Thanks to Lebomatseke for asking these really great questions:
“So are you saying that the more you charge it the lower the life of the battery? ”
When you drive the car, you slowly reduce the battery power. Driving the car farther will use more battery power than a shorter trip. Under normal conditions, you should might be able to drive 20 miles (or 50% of battery power) before recharging and you could be able to drive it 1,500 trips (about 3 years) before you would need to replace the batteries. But if you drive the maximum distance (40 miles or 100% of the battery power) before recharging, then the life of the battery would be reduced (this is what I was doing and my batteries lasted 13 months).
“Do you have another ‘normal’ one just in case?”
Yes, I did have a backup car when I needed to make a trip longer than 40 miles, or if I had any problems with my EV. But I can tell you that there were several months where I only needed to drive my EV and my gas car just sat in the driveway collecting cobwebs and dust.
“Are EV’s cheaper than most vehicles. I’m considering the economy, also imagining myself in that sport one…vroom!”
Right now, EV’s are not cheaper than gas cars mostly because EV’s are not mass produced like gas cars are. I paid $12,000 US for my EV, but I believe that the life of my vehicle will be longer than a gas car because there are fewer parts that can wear out and break, and I don’t need to worry about things like an engine, transmission, cooling system, fuel system or the emissions system.
“Where and how do you charge the batteries?”
I charge at my home, at my work, and at my school. A simple request to my employer and to the University was enough so they installed a simple electrical outlet where I can plug in my car. In Los Angeles, there are also several locations I can plug in my car when I am traveling downtown or too other areas, but there needs to be more to support the people who will be buying electric cars in the future.
