Explaining the different lingo of electric vehicles
I finally did it: I joined The Grid and installed an electric vehicle charger. I’ve been driving electric vehicles since the GM EV1 in the late 1990s, and I’ve driven so many recently that it was time to have a charger at home.
Along with driving electric comes an entirely different language from the gasoline era. Let me help decipher.
The basics: Unlike hybrids, battery electric vehicles, or BEVs, like the Chevy Bolt, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Hyundai IONIQ5 and all Teslas have no gasoline engine. They derive all of their power from a plug and through regenerative braking, or regen, that recovers kinetic energy during braking instead of releasing it as heat. Driving range varies greatly depending on battery size and vehicle weight, but typically rates a minimum of 220 miles to over 400 miles for premium luxury models like the Lucid Air.
Horsepower still defines work being done as a factor in acceleration and performance. Torque, the twisting force that turns a vehicle’s wheels, is often higher in EVs and allows for quick acceleration off the line and for trucks to pull heavy loads. Unlike gas engines that have to rev up for maximum power, electric motors generate it instantly to give drivers all of the power right now, enabling the swift smooth acceleration for which EVs are known.
Advanced knowledge: You’re going to read a lot about kilowatt-hours, which is the current a battery can emit over an hour. The higher the kWh, the more range, acceleration and towing capacity you can expect. Larger batteries provide more kWh, which is why trucks have larger battery packs than compact sedans. It’s also why it takes longer to recharge a pickup than a compact.
When it comes to putting energy back in, there are three levels of chargers that allow increasing speeds of charging. A Level 1 charger is essentially an EV plugged into a wall outlet. It takes days to fully recharge. Moving up to a Level 2 home or commercial charger decreases it to under 10 hours. The fastest Level 3 DC fast chargers can replenish a battery pack in about 30 minutes.