Ready, Set, Charge!
If you are one of the many who has opted for an EV for whatever reason, then the time will come when you have to charge it up – just like you have to charge up your phone, e-reader or laptop. However, charging an EV is not quite the same as filling up a petrol or diesel tank, and if you’ve never done it before, there are a few things that you’ll have to get used to, especially regarding the different charging speeds.
Deep breath required here. There will be maths.
BEVs, MHEVs, HEVs, FCEVs – What?
No matter what you think of them, it looks like electric vehicles are going to be with us for some time. Discussions of battery range and charging time are becoming as commonplace in our car reviews as fuel economy and engine size. All the same, you may be feeling a little confused by the welter of new abbreviations and acronyms buzzing around the place. You’ve got the other common terms used in car reviews and the like in your mental dictionary (SUV, EBD, ABS, etc.), but what are all these other terms?
Never fear: here’s a little guide to the most common abbreviations* you’ll find in discussions of electric vehicles and what they all mean.
An Anti-Stick Spray To Stop Boy Racers?
There’s a small part of most drivers that sympathises with boy racers. However, this small part tends to become miniscule to non-existent when you’re kept awake into the wee small hours by screaming engines on what is normally a quiet suburban (or rural) road, when you have to pick up debris left behind after the local boy racers have had a meeting, or when you’ve had a close call with a souped-up Subaru Impreza racing an equally souped-up Nissan Skyline.
However, they may have found a solution to this problem on the other side of the Tasman, where one local council, fed up by complaints, has decided to try spraying the roads with an anti-skid spray surface that increases the traction. This, they hope, will stop boy racers (and girl racers – let’s call them street racers from now on) having their competitions that involve skidding and loss of traction, which, as far as I can tell, tends to cover most of their antics.
Level 2, 9 Help Street