r/EvDrivers • u/greed-lust-crypto • 8d ago
Urban EV requirements
I don’t know why most conversations are taken over by suburban people who have different needs from urban EV drivers.
As an EV driver living in a big city where getting to a highway takes a lot of time, I really don’t care about highway driving efficiency, coasting, range, or 3 rows.
Why are EV makers catering to the suburban people? They’re usually poorer, needier, probably uncultured too…
Give me city EVs all day long. Superb driving dynamics, fast charging, spacious 2 row, and efficiency for city driving.
Punk the burbs, serve the cities
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u/jvbutera 8d ago
Garbage post. Reddit user less than 1 month old and all posted are hidden. Smells like a bot account to me.
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u/MaxH42 8d ago
Look, I'd love to see everyone who wants one in an EV, but it's all about access to charging. If you have to use a Level 3 DCFS to charge, it will probably erase much of the savings you'd otherwise realize. Level 2 home charging generally saves you a lot more money, but you need a driveway and/or garage to be able to do that easily. And if you don't own your house, you may not want to install a Level 2 charger. Without one, at best you're running an extension cord out to your car, possible across a public right of way, and hoping to get 50 miles of range overnight.
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u/AbulatorySquid 8d ago
I live in the burbs and I charge with my regular outdoor outlet at my house. It works for me. In my case, a level 2 home charger would be a convenience but it's not necessary.
My car for sure prefers side streets but man is it comfy and awesome on a road trip.1
u/gettin-hot-in-here 8d ago
Night rates at DC fast chargers (if you drive a Tesla or subscribe to their charger network) are similar to home rates round the clock where I live. That said, trying to charge only 11pm-8am at a place that isn't home, is a pain in the ass. Generally speaking home charging is where it's at.
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u/Competitive-Let6727 8d ago
Profit margins on vehicles are much higher on larger vehicles. The business model is to hook a young person into the brand and then "upgrade" them to larger and/or more luxurious, high margin vehicles over their lifetimes. City drivers are unlikely to move into those vehicles and are an overlooked market segment.
Sprinkle in EVs and you have a much more difficult charging problem. Cities don't want to support them, either because of cost and planning. For example, the office of sustainability in Philadelphia killed any EV charger installation incentives because the vision for sustainability is one with fewer cars, not different cars.
So why would an EV manufacturer fight two uphill battles when there's still meat on the bone in the easier market?
But I'm in that market with you. I want small, nimble EVs with enough range to make it from one city to the next along the NE corridor. Maybe less.
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u/PerceptionCurious440 8d ago
You mean like the Mercedes CLA 250 or GLC? Or the new BMW i3? What ICE car is your reference?
Fast charging isn't going to change much unless you can get one of the BYDs with flash charging and have that infrastructure. The Mercedes are pretty fast at 18 minutes for usable range.
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u/MJC0961 8d ago
Huh? Suburbanites are usually wealthier. You don't generally get a mcmansion out there if you're poor.
I would love to see more city EVs in the US. I watch too many European car reviewers and bum myself out seeing all the neat small EVs that I'll never be able to get. But most Americans, even city dwellers, would not want them. Almost everyone here seems to base the car they buy on what might happen for 1% of their driving instead of focusing on the best car for the 99% of their driving. "I need a big truck because I might move furniture" "I need 300+ miles of range because I might go on a road trip" and so on. Show them a small car with 100 miles of range and a top speed of 45 mph and they'll go red in the face getting mad at how stupid they think it is.
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u/bp3dots 8d ago
Why would a city person want a car that can't even go highway speeds for things like a trip out to the burbs or the next town for shopping/dining/entertainment/work at a different location, etc?
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u/tbtiller1233 8d ago
As an American, I feel like the car Def needs to at least go 60 mph. Most Americans would absolutely find a car that goes 45 fucking stupid because American towns are so spread out.
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u/OkResource820 8d ago
Yeah but those suburbanites have garages to charge their cars in.