Evening battery and 'alternatives' style people. I hope you don't mind this intrusion from the sooty world of Diesel
I have a 'spare' car in the garage curently acting as a home for my broken dreams as a car restorer, a current home for spiders and a potential home for an EV project. I have the DVDs and I have a 20 mile round trip to work. I even have a potential source of parts and had a budget - but the roof got a leak so its on hold for the moment, however the plan stays.
Anyhow his week we (in Scotland) have had snow, lots of it. Which led to the main road here (the M8) being closed and people having to spend the day and night in their cars, in the cold. Not nice. The man responsible has resigned and the people have been freed.
This got me thinking and I thought I would pose a scenario, especially as cars like the Leaf are going to get a subsidy here and so people may just buy them. Crazy I know but they might. I'm kind of wondering how this scenario would affect an EV.
So, lets say you are on your way home, its cold-ish but light evening. The road stops and is closed for say 3-5 hours. OK I know
your local authorities may take action to get you off asap but what if they can't and you are stuck for say 4-5 hours - I have been before even in good weather.
In an EV everything you need is powered by the batteries. Heat, tunes, lights, the lot. So how do you keep it all going ? How do you make sure you have enough left to get going after it all clears ? And what about the extreme scenario, overnight in the snow for up to 12-14 hours and a 30 mile journey ?
This may sound extreme and it may sound like a doubter 'having a go' but it is one of those obstacles to selling these things as real alternatives.