Public Electric Car Charging Stations May Go Largely Unused
“Range anxiety” — the worry that your EV will run out juice before you get to where you’re going — is a term that has been bandied about a lot recently… almost annoyingly so. From a common sense standpoint, it seems only logical that range anxiety is a real phenomenon. But since we have so few EVs on the roads right now, the fact of the matter is that range anxiety is, at this point, a made up concept based on what we can logically expect.
And it’s this expectation that is spurring a huge amount of both private and public investment in nationwide charging networks for EVs — the assumption being that the only way EVs will ever become mass-accepted is to eliminate range anxiety.
But will those public charging stations that we’re dumping money into go unused because we have an expectation for a phenomenon that turns out to not really be an issue?
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It’s not only a question of whether or not the investment in a charging network will pay off, either. Companies like GM have decided to avoid dealing with potential EV consumers’ range anxiety concerns by designing and building cars like the upcoming Chevy Volt, which has a 40 mile range on batteries and then a small fuel-powered generator that kicks on and charges the batteries for an additional 300 mile range.
While this is a good workaround to the question of range anxiety, it has meant that GM has invested billions of dollars into the technology and it will take perhaps decades for that investment to pay off. Not only that, these EREVs are going to be much more expensive than a pure battery electric car — as borne out by the Volt’s expected $40,000 price tag as compared to the Nissan LEAF’s (an all battery car) expected $25,000 price tag. Certainly there will be some people willing to pay that much more for the peace of mind, but will the majority even care about range anxiety enough to make the extra price worth it?
Some recent independent studies, and GM’s own data, suggest that as we get closer to the mass market launch of electric cars later this year, all of this worry about range anxiety and all of the effort spent in trying to avoid it may end up being a massive waste of resources.
A study by the Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Center at the University of California, Davis, showed that of the 150 Mini E driver respondents who participated in Mini’s electric car trial run over the last year, the vast majority were completely satisfied with the 80-100 mile driving range and it met all of their daily driving needs. As I’ve said before, many households have two or more cars, and if one of them is electric and meets their daily needs, they can use the non-electric one to travel on the longer trips.
In the end, most drivers of EVs in these studies seem to be happy to never have to go the gas station again and find that virtually all of their needs are met with at-home charging stations. For the companies and governments currently involved in building out the massive charging networks that are perceived to be necessary for EV adoption, this could spell bad news.
In an MSNBC.com article, Tom Turrentine, the director at the UC Davis center, said “While many statements are made about the need for infrastructure prior to [EV] sales, I have seen much more evidence to the contrary.” For instance, in Berlin Germany, the charging network goes largely unused by the many EV drivers in the city.
Range anxiety is one of those things we’ll just have to wait and see if it actually becomes a real problem, but until then, companies that are banking on it being real are risking a lot of capital.
Source: GM-Volt.com
Image Credit: Coulomb Technologies
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March 8th, 2010 at 5:21 pm
They may be unused for the moment but as consumers start picking up the electric technology they will become essential.
March 8th, 2010 at 7:56 pm
Unless the power and parking is free, I expect to be charging the car at my home, at night, along with my cell phone, laptop, and all the rest of my lithium-ion powered devices. What would be nice is a rental trailer that could power an electric car for long trips. Just zip down to Budget and rent one, and drop it off when you get to your destination.
March 8th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
Tech,
I agree that once the charging infrastructure is built, EV drivers will likely find it useful. However, I question how much they’ll really need it. It may be that people only use the charging stations when they are going on longer trips… and as is shown over and over again in our driving habits and the statistics supporting them, we don’t really go on that many long trips. While the perception of range anxiety and the feeling of being scared by it are real, the reality may be that it doesn’t exist. But, like I said, those charging stations will be useful on the long trips every couple of weeks… will that be enough to make them worth the investment? That I don’t know.
March 8th, 2010 at 8:06 pm
4r4nd0mninj4 (why do people have to use such crazy pseudonyms?),
That’s an interesting idea. I’ve often thought about building my own such “charging trailer” that can run on biodiesel or ethanol, but being able to rent one would be much more convenient.
March 8th, 2010 at 8:59 pm
Look. The problem with this brilliant critics and editors is that they think for some weird reason an EV must appeal to every market demographic.
Wrong.
As this article states, how many millions of suburbanite families have two adults with 0-3 kids currently using 2 cars?
My guess is the number is staggering!
Only one of the two vehicles is needed for long range. In other words, that will be the gas car.
So I get a car for $25,000 (after tax credits), with almost ZERO maintenance (no gas stations, no oil changes, etc), and I save $1000-$1500 a year on “fuel” cost?
Where the heck do I sign?
March 9th, 2010 at 7:50 am
Hi Nick,
I have a quibble with what you wrote about the Volt: the onboard charger is anything but “small”!
BTW, Nissan is claiming they have 56,000 people signed up to buy the Leaf. And the Th!nk City should also be available around the same time. And, we should see a Focus EV next year?
I think I would use a charging station almost anywhere *except* McDonald’s…
Sincerely, Neil
March 9th, 2010 at 8:04 am
David G. and others always make me chuckle. “Almost ZERO maintenance?” On what planet? EV’s need MORE not less maintenance and repairs, based on my experience and others. A lot of these systems are still unproven, and unlike mechanical devices, electrical problems are usually total failures that require replacement, and those parts are usually not on anyone’s shelf. Unless there’s a good warranty and towing program and you just lease the vehicle, you’ll be losing money not saving money.
March 9th, 2010 at 8:17 am
EV buyers should consider buying and stowing a small generator like the Honda EU2000i. It can provide 21 kWh on a single gallon of gas, weighs like 50 lbs and has a quality AC sine wave.
March 9th, 2010 at 9:14 am
Neil,
I suppose size depends on what you’re comparing it to. I was thinking in terms of comparing it to an engine you would find in a conventional car. The Volt engine is a 1.4 liter, 4-cylinder engine, which in the american auto industry is regarded as a very small engine by today’s standards. By other standards I can see how you might say it’s not small. In my opinion, an argument about that issue is semantic in nature and perhaps a tad pointless
I totally agree about the charging station and McD’s… unless it was the only charging station around and I really was on my last drops of power. I thought that picture was great because it told a whole story just by itself
March 9th, 2010 at 9:21 am
Joe pah,
What are you talking about? Your blather about EVs requiring more service is completely and utterly false. I’d like to know what kind of “experience” you have? Given my broad exposure to the world of EVs, I can confidently say that EVs will most definitely require far less service than combustion powered cars. No oil changes, no failing exhaust systems, no engine problems. You take all that stuff out and you replace it with an electric motor with one moving part and how could you say that will require more service? The batteries may need changing every 100,000 miles or so, but there’s no reason to expect the will fail more often than that. My knowledge comes from talking with EV owners of first generation mass market EVs like the EV1 and Toyota Rav4 (not some contraption that was made in a basement to drag race or putter around town on lead acids). My knowledge comes from talking extensively with EV engineers of second generation EVs like the the Nissan LEAF, Ford Transit Connect, Mitsubishi i-MiEV and Chevy Volt.
March 9th, 2010 at 9:59 am
I am in for for an EV with less maintenance.
I had to crawl under my wife’s Pontiac to change the oil last weekend and I thought, man I’m definitely not going to miss doing this. I’m also not going to miss having smog checks and waiting in line at the gas station.
It’s going to be a great year with the Leaf being released. Unfortunately, I will have to wait until next year, because I want the Focus EV.
March 9th, 2010 at 10:23 am
Well Nick,
How many EVs or LEV’s have YOU owned?
Here my experience:
1. Ultramotor Electric Bike ($3k with LiMg batteries):
First 6 months warranty work:
1 new bike (motor burned, no solution).
3 new motors and BMS (motor cutout on warm days)
1 motor relay board
3 secondary batteries (total failures, couldn’t repair).
This bike was supposedly “perfected” through thousands of sales in India.
2. Honda Accord EV conversion by a “reputable” EV shop in Ft. Pierce FL. 15k plus car. 150VDC motor with Henan Huanyu LiFeO4 batteries.
Promised 100 mile range, best so far 40 miles.
Several individual batteries failed, very difficult to replace and troubleshoot.
Battery Management system failure.
Battery charger not a smart charger, does not fully charge all cells.
Very sensitive to ambient temperature during charging and discharging.
Discussion with other EV and LEV owners indicates that my experiences are not unusual.
It’s easy to write an article from your bedroom or cubicle extolling the virtues of something you have little experience with. Collect some facts next time.
March 9th, 2010 at 10:36 am
Joe Pah,
You honestly think electric bikes and a converted Honda Accord are good analogies for a mass market electric car made by major auto manufacturers? There are so many differences it would take me a whole other article to point them all out. Go talk with owners of the EV1, Rav4 EV, and Ford Ranger EV. Go talk with the 500 or so test drivers of the Mini E over the last year. Survey after survey has found that not only are they ecstatic about the lack of service they needed, but that the EV served their purposes better than they could have ever hoped. Those are the facts. Like I alluded to in my first comment, EVs that are converted from other cars using parts that weren’t designed to work together properly are not a good measure of how reliable EVs are. If you hobbled together a combustion-engined vehicle from parts that you bought yourself and then retrofit into a horse wagon, you would have an unreliable piece of junk, no matter how “reputable” your conversion shop was. Major auto manufacturers do such extensive testing and engineering that a converted vehicle doesn’t even shine a candle to the real deal. Did your conversion shop spend a billion dollars on engineering, testing and research before they sold you that piece of junk? In my opinion, for $15K you got swindled and you should demand your money back. There are shops that will do a much better job for less money.
March 9th, 2010 at 11:57 am
Hi Joe & Nick,
I think we need to look at actual production EV’s, like the EV-1 and the RAV4 EV. Both are *first* generation EV’s so we should expect a few teething problems.
I think the record speaks for itself: EV’s have very few moving parts, and those few parts are extremely hardy and robust; I have heard longevity numbers on AC motors like 850,000 to 1,000,000 miles!
Wear parts like brakes are not stressed very hard in EV’s with regenerative braking. They should last a lot longer than in ICE powered cars.
Other than early EV-1’s having various and sundry issues (many unrelated to the drive train), and things like the rear shocks on the RAV4 EV going (probably because they were not redesigned for the greater weight?), the only wear items on an EV are the tires and wiper blades. And the battery pack lasts a lot longer on the RAV4 EV than anybody would have guessed.
Sure, Joe, there could be various electronic and/or motor issues, but in a properly designed and tested production EV, the overall reliability of an EV look to be far better than an ICE powered vehicle, and the maintenance costs look to be far lower, too.
On the size of the Volt’s 1.4L 4-cylinder engine; the Lotus range extender is 1.2L 3-cylinder, and the Getrag unit has a 2-cylinder (of unknown displacement). The Toyota 1/X used a 500cc engine, and the QED serial hybrid Mini used a 250cc engine:
http://www.gizmag.com/go/6104/
Also, please consider that the Cruze uses a turbo version of the same engine as the Volt, in a vehicle that is very similar size. I think the Volt is way over-engineered in this regard.
Sincerely, Neil
March 9th, 2010 at 12:59 pm
A pure EV needs to be equipped with a trailer hitch to attach the long distance run gas generator. The suspension needs to be adapted to towing same as well as with a convenient plug in for the tow. The car’s computer needs to be adapted to take the towed generator and turn it on or off as necessary. Charging station locations should be places at all hotel parking lots. Any hotel without them will soon begin to loose customers. I expect that the presence of same will be mentioned in motel adds from coast to coast once the Leaf goes on sale. A feature that should be included in EV should be solar cells covering the entire outside to the vehicle. Adding plug in stations to all parking lots should be a good idea. Your local electric company should pay for this. The government should loan the electric company the money to so equip parking lots, which would take care of initial installation costs. All EV need to be equipped with an electric meter to pay for the juice used at public charging stations. The national bureau of standards should issue regulations dealing with the size, shape and connections of all batteries and charging outlets to allow for different brands of cars to use different brands of replacement batteries and charging stations.
March 9th, 2010 at 2:12 pm
Joe Pah,
Your experience would be much like someone buying a ICE vehicle from a no-name automaker – same result, different cars.
Less complexity = less maintenance.
You will eat your words. Once EVs have the engineering resources invested in them that ICE vehicles enjoy, it will be no contest. EVs will outlast ICE vehicles – and that’s bad news for autocompanies used to selling you a new ICE car every few years.
March 9th, 2010 at 5:48 pm
“Range Anxiety” is not a made-up concept, amigo. How far will this sucker go? is THE FIRST QUESTION any rational person has about any kind of electric vehicle. I ran out of juice once 500 meters from home at the bottom of a hill with a 20 degree slope. My electric scooter weighs ~350 lbs. I could no more walk it up that hill than I could put it on my back and dance the Marengo. Nobody I know owns a tow truck. My only option was to ask an acquaintance if I could “borrow” some electrons, find 200 feet of extension cords, and charge the thing in situ.
March 9th, 2010 at 7:28 pm
Mac M,
It’s not whether or not “range anxiety” is real per se, so much as a question of whether or not it will actually affect car sales or the use of charge stations. There is a world of difference between an electric scooter with a 20 mile (?) range and an electric car with a 80-100 mile range in terms of whether or not it meets daily driving needs. The issue isn’t whether or not to worry about running out of juice, but if people will even have the opportunity to worry about that on a daily basis because they drive far less than 100 miles in a given day.