charging away from home

[Insurancejon]

I need a bit of education.

My wife has just bought a Cayenne Hybrid that arrives Thursday, but we can't get a home charger till early sept.

So what accounts/app's etc does she need to charge away from from home?

I'm thinking of getting an EV for work, so it will educate me too.

All help/advice greatly appreciated thanks.

[croyde]

I'm interested in this only as I live in a flat, as do millions of others, so if I had an EV I'd have to run a 13amp lead out of a third floor window to the street where if I have been lucky enough to nab a space closest to my home, I would only need about 100m of cable.

All the different companies running the public chargers sound a big complication and some prices appear to make electric as expensive as running a 35mpg ICE.

[anonymous-user]

Go on Zap Map and find the locations of chargers you'd be likely to use, see who the supplier is and then get on their websites to see if you need an account, an app, a card or if you can just pay by contactless card.
eg Instavolt accepts contactless, but Pod Point will need an account with a small balance pre loaded, and you pay using an app.
I find that longer journeys do still need a bit pre-planning, to avoid arriving at a charger to find you need an RFID card you should have ordered three weeks ago.

[S600BSB]

On the odd occasion I have charged away from home I have used Zapmap and an Instavolt charger. Really simple.

[SWoll]

I wouldn't bother charging your wifes Cayenne until you have your home charger fitted OP, not worth the hassle or cost unless you can use free destination charging somewhere you plan to spend a decent amount of time.

The EV only efficiency is dire at < 2 miles/kWh or around 20 miles of actual range and highest chargng speed is only 7.2kW (or possibly 3.6 dependent on model) so pointless using rapid chargers as will take 2.5 hours + to charge no matter where you plug it in.

Thinking about it, can you not run a 3-pin granny chrger to the car and charge overnight? Would charge the battery completely.

Edited by SWoll on Tuesday 9th August 09:29

[somouk]

Zapmap is the best resource and then filter it down to chargers that are suitable.

Most Tescos and Asdas have suitable charging spots these days if you can get on them while doing a shop.

[SWoll]

somouk said:

Zapmap is the best resource and then filter it down to chargers that are suitable.

Most Tescos and Asdas have suitable charging spots these days if you can get on them while doing a shop.

Even if there for an hour you are only going to add 5-10 miles of range. Might cover the round trip I suppose?

[ashenfie]

Insurancejon said:

I need a bit of education.

My wife has just bought a Cayenne Hybrid that arrives Thursday, but we can't get a home charger till early sept.

So what accounts/app's etc does she need to charge away from from home?

I'm thinking of getting an EV for work, so it will educate me too.

All help/advice greatly appreciated thanks.

What's wrong with the amber nectar, till the home charger arrives?

[Insurancejon]

Nothing wrong with petrol, just curious as to how the rest of it works

Cheers for the pointers chaps

[gangzoom]

Insurancejon said:

but we can't get a home charger till early sept.

Beauty of EVs, you don't need a home chargers, any 3 pin plug/commando socket will do, though I suspect Porsche charges you extra for a 3 pin mobile charger?

I used the 3 pin plug for our EV for about 8 months or so when we first moved in to the current house and was waiting for a charger to be installed.....its not exciting or sexy but gets the job done and works for pretty much every EV.

[gangzoom]

Insurancejon said:

Nothing wrong with petrol, just curious as to how the rest of it works

Unless you enjoy collecting random apps on your phone, giving out personal account details, and listing your parking options I wouldn't bother with any kind of public charging on a hybrid. You will find points are either not working, costs more than home electricity, blocked by someone not charging, or often a combination of all three!!

Charge it at home, and be done with it.

By the time you are ready for a proper EV, hopefully the DC (rapid) charging network will be much closer to the petrol station experience. The latest Gridserve Mway based rapid chargers are fantastic to use compared to old chargers. Clear instructions, all contactless, and just works.

Edited by gangzoom on Wednesday 10th August 07:29

[CheesecakeRunner]

SWoll said:

Even if there for an hour you are only going to add 5-10 miles of range. Might cover the round trip I suppose?

Cayenne hybrid only has 17 miles of electric range, and charges at 3.6kW. If it’s the older one with the 14kWh battery, that’s nearly 4 hours to fully charge, on a new one with the 18kWh battery, 5 hours.

It’s simply not worth charging it away from home.

Edited by CheesecakeRunner on Wednesday 10th August 07:32

[Alex Z]

Just charge off a 13A socket at home. It’ll be dog slow, but for a smaller hybrid battery should be fine overnight, and you can always run as a pure petrol car on longer journeys.

[markj113]

Zapmap to find local chargers also enables you to filter charger capacities and preferred networks. Also has a zap pay function.

Many charge points now accept regular contactless but other apps I have on my phone:

Osprey
BP pulse
Ionity
Instavolt
Podpoint

[oop north]

CheesecakeRunner said:

Cayenne hybrid only has 17 miles of electric range, and charges at 3.6kW. If it’s the older one with the 14kWh battery, that’s nearly 4 hours to fully charge, on a new one with the 18kWh battery, 5 hours.

It’s simply not worth charging it away from home.

Edited by CheesecakeRunner on Wednesday 10th August 07:32

a quick google suggests that 7.2kW charger in the car is optional, with 3.6 standard

My XC90 T8 phew is 3.6kW charging and it's sloooooow. I would never bother out and about unless the charger were cost-free (eg, one hotel in Edinburgh we stay at has CPS 7kW chargers and I would use one of those if staying there)