EV & Hybrid Advice

For a rather long period of time, Japanese car brand Nissan (now a member of the Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance - essentially a less-exciting version of The Avengers made up of global car manufacturers) was the number one Electric Vehicle (EV) manufacturer in the world - and then along came a little upstart named Tesla to upset the apple cart.

When German car manufacturer Porsche - a brand famous for its world-class, high-performance, fuel-guzzling sports cars - announced it would begin making Porsche electric car and Porsche hybrid models, it sent a clear signal that Electric Vehicle technology was undoubtedly set to be the way of the future for all car brands - even the sexy ones. 

Compared to other car companies, Japanese car manufacturer Subaru is a little late to the electric vehicle party, but its excuse would be that it was already attending a hybrid party instead, just down the street, where the cool kids were.

Some time in the not-too-distant future, petrol-powered internal-combustion engines (ICE) will be something you’re more likely to find in a museum than an actual car, giving future-folk the chance to tut-tut and marvel in disbelief at how incredibly crude and environmentally unfriendly the past was.In short, our cars will seem as absurd as penny farthings do to us today.This scenario will be brought about by the eventual complete takeover of electric vehicles (EVs), whose planet-friendly motors have about half-a-dozen moving parts, as opposed to the hundreds you’ll find in an ICE. Fun fact: EVs have motors, not engines – the former refers to a machine that converts energy into mechanical energy, while the latter does the same thing, but while using thermal energy, ie combustion. So if you use a term like “electric car’s engine”, back up and change it to something more along the lines of “electric vehicle motor”. You’ll look smarter, which is always something worth aiming for. In general, motors for EVs work by converting electricity into mechanical energy through the creation of a magnetic field at the fixed part of the machine (the “stator”, which is static), whose displacement sets a rotating part (the “rotor”) in motion.EVs use both Alternating Current (AC) and Direct Current (DC) motors, and there are several variations of each. The electricity that EV batteries store is DC, so for EVs with AC motors, an inverter is required to convert the DC to AC so the energy that’s generated can do its job and power the car’s motor.Also known as a “brushed DC motor”, the advantage of this motor is its ability to produce high initial torque, while also offering easy speed control. A drawback, however, are the aforementioned brushes and the motor’s commutators, both of which require a higher degree of maintenance when compared to other motors. Another fun fact: forklift motors are DC and are usually the same as the ones you’d find in an electric car. As you’d probably guess, these do away with the brushes, as well as the commutators, making them more technologically advanced and much lower maintenance. They’re efficient and offer high starting torque, and are widely used as wheel motors or “hub motors”, meaning they’re incorporated into the hub of a wheel, which it drives directly. Similar to a BLDC, but the PMSM has – as you’d guess from the name – permanent magnets embedded in the rotor to create a constant magnetic field. They have a high power rating and can be used in high-performance applications such as sports cars. These are the motors you’ll find in the Tesla Model 3 (although Tesla uses AC motors in other models, like the Tesla Model S).There are two types of AC motors used in EVs: synchronous and asynchronous. Both types can work in reverse and convert mechanical energy into electricity that can be stored in the EV’s battery during deceleration, a nifty process commonly called “regenerative braking”. In an asynchronous motor, also called an induction motor, the electric-powered stator generates a rotating magnetic field. In a synchronous motor, the rotor acts as an electromagnet itself. Induction motors don’t have a high starting torque, but are efficient and cheaper when compared to other options. In terms of use, a synchronous motor is seen as the better option for urban driving where there can be a lot of starting and stopping at low speeds, whereas an asynchronous motor is preferable for driving at high speeds for long periods of time. AC motors are more widely used than DC motors due to the fact they are cheaper and more efficient, and are the choice of most major EV manufacturers, including Tesla and China’s largest car manufacturer, Great Wall Motors. In an EV, the motor (rotor plus stator) is part of a system called the “electric powertrain”, which makes the electric motor function. Within this powertrain you’ll also find a Power Electronic Controller (PEC), which brings together the components that manage the charging of the battery and the motor’s power supply, and a gear motor, which adjusts the torque and speed of rotation transmitted by the motor to the wheels. Electric motors are typically over 95 per cent efficient while ICEs are well behind, typically being below 50 per cent efficient. Other advantages of electric motors include the fact that they’re smaller and lighter, cheaper to produce, can provide instant and consistent torque at any speed and have far less moving parts than an ICE, meaning they require very little in the way of regular maintenance. The main advantage, though, is that they are far more environmentally friendly. EVs don’t release harmful emissions into the atmosphere and are capable of running on electricity generated by renewable sources, like wind and solar power, making them a far better option when it comes to planet-saving or, at the very least, planet-helping.

Are electric cars better for the environment?

Electric cars, fundamentally, are not so different from other electronic gadgets you probably use in everyday life. Just like your phone, they have a relatively large battery pack which needs to be frequently charged up.Also just like your phone, there isn’t just one EV plug type for all devices. Depending on the origin of the vehicle and type of charging it uses, electric cars and their plug-in hybrid (PHEV) companions have different charging ports. Sort of like how Apple phones have their own charging port over the more standardised USB port used by Android devices.Depending on the nature of the electric car you are using, you may want to bring a spare cable, and it’s important to know the difference between EV charger types which support slower but more common alternating current (AC) charging stations, and faster “supercharger” locations which use direct current (DC).So, which charging cables or plug types are used by the world’s electric cars, which types of EV chargers can you use them with, and what do you need to know about them? Let’s take a look. If you’ve read anything about electric cars in the last decade or so, you’ve probably heard of the 'Type 2' connector. It is the most common plug type used by EVs and is the standard throughout Europe. Most electric cars in Australia are fitted with a Type 2 port and it is all but the standard here (Australia does not yet have a standardised electric car charging network).The Type 2 connector can charge via AC using the seven-pin top connector, which is almost circular in shape, or when configured as a DC connector, known as a CCS (Combined Charging System) Combo, uses a three pin connector in the top port, and a larger dual-prong for direct current charging below.The Type 2 connector was first produced in 2013 by German electronics manufacturer Mennekes (and is sometimes referred to as a ‘Mennekes’ cable or connector) and is capable of charging EVs on DC at up to 350kW or on AC at up to 22.1kW.Keep in mind that AC charging will depend on the output of the station itself and the car’s onboard AC to DC converter (as car batteries can ultimately only accept DC power). Most plug-in hybrids will have a single-phase AC inverter at the maximum speed of 7.2kW, while some EVs will have a three-phase AC inverter capable of either 11kW or the theoretical maximum 22.1kW.The CharIN association works to promote the Type 2 standard, and is currently working on a connector capable of charging at a rate of 2MW (2000kW) for commercial electric vehicles like heavy trucks, with the theoretical maximum for a DC charging station capped at 4.5MW. The CHAdeMO connector is a DC-only connector developed in Japan by an association of companies including the automakers Nissan, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Honda, and later, Toyota. It was designed to compete with the Type 2 connector to provide a globally standardised charging connector. Its odd name is apparently an abbreviation of “Charge de Move” or a pun on a Japanese turn of phrase “O cha demo ikaga desuka” meaning “let’s have a tea while charging,” according to the association.The CHAdeMO connector is capable of bi-directional charging (as in it can feed energy from the vehicle to the grid or a home wallbox.) The current standard CHAdeMO 2.0 chargers can charge a vehicle at up to 400kW at peak power, but the association says the currently-under-development CHAdeMO 3.0 will provide up to 900kW. CHAdeMO 3.0 could prove more popular than its currently available predecessor as it is working with the China Electricity Council on the new standard.While the Type 2 CCS combo has emerged as the dominant DC charger in Australia, many popular DC charging stations manufactured by Tritium will have a CHAdeMO connector cable. Popular vehicles which have a CHAdeMO port in our market are limited to the Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi Outlander, although as more Japanese and Chinese manufacturers offer electric cars in Australia, this may change. If the Tesla connector looks familiar, that’s because it is a variation of the more widely used Type 2 Mennekes connector. So much so that Tesla vehicles can use a Type 2 outlet, but the brand’s proprietary charging infrastructure locks other users out.The Tesla network follows the Mennekes charging connectors capabilities of AC charging at up to 7.2kW, 11kW, or 22kW depending on the station and car, while DC 'Superchargers' are capable of providing up to 250kW of charging power, but generally in Australia we are limited to 120kW.Tesla Model S, X, 3, and the incoming Y will all use the Tesla network, with onboard AC inverters limited to 16.5kW in the case of the S and X, or 11kW in the case of the 3 and Y. The Type 1 connector, also referred to as a 'J plug' is the American standard electric car plug and is less common in Australia. In our market, this connector is relegated to only older electric cars like the first-generation Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi iMIEV, and Holden Volt, but also appears in the previous-generation Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.All J1772 connectors in Australia are AC connectors (generally with 7.2kW outputs), with the US-market Type 1 CCS combo DC connector unavailable on Australian-delivered electric cars.J1772 connectors are still available primarily at JetCharge locations, but also exist at some other public charging locations. Often electric cars will only be delivered with one cable, one which converts a standard wall socket (~2.3kW) to the car’s native AC port for you to plug your electric car in at home. Charging this way can be achingly slow, especially with a fully electric vehicle’s large battery pack. Thankfully, as public AC charging becomes more widely available, charging faster at the local shops is a more reasonable reality. The only trouble is most AC outlets are bring-your-own cable type stations.Most manufacturers will offer spare cables (for example, a Type 2 to Type 2 public charging cable) as a dealer option, however they can also be purchased from third parties online. Keep an eye on the cable length and max kW (the cable itself needs to support up to 22kW if you want to achieve the maximum possible AC charge speed). Extra cables should cost between $100 and $500 depending on the type.Said third parties also sell convenient EV charging adapters or converters. For example, you can buy a Type 2 to Type 1 adapter cable or vice versa, or even cables which will convert five-pin industrial three phase outlets (the kind found in industrial estates, showgrounds, campgrounds, and caravan parks) to a Type 1, Type 2 or Tesla connector. These types of converters seem generally limited to 7.2kW. You can charge your phone wirelessly, right? So why the need for all these cables when induction charging could be the future?The Society of Automotive Engineers International (SAE) which also developed the J1772 'J Plug' has been developing a standard for wireless vehicle charging for over a decade which it dubs the J2954 system. Turns out developing such a technology is a bit more difficult for cars than it is for phones, as a wireless charger needs to be aligned relatively precisely to work properly, and wireless chargers tend to be much less efficient than cable equivalents.SAE suggests wireless charging can provide rates of 3.7kW, 7.7kW, and 11kW, equivalent to AC cable charging standards. So far, the technology has been employed in only one production vehicle, a special version of the US-market BMW 530e which was only available for lease. Toyota has also done a very limited trial of a different wireless charging technology in a plug-in hybrid variant of the second-generation Toyota Prius in its home market of Japan.As of 2021 though, it seems wireless charging in production cars is still at least a few years off.

Lithium-ion batteries, which are the main batteries used in Electric Vehicles (EVs), hybrids and Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs), are recyclable.

The introduction of any kind of new technology usually brings a whole host of new jargon to learn along with it, forcing consumers to wade through the initial deluge of fresh information with a sense of head-scratching confusion. The ins and outs of petrol-powered vehicles are second nature to most drivers, but with the introduction of electric vehicles (EVs) there’s a whole new type of vehicle, and an entirely new operating system, for people to get their heads around. One obvious area to grapple with is charging speeds, and the difference between AC and DC charging. Sadly, it’s not quite as obvious as the difference between diesel and petrol.The simple version is that AC charging is slow and DC is fast, but there’s a bit more to it than that. The two types of electricity an EV can use are Alternating Current (AC) and Direct Current (DC). What makes things a little tricky is that most power that comes from the electricity grid we’re all plugged into is AC, whereas batteries - like the one in your smartphone, or the one in your EV - can only store power as DC. This is why a lot of devices have an AC to DC converter built-in to the plug. EVs have their own in-built convertor (or ‘onboard charger’, as they’re confusingly called) that changes AC power to DC and then transfers it to the EV’s battery. There are larger, faster chargers that convert the AC power to DC internally, meaning you can transfer the power directly to the EV’s battery, thus bypassing the vehicle’s in-built convertor.  The easiest way to understand the different ways to charge your EV and the time it will take is to break charging down intro three levels. Level one is AC trickle charging, where the EV is plugged into a standard 240-volt AC socket - the kind that you’ll find on the wall at home (and hopefully in your garage - if not, you’ll be needing yourself a lengthy extension cord). While this is the easiest form of charging - these types of sockets are everywhere - it’s also the slowest. A typical 10-amp socket offers about 2.0kW of charging power, and the time it takes to give your EV’s battery a full charge from empty will depend on its size, but will almost always be slow. Like a couple of days slow.A good rule of thumb: dividing your battery’s capacity by two should give you an approximate time that this method will take (e.g. an 80kW battery will take around 36-40 hours to charge). Using a slightly more powerful 15-amp, 3.6kW socket should halve these times again, although it’s worth remembering that most charging is topping up, not replenishing a fully drained battery, so the likelihood you’ll be up for a 48-hour wait for a full charge is slim. Level two is AC fast-charging, best exemplified by a wall-box charger that you can get installed at home. These deliver 7.2kW with 240-volt AC single-phase power, reducing charging time considerably: a 13.8kW battery will only take a couple of hours to fully charge from empty, and a larger 80kW battery will fully charge after about 10 hours. Wall-box chargers are often seen as a good option for Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs), which have both an internal-combustion engine and an electric motor, because their smaller batteries take less time to charge. While it’s important to note that a lot of EV batteries will only charge at a maximum of 7.6kW - most likely in PHEVs due to the aforementioned smaller batteries - there is an option to get a 22kW charger if you have 415-volt three-phase power at your disposal. Level two AC fast-charging is also what you can typically expect to find at public charging stations. There are a number of apps that will help you locate charging stations and offer you detailed information on them, which is useful for finding out which ones offer 7.2kW and which have 22kW. Level three is DC rapid-charging, offered via public 480-volt DC rapid-chargers that can deliver charging power starting at a very impressive 50kW. These type of chargers are important in relation to drivers who have longer distances to travel and want relatively short charging times, although charging can be sped up further with certain ultra-rapid chargers that can deliver up to 350kW of power (kind of pointless, currently, since no EV can accept a 350kW charge, but they are effectively future proofing themselves for the battery tech that’s coming). If you have a PHEV, keep in mind that they are not compatible with DC fast-chargers or ultra-rapid chargers - they only work with AC charging.As for charging time, DC fast-chargers will match the kW the charger is delivering to kilometres for every 10 minutes charged, meaning 10 minutes at 50kW will give you 50km of range, 10 minutes at 175kW will give you 175km of range, and so on.Again, your best friend here will be one of the many smartphone apps that will help you locate the appropriate charger for your type of vehicle, so long as you’re aware what the maximum charge your vehicle can handle is. Good luck, and happy charging! 

If you’re after a definition of electric cars, the simple version is that they are vehicles with an electric motor powered by a lithium-ion battery that requires external charging. 

Both hydrogen-powered cars and electric vehicles (EVs) have motors powered by electricity, with the major difference being where that electricity is generated from. EVs get theirs from a lithium-ion battery, while hydrogen-powered cars are powered by a hydrogen fuel cell that converts hydrogen to electricity while the car is running.