Electric Vehicles
 

I wanted to start a thread about electric vehicles. Electric transportation is growing like never before especially thanks to Tesla showing how easy it is. The Model 3 has been selling really well and there are now over 300 Teslas in Manitoba. I do own a Model 3, but this thread should be open to all EV transportation issues, including busses, e-bikes. I am disappointed that electric busses were tested and built here, but Winnipeg Transit couldn't bother to buy any.

Most EV owner's charge at home with 240v chargers installed by an electrician. My condo has heated indoor parking and I charge 110v. All new homes and multifamily buildings should have charge stations or roughed in electrical. Maybe this thread could document buildings that have EV charging built in and advocate for more? My previous apartment had 110v block heater outlets that only put out power when temps were cold. I am not expert on everything EV, but wanted to get the conversation going and cut emissions.

I don't know much about EV but I'm definitely interested to learn more about what one might expect from daily use. For example; what kinds of charging times can people expect? Am I correct to assume having a 240v charging station is the best way to go? Do EV charging cords plug into a standard 240 outlet?

My car, Model 3 came with a 110v charger. There are adapters you buy for almost any outlet(campground, dryer, welding etc) and Tesla will automatically adjust itself to the power provided. In super cold weather 110v will waste time heating up the battery.

110v provides about 8k per hour so overnight about 100km. If you drive less than 100km a day you will have a full batter every morning.

240v provides 32 to 60k per hour depending. Over night charging will get you to full even on empty.

Tesla Superchargers are now spaced out across Canada and the USA such that for long trips you charge 15 to 45 minutes to get you to the next supercharger. Road trips are easy, enter your destination and the onscreen nav shows where and when to charge. Usually food and shopping is near by.

I’d like my next car to be an electric vehicle. I have heard however that they’re difficult to come by in Manitoba. There’s such short supply that they generally get sent to the provinces that have some sort of mandates (I wanna say qc and bc?).

I drove to the Montreal region this summer and I did come across a few Tesla charging stations (one being like literally in the middle of nowhere) and the petro Canada electric highway stations. I guess at these rabid charge stations you’re still looking at a half hour stop at the least. I’m wondering how much longer it would add to a drive like that.

Buying direct from Tesla is easy. Use your credit card for the deposit and a referral code. When your car is ready for shipping they will contact you and let you know how to finance or pay the balance by bank transfer. Then it's delivered to your house. Model 3 production is caught up and I got mine in 19 days. For warranty work there is a local ranger that comes to you. There is a shop and he will only bring you in if he needs to lift it. Once there is enough local sales Tesla will build a sales/service centre.

I have heard other brands, like Hyundai Kona EV are coming in to local dealers and selling soon after they arrive.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet... Teslas have become a fairly common sight on city streets.

How "clean" is an EV
 

Unfortunately EV's are not as clean as one thinks as explained in this Forbes article

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tilakdo.../#56f5a7f9650b

Article is a bit slanted but certainly you have to keep that in mind.

Here’s a video that is a bit more unbiased (IMO) in breaking down carbon produced in operating both an ev and traditional gas car. He cites all his sources and uses conservative estimates.
https://youtu.be/6RhtiPefVzM

Coles notes version, unless your electricity is coming from coal an EV is better in terms of carbon emissions over the average lifetime of a car (including production). Again that’s using conservative estimates. Using the most optimistic estimate even in a coal powered state, a large battery electric car would use less carbon after 5 years. Also the takeaway is buy an electric car with a right sized battery.l for your needs. The larger the battery the worse off for the environment.

The source is Forbes,, a ruthless capitalist rag.

The writer works in oil and gas. "Dr. Tilak K. Doshi is a Senior Research Fellow at the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"

The actual dirty secret is BS articles like this are planted to create doubt in areas that don't have any doubt and keep making money for the plutocrats that funded it.

Unfortunately you have been fooled.

Nowadays I’d say it’s necessary to doubt media to some extent. Many media companies feed on negativity so they often offer negative perspectives. And we can’t exactly call them out for being wrong.

"Dr. Tilak K. Doshi is a Senior Research Fellow at the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"

A hundred years ago there were articles defending the horse and buggy industry. What side of history are you on right now? The transition that is happening right now is a once in a century thing.

Yup, that explains.

Try to tell Jason Kenney that...:rolleyes:

Last year, there were about 250 Teslas in Winnipeg. Unless that's changed dramatically in the last 12 months, I don't think we'll see a full service centre here for a while.

There have to be more than that?! Barely a day goes by when I don't see one out on the streets... I think there are a couple just on my block.

Last year there were around 500 EVs registered in Manitoba total, with roughly half of those being Teslas. I'm sure MEVA would have the exact numbers, but they're pretty close to that. Maybe you just live on a very ecologically conscious street :D.

I see at least 1 Tesla a day in my travels. Minimum 5 per week at most.

Teslas are becoming more frequent as they are becoming more affordable. They still have some build quality issues, but that comes with the growing pains of a young company, and I'm sure they will improve as the years go on. I'm also seeing other manufacturers such as Nissan with their Leaf (both first and second generation) roaming around our streets. They're not as prevalent as Teslas, but they are kicking around. Nissan is also coming out with the Ariya crossover EV next year, which could save Nissan as a company, since they're financially in trouble.

Although I'm not entirely fully onboard with the idea of battery technology, it is the better solution to typical ICE power plants. Toyota continues to kill it with the hybrid market, but they are now slowly creeping into the EV market as well.

I'm still hoping for the Hydrogen Fuel Cell technology to be a thing. The routine to refuel would remain unchanged, as you fill up in hydrogen, and then once you're done, you can continue on your way. Whereas, with EV, you have to wait for a certain period of time before you go on. Yes, there are rapid chargers out there that are cutting the charging times down, but if you simply want to get on with your day quickly, one will have to be more patient. One of the main reasons why I'm not entirely sold on EVs.

The obvious problem with hydrogen fuel cell technology is the costs associated with it, so at the moment, they're still a ways away from being accessible in terms of cost. It is available right now, but very expensive. There's still room to improve it, but until then, EVs are the preferred way to go.

We have two on our street and were looking into purchasing the all wheel drive Model 3. Unfortunately my wife's car just got totaled on Friday so we will have to speed up the purchase decision likely putting the Tesla out of contention. You still pay a premium over a comparable car, but Tesla says the Model 3 will save you $11k in gas over 6 years.

I've read that EV's also have fewer working parts to potentially wear out, and therefore are also cheaper on repairs long-term. Can anyone verify this?

^ I don't think there are enough EV's on the road for this to be a proven fact just yet.

I will be a hold out on an EV, mostly because I prefer to shift my own gears.

I am going to continue to drive older ICE's until all the EV kinks get worked out!

As it stands now, the price point for an EV is still more than what you can hope to save on fuel or maintenance costs over the same period with a comparable ICE car. And that's not bringing into the conversation the rest of the EV quirks that are still there (MB cold weather range, battery charging stations)