Rolling the electrified dice. 2020 MG ZS EV Exclusive
Discussion
Toaster Pilot said:
HughG said:
Nice review thanks TP.
My Zoe ZE50 is due next week so looking forward to doing similar in that, also to WGC albeit only 67miles for me, there and back should be fine even if I have to go anti-clockwise round the M25 on my return due to traffic.
Excellent! Are you also on the blue and red team or are there other companies in WGC? My Zoe ZE50 is due next week so looking forward to doing similar in that, also to WGC albeit only 67miles for me, there and back should be fine even if I have to go anti-clockwise round the M25 on my return due to traffic.
Smiljan said:
Wow TP, you definitely got out of the wrong side of bed for that video, you can moan for Scotland in the Olympics if you ever need another job 
Good range test though, also what's the orange light that keeps reflecting in the bottom of the drivers door frame just over your shoulder?
Someone else asked this too, I assumed it was just some dodgy lighting (really struggled filming at that time of the morning!) but I’ve had another look - it’s the blind spot assist. Little light in each wing mirror, lights up if it detects a car coming towards your blind spot on either side. If you then turn on an indicator, it flashes rapidly. Good range test though, also what's the orange light that keeps reflecting in the bottom of the drivers door frame just over your shoulder?
Do you have the latest updates, and if so is it now possible to put the heater on while the car is plugged in and charging so you don't have to waste battery charge on initially heating the cabin? I know there's no app, but I've read conflicting reports on whether it's possible to manually switch on the heater while charging.
kambites said:
Do you have the latest updates, and if so is it now possible to put the heater on while the car is plugged in and charging so you don't have to waste battery charge on initially heating the cabin? I know there's no app, but I've read conflicting reports on whether it's possible to manually switch on the heater while charging.
My car has everything apart from the very latest BMS update (because it didn’t get the dodgy October one)I don’t think it will heat on AC charging. Not particularly sure. It’s not really that big a deal, people make a lot more noise about preheating than it deserves.
Heater works fine when rapid charging though.
Toaster Pilot said:
It’s not really that big a deal, people make a lot more noise about preheating than it deserves.
Really? From what I've read about other EVs, preheating can add a good 10-15 miles of range in really cold weather by getting the battery and cabin up to operating temperature before setting off. Not game-changing certainly, but worthwhile. kambites said:
Really? From what I've read about other EVs, preheating can add a good 10-15 miles of range in really cold weather by getting the battery and cabin up to operating temperature before setting off. Not game-changing certainly, but worthwhile.
If you’re going to regularly make trips that mean an extra 10 miles of range is a big deal you need a bigger battery. Forget preheating - you can lose that 10 miles in any EV with a strong head wind!Toaster Pilot said:
If you're going to regularly make trips that mean an extra 10 miles of range is a big deal you need a bigger battery. Forget preheating - you can lose that 10 miles in any EV with a strong head wind!
Yup, but getting ten miles more range from preheating would essentially be free; getting 10 miles more range from a bigger battery would cost both money and weight. It seems an odd omission from a car which presumably has the hardware to do it. I couldn't care less about being able to preheat remotely via an app, but being able to turn the car and heater on while AC charging just seems common sense to me.
I think you have to be careful to separate the pre-heating of battery with pre-heating of the cabin interior, on our i3 we never use “pre-conditioning” for the battery as we don’t need that extra few miles for the very rare longer journeys, where as cabin pre-heating is a major feature that we would not do without, even mid morning starts in cold weather benefit greatly for stepping into a nice toasty interior, let alone the early morning ice melting advantages.
Enjoying your write ups in this thread on the MG TP.......
Enjoying your write ups in this thread on the MG TP.......
Thought the big yellow taxi was pending today. Plugged into one of these brand new MFG / Swarco chargers at J27 M6. Starting the charge failed and then the car shut its HV system down - Vehicle Control System Fault on the display.
Thankfully, disconnecting and reconnecting the 12V battery had it back in the land of the living and I moved it to the charger I’m parked at in the photo - which worked fine!
Thankfully, disconnecting and reconnecting the 12V battery had it back in the land of the living and I moved it to the charger I’m parked at in the photo - which worked fine!
kambites said:
Toaster Pilot said:
It’s not really that big a deal, people make a lot more noise about preheating than it deserves.
Really? From what I've read about other EVs, preheating can add a good 10-15 miles of range in really cold weather by getting the battery and cabin up to operating temperature before setting off. Not game-changing certainly, but worthwhile. Evanivitch said:
Scraped it, my 1.9Tdi just would not heat up at idle.
I'm not going back to that. Neveerrrrrrrrr
VW (and every other manufacturer) recommend driving off straight away as a modern diesel is so efficient it doesn't waste heat so won't ever warm up idling. Most DI engines are the same. Also, any VW since 2004 should have an electric heater in the heater box that warms the air as it comes through to help defrost the screen.I'm not going back to that. Neveerrrrrrrrr
TBH if it's misted up inside you've got a problem, either a blocked cabin filter or a leak/dampness. Outside, just cover the screen with those reflective things that keep the screen nice and clear. As I live in the dampest climate ever I also have one of those dehumidifier bags you leave on the dash and they really help keep it nice and clear.
Toaster Pilot said:
Thought the big yellow taxi was pending today. Plugged into one of these brand new MFG / Swarco chargers at J27 M6. Starting the charge failed and then the car shut its HV system down - Vehicle Control System Fault on the display.
Thankfully, disconnecting and reconnecting the 12V battery had it back in the land of the living and I moved it to the charger I’m parked at in the photo - which worked fine!
SO ou had to Ctrl/Alt?Del it effectively?Thankfully, disconnecting and reconnecting the 12V battery had it back in the land of the living and I moved it to the charger I’m parked at in the photo - which worked fine!
tr7v8 said:
SO ou had to Ctrl/Alt?Del it effectively?
Pretty much 
- if I didn’t have a 10mm spanner or an inclination that it would perhaps sort it out I’d be f
ked and waiting for the AA for a while though. Not sure if it’s the car, charger or both but the fact it worked perfectly fine on the next identical unit over makes me think the charger was dodgy.
Evanivitch said:
What do you do in winter? Sit in a cold car whilst it defrosts the windscreen?
Our cars live in a dehumidified garage which has a heated room above it so no, we just get in and drive. Thus it's probably no more effort to wonder out and turn on the heater than faff about with phone app but that's not much help if the car wont heat when plugged in. I guess we could just stick a mains fan heater in the car. 
It's pretty rare for it to be cold enough this close to the south coast for ice to be a problem in the evening after work, although it does happen occasionally.
Edited by kambites on Monday 29th March 12:32
Toaster Pilot said:
Not sure if it’s the car, charger or both but the fact it worked perfectly fine on the next identical unit over makes me think the charger was dodgy.
I guess it must be a bit of both. The charger was obviously doing something weird but equally the car should really not crash (in the figurative sense) due to anything a charger can do to it. If you could recover it by disconnecting the 12v battery, the car should have been able to recover it itself somehow!I wonder if leaving it for a while would have recovered it.
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