Battery care

 Some low-mileage drivers may think that if the vehicle has been connected up to the charger it will be fully topped-up and ready for any journey that the owner may wish to make. This would be fine if the vehicle was used quite regularly, but when the main Lithium-ion battery is being charged, the 12-volt system battery will be disconnected. This will effectively mean that it may discharge over time and not be available to power up the systems when the vehicle is required to operate, even though the main battery is charged.

On an ICE vehicle, if you have a full tank of fuel and the engine is perfectly operational, but the battery is flat, then the engine will not start, and the vehicle will not go. The EV is no different – a fully-charged power battery and perfectly operating electric motors will not power the vehicle unless the 12-volt systems are bought into play. So, leaving the vehicle trickle-charging will effectively prevent the 12-volt battery from keeping itself topped-up, and this will increase the chance of the EV not starting. The main power generating battery gives out around 650 volts, so this is one area of maintenance which the DIY motorist should steer clear of.

With regard to charging, although fast-charging is available, the batteries will last a lot longer if the vehicle is charged at a steadier rate – too many fast charge cycles will deteriorate the battery and shorten its working life. The same is true for recharging the battery after every journey. The best advice is to let the battery get low before recharging.

Of course, while many owners will have a garage or driveway to keep and charge their EV, many will not, and this is going to be a factor which will greatly influence the ownership of the electric vehicle. For some the alternative may be a charging point at their place of work, but for others this may not be an option.

As mentioned earlier the constant fast charging of the battery will be detrimental to its long-term health, and so this should not be considered an alternative to the day- or night-long charge which is recommended.

It is estimated that charging your EV at home should cost the equivalent of 4p per mile, while charging it at a public charge point may cost around 8p per mile. If you were to compare this to the average ICE vehicle at 35mpg or 7.6 miles per litre, and with the average cost of petrol at £1.30 per litre, that would equate to 17p per mile. So even using the most expensive electricity at a public point, EV motoring would be half the cost of ICE motoring.

As the number of EVS increases, so will the availability of charging points. One question that may be asked – will the cost of charging be taxed? Remember the early Hybrids had a zero-rate tax but when the government realised that tax revenue from vehicles was decreasing as the lower emission’s vehicles became more commonplace, so the goal posts were moved.

If you are not ready to move over to an EV, I wouldn’t be too concerned; petrol and diesel vehicles are still being produced and, with more than a 15-year lifespan, the ICE vehicle is not going to disappear in the near future. Do, though, be prepared for the rising cost of fuel and road tax – plus the implementation of chargeable city congestion zones.