Logan Nichols, Communications Associate
When thinking about an electric vehicle, also known as an EV, a thought that might come to mind for most people is intimidation of the unknown. As the world of technology evolves daily, there is more conversation about EVs. However, with lots of interest in EVs, there come questions, concerns, and opinions on the matter.
To the uneducated mind on EVs, one might think, “Oh, that car won’t get very far before running out of battery,” or “The car must be complicated to drive.” Some questions are, what if I need to charge the car away from home? Is it worth it to me to buy one? I thought the same way before driving an EV myself.
Before driving an EV, I knew very little about it. I knew that it didn’t require gas and that you would need to charge it. That’s it. However, that changed after experiencing a drive in a Chevrolet Bolt.
EVs are vehicles that are powered strictly through batteries underneath the car, so no gas is required. They charge simply by an outlet. Although you can charge your EV in your everyday outlet, such as your toaster, for a quicker charge, you will want to install a more powerful outlet. This allows for a more efficient charge. When purchasing an EV, you want to install an EV charger into your home, whether outside or in a garage. This way, an EV owner can charge at their home and get into a healthy routine of charging the EV every night, just like you would a cell phone. In my experience, plugging and unplugging an EV is like any other outlet: simple and nothing to it.
EVs can travel farther than you think. During my 45-minute drive, I covered only 30 miles of road. The EV still had about 230 miles left to go in its charge. What do you do if you have to charge while away from your home charging station? Simple, find a public charging station. With an app on your smartphone, you can easily find where each charging station may be. The cost to charge varies depending on the charging station. However, no more stops at gas stations.
While an EV is on and running, you won’t hear a sound coming from the car. When you start driving, it’s smooth. Very smooth. The car has speed and is easily controlled like any other vehicle. EVs are very simplistic. There are no controls that make you feel like you’re on a rocket ship, and the car’s interior doesn’t make you feel like you are from the future. It’s just an average vehicle. The only exception is; that it could make you feel too cool for school.
Nonetheless, there are drawbacks to EVs. EVs are “local” vehicles. With EVs only able to go so far until the battery runs out, halfway through your road trip, you might have to make a 1-2-hour stop to charge. Another downside is the cost of the EV itself. The EV market can be expensive, but as more people become EV owners, the hope is the price will decrease. Finally, electric vehicles are relatively new to the technological society, so for most EV developers, some kinks are still being figured out.
So, now you might ask yourself: “Is an EV right for me?” There are lots of factors to consider before purchasing an electric vehicle. You must ask all the important questions that are relative to you. Reaching out to your Co-op before making this purchase is a great idea. Union Power has great resources to help you determine if it’s the right purchase.
The best thing one could do is to become educated about EVs. Here only the bare minimum is presented about EVs, but there is so much more to educate someone about. Learning about EVs can make your expectations match reality. Happy driving!
