The EV fact thread

[poormansporsche]

It's hard to look at Medway Services and imagine that many will be "queueing up" to use those services any time soon. You and I certainly won't.

Clacket Lane Services is the most expensive petrol station "in the world" and it's still rammo all day long.

People are lazy.

Medway services is on one of the 2 main routes to Dover. It will get used, maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

Clacket Lane Services is the most expensive petrol station "in the world" and it's still rammo all day long.

People are lazy.

Medway services is on one of the 2 main routes to Dover. It will get used, maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon

Fair point, but this one isn't on the M25, it's on the M2. And this sort of crazy overcapacity isn't unique to the M25/M2 - it's happening all over the network.

6pm Saturday. Not one charger at Medway Services is being used.

Apart from the point about having charged at home, or outside your home, if you were going to Dover, why wouldn't you charge at Dover, while getting a coffee and waiting for the train or boat?






But the Chargers at Eurostar might be full ?


6pm on Saturday evening: Just one of the very high speed chargers is in use.

 

[poormansporsche]

@MikeInWimbledon

If you had mentioned anywhere else apart from Medway I would not have commented. But when operation stack is on and there are 9 hour delays at Dover Id bet EV owners with real or imagined range anxiety will be fighting each other to get to the last charger before the queues !!!!

 

[markjay]

@MikeInWimbledon

If you had mentioned anywhere else apart from Medway I would not have commented. But when operation stack is on and there are 9 hour delays at Dover Id bet EV owners with real or imagined range anxiety will be fighting each other to get to the last charger before the queues !!!!

Sitting in a queue (or traffic jam) hardly consumes any electricity.......

 

[poormansporsche]

Sitting in a queue (or traffic jam) hardly consumes any electricity.......

Maybe, maybe not, most people are not that organised though and probably wouldn't take the chance though for the sake of a quick 10 minute top up (They have a GREGGS as well !!!!!!!).

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

@MikeInWimbledon

If you had mentioned anywhere else apart from Medway I would not have commented. But when operation stack is on and there are 9 hour delays at Dover Id bet EV owners with real or imagined range anxiety will be fighting each other to get to the last charger before the queues !!!!

Sorry, but you don’t understand how an EV is used.

As I said, owners charge their vehicles at or near home. There’s only a tiny amount of charging afield, which is why these chargers aren’t being used.

Lots of capacity and lots of different places to charge. This isn’t the last petrol station before Dover.

Look ‘em up.

 

[poormansporsche]

Sorry, but you don’t understand how an EV is used.

As I said, owners charge their vehicles at or near home. There’s only a tiny amount of charging afield, which is why these chargers aren’t being used.

Lots of capacity and lots of different places to charge. This isn’t the last petrol station before Dover.

Look ‘em up.

I've been rambling

I agree that from the data you showed that it's seems that at Medway there is massive over capacity.

But it's my opinion that Medway (and also Lenham on the M20) is a anomaly compared to other services.

99% of the time it's dead but the 1% when a combination of factors combine I'd guess that a fair proportion of the chargers are utilised (and queues at the petrol pumps as well !!!)

1, It may not be the last services before Dover but it is the only services on the coast bound M2.

2, when operation stack is in operation all private cars headed towards Dover are diverted from the M20 to the M2.

3, Medway is between junction 4 and 5 and junction 5 has the biggest long term roadworks in Kent, it's poxy !

4, The distance between junction 5 and 6 is massive.

5, and finally I may not own a EV but @MikeInWimbledon I don't think you can compare other people's organisational skills on your own "People" are moronic, lazy, and stupid How many people turn up at dover every day without their passports !!!

 

[PXW]

Took a trip to Worcestershire yesterday for lunch with family. Stopped off at the wonderful Gloucester Services on the M5 and popped a few electrons into the car while we were there (didn’t need to, as it happens, but we needed a coffee anyway). There are 8 Tesla v4 chargers there (the ones with a card reader to pay and a cable that allows any vehicle to charge without blocking the stall next door) and 12 of the Westmorland own brand chargers. We sat for maybe 15 minutes and watched as cars went and came. I’d describe the charging area as comfortable busy - there were always chargers free but up to about 12-13 cars charging at any one time. There was a wide range of vehicles - MB, Kia, VW, Tesla, even a Landrover PHEV. No drama; nobody seemed stressed, people just plugged in and wandered off to the services. It all felt very sensible and normal.

 

[markjay]

Took a trip to Worcestershire yesterday for lunch with family. Stopped off at the wonderful Gloucester Services on the M5 and popped a few electrons into the car while we were there (didn’t need to, as it happens, but we needed a coffee anyway). There are 8 Tesla v4 chargers there (the ones with a card reader to pay and a cable that allows any vehicle to charge without blocking the stall next door) and 12 of the Westmorland own brand chargers. We sat for maybe 15 minutes and watched as cars went and came. I’d describe the charging area as comfortable busy - there were always chargers free but up to about 12-13 cars charging at any one time. There was a wide range of vehicles - MB, Kia, VW, Tesla, even a Landrover PHEV. No drama; nobody seemed stressed, people just plugged in and wandered off to the services. It all felt very sensible and normal.

Blasphemy! Heresy!

 

[poormansporsche]

Another car park fire

No cars damaged but I'm sure a EV will get the blame

 

[Fastcar155]

Last week visited the services just south of Oxford on the M40.All the Tesla charging stations full and cars waiting in line to have there charge.No doubt we all have are stories to tell about the pros and cons of electric battery cars.As these battery car age spare parts and reliability start to creep in.I read an article the other day that the starting batteries on some cars cost thousands to buy.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I read an article the other day that the starting batteries on some cars cost thousands to buy.

It’s truer, I have an ICE (Mercedes) car registered in 2018 and back in January 2021 I had a quote to replace the lithium battery, and it was £1700 plus fitting and coding. I dare say that would be £2000 or more with the effect of inflation in between.

 

[markjay]

...I read an article the other day that the starting batteries on some cars cost thousands to buy.

It’s truer, I have an ICE (Mercedes) car registered in 2018 and back in January 2021 I had a quote to replace the lithium battery, and it was £1700 plus fitting and coding. I dare say that would be £2000 or more with the effect of inflation in between.

@Bobby Dazzler, The "starting battery" on your car is Lithium?

 

[Deleted member 55947]

Another car park fire

No cars damaged but I'm sure a EV will get the blame

It will now

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

@Bobby Dazzler, The "starting battery" on your car is Lithium?

Yes the car I mentioned above has a lithium battery.

 

[markjay]

Yes the car I mentioned above has a lithium battery.

Isn't it the EQ Boost battery? Or is it used also for starting the engine?

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Isn't it the EQ Boost battery? Or is it used also for starting the engine?

It’s not an EV, it’s the main starting battery on an ICE car.

 

[markjay]

It’s not an EV, it’s the main starting battery on an ICE car.

You learn something new every day

 

[markjay]

I guess I should consider myself lucky that the 12v battery on my EV is a 19th-Century-tech Lead Acid battery....

 

[clk320x]

It’s truer, I have an ICE (Mercedes) car registered in 2018 and back in January 2021 I had a quote to replace the lithium battery, and it was £1700 plus fitting and coding. I dare say that would be £2000 or more with the effect of inflation in between.

That makes £10k ish for a refurb Tesla 90kWh pack seem a bargain.