# What are your electric vehicle plans? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 22, 2020, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614 "2020-10-22T18:45:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 77
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2024, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1546 "2024-04-01T13:58:16Z")
> [@smithsb](#): > > We’ve gone and done it. A 2024 Hyundai Ionic 5 SEL. Congrats! We test drove the Ionic 5 and really liked it, but couldn’t get a deal we wanted. Seems like a great car! ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2024, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1547 "2024-04-18T02:13:18Z")
Did a mini road trip in the Ioniq the past week. From a bit north of Augusta, GA to SeaWorld area in Orlando ~425 miles. Broke it up into 3 splits; Evans to Savannah, Savannah to Jacksonville, Jacksonville to Orlando. With the wife and two grandchildren, the 2-1/2 hour splits worked out. Time for some fastish food or snacks, bathroom, short mall/store roam. Charged to about 85% (just under 20 minutes), plenty for the next stint. Electrify America fast chargers are spaced for those distances - and free with our lease! Return was the reverse stops, no drama other than the occasional psycho driver. The lane keeping/radar cruise/emergency forward braking briefly went bonkers/offline. Came back up a few minutes later and at the next charging station; I cleaned the remains of some giant bug off one of the sensor panels. One or more of the chargers seem to glitch at a couple of stops - I suspect there is a giant control room somewhere they monitor and reset them - or more likely, they do a reset based on a local signal. All the kids like the car, plenty of squirt and handles well. So far so good. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2024, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1548 "2024-04-18T22:08:58Z")
> [@smithsb](#): > > Electrify America fast chargers are spaced for those distances - and free with our lease! Return was the reverse stops, no drama other than the occasional psycho driver. I’ve been hearing lots of horror stories lately about broken chargers, which seems the be a problem with basically every charging network that isn’t Tesla. I take it that wasn’t a problem for you (I assume you would have mentioned it if it was). ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2024, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1549 "2024-04-18T22:20:30Z")
For me (Oregon), five years ago it was hit-or-miss if the Level III charger worked at a stop (in reality, it was probably like 75% worked, but it _felt_ like a lot worse). But I haven’t seen a broken one in the last three years. But I don’t take road trips too often, so this isn’t a huge data point. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2024, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1550 "2024-04-18T22:33:25Z")
We’ve used Tesla Superchargers a grand total of 5 times and haven’t had an issue or seen any that appeared broken. They just work. Pull up, plug in, wait, unplug and drive away. No pulling out credit cards or poking buttons. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2024, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1551 "2024-04-18T22:44:08Z")
Yeah, I think Tesla superchargers have always been reliable (other than asshole truck drivers ICE-ing the spots). Non-Tesla chargers were rightfully criticized for being notoriously flukey, with many out of order or just not working on any given day. And maybe they still aren’t as reliable as Tesla, but my experience now is night and day compared to what it used to be. Some of the horror stories you hear now are based on how it used to be. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2024, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1552 "2024-04-19T02:38:39Z")
I’ve only ever seen one broken Tesla charger. It looked like a vehicle bumped into to it. The next day, I saw a repair crew working on it. Their chargers are a profit center—the spice electrons must flow! ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2024, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1553 "2024-04-22T18:02:09Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > Yeah, I think Tesla superchargers have always been reliable (other than asshole truck drivers ICE-ing the spots). Non-Tesla chargers were rightfully criticized for being notoriously flukey, with many out of order or just not working on any given day. I drive past a luxury new car dealer somewhat often; their two chargers are almost always blocked with inventory; highly doubt someone was charging at 5:45am Sun morning. I don’t think I’ve ever seen less than 6 or 8 slots at a Tesla station whereas others are frequently only 2. Does Tesla do less; do others routinely do more? Who typically decides how many in a given location, the property owner or the charging company? ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2024, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1554 "2024-04-22T19:41:19Z")
I finally had a chance to use a Supercharger the other day, the “magic dock” sort. It was so flawless compared to Electrify America that I didn’t even know whether or not it was charging. I had to turn on my car so I could see the charging status on the IP. It was pricey, though. I realize that Tesla has demand pricing, and I was at the peakest time. Still it was worth three dollars and change to see how well it worked. My free NACS adapter should arrive soon, and maybe I’ll start taking my EV on road trips with the family again when we’re not pulling a trailer or need the space. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2024, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1555 "2024-04-22T19:52:50Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > Does Tesla do less Some of the early stations only had 4 slots, but they’re pretty rare these days. There are still a few of them hanging around (there’s one in Mojave). I expect that most of these are in out of the way places without much traffic, and the remainder have either been upgraded or retired. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2024, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1556 "2024-04-22T19:59:28Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > There are still a few of them hanging around (there’s one in Mojave). Upgraded. There’s two sites now in Mojave. Old one by the Stater Bros, which has more chargers scattered around the parking lot. And a new one by the Wienerschnitzel. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2024, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1557 "2024-04-22T20:08:33Z")
Less than two years pass and my knowledge is already out of date! Last I was there, the Supercharger was in a weird little corner of the lot by Anthony’s Grill. From Google Street View, it looks like they’ve ripped up that section of the lot and moved the chargers to the front (and added a couple more). ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2024, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1558 "2024-04-22T20:15:44Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > Some of the early stations only had 4 slots, but they’re pretty rare these days. There are still a few of them hanging around (there’s one in Mojave). According to a 2015 Street View within the parking lot, there were at least 6 at the Stater Bros in Mojave. I can see from the main road Street View (2023), those are still there but they’ve added another 4 along the road (those appear to be 250kW versions). The map mentions more, but I’m done looking at the maps. I had to idea they’ve been around that long. According to Google, the first went in in 2012. I did not know that. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2024, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1559 "2024-04-22T20:49:41Z")
I do the L.A. to Mammoth run several times a year. I’ve used every charging site along the route. The Tesla charging infrastructure is steadily improving. Bishop and Mammoth both have second sites as well. I’m still waiting for a second charging site in Big Bear. That town is severely underdeveloped for superchargers. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2024, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1560 "2024-08-05T00:31:25Z")
Bumping this because I’m in the market for a new EV. The lease on my Kia Niro is up in about 2 weeks. I really disliked this car. But I should point out that I love having an EV, my issues with it are Kia issues that are, for all intents and purposes, unrelated to the electric part of it. While I’m open to another Kia (or Hyundai), I’d prefer to avoid it. Having said that, from what I’m seeing, my options are a Tesla 3 or Y, or a Ford Mach-E. Right now, I’m leaning towards the Mustang. One of the things I’d strongly prefer is AWD (or at least Front wheel drive). Both the Mustang and the Tesla’s are RWD with the option for AWD (or Ford’s “eAWD”, but I’m not sure what that means, is it the same as AWD). My concern is driving in the snow. Having to swap to winter tires is a deal breaker for me. Thoughts on the Mach E? Thoughts on winter driving with a RWD EV? Also, I want to mention that I’ve been driving in the snow for close to 30 years. I’ve driven RWD/FWD/AWD/4WD in the snow. I assume an EV isn’t _as_ bad in the snow as an ICE car due to the weight being distributed move evenly, but I’m assuming a RWD EV still fishtails a lot easier than a ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2024, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1561 "2024-08-05T01:26:10Z")
My dormant thread should be some help: > [@Future EV/Hybrid Plans, AWD edition!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/future-ev-hybrid-plans-awd-edition/988126): > > I know we have a ton of these threads, but this one is a bit more specific to myself and the spousal unit, so I figured I’d create a new thread to further investigate our options. Setup: since the wife finally finished her PhD and nearly immediately secured a job with a decent income, we’re finally ready to consider retiring my vehicle, a 2002 Subaru Outback Sport with 120k on it. It’s done well by us, but has ongoing issues that to repair would be several times what the vehicle is worth. Fo… We’re hoping to get a hybrid for reasons outlined here and the other thread by the end of the year though. We’re waiting on a second estimate on the electrical panel work first. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2024, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1562 "2024-08-05T02:57:47Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > One of the things I’d strongly prefer is AWD (or at least Front wheel drive). My experience has been that 4WD/AWD is helpful if you’re driving in deep snow where getting stuck is a risk, but it doesn’t really do anything for handling and traction control. If you’re worried about steering and stopping, traction tires are the only thing that will help. My Hyundai Kona is FWD, and my previous Leaf was as well. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2024, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1563 "2024-08-05T03:30:11Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > My experience has been that 4WD/AWD is helpful if you’re driving in deep snow where getting stuck is a risk, but it doesn’t really do anything for handling and traction control. I’d also argue (and did in the linked thread) that it also helps if your area has inclined roads. Oh, not _downhill_, but for uphill! Otherwise, I’d say it does _help_, with snowy/icy conditions, but not so much as just dropping into low and driving in a slower, more controlled manner. Which helps no matter the drive configuration. ---
**Author:** ![Tride](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tride/32/13907_2.png) [@Tride](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tride)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2024, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1564 "2024-08-05T13:43:04Z")
Also keep in mind that EVs are going to come with low rolling resistance tires–i.e. hard rubber and high inflation. Even on my ICE truck the difference between aggressive all-terrain tires and real snows is dramatic. I wouldn’t even consider driving our 6000# Lyriq in the snow on the summer tires, AWD that it is. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Librarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_librarian/32/402_2.png) [@The\_Librarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Librarian)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2024, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614/1565 "2024-08-05T14:12:42Z")
My intuition tells me there must be a (lower) optimum speed for longer distances that will minimize total travel time (driving + charging). Back of envelope calculations suggest that at all legal speeds faster is faster. Does anyone have enough data to set me right? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614.md?page=76) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-electric-vehicle-plans/923614.md?page=78)