How do you charge your Electric Car?

Now that you have chosen the Electric Car that best fits your needs, how do you charge it up? Well, it’s as easy as charging your phone and can be done in the comfort of your home or at the 500+ public charging stations in BC plus more in the US.

• It’s easy to charge every night they so Electric Car drivers don’t need as much one-time range as a typical gas-engine car driver who may refuel once a week or once a month. 
• When you charge at home you can always leave with a full battery. 
• With more than 500 Electric Car charging stations in BC there is a good chance you can charge your EV while you are at work, shopping, at the movies, at the mall, at the doctor or dentist, etc so you can probably drive further than you think. 

Electric Car will also charge themselves whenever you brake or go downhill so sometimes you will have more range available at the bottom of the hill than you did at the top.

What is Hybrid Vehical

A vehicle that powered by two or more sources of Energy like a combination of gas engine and electric motor 

Why we need Electric Vehicles?

There are many reasons why people are moving to Electric Vehicles to get them to the places they need to be. These include:

•  Electric Vehicles are fun to drive because they are fast and smooth. 
•  Many studies show that the emissions from burning fossil fuels such as gasoline produce harmful greenhouse gases. These produce no smelly fumes or harmful greenhouse gases. 
•  Electric Vehicles are innovative and cool. 
•  Electric Vehicles only cost approximately $360 a year to operate compared to $3600 for a   gasoline vehicle. 
•  Electric Vehicles are a smart and convenient choice. 

What is Electric Car

An electric car is a vehicle that has an electrical motor to produce torque the unlike gas engine powered cars electric cars run on the electric motor is powered by Battery (Lithium-ion) the electric motor used in the Electric vehicle may be Single phase induction motor or Direct current motor

There are 3 types of electric vehicle:

1. Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV), 
2. Plugin Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) 
3. Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) 

each is described in more detail below. With 39 electric vehicles available in Canada there is a good chance there is one that meets your requirements.

Battery Electric Vehicle

A battery electric vehicle (BEV) runs entirely using an electric motor and battery, without the support of a traditional internal combustion engine, and must be plugged into an external source of electricity to recharge its battery. Like all electric vehicles, BEVs can also recharge their batteries through a process known as regenerative braking, which uses the vehicle’s electric motor to assist in slowing the vehicle and to recover some of the energy normally converted to heat by the brakes.

Advantages 

1. No emissions  
2. No gas or oil changes 
3. Ability to conveniently charge at home 
4. Fast and smooth acceleration 
5. Low cost of operation - about $30 a month.

Disadvantages

1. Shorter range than gasoline vehicles, although most people drive well within the range of today’s BEV and could rent a hybrid for the rare long trips.
2. Slightly more expensive than their gasoline equivalent although the gasoline savings pay off the difference is typically 2-3 years. 

Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle

Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) use an electric motor and battery that can be plugged into the power grid to charge the battery but also has the support of an internal combustion engine that may be used to recharge the vehicle’s battery and/or to replace the electric motor when the battery is low. Because Plug-in Hybrids use electricity from the power grid, they often realize more savings in fuel costs than tradition hybrids electric vehicles (HEV). 

Advantages 

1. Longer range than BEV 
2. Less gas consumption than a gas-only vehicle 
3. Fewer emissions 
4.  Very simple mechanics, less to go wrong. 

Disadvantages

1.  Produces tailpipe emissions 
2. Needs gas and oil changes 
3. More expensive to operate than Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) but less than a traditional hybrid vehicle (HEV).

Hybrid Electric Vehicle 

Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs) have two complementary drive systems: a gasoline engine with a fuel tank; and an electric motor with a battery. Both the engine and the electric motor can turn the transmission at the same time, and the transmission then turns the wheels. HEVs cannot be recharged from the electricity grid – all their energy comes from gasoline and from regenerative braking.

Advantages 

1.   Longer range than BEV 
2. Less gas consumption than a gas-only vehicle 
3. Fewer emissions than a gas-only vehicle 

Disadvantages

1. Still produces emissions 
2. Complex mechanics – Gasoline + Electric 
3. Expensive to operate (8-10 times more expensive than BEV) but less than a traditional gasoline vehicle. 
4. No ability to conveniently charge at home.