfortable with. There are additional settings for lane-keeping etc, but after a few weeks driving I turned everything off except cruise control as the “alerts” can get annoying. Unless you want to go deaf, hands free driving is possible but impossible due to the emergency alert going beserk!

As I haven’t yet driven far enough on a single trip to use a commercial charger, I worked out that it costs $45 for 1000km plugged into a household powerpoint on our electricity plan. Our local supermarket has 2 free-to-use A/C powerpoints in dedicated EV bays, so each week I get 6-8kW for nix while shopping. Those dedicated undercover EV bays have been a real blessing in recent weeks as other cars drive in circles looking for a parking spot.

My favourite feature is the “voice command” that allows lots of functions to be performed while never having your hands leave the wheel or eyes leave the road. The Android style screen provides more settings than you can poke a stick at, although Apple Car Play isn’t yet available However, if you have an iPhone you can run it and there’s a YouTube “cheat” that lets you install any app you want. I use YouTube Music or Spotify when I am not otherwise glued to ABC News Radio. The many cameras give excellent definition, and along with 3D function make shopping centre parking in particular a heck of a lot safer.

I’m sure Tesla’s have more features, but the Atto 3 already has more than I need, so spending another $20k wasn’t a consideration.

Mater Dei!!!!! ?

wayneL said:

Mater Dei!!!!! ?

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Only 70,000 km should be covered by warranty. Maybe another good reason to steer clear of GM.

wayneL said:

Mater Dei!!!!! ?

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I just did some research apparently that is a rare case, the Volt batteries. Normally cost between $2000 and $8000 depending on size and year model.

However that is a 2012, which is a battery type that was not standardised and has been discontinued, so the quote for replacement was crazy pricing.

Definitely not a usual price.

Merry Christmas to all,

Belli said:

An interesting take on things EV

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Every time I have ever watched one of that guys videos I have regretted it, this time was no different.

JohnDe said:

Merry Christmas to all,

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I just did a bit off math, converting his energy savings numbers from gallons and miles into litres and kms, and into Australian petrol prices based on $1.5 litre petrol.

Basically, he was sayings it’s not worth a petrol car utilising the energy savings these tires have because it would only save 0.8 gallons per 200 miles.

But that’s a $1,400 saving over the life of the tire, I imagine the tires are more expensive than standard tyres, but surely that saving would go along way to pay for the tyres. You then would have the noise reduction and longer tire life as free benefits.

When it comes to the energy saving based on cost of electricity, it’s much narrower, to the point the tyres break even with standard tyres, but again the other benefits are free eg extended range, lower noise and longer life.

People in South Australia can apply to be part of the vehicle to grid (V2G) tests.


Electricity provider South Australia Power Networks (SAPN) has launched a trial in which the state's electric-car owners can apply for a bi-directional charger, provided the car is equipped with vehicle-to-grid (V2G) or vehicle-to-home (V2H) capabilities.
To obtain a Wallbox Quasar bi-directional charger, South Australian residents must apply to take part in the SAPN trial.
If approved, they will be eligible to purchase the charger from Australian firm JetCharge for about $10,000, excluding installation costs.
In Australia, V2G is currently available in only three vehicles: the Nissan Leaf electric car, plus Mitsubishi’s Outlander and Eclipse Cross plug-in hybrids (PHEV) – all of which are fitted with the Japanese ‘CHAdeMO’ charging connector.
According to JetCharge, the Wallbox Quasar is pending approval to be used in Australia outside of the SAPN trial, although it has previously been trialled in the nation’s capital.
In June 2020, a fleet of 51 Nissan Leafs was distributed to the Australian Capital Territory’s energy provider, ActewAGL, and the local government.
The $6.59 million trial – named Realising Electric Vehicle-to-grid Services (REVS) – has been funded in part by the Federal Government’s Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
A May 2022 report on the REVS trail found the bi-directional charger was initially not certified to Australian standards, resulting in the project being delayed significantly as the Wallbox Quasar underwent the necessary hardware and software changes to be complied with local regulations.
The full results of the REVS trial are due to be published after its conclusion in March 2023.

Hyundai get serious and produce something for the rev heads among us.

Power comes from two electric motors – one on each axle, developing 160kW up front and 270kW at the rear – for combined outputs of 430kW and 740Nm.

It is all-wheel drive, has a claimed top speed of more than 250km/h, and stores its energy in a 77.4kWh battery pack derived from other models that share the Hyundai-Kia group’s E-GMP electric platform.
To appeal to performance-car fans switching from petrol to electric power – who may be concerned about the lack of noise and driver engagement – Hyundai N has implemented an external speaker system that projects a deep rumble when the car is moving, and can even be ‘revved’ like a petrol car when parked in neutral.
The RN22e also debuts a ‘virtual gearshift’ feature, which combines hardware in the electric motors with clever software to simulate an i30 N hatchback’s eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.
Drivers who don’t like this system will be able to turn it off, so the car drives like a single-speed electric car.
Hyundai says this technology is headed for production, starting with next year’s Ioniq 5 N.
But with the big battery pack comes weight. Hyundai won’t reveal how heavy the RN22e is, but a standard dual-motor Ioniq 6 electric car weighs more than two tonnes – and the wider body panels on the concept are likely to cancel out any weight loss from the stripped-out interior.
This is a big car – at 4.9 metres long and more than two metres wide, it’s about 60cm longer and 20cm broader than a Hyundai i30 N hatchback. Its footprint on the road is not much smaller than a Toyota LandCruiser’s.
The simulated engine sound was surprisingly convincing. A deep note blends hints of a V8 engine with the electric motor’s whine, rather than the spaceship-style noise of other electric cars.
The party piece of the whole driving experience is the virtual gearshift system (also referred to as ‘N e-shift’). It might sound like a gimmick on paper (and to an extent, it is, given it makes the car slower), but after experiencing it we can see the merit in it.