WDB
Full Member
Posts: 7,427 
|
Post by WDB on May 11, 2023 15:11:05 GMT
The current perceived wisdom being 20%-80% covering 140 miles... Perceived where and by whom, though? There's nothing in the various owner's guides for the i3 that tells me, or even advises me, to use only that range. |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 11, 2023 15:13:12 GMT
Nor my Leaf.
|
|
bpg
Full Member
Posts: 2,812
|
Post by bpg on May 11, 2023 15:59:04 GMT
Perceived from the behaviour of the car on a DC fast charger starting to throttle back after 60% and slowing the rate of charge significantly beyond 80%.
The headline 150+ kW charge rates only work for a short range of charging usually between 40 and 60%
You won't see this in an i3 or Leaf as they don't support the high load rates.
|
|
WDB
Full Member
Posts: 7,427
|
Post by WDB on May 11, 2023 17:00:05 GMT
Nor does an iPhone but that also slows charging above 80%. Isn’t it mostly about managing the temperature during the charge? Charging gently to 100% doesn’t cause the same problems.
|
|
bpg
Full Member
Posts: 2,812
|
Post by bpg on May 11, 2023 17:29:58 GMT
While the chemistry is the same or similar in principle, charging a mobile phone quickly with 5volts and 18watts into a 5000mAh (0.025kWh) battery where the plug is the inverter, think about how hot your plug gets with those numbers, and scale that to 350kW, 403V three phase into a 60+kWh battery.
|
|
|
|
Post by EspadaIII on May 12, 2023 14:06:00 GMT
There is nothing in my car's manual to say I should not drop below 20% and never charge to 100%. Practically the rate of charge at speeds higher than 7kWh slows above 80% to protect the battery but I consider my range to just like a fuel tank in an ICE car.
|
|
bpg
Full Member
Posts: 2,812
|
Post by bpg on May 12, 2023 15:26:28 GMT
In our KIA the green car light to show all OK to go turns red when the battery drops below 20% and the KIA connect battery shows a low battery warning.
|
|
WDB
Full Member
Posts: 7,427
|
Post by WDB on May 12, 2023 17:56:17 GMT
That's a thing worth knowing, isn't it? The i3 gets quite cross too if it thinks I'm asking it to go somewhere it doesn't have enough charge for, but I've taken that as an anti-stranding precaution rather than anything concerned with battery health.
|
|
bpg
Full Member
Posts: 2,812
|
Post by bpg on May 13, 2023 9:26:26 GMT
A red light on a dashboard is certainly worth knowing. It's not usually good news though. I prefer my warning lights off or green.
|
|
WDB
Full Member
Posts: 7,427
|
Post by WDB on May 14, 2023 10:19:21 GMT
Yes, you'd think yellow or amber would be sufficient for that, as with a 'reserve fuel' warning in a fossil car. Still sounds more like a matter of user interface design than underlying engineering, though.
|
|
bpg
Full Member
Posts: 2,812
|
Post by bpg on May 15, 2023 16:19:40 GMT
|
|
WDB
Full Member
Posts: 7,427
|
Post by WDB on May 15, 2023 16:33:51 GMT
Crikey! Battery management brought to you by Google Translate.
|
|
WDB
Full Member
Posts: 7,427
|
Post by WDB on May 18, 2023 14:00:35 GMT
Candidate 4: Kia EV6(From July 2022) I met it at last for the first time this morning.
...
To drive, it feels much as I'd hoped it would. On some fairly gruesome Hampshire tarmac, it coped pretty well. It doesn't cosset but it doesn't jar either, and it all feels well damped and controlled. I don't think it's a ride that would get fatiguing over a long distance. The single-motor one I drove doesn't feel especially rapid but it's decently quick off the mark, so there's no problem with grabbing a gap at a busy roundabout. And straight-line performance doesn't matter too much over the long distances I'd hope to be using this car for.
Inside, the demo car has one big problem - clue for Humph : it's made of glass and mounted overhead. Or rather, not far enough over my head
...
The nasty hard plastic seat backs would remain, though - probably not something I'd want to be wedged behind for a long day in the car.
Passenger space is tolerable with the sunroof, but improves markedly without it - I tried another car, waiting to be handed over, to be sure - as I can set the front seat higher and leave room for feet under it. The extra headroom helps in the back too. The boot is a little disappointing, being too short for a cricket bag to travel lengthways, meaning three bags would fit only with a seat folded ... probably the biggest demerit point against the EV6. Well now, that was interesting! The top model EV6 does without a sunroof (woohoo!) and electric seats (pity) but gains a second motor and about one million horsepower. Whereas most EVs are limited by tyres and gearing to 150 or 200 km/h, this one can do 260 and get there in the blink of one and half eyes. Doesn't always feel like it - there's a green safety catch button on the steering wheel to release all the horses and I left it unmolested during this morning's brief Buckinghamshire excursion, but the thing certainly has a turn of speed even in ploddy Eco mode. I'd actually say Kia has done a good job here, because this car could easily be exhausting to drive, taking off at the slightest provocation and having to be constantly reined in. But it isn't; it's very well-mannered in traffic and easy to position. I didn't feel what some reviewers have said, that it's hard to see out of the back. It doesn't quite do full one-pedal, at least not in the modes I found, but the (metal) paddles on the wheel make it easy to dial the regen up or down and I always felt confident the thing would stop smoothly and in time, with a final touch of the brake pedal. I liked the seat too, even if I did have to adjust it by hand. It's covered in a nice alcantara with bright green piping, which pleases my inner magpie, although I can imagine MrsB1 being less impressed. And I thought it rode well - certainly better than the hard-edged M-Sport ride that ultimately made my last overtly sport car, the 325 coupé, hard work on a long drive. Big bumps come through, but it doesn't jiggle or patter over small ones. Certainly firmer than the CLS but I think it would cope with a long run without becoming tiring. The sales manager, whose car it was, says he enjoys long trips in it - but then, he would say that, wouldn't he? There's still the slightly odd situation in the back seat. There's plenty of room in there but it's not quite in the right places. The seat base is very close to the floor, so it's a bit like sitting on a primary school gym bench, knees in the air. And my feet wouldn't fit under the driver's seat set for me. But the headroom is good and there's no contortion required to get in or out. For an hour, it would be OK but it's not a limo to take four to the Mediterranean. That may not matter to me but it's perhaps the aspect I need to give most thought to. An iPace has less outright room in the back but may be more comfortable. The boot is decent without being huge, but probably big enough for us and easily accessible through the big tailgate, which lifts high enough not to be a head-hazard. (Wish I could say the same of the i3!) And I didn't get to try the GT's premium audio system, which I hope will be a big plus on long journeys, especially solo ones for work. You can probably tell I really want to like this car. And I generally do. I could wish the back seat was a better design for people with legs, but even as it is, it's miles better than the Ioniq 6, which is simply poor from the-pillars aft. And I'd like memory seats, not just for marital harmony but for ease of adjustment on the move - but I manage without them in the i3. I really like that this is a driver-oriented car that can be civilised and relaxed when there are other people in it too, and that the GT add-ons are subtle - apart from the green brake calipers. And I like - from an admittedly small sample so far - the way it rides, grips and steers. It's also helped me to clarify my thoughts on the Hyundai-Kia EV family, and the EV6 is at the top of that sub-list for me. It's not as capacious as an Ioniq and doesn't try to be, but it makes up by doing other things better. And in terms of what I will use most of the time, I suspect I'd enjoy an EV6 more. As for the GT - in matt (more satin) silver-grey, please - that would be an extravagance. But fun |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 18, 2023 14:15:01 GMT
Interesting post, Dubya. Thanks. How close in reality are you now to replacing the CLS with an EV?
I saw an Ioniq 6 on the road for the first time yesterday. It looked far smaller than I was expecting, it appeared significantly smaller than an EV from first impressions. Which are probably wrong. I'm getting a funny feeling Hyundai have got it wrong with the I6, as opposed to KIA pretty much nailing it with the EV6.
Speaking of Hyundais, I'm becoming more convinced myself that a Kona 64kwh would be the only really worthwhile thing to replace one of my cars with.
|
|
WDB
Full Member
Posts: 7,427
|
Post by WDB on May 18, 2023 14:46:54 GMT
How close? That greatly depends on how and when I resolve the employment situation, the lack of which is what's giving me the time to play with cars on weekdays. How, because my next job may have me doing the kind of domestic business travel I've not really done since 2004, which will be a factor in choosing the car. (And also in the timing, as some employers have policies on the age of the machinery their people turn up in.) And when, because - well, y'know...
I think early autumn may be the time to change. It's unlikely the planets will align in time for the summer holiday trip. The CLS will cope just fine with that anyway. (And even I gulped a little when I tried to make a hypothetical charging plan through mid-Wales; there's really not much out there yet.) Doing long work trips favours the Koreans and their modern charging architecture over the rather dated and inefficient Jaguar, which is slow to take on range en route. It may actually present a very similar use case to Esp and his I5.
But it would also suit the iX3, which I'm going to revisit tomorrow. That has faster charging (than the iPace, not the EV6) and is surprisingly efficient for a tall, steel-bodied compromise EV. And it has that ridiculous bonnet and is, frankly, an ugly mofo. But it's a really, really good one to drive, despite being nowhere near as fast as the Kia, and might be the easiest in which to forget what I'm driving and just enjoy where I'm going. My BMW salesman's language has changed too, from last year's "We have one car in the country and might be able to get you one in nine months," to "BMW is offering deposit contributions and special incentives."
Ultimately, I want the ease of driving of the BMW, the space of the Ioniq 5, the styling and advanced features of the Kia, and the (relative) affordability of one of the many approved 2020-21 iPaces now out there. Can't be that hard, can it?
|
|
