FAQ

RULE OF THUMB: If you can't plug it in, it isn't an EV.

A BEV (battery electric vehicle) is a subset of EV where the vehicle only has an electric drivetrain. Usually these vehicles are 100% emission free while operating.

A subset of BEV which is not 100% emission free are those vehicles which can recharge the traction batteries optionally from a ICE generator, such as the BMW i3 REx. This generation must not drive the motor and must be turned on manually by the driver, or automatically only when the traction battery is fully discharged.

A PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid electric vehicle) is another subset of EV, and has a hybrid powertrain which commonly includes both an electric drivetrain and a separate petrol drivetrain in a variety of different configurations. A PHEV must be capable of being entirely powered by electricity, while its petrol powertrain is disengaged. Its batteries must be primarily rechargeable from a plug-in source of electricity. PHEVs are not 100% emission free.

WHAT IS NOT AN EV

An HEV (Hybrid electrified vehicle) is not an electric vehicle, as it does not fit the above criteria. A hybrid vehicle has an electric powertrain in addition to the petrol or diesel powertrain. They usually have very small traction batteries which can only be recharged via a fossil fueled engine and to a small extent regeneration. Usually the driver has little to no control over when the vehicle will operate its electric drivetrain or its petrol drivetrain. While these vehicles have better fuel economy than an ICE vehicle, they potentially are worse for the environment on emissions than a PHEV, and are more complicated and expensive to maintain than a BEV.

An ICE (internal combustion engine vehicle) is not an electric vehicle. An ICE vehicle has a lead acid starter battery, but no traction batteries. It does not have an electric motor, but instead has an engine which is powered by the use of fossil fuels, such as diesel or petrol, and requires oil lubricants. Internal combustion engines are particularly inefficient as 75% of the fossil fuel put into them is lost to heat, idling, starting, etc. ICE are also NZ's second largest source of greenhouse gases, and NZ has one of the highest per person GHG emissions in the world. Road emissions also pollute our waterways and are a direct cause of a wide variety of health issues, including deaths.

WHAT IS A SELF-CHARGING CAR

Some vehicles that are not EVs are being marketed as "Self-Charging." It is important for consumers to realise that this term is a sales' gimmick. As mentioned above, all traction batteries are designed to self-charge during regenerative braking. So-called self-charging only accounts for a small percentage of the overall battery recharge - the rest must come from an outside source such as fossil fuels, or in the case of EVs by being plugged into an electricity supply such as the national grid.  

However, Toyota do now make a plug-in Prius, the Prius Prime, which makes it a PHEV, but sadly in NZ you see very few on the roads. Toyota has only recently (mid 2017) started selling used/refurbished Prius Prime cars in NZ. These are EVs as they can be driven up to 40km (at last revision) on battery alone, provided you don't go over 105kph, at which point the petrol motor kicks in.  

What you can say about a original Prius is that it was a handy stepping stone towards full BEV cars, and it seems mad that Toyota threw away the head start they owned in the early 2000's.

The following links may help you:

Zilch car Sharing

Sixt

Europcars 

Easy Transport Waiheke

My Car Your Rental

A guide to EV rental companies

Car Sharing: Because owning a car is no longer the future. Millions of people around the world are already very successfully car sharing. Remove the pains & costs of owning your own. Zilch is a membership-based service and is free to join. They have bases in Christchurch and Auckland, both in the CBD and at the airports with vehicles available such as the BMW i3 and Hyundai Ioniq and Kona.

EV Rentals: If you need a longer rental, try Europcars, available at Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch Airports. Vehicle types available are the Volkswagen e-Golf and the BYD Atto 3..  My Car Your Rental has several privately owned electric vehicles on its books, available for renting per day.

EV Taxis: On Waiheke Island, an all-electric service is available at Easy Transport. Offering Nissan LEAF and eNV200 van.  We understand that Green Cabs is no longer operating.

Since there are significantly fewer moving parts in an electric motor compared to a traditional ICE engine (in fact the electric motor has about 10% of the components of an ICE),  less ongoing preventative maintenance is needed.

An electric motor requires no oil changes, tune-ups, or new spark plugs. An electric motor will also outlast the body of the vehicle.

Brake life is extended on EVs since the motor is used to slow the car down once you take your foot off the accelerator, thus recapturing the kinetic energy and storing it back in the battery - this is called regeneration.

All automakers also offer good warranties on the life of the batteries. For example, the Nissan LEAF has been so reliable thousands of people are happy to import them used from Japan and UK without much in the way of warranty cover. In the Consumer NZ's 2017 survey of car owners, the Nissan LEAF rated highest in terms of reliability and owner satisfaction.....and most of those cars wouldn't be covered by any local warranty.  

The first Nissan Leaf had a range of 90-130 kilometers, depending on age, and all manufacturers are pushing to get affordable cars with a range between 250 and 300 kilometers.  Again the cost of the EV bears a direct relationship with the range of the battery.  A Tesla Model S with a 90 kWh battery has a range of around 400 km.

In NZ very few drivers travel this far on a daily basis; in fact the average daily drive is about 30km, and only a very small percentage drive over 100 km/day. So as a second car in a family, an EV run-around makes so much sense! Anecdotally when a family gets an EV as a second car, it quickly becomes the main town car, and the 'bigger, petrol' car becomes the out-of-town holiday driving car!

For the infrequent occasions when a long-distance drive is needed, and time is so critical that stopping to charge en-route is not considered, then that long distance drive can be done with a second car that is a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), by access to vehicles in car-share services, or by renting or borrowing another vehicle.

In NZ the charging network is now well established - see the Smartphone App PLUGSHARE - and any journey can be planned to include charging when natural breaks for food or toilets are required.

The actual charging time depends on the size of your battery, and how full the battery is, as charging tapers off as the battery fills in a non-linear fashion. Keep in mind that most of the time, the battery will not be empty when you plug in.

As a general guide, there's only two types of "fuel" for electric cars: AC and DC.
AC uses the car's onboard charger and is therefore slower. All chargers whether AC or DC are limited by the amperage of the electricity supply, and also the maximum capability of the car's battery, and battery management system.

100 kW,** tethered cable - 80km/10 minutes

150 kW,** tethered cable - 180km/10 minutes

DC Ultra-Rapid Charger, Public only 350 kW,** tethered cable ~400 km/15 minutes Wireless charging not available in NZ  

* limited by the onboard AC to DC rectifier

** limited by the battery capability to accept a high charge rate, some vehicles may not be able to access the maximum kW for part or all of the charge.

While most people recharge overnight in their garage, carport, driveway or at work, there will be times when you need to visit a public charging station.

There are two types of light vehicle public charging stations, which require two different fittings on your vehicle. One is AC (alternating current), and the other is DC (direct current).

DC Charging is a faster way to fill your battery, but the associated costs involved in installing DC charging stations mean that this service is usually not free. Still it is a lot cheaper than petrol!  These DC stations ought only to be used if you cannot charge at home so that you do not block them from travellers who depend on them. There are currently over 300 of these stations around New Zealand, and some do require you to have opened an account with the service provider before you can use them. You can not use your own cable at these stations (the exception is the Tesla adaptor). Charging time is roughly around 25 minutes per 100km depending on circumstances.

There are hundreds of AC chargers around the country and these are usually free to use, but may have parking limits. Most require you to bring your own cable, and this will be a different cable to the one you use in a 3-pin plug. Charging is a lot faster than can be accomplished on a 3-pin plug too, but generally requires at least an hour to get a worthwhile charge. For that reason, they are usually installed in places where you are likely to be parked for a while, such as motels, malls, parking buildings, and supermarkets. Wellington City Council is trialling street pole chargers.

If importing a vehicle yourself, be sure that it complies with our national public charging standards, which are as follows:

DC - CHAdeMO or CCS-2
AC - Type 2 (Mennekes)

Some EVs have both AC and DC charging options. Others only have AC.

Check out our page, Where to Charge, for more detail on finding a public charger.

DC chargers have two or more cables and often have two carparks to both support the two official NZ DC charging protocols (CHAdeMO & CCS2) and charging port locations on the vehicles. The second car park can also be used by an EV waiting to charge. Unless you are waiting to charge, or charging, you may not park in a ChargeNet charging spot indicated by the official EV signage painted on the concrete.  You may leave your vehicle while charging, but must not leave your vehicle if you are waiting to charge and parked in a ChargeNet carpark. If leaving while charging, you must remain in the vicinity so you can be back before charging finishes.

Some other DC charging providers in NZ (such as WEL Networks) do occasionally offer a station which also supports AC charging. Where this is the case, a car may also slow charge, while either of the DC cables are in use. Some charging providers also support queuing where a plugged in car will start charging once the other connection has finished. Stations that support this are rare.

In NZ where we are very used to buying second-hand Japanese cars, the cheapest EV available on the market is a second-hand Nissan Leaf and prices can be as low as $12,000. At the other end of the scale, a brand new Tesla Model S starts at around $120,000. So the price graph is wide, and therefore hopefully, anyone can find a price that is justifiable for their circumstances.

When buying a petrol car, few people consider the ongoing costs of fuel and maintenance.

In fact, the more kilometres you drive, the more money you save when driving an EV. As a rule of thumb charging at home on overnight rates gives you 'electric fuel' at roughly a sixth the cost of fossil fuel petrol.

Hence, over the life of an EV, the total cost of ownership can work out better than buying an ICE car - and you have contributed no CO2 to the environment! This is a win-win situation! 

* The actual charger is inside your vehicle, and every model of EV will have its own maximum speed at which the charger can accept power. What this means in practice is that the average low-range car can fully charge overnight on a standard NZ 3-pin power socket.

If you have purchased a long-range vehicle you may not find a mode-2 charging method adequate, unless you are prepared to do small top-ups rather than cycling through the full battery (not recommended.) In this case, you may need to install a dedicated wall charger*. Indeed some premium models come with a dedicated wall charging point as an optional extra.

Even with a powerful wall charger, your EV will still only charge at the maximum rate that its onboard charger can handle. ie: if your car can accept a maximum of 18A, it's pointless installing a 32Amp charging point unless you are future-proofing.  Whatever size of battery you have, an ideal starting point is to choose a dedicated home charging point that will charge your entire battery overnight.  This also means that you can get a decent top-up in just a couple of hours.

Most of these wall chargers will work on single phase just fine, although some are manufactured for 3-phase power. 

Visit our list of EVSE dealers. Many EV dealerships can also supply charging equipment. Check with your dealer for recommendations or ask in your local EV Owners Facebook group.

In New Zealand, it is not permitted to use or allow the use of a Mode 2 supply for public charging for an electric vehicle, which in practice means a business needs to install a wall or column AC Charge Point. If you are intending to provide a public charging station or a staff charging station, we recommend you talk to reputable, specialist charging device dealers. Our Where to buy EV Equipment page contains many options. We also recommend you read the Worksafe Guidelines.

DC Charging stations are unnecessary and cost-prohibitive for most work carparks. If you do wish to install a DC charger, we recommend you contact ABB, or the NZ Veefil agents: ChargeNet NZ Ltd. ChargeNet have a user billing system whereby the cost of the electricity supplied and maintenance can be recovered.

We asked NZ scientist Thomas Everth, for his evaluation.

"Hydrogen is not the "most abundant resource" in the universe from the perspective of humanity. In fact, if you tried to find free hydrogen anywhere on the planet, you would struggle. Free Hydrogen is highly reactive. Therefore almost all of it is already oxidized H2O here on planet Earth, and no electro-chemical energy can be extracted from it.

"Hydrogen from the perspective of being a resource for energy is useless unless it's free, reduced to its atomic or molecular H2 form. And doing so requires energy. At least as much as one gets back when oxidizing it back to H2O again, and, in fact, significantly more so, because the processes to reduce H2O to H2 and O2 are inefficient.

When driving slowly in a carpark, an EV makes some noise, primarily from the tyres, but it is true that as an EV driver, paying attention to pedestrians is of high importance.  Reversing in an EV, like most ICE cars, has a warning beep to alert pedestrians, and most EVs have warning noises for any obstacle in their forward path, both solid and human. 

At very high speeds, the wind and tyre noise is comparable to any car.

Likewise, windmills on EVs don’t make sense. The drag they create reduces efficiency, necessitating more energy to run the car. However, EVs can be charged with electricity that is generated from solar panels and wind turbines.

What about putting stationary solar panels on your house or business? That is a great idea. Fixed panels can be set up so that they’re not obstructed and angled optimally to the sun. And fixed wind turbines can work wonderfully as well.

Now that EV's have been around for while manufacturers are learning the batteries last longer than they expected.

For more information: https://www.leadingthecharge.org.nz/what_happens_to_old_ev_batteries

The existing electric grid’s off-peak capacity for power generation is sufficient to power 73 percent of commutes to and from work by cars, light trucks, SUVs and vans without building a single new power plant. In NZ we are very fortunate to have 80% of our power needs delivered via renewable generation - wind, solar and hydro - with little coming from the older coal fired stations. This percentage can only increase as the impact of CO2 emissions make us think in a more clever way to mitigate the problems CO2 cause the planet.

There is a big push to develop systems that allow existing nighttime electricity be stored in EV batteries and retrieved during peak-demand hours.  Such vehicle-to-grid technology will revolutionise the provision of power, helping to meet society’s daytime power needs.

New Zealand has consents for enough renewable energy sources to power every vehicle in NZ if they are converted to electricity at a stroke. In fact, household electricity use has flattened in the past decade as we all switch to LED lighting and more efficient whiteware.

Internationally, the OECD countries are mostly all striving to meet their Paris Agreement emissions targets by 2050. These include massive increases in renewable electricity generation. Countries, like China and Germany, that traditionally had dirty grids are making giant strides to clean up their act. In addition, part of the Paris Agreement calls for OECD countries to lend technology and resources to non-OECD countries to help them reduce their emissions too.

Guidelines for safe electric vehicle charging | WorkSafe

But the most important thing to consider is that Petrol does not just flow freely from the pump without a complex process to get it there. This little video explores the complex cycle for getting petrol from the oil under the ground out to the pumps. And you can see that even more electricity is required for all these processes.

So in the end, if you just want to look at electricity as a dirty part of the EV, you can't say that petrol is cleaner. And then just consider that burning petrol ( or diesel ) creates horrible waste gases, and running an EV creates nothing.

In addition, as technology improves, electricity gets cleaner and cleaner. Petrol and Oil just make a mess during every part of the process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHWM4jNVp_w

And Worksafe has a set of Guidelines Guidelines for safe electric vehicle charging.

While these are not all related to actual Laws in NZ, most electricians follow all the guidelines when installing chargers.

Are EV's more likely to catch fire?

Actually, an EV is much less likely to catch fire than a petrol vehicle. There are considerations for putting out a lithium battery fire, so fire departments are training for the rare instances they have to attend one.

Check out this link at EV Fire Safe.

What is the Clean Car Discount

The Clean Car Discount policy is a government program that gives you back money when you buy a low or zero-emission car. The more emissions your car produces, the less money you get back.

The policy is funded by a surcharge placed on imported vehicles that have high emissions, therefore contributing to the Climate Crisis. Which means there is no cost to the government or the taxpayer.

To be eligible for the discount, your car must be new or used, imported and registered in New Zealand for the first time. It must also be a light vehicle, such as a car, SUV, or van.

The Clean Car Discount policy is designed to make it easier for people to switch to cleaner vehicles and help New Zealand reduce its transport emissions.

You can read about it on the NZTA website here.

What is the Clean Car Standard

The Clean Car Standard is a government policy that makes it more expensive for importers to bring in high-emission vehicles and cheaper for them to bring in low-emission vehicles. This is designed to encourage importers to bring in more low-emission vehicles, which will make them more affordable and accessible to consumers.

The policy is expected to reduce transport emissions by around 4.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2030.

You can read about it on the NZTA website here.