What You Need to Know About Charging Before You Buy an EV

One of the first questions people ask about electric cars is usually, “Where can I charge it?"

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The answer is most often, “Wherever you park your car." A study by Carnegie Mellon University researchers calculated that 79 percent of U.S. households have dedicated off-street parking for at least some of their vehicles, almost always within a few meters of an electric supply that will provide for overnight recharging (circumstances vary in other countries). Electric-vehicle drivers quickly learn to plug in their electric cars after the last journey of the day.

In fact, the data show about 80 percent of the total distance covered by EVs in the United States comes from such home recharging. Those who live in apartment buildings or condos, don't have off-street parking, or can't count on using the same dedicated space each night face greater challenges.

For the moment, it's easiest to drive an EV if you have dedicated parking. These are the basics of how, where, and when recharging an EV's battery happens.

Q: How do I charge an electric car?

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A: Every EV has what's called a charging port, usually behind a small door in a fender that looks like the door on a gasoline or diesel-fuel filler. Sometimes the charge port is at the front or rear of the vehicle. Regardless of where it is, that's where you plug in the charging cable.

The process is simple: Open the charge-port door, uncover the port if needed (some have plastic covers, some don't), plug in the charging cable, and wait for the light to go on to show the car is starting to charge. You may hear a click or a thunk from the station, the car, or both. Then just walk away.

Q: Are all charging stations the same?

A: No. This is where it gets a little complicated. There are two types of EV charging: AC and DC fast charging. (Charging stations are technically known as EVSEs, for Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment, but virtually no one calls them that.)

AC charging is slower and takes longer to recharge the battery fully, but for the majority of EV drivers who can charge overnight, it's by far the most common method. It's also less expensive to install, and AC charging stations make up the majority of charging stations—public and private.

DC fast charging is less common, and usually found along major travel routes or at heavily traveled intersections. Different carmakers use different types of connectors for DC charging.

Q: What are the options for charging my EV at home or at work?

In North America, AC charging operates at either 120 volts (“Level 1") or 240 volts (“Level 2"); other countries vary depending on their electrical standards. Every EV comes with a portable charging cord (often stored under the floor of the trunk) that allows basic charging. North American Level 1 charging adds 3 to 8 kilometers (2 to 5 miles) of range for every hour the car is plugged in.

Level 2 AC charging in North America typically operates at a rate of 7.2 to 19 kilowatts, depending on the car and the charging station. Anyone whose daily mileage regularly exceeds, say, 60 km (37 miles) should consider installing one. Depending on the car and the charging station, charging at 240 V can add 16 to 97 km (10 to 60 miles) for every hour of charging—possibly up to 320 km (200 miles) overnight. Such Level 2 charging stations are usually mounted on a wall or a post.

Another Level 2 alternative is a portable charging cord that operates on both voltages—and these cords are becoming more common in the latest EVs. They come with different “pigtails" that plug into the charging unit to allow it to use different outlets. In North America, that's a standard 3-prong 120-V household outlet or a NEMA 14-50 socket (most commonly) for 240-V charging.

Q: But what about road trips?

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A: This is where the second type of charging, called DC fast charging, comes in. It uses direct current and much higher power, but is most often used during road trips that exceed the EV's battery range. Note that fast charging charges a car's battery only to 80 percent of capacity—that last 20 percent takes much longer, just as it does in a cellphone.

DC fast charging may also be used by owners who aren't able to charge overnight where they live or don't have a dedicated parking spot. But DC fast charging requires significant electrical power, so it's almost always at dedicated charging sites, not in residential buildings or workplace parking lots.

DC fast charging rates today vary from 24 kW to as much as 350 kW. Newly designed EVs usually fast-charge at 100 to 125 kW. Under certain circumstances, they may briefly charge as fast as 150 kW. Depending on charging speed, this can add 290 or more kilometers in 30 to 45 minutes.

But those rates require both a charging station that can provide that current and a car that can accept it. Older EVs are often limited to 50-kW fast charging, and some of the oldest DC charging stations provide only 24 kW or 50 kW.

A small handful of cars charge at higher rates yet. The Porsche Taycan, for instance, has an 800-V battery pack that can accept up to 270 kW (most EVs have batteries that operate at 400 volts). The higher rates are coming on strong, with future EVs from GM, Hyundai, Kia, and others capable of charging at 250 to 350 kW. This may add 320 km in as little as 18 or 20 minutes.

Q: Do all charging stations work for all EVs?

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A: Sadly, no. For AC charging in North America, all vehicles except the Tesla use a standard connector (known as an SAE J-), and every Tesla comes with a converter that a driver can add to a J- station cord to plug it into the Tesla's receptacle.

DC fast charging is more complex. Going forward, there will be essentially two options: Tesla's Supercharger system, and what's called the Combined Charging System, or CCS. The Supercharger system works only with Teslas (at 125 to 250 kW), while CCS (at 50 to 350 kW) is the fast-charging standard that will be fitted to all other newly introduced EVs sold in North America.

In Japan, there's a third option, with another connector, called CHAdeMO. It's the system used by more than 148,000 Nissan Leafs sold in North America from through . But Nissan has said future EVs sold by the brand in North America will use CCS, and the vast majority of CHAdeMO fast-charging stations and cars max out at 50 kW—slower than newer CCS stations and cars.

Q: How do I find charging stations?

A: Recent electric cars have charging locations built into their navigation systems. Starting with the Tesla Model S almost 10 years ago, the driver enters a destination into the system, and the car determines the optimal route, directing the driver to appropriate charging stations along the way. Some cars even specify just how many minutes of charging is required to get enough juice to reach the destination, ensuring the driver doesn't spend more time than necessary sitting at a charging station.

Several apps also map charging sites, and let users filter them by connector and charging speeds (Level 2 AC charging versus, say, DC fast charging using the CCS connector). Individual charging networks (for example, ChargePoint, Electrify America, EVgo, Shell Greenlots) each have their own apps, but most drivers use apps (such as Plugshare or Chargeway) that include all networks and charge sites. Those apps allow the same kind of route planning, although they're not as integrated as the EV navigation systems that know the battery's state of charge at all points and can optimize routing to the vehicle in real time.

Q: Does this work the same in different countries? Can I take my EV from, say, Canada to Norway?

A: Unfortunately not. Of the three largest EV markets, North America has one set of standards, Europe has a slightly different version of the CCS socket and connector, and China has entirely different standards of its own. On the other hand, how often do you ship your car overseas to drive it?

If you want to learn more, please visit our website AC EV Charging Station.

About the Author

BHPian  
Join Date: Jul Location: Kottayam,Kerala Posts: 156 Thanked: 1,001 Times Guide & Pictures | Setting up an AC Fast Charger at home for your electric car

Note: This is partly a technical post with lot of electric jargon. I have tried to keep it as simple and interesting as possible.

Hi TeamBHPians,
I recently became part of the EV evolution/revolution by purchasing a MG ZS EV.
There are lot of articles about EV Cars, merits/demerits, ownership reviews etc. I will be writing on something else, an often ignored topic when purchasing an electric car – how to upgrade your electrical infrastructure at home so as to make an EV ownership, a seamless affair.
We started the car buying process in the early days of February . Test drove the Tata Nexon EV, MG ZS EV and the Honda City eHEV. Both Nexon EV and the Honda eHEV were nice cars. Having owned a Honda Jazz for 8 years, we wanted to give another car a try (The Honda City eHEV is a very good car and we may consider it in the future. The only things we did not like were the tinny horn, the small boot and the cycle tyre like spare tyre). Between Nexon EV and MG ZS EV, the latter was clearly the winner (more range and an all-round better car). So, we finalized our decision and booked the MG ZS EV by February midst. Due to increasing demand, MG is giving priority to its ZS EV cars and the waiting time has come down drastically. We were allotted the car within one week of booking.
MG gives a 7.2 Kw charger free of cost along with its car. Installation is also free (although our story ended up somewhat different). Currently all electric car companies install the wall charger free of cost although that may change in the future (Tesla has already started the trend of stopping the provision of free charger and instillation).


The Requirements
I stay at Kottayam, Kerala and the installation process which I will describe below is applicable to Kerala. The story may be the same or different in other states.
MG has outsourced the charger installation to a private company. They are called Echargebays Emobility Solutions Pvt Ltd. They actually handle the charger instillation of all electric car models in Kerala at present (including Tata, Volvo and Mercedes Benz).
Anyway, one week after our car allotment, we got a call from Echargebays. They wanted to do a site inspection before they proceeded with the wall charger instillation. Due to work commitments on both sides, the inspection happened 3 days later, on a Thursday.
They examined the house and the proposed site of my charger. After inspection, they told me that the electricity supply to my house needed to be upgraded.
For basic information, for electric car charger instillation at home, you need to have a 3 phase connection. If your electricity load is above 5 kw ( W), the supply will automatically be 3 phase. My house already had a connected load of 7.5 Kw and had 3 phase connection. So the basic criteria had been fulfilled.
The Echargebays guys asked the following things to be done.
-The KSEB Service line from the electric post to the energy meter should be changed to 16 sq mm Aluminium (It was currently 10 sq mm Copper wire).



- The energy meter fuses to be changed from 32A to 63A capacity. They recommended installation of HRC (High Rupturing Capacity) Fuses. These have a higher threshold to withstand electric surge and are safer.





- The outgoing cables from Energy meter to the fuse should be changed to 10 sq mm Copper cable.



- The electricity load to be enhanced by 8 kW (The electricity load has to be enhanced by the power of the charger. Hyundai provides a 11kW charger whereas Mercedes Benz provides a 22kW charger with their cars. In such cases, the load will have to be enhanced by 11kW and 22kW respectively.)
The above work was under the scope of the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) for which I would have to visit the KSEB office.
The Echargebays guys also wanted a Miniature Circuit Breaker (MCB) to be installed by an electrician, to which the wall charger would be connected. Only after all these things were done would the charger be installed.





KSEB Work
I went the same evening to the KSEB Office at Ettumanoor. The guys at the reception had no idea about the requirements. They asked me to go meet the overseer. The overseer was a man known to me and thankfully knew the details. He told me the necessary documents required for the application.
-Application form costing Rs.10. This is a common form for application for connection/load enhancement with no mention in the form anywhere about electric cars.
- Aadhar card copy
- Land Tax Receipt/ Land Ownership certificate
- Wiring diagram of the house
Once all these were submitted, the overseer agreed to come for inspection.
The first 3 were easy. The form was sort of archaic but not difficult to fill.
The wiring diagram needed an electrician’s service. Now electricians, as many of you may know, are not easy to get hold of. They are busy people and need multiple reminders. Anyway, by necessity, I had access to multiple electricians and one of them came the next day for the diagram.
The wiring diagram is an official document and needs a licensed electrician’s signature and seal. Thankfully, our electrician gave me the wiring diagram on Monday (20th February). He charged Rs.500 for his services.
The connected load at our house came to around 9.5 Kw. The electrician had however used old values (for eg, an old fan is rated at 70w but the new BLDC fans need only 28W; Likewise for conventional tube light Vs LED Tube lights). So, the actual load was actually around 8.5 kw only (You can be penalized by KSEB if your actual load is more than the connected load, but here since I had given the application for enhancement, it was not an issue).
The documents, along with a paper file, were submitted at the KSEB Office on the same day. KSEB charged me Rs. 189 for the paperwork and subsequent inspection. I got an SMS saying that inspection would be done within one week. I met the overseer at the office and he agreed to come within 2 days.
Government Offices and Officers operate at their own pace . The overseer came finally after 3 days on a Thursday (23rd February). He did the inspection and gave me the required list of things. I was to buy the cables and the fuses and they would change the wiring.
I bought the required stuff the same day. The total amount came to around Rs..
Meanwhile, the car had reached the stockyard. We inspected the car and did a PDI. Everything looked good. The delivery date was fixed for March 2nd (Thursday). So, we had exactly one week to set up charging infrastructure at our home.
Of course, things as usual did not go according to plan.
The overseer had to file his report at the KSEB Office. He filed it on Monday and asked me to come and pay the amount on Tuesday. I went on Tuesday (28th February) to the office to find that the report had still not been filed. Thankfully, the overseer had come into the office just then and finished his work promptly. The fees for enhancing the load came to Rs.18,388. Paid the amount in cash (No UPI/POS Machines available). I requested the overseer to finish the installation work the next day itself, which he promised to do.
Meanwhile, the MG guys were in contact regarding the delivery process. During our conversations, they suggested installing a 15A power plug in the car porch as slow charging is the accepted mode of charging an EV. I decided to get that done as well as the electrician will be coming anyway.
On Wednesday (1st March- the day prior to the car delivery), the KSEB installation guys came in the afternoon. They changed the old distribution wire and the fuses and connections. It took around 2 hours but they did a very good job. The KSEB part of the work was over.



Ours is an 18 years old house with the wiring of that time. In newer houses where provision is already there for EV Charging, KSEB may ask to proceed with charger installation and then come for inspection regarding load enhancement, once the work is complete. But for us, things transpired this way.
The next step was installing a 2 pole 40A MCB. The connection from the fuse had to be with a 10 sq mm Copper wire. The MCB should also be properly earthed using a 10 sq mm Copper cable, near to the meter panel. The earthing is to make sure that the neutral earth voltage would be less than 3V (Ideally zero Volts) without which the AC fast charger would not function.
This was to be done by the electrician who had already been informed. Unfortunately, he had come down with toothache and would not be available for the next 2 days.
I called up the MG guys and told them to charge the car to 100% before handing over to us. They agreed.
On 2nd March, Thursday, our family became the proud owners of an Aurora Silver MG ZS EV.
There is no point in keeping a brand new car confined to the garage. We went for many drives in the next 3 days. Driving an EV is one hell of an experience. The EV owners will know what I’m talking about.
By next Monday, the car’s charge was at 26%. There is a DC fast charger 3 km from our home but I wanted to use it only if absolutely necessary. Our electrician finally came on Monday afternoon. He inspected the site, bought the necessary things and installed the MCB with proper earthing.



He also installed a 25A plug point in our porch. The connection for the plug point was taken directly from the energy meter with thick 10 sq mm Copper cables. Care should be taken to avoid connecting it to the Invertor supply for obvious reasons (The Invertor will not be able to take the heavy electric load).



The quality of work was very good. The expenditure came to around Rs..
We did our first home charging that night. Charged for 12 hours. The charging rate is 4% per hour. The charge was at 75% next morning.
I informed the Echargebays people and they came on Wednesday (6 days after I bought the car). The home charger comes along with the car and is from a company called EXICOM (They also supply the home charger for Volvo electric cars). The charger is quite bulky and you generally don’t see pictures of it during the period of car purchase. However, it was bigger than expected.
The installation took around 2 hours. They used a POLYCAB XLPE (Cross Linked Poly Ethylene) cable (costs Rs.450/m) for connecting the charger to the MCB. They did a good job.



The guys who came for installation were a different team from those who came for the survey. I had told my specifications for installation but somehow the installation team went strictly by company policy. I had wanted the wiring to be taken near the ceiling so that it would be out of sight but the installation team finally took it just above the basement level citing company policy and the presence of a CCTV camera nearby (High voltage can result in blurring of CCTV images). The resultant picture was a bit of an eyesore to me.





The guys checked the MCB neutral voltage and found that it was 9V. They couldn’t activate the charger as the neutral voltage had to be less than 3V. They said that the only way to reduce the Neutral voltage is to do earthing of the electric post which supplies power to us (Trivia – If earthing of the electric post also does not bring down the neutral voltage, then the transformer which supplies the electric post will need adequate earthing). These matters were again under the purview of KSEB and I was sort of back to square one. The charging guys asked me to call them once the neutral voltage was sorted out and left.
My better half came home a little later. She looked at the new setup and was aghast. I couldn’t really blame her since it was not exactly a pleasing sight. There was only one option left – to change the position of the charger.
Our installation had required around 7 m of XLPE Cable. The Echargebays guys had told me a rather interesting fact. When you sell an electric car, the length of the charger cable is taken into account. If you have a short XLPE cable, your car’s resale price can come down as the new owner will be charged for the extra cable length.
But despite this, we were not happy with the charger position. So next morning, I called up Echargebays and requested them to shift the charger to another spot where it will be much less obstrusive.



Now came the hitch. They said that since they had already reported to the company that installation was done, they were powerless to do any modifications. They asked me to send a mail to MG India. I called up the dealership and they talked with Echargebays. Echargebays finally agreed to reinstall the charger but charged me a hefty Rs., citing outstation work. I paid up since there was nothing else to do .
Meanwhile, I informed the overseer about the neutral voltage. After 2 days, he sent a team from KSEB. They came ready to do the earthing (Earthing the electric post is done with a two and a half inch long GI Pipe. I don’t know the details since they did not do it at the end). They first examined the Distribution Box (DB) inside our house and adjusted the phase switches. When they checked the neutral voltage, it was 0 Volts. Turned out that the problem was with the switchboard. The electric post did not need earthing after all. They informed me and left.
I messaged Echargebays regarding the development. They agreed to come within 2 days. But it was the end of the financial year and they had many installations to do. They finally came on 30th March (Thursday). Last edited by sushanthys : 15th April at 10:16. BHPian  
Join Date: Jul Location: Kottayam,Kerala Posts: 156 Thanked: 1,001 Times How to set up EV Charging Infrastructure at Home - Part 2 Part 2

Contd..
I had sent detailed photos regarding the alternate site with photos and discussions prior to paying the amount. The installation team was the same guys who did the initial installation. They however said the new site is not suitable. I sort of lost my cool. After some heated back and forth, they finally agreed to do the work. Since the new site was very close to the MCB installed by our electrician, they did the installation by Zero Meter Cabling (meaning they did not use the XLPE cable but connected the charger directly to the MCB). This was possible because the distance from MCB to the charger was less than 1 m. Any further away and you would need XLPE Cable and a second MCB.



I was very satisfied with the final result. The installation guys of Echargebays did a great job. My only grouse with them is that there is a clear lack of communication between their bosses, the survey team and the installation team. What has been decided at survey may not be what happens at the time of installation. I had to learn it the hard way.
The neutral earth voltage was found to be 2.96 V which was good enough for our purposes.



The charger was immediately commissioned. The charger comes with a set of RFID Tags. They are both different (with individual serial numbers) and cannot be used interchangeably.



To start charging, you have to follow these steps.
- Switch the MCB on (The ring on the charger will start flashing blue)
- Plug in the charger gun to the car’s charging port
- Lock the car
- Place the RFID Tag on the charger icon (The same RFID Tag should be used for initiating and stopping charging. Using them interchangeably does not work).
- The charging ring will start flashing green and the charging will start.



You have to keep the car locked during the entire duration of AC Fast charging. If you unlock the car anytime in between, the charging will stop. This is unlike the DC Fast charging and slow charging, where the car can be unlocked 5-10 mins after charging starts without any interruption to the charging process.
The charging gun on the AC Fast charger has a cabling of around 5 m length. This gives you good flexibility regarding the location of the car with respect to the charger.
Once the charging is over, unlock the car, use the RFID Tag on the charger, disconnect the charging gun and switch off the charger.
It takes around 10-20 seconds for the charging gun to release after charging stops. So, avoid trying to pull the charging gun out during this time. You will only cause damage.
The AC Fast charger is waterproof (IP67 rated). It should be installed in a place where there is no direct water exposure. Slight moisture is fine and will not do any damage. The whole setup is supposed to be waterproof and you can charge even during rains and thunderstorms without fear of short circuit.
Our AC Fast charger was commissioned almost one month after our car purchase. We exclusively used slow charging during this time, except for 2 instances of DC Fast charging when we needed to do an emergency long trip due to a family emergency. Basically, AC Fast charging is good to have and has its advantages but you can manage quite well with slow charging alone.
Before I end this article, I would like to share a few tips and tricks that I have learned about EV Charging with you. This will of help to those who buy and use EVs.

Tips and tricks about EV charging
I have been an EV owner for only 6 weeks (Pardon my training as an obstetrician). Whatever information I am posting below, is gleaned from my friend, Gireesh who owns the same car and from MG and from my limited personal experience.
-The ideal way to charge an EV is by slow charging, from a 15A plug (MG recommends 16A plug socket). Install one in your porch or in your parking space. Any brand will do but go for a quality product. Take care to use thick gauge wires and to take it directly from the energy meter. Overnight charging is the best. Connect your charger at night and disconnect it in the morning. Usual charging rate is 4% per hour. 12 hours of charging will give you close to 50%. Slow charging is better for the long-term health of the battery.MG recommended instructions are given below.





- If you plan to use only slow charging, all you need to do is get a new 15 A plug installed. There is no need for load enhancement or KSEB Permission. You do not have to undergo any of the installation hassles that I had to go through. This is a good option for owners who live in rented houses and may even work for parking areas in apartment complexes.
- The AC Fast charger installed at your house is your next option. Same advantages as with slow charging. But electricity consumption is more. The charging rate is around 12% per hour. I use it when I have to charge the car faster or when I have to take the charge to 100%, prior to a long drive. I only use it once or twice a month but it gives you greater flexibility when fast charging is required.
- DC Fast charging is the third option. Compared to the previous two methods, it is very fast and will fill up your battery within one hour. It is very convenient. It is also more expensive. You will be charged between Rs.10-15+GST/Unit depending on the company. Zeon will give you around 40% charge for Rs.500. But use it only when required. MG recommends 3 cycles of slow charging after one instance of DC fast charging. When you are doing long trips, this may not always be possible. At least try to do a cycle of slow charging after 2 cycles of DC Fast charging.
- DC fast chargers are generally unmanned. You need to be reasonably tech savvy the first time you are using the facility. The first step is to connect the charger to the car. You will have to then scan the QR Code, install the app, add money, lock the car and then do the charging. The process is much simpler the second time. We were lucky enough to have an attender helping us the first time (The Charger is located near a supermarket and there is a person to help, although that won’t be the case everywhere). DC Fast chargers have a touch screen through which the machine can be operated, but it is recommended to control the charging through your app.





- Try to add at least Rs. before a charge. Otherwise, the charging may cut-off before you reach the required SOC (State of Charge). The balance amount will stay in the wallet and can be used the next time.
-The battery level should be kept between 20 – 90%. Charge to 100% only when you are going for a long drive. You have to lock the car to start charging but the car can be unlocked after 5 mins.
- Never start the car when it is charging.
- There is no need to charge your car daily. I usually charge when the battery level comes below 40%. Keep at least 30% charge in your car for a sudden emergency run.
- MG ZS EV gives you 3km per 1% of your battery life (you may get less in heavy traffic conditions). You can get 4km and change per 1%, on long drives. The range generally improves in the first few months of ownership. I currently get between 3.5 and 4km per 1% of charge (It again depends on traffic conditions). My Friend, Gireesh gets 4km per 1% of charge. My car’s performance improved from 2.5 km/kWh in the first week up to 7.9 km/kWh during long trips. ECO Mode gives the maximum range. Performance is superb though AC cooling is just adequate. You get the best performance in open roads with less traffic. The car does not like bumper to bumper traffic, with respect to range. It always starts in Normal mode with Type 3 Regen (KERS in MG lingo). You have to remember to change to ECO mode but changing Regen is not necessary.
- I had to use DC Fast charging on consecutive days during the first month of my ownership as we had to travel to Kottarakkara (180 km round trip) suddenly for a family emergency. The second time, I ended up charging the car to 100% (wanted to stop at 95% but app issues meant I could not disconnect in time). In the first 5 km of travel after charging, I lost 5%. After that, the battery behaved normally. I checked with MG during my first service regarding this matter. They said that when DC Fast charging is done, all cells may not get equally and completely topped up, hence a bit of sudden battery discharge is common. This problem does not happen with slow charging/AC Fast charging.
- I got a 15A charging adaptor made by an electrician with a 10m long cable (with 4 sq mm Copper wire) for use during long trips at hotels. I did this at Gireesh’s advice. It cost me Rs.. It is not exactly recommended by MG but it can come in handy. I used it for the first time when I went to Thiruvananthapuram to my parents’ house. I charged it from a 15A plug point (the house and the socket were built in but the best quality wires of the time had been used). The socket was situated inside the house and hence I used the extension adaptor. There were no issues during charging. The charging speed was the same, 4%/ hour.







- Once you start charging your car, avoid disconnecting in between. For eg, don’t disconnect after 1 hour of charging and then start charging again after 15 mins. It is not the amount of time spent charging but the number of charging cycles which matter.
Although, DC Fast charging is not to be routinely done, it is something EV Owners should not shy away from. When you do long drives, it may be our only option. And Demand begets supply. The more, fast chargers are used, more will be the incentive for companies to install new chargers. And that will improve the infrastructure for EVs, making DC Fast chargers more common and accessible. This will incentivise more people to buy EVs and will significantly reduce range anxiety. This scenario is still at least 2 years down the lane but it is achievable.
Long drives in my EV
I am going to slightly deviate from my topic here. I thought I would describe the experience I had on undertaking long drives in my MG ZS EV. I have gone on 2 longish-medium drives so far. I will briefly discuss them below.
-The first one was a trip to Thiruvananthapuram (370 km round trip). I started with a SOC of 95%. There was heavy traffic at stretches. Since my father was a little hesitant to do charging at home (he wasn’t sure about the state of the socket which was installed 25 years ago), I had scoped out the location of 2 fast chargers at Thiruvananthapuram, but did not need to use them. I reached my parents’ house with a SOC of 44% (51 % was the Depth of Discharge or DoD). Did the slow charging overnight without any issues, to 88%. Did the drive back home the next day and reached with a SOC of 37% (Same DoD of 51%).
- The second one was a bit more adventurous. We had planned a trip to the hill station of Munnar. The resort was 123 km from our house (Munnar was another 9 km away). I pre-checked with the resort about the availability of an accessible 15 A plug, but they were non-committal. Munnar does have a DC Fast Charger by KSEB, in working condition. So, threw caution to the winds and finalized the trip.
The car was charged to 100% overnight. The route was Pala-Thodupuzha-Oonnukal-Neriamangalam-Adimali-Munnar. The high range part of the trip is around 49km. EVs need more juice when climbing ghats (even up to 1km per % charge, depending on the terrain). I had expected a max consumption of 40-45%. However unlike some other ghat stretches where you have elevations, flat stretches and climbdowns, the Munnar highway is mostly a constant climb all the way to the top. Despite not using AC in the ghat drive, we reached the resort with a SOC of 50% !
I knew I would get Regen on the way down, but 50% was a bit too close for comfort. The resort was Ambady Estate, about which there is a travelogue in TeamBHP. I asked the resort guys and they said that they have a 15A plug but no extension cord to connect it to. Thankfully, I had the adaptor. The building was a very old one (definitely older than my parents’ house in TVM) and so too must have been the socket. Anyway, I connected the car via the adaptor. The charging was successful. In high ranges, voltage fluctuation is a problem. Hence, the charging was a bit slow. I charged for 8 hours and got to a SOC of 75%. It was more than enough for my needs.



I did not use the car for local trips. It was just as well because Munnar town was packed due to the Easter holidays. Driving and parking in the town was a nightmare. Even the cabbies and jeep drivers were reluctant to drive to town.
The DC Fast charger in Munnar was working. I saw 4 cars getting charged during different times on my trips to the town. Which means people are becoming confident about travelling long distances in EVs.



We returned after 2 days. The regen we got on our way down, was phenomenal ! On reaching the Neriamangalam bridge, our SOC was showing 72% (3% consumption over 49km). The efficiency was showing as 32km/kWh! This was despite usage of AC over most of the stretch. We reached home with a SOC of 48% (DoD of 27%). Even if I had not done the charging at Munnar, I would have reached home comfortably.



I got my electricity bill for the last 2 months today(14th April). Our usual electricity charges used to be between Rs. – , but go upto Rs. or more during summer. The bill came to Rs.. Remember that this is the peak of a scorching summer. DC Fast charging expenses came to Rs. (Including the charging expenses at Munnar, which the resort did not ask for but I paid). The total running expense was Rs.. Our car has covered km so far. If this had been a petrol car and if we consider a very optimistic mileage of 20km/l, that means a consumption of 190 L of petrol, which equates to a fuel cost of Rs., considering the cost of petrol to be Rs.100/l (Petrol in Kerala currently costs almost Rs.110/l). Hence our running expenses comes to Rs.1.33/km. The figures speak for themselves.



Thus ends my article about EV Charging Infrastructure instillation at our home. The first week after I bought my car, I was wondering if I had made a mistake in buying an EV. But having lived with the car for one month and having used all types of charging and done a few long drives, I am much more relaxed now. MG ZS EV is a superb car and a real hoot to drive. The car’s mechanicals are brilliant and it is solidly built. The range anxiety will always be there at the back of your mind but MG’s battery has so far proved to be a very capable performer.
Prior to buying my car, I had attended a talk about Electric cars at our local IMA Branch. The narrator was a famous auto journalist and his opinion was that it’s better to put off buying an EV for at least one year. There was lot of talk about battery life, charging infrastructure, resale value etc etc. He did admit though that once you drive an EV, you will never enjoy driving another car again.
I do not disagree with his assessment. There is still a long way to go before you can travel India in an EV. But the charging infrastructure is also not as bad as we think. As the Hyundai boss in charge of India mentioned in the March Autocar issue, they were taken aback by how fast EV adoption had been in India. And who knows what is there 8 years down the line. What guarantee is there to our health 8 years down the lane? Heck, what is the certainty that the earth will be habitable 8 years from now? As a famous guy once said, ”In the long term, we are all dead”.
Meanwhile, I am going to enjoy my MG ZS EV in the short term. Drive the country roads, till it takes me home.
Thank you, all! Last edited by sushanthys : 15th April at 10:28.