Electric Vehicles (EV) Thread

[Dannie Boy]

Surprising and concerning. Is this really an issue?

Khaosod English

An EV driver posted on FB a cautionary tale saying he drove his car through a flooded motorway road and it damaged the battery which costs 480,000 baht to be replaced.

The man said the water level was no higher than half the height of the car's wheels so he thought it would be okay.

According to this article, it shouldn’t be an issue!!

https://www.motorist.co.th/en/article/3 ... ough-water

[caller]

Surprising and concerning. Is this really an issue?

Khaosod English

An EV driver posted on FB a cautionary tale saying he drove his car through a flooded motorway road and it damaged the battery which costs 480,000 baht to be replaced.

The man said the water level was no higher than half the height of the car's wheels so he thought it would be okay.

My other half has been discussing this with me. She mentioned the price per battery, but went on to say that where insurance companies have agreed to insurance claims, that there is now a shortage of batteries and some will have to wait for stocks to be replenished. Other insurance companes are asking drivers to prove they really did get caught in flooding and ignored warnings, or are just trying to get replacements for free. Bizarre.

Is insurance even provided for battery damage caused by flooding?

DB's post is interesting, as it states EV (cars, I assume?) shouldn't be driven through more than 30cm of water. Make sure you have a ruler next time!

[PeteC]

The photo on the Khaosod FB page was of a man pushing an EV SUV type. Higher clearance than a sedan, if that indeed was the vehicle in question, or just a stock photo. I don't know.

He was out of any water at the time of the photo.

[PeteC]

phplv8PmqAM.jpg (61.84 KiB) Viewed 682 times

[PeteC]

What happens in snow? We've just gone through a terrible winter in North America, but I don't know about Europe and the UK where there are many more EV's.

Does snow count as water?

[Dannie Boy]

phplv8PmqAM.jpg

That’s a BYD Sealion 7 so a fully electric SUV.

As for snow, I don’t think it would be able to penetrate in the same way that water can, but if a car got stuck in very deep snow and stayed there for hours on end, I’m sure it wouldn’t be too good for the electrics!!

[Dannie Boy]

As for this car, the two questions are - how deep was the water and how fast was he travelling - we may never know the true facts!!

[STEVE G]

What happens in snow? We've just gone through a terrible winter in North America, but I don't know about Europe and the UK where there are many more EV's.

Does snow count as water?

If it snows in Hua Hin I'll let you know how it goes!
I've noticed that Thais aren't afraid of going electric, I was walking back to my car through the centre of town yesterday and the road was full of them, I even saw several of those three million baht Zeekr luxury MPV EVs.
Those things are crazy, a huge minivan thing that still does 0-100kmh in 4.5 seconds.

[pharvey]

Those things are crazy, a huge minivan thing that still does 0-100kmh in 4.5 seconds.

Believe this or similar has been posted here previously, and my response is exactly the same.... "Just what the roads in Thailand need"!!

[STEVE G]

^You could say that about any performance vehicle in any country, they're completely unnecessary but speed seems to sell.

[KhunLA]

Those things are crazy, a huge minivan thing that still does 0-100kmh in 4.5 seconds.

Believe this or similar has been posted here previously, and my response is exactly the same.... "Just what the roads in Thailand need"!!

Actually the performance makes for much safer passing. You don't need nearly as much road or time to pass slower vehicles when stuck behind them, on single lane roads. I pass much easier and safer in the electric version of our MG ZS than the ICE version.

Of course if you are going to drive irresponsibly, doesn't matter where the energy comes from.

I also notice, not as many BEVs are passing me a silly speed, as I drive the speed limit. One reason may be, your range decreases considerably, once exceeding 90-100 kph. When passed by a BEV, they are usually doing 100 kph, if that vs the maniacs in the ICEV.

[pharvey]

Actually the performance makes for much safer passing. You don't need nearly as much road or time to pass slower vehicles when stuck behind them, on single lane roads.

Oh, I can certainly agree there - it's my excuse for the cars that I have had. But let's be fair, "Mini Vans" whether ICE, Hybrid or EV, are not designed for daft speeds or acceleration. With ICE cars, it's power and "Mid Range Acceleration" and the control of the gearbox and torque. Ev's have pretty much instant torque

I can agree with Steve G in the fact that in some instances, "speed seems to sell", but what I'm trying to convey is that with the likes of this "Mini Van", it's targeted at countries with probably the worst "Road Safety" records going.... When would a Mini Van (let's be fair "People Carrier") have to have this type of performance - it's a people killer, especially in the likes of Thailand and China (and yes, I have a great deal of experience driving in both countries).

Off Topic somewhat But I'd also love to know the safety of EV's vs ICE's with breaking down a steep hill for example. I can control all through both the actual breaks and the gearbox - EV's rely on "Regenerative Breaking" (which in turn generates further power)..... But to be honest I still have an issue with.

[2/cb]

Just back to from a 579km round trip in my Toyota Yaris Cross, a petrol-hybrid.
Made sure it was full of fuel before leaving and got home earlier today. Fuel level getting low so will fill up (it takes four minutes) over the next few days. You can keep your ridiculous EVs.

[pharvey]

Just back to from a 579km round trip in my Toyota Yaris Cross, a petrol-hybrid.
Made sure it was full of fuel before leaving and got home earlier today. Fuel level getting low so will fill up (it takes four minutes) over the next few days. You can keep your ridiculous EVs.

OK, you're completely biased against, others very much biased for. Personally, I'm still for hybrids at the moment, but only based on the UK. We all have our own opinion, but there are still some questions to be answered with regards to EV's for me - like the one regarding breaking (above) for example.

[Dannie Boy]

The only time regenerative braking doesn’t work is when the battery is 100% full and down to maybe 95% (but different cars may have different lower levels) but once you get to that level, the regenerative braking provides braking assistance similar (possibly even better) than the gearbox in an ICE vehicle. I don’t see this as a major issue.