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There are loads of ways to charge your electric car, but charging at home is the most convenient, cheapest and best for your battery. This video has a great summary of the different ways you can charge.

Home charging

Good Cars can be charged by connecting a 'EVSE' charger from your car to a powerpoint.  Every car we supply includes a "EVSE"  charger. We recommend that the circuit you intend to regularly use to charge at home be tested by an electrician to ensure the cabling is in tip-top condition. These charge your car at around 10km of range per hour (10km/h) and can be left to charge overnight.

Please note that a Nissan Leaf will use an EVSE with a "Type 1 Plug" (J1772), whereas a Hyundai or Kia will use a "Type 2 Plug" (Mennekes).

Wall charging installation in your own home

If you want to install a new power cable to your vehicle it makes sense to install a dedicated smart charger at home. They reduce any chance of electrical issues and some even come with the ability to directly divert your solar power to your car when the sun is shining! Home smart chargers will recharge your car at around 20km of range per hour.

When you install your charger it may make sense to "future proof" your installation.  in this case we recommend that you install what's called a "Universal EV Charger".  It has a socket on the charger and then each car has a cable that connects from this socket to the specific car. 

Charging away from home 

The following types of charging approaches work with Good Cars:

1. You can use the supplied EVSE charger in any powerpoint in a home or garage.  If unsure of the powerpoint condition (eg. old beach house) we suggest using the charger at a slower charge rate.  
2. Locations fitted with a Type 1 charger that plugs directly into the Nissan Leaf.  These charge at around 20km/h.
3. Locations fitted with a Type 2 charger that plugs directly into a car, for the leaf you will need a Type 2 to Type 1 adaptor.
4. Locations with a "Universal EV Charger".  Just bring your "Type 2 to Type 1" cable for a Nissan Leaf.
5. DC fast-charger will charge the car at approx 300km/hr.  These are mostly coming with 2 charge cables.  One is the "CHADEMO" cable suitable for the Leaf. The other is the CSS cable suitable for the Hyundai.  You normally need a dedicated phone app to access these chargers.  

As you drive your electric car you will become familiar with your local chargers and their location.  If you need to plan a trip and see if the charger is compatible with your car, a searchable database of all available chargers is available via PlugShare. You can also map your trips and what chargers you will need with the Better Route Planner website.

Home solar (PV) with your EV

You can charge your electric car for free with 100% renewable energy through the installation of solar PV on your home or garage. Watch the second video for more information.

How far you drive most days and your driving style are the most important aspects of deciding which electric car is right for you in terms of battery capacity and range.

Our cars start at a minimum of 100km of range in the Nissan Leaf AZEO 24kWh and go all the way up past 400km for newer Hyundai Kona Extended range.  The issue we need to grapple with is the greater the range, the more expensive the vehicle.  So how much range is enough?

The average Australian commutes around 40km per day. If you have a standard daily commute, you may find that a lower range vehicle is well suited to your lifestyle. You can also top up your battery throughout the day at home or at work. The increased availability of commercial charging infrastructure is opening up an even larger range of travel options for electric car owners.

If you are regularly taking longer trips, then the time taken for recharging becomes a greater burden to your day.  One way we think of it is, if a trip needs to be done weekly try and purchase enough range for minimal charging stops.  If a trip needs to be done monthly, then get a vehicle that can easily span the distance between the charging stations involved.  If a trip is only done every year or so, why spend the money and resources on the battery for these trips and consider hiring or using a carshare for these rare occasions

The single biggest factor affecting range is individual driving style. Fast driving and rapid acceleration will decrease your battery capacity quickly, the same as burning fuel in a petrol car. If you need to get the most of your charge we suggest using the eco mode and driving conservatively. 

The type of roads and the conditions you are driving on will also impact your range, however you can increase your range over hilly terrain by turning on the regenerative braking function that exists on most EV's

To find out more about EV battery capacity and range - check out our video on the right side.

AZEO LEAF

ZE1 LEAF

eNV200

CHOOSING AN EV

DRIVING AN EV

Electric vehicles are a lot easier and more cost effective to maintain than a conventional vehicle. With fewer moving parts, far less things can go wrong in an electric motor than in an internal combustion engine. Our cars run on 100% electricity so they emit no exhaust from a tailpipe and do not contain the typical liquid fuel components of a petrol car, such as a fuel pump, fuel line, or fuel tank. No cambelts, fan belts, spark plugs or oil changes are needed, and you’ll never need to worry about starter motor or engine trouble out on the road.

We still recommend that you service your vehicle.

Hyundai offers fixed priced servicing for the first 6 years/75,000km. The service schedule is annually or every 15,000km (whichever happens first).  

For the Nissan Leaf we recommend a service   once a year or every 20,000km whichever comes first. Typical maintenance costs per year are around $200. Watch Hepburn Shire EV mechanic Albert run through a typical electric car service online here.

The battery charge level of all Nissan Leafs is visible on the central display. The maximum charge remaining will depend on the health of your particular battery.

Nissan Leaf electric batteries lose capacity slowly overtime at an average of 3-4% a year.

We independently check the battery capacity of your EV before purchase using the Nissan LeafSpy app. We also make sure we only purchase cars with the best battery quality.  All our batteries are guaranteed at least 75% capacity for affordable models and up to 95% capacity for our top range Nissan Leaf ZE1s. This battery capacity is converted into an estimated driving range under different conditions at that point in time.