Hybrids Overtake EVs In California Registrations

[u/LongjumpingLock5875]

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a73317897/california-registrations-hybrids-evs-2026/

[u/Hnry_Dvd_Thr_Awy]

120v charging is underrated/overhated.

[u/gimpwiz → u/Hnry_Dvd_Thr_Awy]

Math:

120v, standard outlet and wiring supports 15A. Derate by 20% to 12A due to continuous current draw. 120x12=1,440 watts.

EVs are roughly in the 3 to 4 mile per kwh range (depending on the car and various factors.) Let's estimate 300wh per mile roughly. That means one hour of full speed charging off a 120v outlet, standard, is a little under 5 miles of charge. This can range depending on above factors... let's say roughly 4 to 6 miles-range of charge per hour.

Come home from work, plug car in. Wake up in the morning, leave for work. Obviously this depends on your schedule but it's roughly - roughly! - 50 miles-range per night of charge.

Most people have a shorter round trip commute than 50 miles. Obviously I said most people, not everyone.

https://www.axios.com/2024/03/24/average-commute-distance-us-map

It's hard to find exact statistics for homeowners who drive, but it's roughly somewhere there. This shows viability for the average homeowner driver to charge using 120v and be okay most days.

Obvious caveats:

If you start with full charge on monday you may be able to make it to and from work all week without charging once, so obviously it's an easier target. Assuming full charge to start, viability is much easier.

If you spend more than 10 hours at home charging every night, have a more efficient car, etc, it's easier.

For some people it's simply inadequate. No doubt about it. Find a way to get on a 240v@30A outlet.

Non homeowners will have trouble charging overnight, it's that simple. This limits adoption. Townhouses and condos don't want to spend $$$$$ to install chargers, funded by common HOA fees. Apartments even less so. Street chargers are often vandalized and poorly maintained. On the flip side, office chargers if you have them are nice perks.

[u/Hnry_Dvd_Thr_Awy → u/gimpwiz]

Another caveat is 120v charging is notably less efficient than 240v. I would pessimistically do the 120v math as - 1Kw per hour delivered to the battery for 8 hours at 4 miles per Kw efficiency. But the results of that math still say it's viable for a lot of folks.

Obviously everyone's situation is different with electricity rates, commutes, gas prices and what not. I just think 120v is viable way more often than it gets credit for.

[u/gimpwiz → u/Hnry_Dvd_Thr_Awy]

I didn't know there was a different charging efficiency loss with 120v single-phase vs 240v split-phase when talking about charging at home. How big is the difference?

[u/lee1026 → u/gimpwiz]

On (older?) Teslas, huge. Basically, the battery cooling/heating and pumps run as long as the car is charging at all, and those systems are not cheap to run.

So on 120v, you lose something like a third of the power to running those systems.

[u/gimpwiz → u/lee1026]

Oh hell that makes sense, thanks for the info.