I'm gonna buy an EV

[Eddo Rogue]

EVs usually have a kilowatt hour(kWh) rating, and the battery pack has a kWh storage rating
If an EV has a 3mile/kWh rating and battery pack has 80kWh capacity then "in theory" you could go 240 miles on a full charge, 3 x 80 = 240, but there are other electrical usages in any vehicle, so................

Teslas are rated at 2.5mile/kWh
Leaf is rated as 5mile/kWh<<< impressive, but have seen 4mile/kWh which is still pretty good

kWh is also how electric companies sell electricity so..........the math is simple, on cost to recharge, say an 80kWh battery pack, and to estimate how many kWh were used that day so how many kWh it will take to "fill it back up"

Solar panels/chargers also have a kWh rating, if you have a 10kWh solar system then it would take 8 hours to charge up a drained 80kWh battery fully in full sun light
And/Or you would need another battery pack to store the kWh during the day to recharge EV at night
Battery packs are not cheap

Again its just math, to see what you need

Or you could setup the 10kWh solar system to power home devices(frig/freezers) while you are away during the day, when electricity is usually higher priced, so saving the electrical cost and then use electrical power to charge EV at night when power is cheaper
No extra battery pack needed

There are a few EVs coming out with almost every surface on the vehicle covered with solar panels, and nice looking, well for what they are, lol
Can't even imagine what insurance companies will charge for coverage on these, a "fender bender" could cost ALOT to repair
And the inconvenience of not using covered parking or "parking in the shade" to keep vehicle cooler

How do I figure out the kWh rating of my solar setup? I've got about 16'x24' of panels and I think 16 batteries. the panel has a 50amp and two 20amp breakers. I don't know crap about the inverter lol. It does seem to charge my buddy's tesla no problem.

 

[19Walt93]

I left out the why. It's because charging it would cost me pretty much nothing. Between solar and work, I'm being an idiot driving the ranger or F150 every day, and hate when I g
Electricity is not an issue in my life. Fuel is.

It sounds like you thought it through, let us know how it works out. I would avoid a used EV because of the battery replacement cost. California is the original "green" state so you get the benefit of the 10 year/150'000 mile warranty. We always stocked California emissions vehicles so we could dealer swap with the green states around us, if we sold into Vt, for example, the customer got 10/150,000. A NH customer buying the same vehicle got 8/100,000 because NH doesn't mandate California emissions. Same vehicle, same climate, different coverage, it always frosted my a$$.

 

[RonD]

How do I figure out the kWh rating of my solar setup? I've got about 16'x24' of panels and I think 16 batteries. the panel has a 50amp and two 20amp breakers. I don't know crap about the inverter lol. It does seem to charge my buddy's tesla no problem.

Each panel should have a rating, see if you can find a model number or even a rating sticker on one of them
Older panels have less watts per square foot than newer panels
A dash board solar panel can charge a Tesla, would just take it a few YEARS, lol

Current Solar panels produce about 15watts per square foot
16 x 24 = 384 sq/ft
384 x 15 = 5,760 watts or 5.7kWh in full sunlight
Assuming 8 hours of full sunlight that's 45.6kWh per day(5.7 x 8 = 45.6)

Tesla 2.5mile per kWh so it would add 14.25miles per hour directly
But since you are storing the 5.7kWh in batteries then it would recharge more depending on how many kWh's were stored in the batteries

The AMPs are more about the Voltage used than the kWh generated or stored
A car alternator is 100amps but maybe 1 kWh produced

 

[Blmpkn]

Being able to charge through solar would be about the only way I'd buy an EV I think. "Free" rides does sound nice.

However... that solar setup (that i don't have) costs a lot of money. It would likely take me years to recoup the cost before I started getting those free rides. I probably spend 3500ish a year on gas.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

Being able to charge through solar would be about the only way I'd buy an EV I think. "Free" rides does sound nice.

However... that solar setup (that i don't have) costs a lot of money. It would likely take me years to recoup the cost before I started getting those free rides. I probably spend 3500ish a year on gas.

I already spent the money and have the solar...it's just sitting there. That's why I figure eff it buy an EV and drive for free...besides insurance I guess.

 

[Blmpkn]

I already spent the money and have the solar...it's just sitting there. That's why I figure eff it buy an EV and drive for free...besides insurance I guess.

How much was your solar setup? Is it enough where your not paying for power monthly or is it just to supplement?

 

[Eddo Rogue]

How much was your solar setup? Is it enough where your not paying for power monthly or is it just to supplement?

Less than it's worth lol. It's just a supplement/emergency power. I plug stuff into it sometimes to keep the batteries cycled. It's like a portable backup generator, but solar.

 

[RonD]

A 19 to 21cu/ft fridge/freezer uses 5.5kWh
So your solar setup could run it with a little to spare

But not at night, lol

 

[19Walt93]

I already spent the money and have the solar...it's just sitting there. That's why I figure eff it buy an EV and drive for free...besides insurance I guess.

With the " I'm going to use it because I own it instead of buying something" attitude, you are now allowed to claim to be an honorary Yankee. Just look into the cost of a replacement battery first. If you really are a Yankee, finding out you spent more money to fix something than a new one would cost will cause physical pain.

 

[RonD]

Just a thought, did a quick search but didn't see an answer

So you buy an EV, and you setup your own solar, or other type, of "homebrew" Charging station
Is there any Warranty issues?

i.e. if you put diesel fuel in a new gasoline vehicle will the car maker cover any damage under warranty?
Never done that but I bet car maker wouldn't cover it, insurance might, they cover "stupid" and "oops"

 

[Roert42]

Just a thought, did a quick search but didn't see an answer

So you buy an EV, and you setup your own solar, or other type, of "homebrew" Charging station
Is there any Warranty issues?

i.e. if you put diesel fuel in a new gasoline vehicle will the car maker cover any damage under warranty?
Never done that but I bet car maker wouldn't cover it, insurance might, they cover "stupid" and "oops"

Seems like an Apples to Tomato’s type of argument

 

[CrabGuy]

My son just bought a new Tesla model Y (dual motor) two months ago. He texted me that he has now driven 1500 mi and has spent $19.50 in charging costs since new. I wired up a separate 50A circuit at the house so he gets the fastest home charging possible. His KWH rates on the Oregon coast are pretty low, $.0774/kwh. I figured the Ranger would have been $550; my E350-$740; and my Subaru-$225. I have to admit that's a no brainer at today's gas prices. If he was still in SoCal his KWH rates would be triple but still making it inexpensive for general use. EV's have their place but damn they are so expensive and it still feels weird to drive compared to a ICE vehicle.

 

[O No 3.0!]

Move out of commiefornia. Stop complying with Gestapo & stand up for yourself & your fellow man. When enough people move out of that sh*thole maybe they'll figure it out & get it back to normal. But i doubt it. Hopefully it will burn the rest of the way down & take pedowood with it. Rant over. Lol.

 

[CrabGuy]

Move out of commiefornia. Stop complying with Gestapo & stand up for yourself & your fellow man. When enough people move out of that sh*thole maybe they'll figure it out & get it back to normal. But i doubt it. Hopefully it will burn the rest of the way down & take pedowood with it. Rant over. Lol.

Since I'm only one of the few in the thread from California I assume that rant was for me or Eddo Rogue. I've never had a problem standing up for myself and I was not complaining about anything, thank you. I was just comparing the operating costs of their EV to my ICE vehicles. You OTOH are the one that made it political in addition to insulting a good part of the populace here that is conservative like me. I spend 1/2 my time on the Oregon coast which isn't anywhere near sh*thole status. Be careful what you wish for or the bloodsucking liberals of this state might decide to move to your neck of woods (should they bring banjos?) after they ruin Texas.

 

[dvdswan]

You are now dead to me.


Ok, I'm kidding. I know EVs are going to be a big thing but I don't believe they will replace the internal combustion engine. For commuting they will cut down on emissions but any long travels they will be hard to beat out. When they make EVs that can go 1000 miles on one charge then things might change.