ANOTHER EV TORTURE TEST - by John Crawford

If you think electric cars are doing your bit for the environment, then please read this:

 

So much for electric cars! This cautionary tale comes from a NZ mechanic!

 

He had to work on a Nissan Leaf a week ago. A near-new NZD$30,000 car with a failed battery.

No one in town would work on it, and as the mechanic had completed a course on electric cars, the service rights were awarded to him by Nissan NZ. 

He arranged for the tutor from the Dunedin Polytech to help.

 

One failed module in the battery was shorting out to the case. A second-hand module is able to be fitted, but it needs to be in exactly the same condition as the remaining ones (85.2%), or the entire battery fails to perform.

So, the owner was left with the option of a second-hand battery out of a wreck that has no guarantee at $14,000, or an entire,  new battery pack at $20,000.

Then there is the problem of disposing of the old battery, or part of a battery. Nothing is available in NZ, and no-one is willing to transport a damaged battery. Specialist transport is available, and the cost to have one module (out of 24) transported to Australia and disposed of is around $5,000.

 

On top of all that, the tutor went through some of the legislation around EVs with the mechanic. If an EV is involved in a crash, and people are trapped inside, the fire brigade must isolate the battery before they can cut into the car, to rescue the occupants.

 

In a Leaf, the isolation plug is under a bolted cover on the floor between the front and back seats.

Once the cover is removed, the worker must have 3 pairs of gloves, required by law. They are cotton, rubber, and leather. Then with hands resembling lamb roasts, they can try and disconnect the 3-stage electrical plug. Then they can cut into the car. 

 

So, the problem with crashing any EV is that if you are trapped, you're dead, as it is probably impossible to remove victims. 

 

Also, it’s practically impossible to extinguish a battery fire. Water makes lithium burn. They forgot to tell you this part! As I wrote previously on this subject, the only way to guarantee the fire is out, is to drop the entire car into something like a shipping container filled with water, or dunk it in a nearby swimming pool! Not!

In a separate discussion between the mechanic and a resident of the retirement village where the Leaf owner lives, it appears that if 20% of the residents in the village had electric cars and charged them every night, the power supply would crash, as it is not designed to handle that sort of load, especially when air conditioners are being used to heat us in winter and cool us down in summer.

And who pays for upgrading the electrical supply? The owners of the units at the residential village of course!

 

Still think Electric Cars are the way to go? Think again! Oh, and would you mind passing this Post on to the Australian PM Anthony Albanese, Chris Bowen (the Chief Numpty) and your local member of federal parliament – because there’s no doubt they are ignorant of these details.

JOHN CRAWFORD