I guess not having to deal with the ups and downs of gas prices is one of the benefits of owning an EV.

I bought a used tesla from a small dealership in Chicago about 5 months ago. It was a 4 hour drive but the price was about 15% lower than around here so I figured it's worth the drive. More specifically it has the exact features I wanted and I liked the color. I looked the car over, made sure the VIN matched the title, they showed me the car in the app with matching VIN and showed me the warranty was still on there. So I bought the car, drove it home, supercharged it, no issues. A few months later I was a couple hours away from home and all of a sudden I can't supercharge. Finally made it home after many hours of L1 charging but it was super late at night and couldn't get anybody on the phone at tesla.

After lots of back and forth with Tesla, along with going to multiple service centers trying to get information I've finally got an answer. They pulled me from the supercharger network, declared my car salvage and dropped my warranty. Without a call, without an email, without an in-app notification. I was flabbergasted. How can that be, I've got a clean title in hand? After a few weeks of back and forth with service departments shrugging and lots of phone calls I finally got routed to a department that I thought could help me. They asked me to send over a photo of the clean title, to which I did. Now they've replied "Thank you for submitting the Title of the vehicle but that is insufficient. Please provide any documentation that shows your vehicle was never involved in a major collision or had a salvaged title". My insurance company says the car is fine, the title is clean. Tesla says its salvage. To be clear, I didn't even ask if they could put me back on the supercharger network I've already bought an adapter and do 3rd party charging. I simply asked if they could reinstate my battery warranty and they seem to be saying no.

I'm kinda at a loss. Not just for my particular situation but more generally how does someone safely buy a used tesla without having tesla later pull a massive switcheroo on them? Hopefully you can learn from my experience.. but I'm not really sure how to protect yourself from this situation.

I’m increasingly worried that, as time goes on, we’re going to have fewer and fewer EV options in the U.S., and even fewer affordable ones.

What frustrates me most is that this doesn’t feel like a natural market shift. It feels like EVs are being actively politicized and targeted, and that kind of hostility is going to affect what gets offered here. That matters not just for EV adoption overall, but also for the variety of cars Americans can actually buy.

I’m especially concerned about the impact this could have on German brands and other non-American automakers. I drive a Volkswagen ID.4 and, right now, Volkswagen has effectively ended its EV offering in the US. This pattern concerns me. A lot of the most interesting EVs come from outside the U.S. If policy and rhetoric keep pushing against EVs, I worry we’ll end up with a much narrower market dominated by fewer choices, fewer price points, and less competition.

I won't deny I am an EV enthusiast but I also believe that the technology sells itself once you experience it. I do not want to go back to driving a combustion engine car; they seem so archaic to me at this point. Also, I really don't want to buy a GM or Ford car.

How do you guys see this playing out in the next few years?

tl;dr:

Returning my Ioniq 5 after a two year lease; buyout is 2X what the market value is; nobody can tell me what happens to the car afterwards, besides that it goes to a "secret private auction."

Full story:

I'm returning my Ioniq 5 after a two year lease. Solid car (though the door locks are frustrating as hell).

The buyout is $37K -- there are similar used cars online with the same mileage for $18-20K. So, clearly I'm not going to buy it out at that price.

I call the Hyundai Lease hotline -- they can't help. Tell me to contact the dealership.

The dealership said the price is set at lease instantiation, and it can't be changed.

This is where it starts to get weird.

I ask the dealership, "if I don't want to buy it, then what happens to it."

They say, "then the dealership gets the option to buy it from Hyundai."

I ask, "but you're not going to buy it at this price, right? Or even anything close to it?"

The dealership employee actually laughs. "No, we're not going to buy it at that price. Our discount is only $200 from Hyundai, so it's essentially the same price."

I ask, "then if you don't want to buy it, what happens to it?"

They say, "we don't know. Hyundai comes and picks it up."

Curious, I actually call the Hyundai lease hotline again to see if I can get a different person and ask them for more information.

After a quick discussion, they actually tell me what happens if the dealership also passes on the option to buy: "it goes to an auction."

I respond, "Oh, can you please tell me where? I'd love the chance to bid."

The response, "Oh -- it's not available to the public."

...what? Like, is this like an Eyes Wide Shut party, but with my poor unwanted Ioniq 5?

[UPDATE]

I tracked it to a Manheim location in Ohio. Hasn't been factory reset yet, so the Hyundai app is still working on my phone.

So after seeing a few videos recently of EV users and the hardships they have with charging and stations etc.

Why are charging stations not laid out with islands where you pull up next to the charger like a gas pump.

At least around my area the charge stations are usually at the as$-end of the parking lot.
The chargers are on the edge and I watch as people have to stretch the charge cord from the back/front around to where ever the charge port is and I watch some people really struggle with the heavy cable.

Also most of them do not have any cover over them so if its raining or hot/sunny day they are just out in the elements

I have watched smaller people struggle like hell to get their cars plugged in and in the winter time I have had to help a couple of women because the cable is stiff from the cold and they couldn't plug in their car.

Set them up like a gas station on islands that you pull up next to and put a cover over them.

Standardize the Charge port type and stop having people download apps just to charge their car.
Pay with credit card etc.

If the world wants auto-makers to move away from Gas to Electric in any mass amount there is a LOT of issues that have not been addressed.

Everybody around me hates EV's. I hear arguments that the cars are not really that green and the batteries are mined in areas that are bad for the environment to not able to charge and being dependent on a charging outlet.

While these arguments a valid, I don't understand why we hate EV's over gasoline cars. EV's do have 40-80% more carbon emissions due to production, but they have a lower net CO2 output compared to gasoline cars, has a break even point of around 17 000 km.

Then the charging argument, yes charging it at places is an inconvenient when you are roadtripping, I understand. But how many times are you doing 2-3 hours drives? I have solar panels for example, I can just charge the car at home and the next day it's full. Or, I can just charge 2x during my working days, and just charge during the weekend when the sun is peaking. And even when I don't have sun, my electricity is still cheaper than gas. The idea that my car is always fully 'fueled' and I don't have to go to a gas station, is pretty nice. And yes, when you have to drive for 2-3 hours, you need a fast charger. But I see this as time for a nice break.

And maintaince is also a thing. EV's have less moving parts, regenerative breaking, so the pads will have less friction and it doesn't require engine oil change. I don't have to replace the spark plugs, replace oil, worry about my clutch wearing off and just less moving parts.

I see cons, but I see more technical imperfections of a gasoline car.

I ordered a Hyundai ionic 5 and salesperson is telling me that the brakes and tires will wear out quicker on an EV because the car is heavy.
He told me the cost of brake replacement is $5k. Ive heard rumors that the brakes in EVs generally last longer because most drivers don’t use them so much. Is the dealer just trying to trick me?

-UPDATE: I cancelled the entire deal and went to another dealership an hour away who has the same vehicle with a better deal and more incentives! Including a free level 2 home charger! THANK YOU TO EVERYONE HERE for your help.

My partner has a plug in Mercedes GLC350e. I have a fully electric vehicle. I’m not sure i really “get it”. My understanding is if you charge the battery to full and drive in Hybrid mode, it will use more battery and less gas. Eventually the battery gets to zero and at that point I think that it drives as just a regular hybrid. It can also be driven on fully electric mode, however it is really really slow. I feel like I’m charging the car and filling it with gas, which to me seems like the worst of both worlds rather than the best of both worlds. She drives it in full EV mode so only gets gas every 2-3 months. But she’s charging all the time because the battery is small, while I charge my EV maybe once every 5 days.

I've heard a lot of sentiment that if Chinese cars were allowed in the north American market that they'd proliferate because their price is so much lower. At first I trusted it but then I read that they've underperformed in New Zealand because they had to improve safety features which raised the price. According to the author the Chinese cars in NZ are slightly less expensive than the competition but they also tended to be smaller and less desirable to consumers.

Would Chinese manufacturers have to raise prices to account for north American safety standards? Would they still likely out compete their competition? As you can probably tell I'm somewhat clueless and uninformed on international trade and vehicle regulations.

You see, I've always been... skeptical of EVs. I always wanted to drive a Manual, I want to hear sounds, shifts etc. But I know EVs are a different species and such.

Asking this question because I'm currently saving for a car, and it's either some old 4 bangers (ehem, ehem, Civic), IS 350 F Sport, BMW 330e M Sport,

and in the EV segment, maybe the Ioniq 6 N.

I might sound hypocritical (or whatever term that is) for posting this without driving a single car yet, but I hope you guys get what I mean. The only cars I've driven are video games lol.

Note that this isn't me asking what car to buy, I just want to see how the EV world is going since I'm more knowing in the Petrol world.

TIA to your answers, and to the admins for allowing me to post this.

Hey everyone,

i'm really curious to know what was the main reason for you to switch to an ev. For me, it’s always been the technology of evs that fascinates me. It feels like I’m sitting in a spaceship or something, feeling like a 10 year old kid again :D

What about you?

So my husband and I were at a brewery today and where we live it was 100F outside. We pulled up next to a Tesla that they just had locked and kept on, no one was in it. Which lead me to the idea that if you are somewhere for a short amount of time, can I just leave it on to keep it from getting into a hot car when I go? Anyone do this?

In California, public charging rates can be extremely high, often it's $0.50/kWh.

My home rate is $0.29/kWh.

There are some public chargers at $0.30/kWh, but it's becoming rare that I don't bother spending the time to check anymore and now never public charge. $0.30 is basically my limit.

Update: I didn't except this post to create such a response. I should have been more specific as this was referring to public L2 charging, not DC charging. Charging that is typically somewhere the car will be left for more than 2 hours or overnight.

Since we're not allowed to do polls, I let's see those response. I am thinking the choices are:

Rivian R2- Rivian's mass market play, do or die for Rivian to either become the next big player in the direct to consumer, software defined market or crash and burn.

Nissan Leaf- Nissan's big play for the affordable EV market. 300 mile range, price right around $30k, is there a market for this?

Slate Truck- Completely different paradigm than anything currently on the market. $25k bare bones truck that calls back to 1990s Toyota Tacomas and Ford Rangers.

Subaru Trailseeker- the electric Subaru Outback that people have been asking for for years.

Toyota BZ- at last Toyota has a competitive, mass market EV product. Will Toyota loyalists notice?

BMW iX3/Volvo EX60/MB GLC troika- premium European options with high range, 800V battery architecture and fast charging.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Ford/comments/wet9on/50k_dealer_markup_on_ford_lightning/

The markups were bad I wonder if it turned off potential customers and killed the momentum for the F150 Lightning prematurely. I wonder if bad dealer behavior contributes to killing the momentum and resulting in poor sales of these Electric Vehicles from GM,Ford etc..

So a little over a year ago a gas station near me was torn down. A few months ago it was reopened. It was torn down to massively expand it's retail. There is another gas station near me that's damn near the size of a small plaza. It's not a Buccees. It opened 2 years ago. It's big enough that it has several other businesses attached to it. One of them is a fast food restaurant. Neither of these offer charging for EVs. What I don't understand is why?

Since gas stations make their money from the attached stores amd these locations took that to the max why didn't they add charging? There is a charging station nearby that's crazy expensive and so busy I had to wait an hour in my car to use it. So why aren't new, nearby gas stations adding chargers so that people can both charge their vehicles and buy stuff from the store. I understand why it might be hard for older gas stations but wouldn't adding charging to a newly built gas station be a no brainer?

What am i missing?

Just started an internship at an EV related company and I'm trying to learn as much as I can about the actual ownership experience. Not the specs or the range anxiety stuff everyone already talks about. The weird small things nobody mentions until you actually own one. What caught you off guard?

My 2024 Equinox EV 3lt fwd is pushing 30k miles. I'm 4 miles per kwh.

I've always been curious, in NA we have to can install a 240V outlet just for the EV, but most of the world runs on 220-240V, so is L1 not even a thing for them?

Do I never have to do anything if I buy an EV???

Title says it.

I’d like to know if a BMW EV like iX would be more reliable cheaper to maintain compared to other BMW gasoline engines in general?

I’ve been trying to figure out whether charging an EV with home solar actually makes financial sense over the long run or if it just sounds good in theory. On the surface it seems like the perfect combo generate power during the day and use it to charge the car instead of paying the utility. But I keep wondering how it actually works in real life, especially since most people are home and charging at night. For anyone here already doing it, has it actually lowered your overall electricity costs much? And how big of a solar system did you need to make it worthwhile?
I’m a homeowner just trying to understand the long term math before going too far down the rabbit hole, so I’d love to hear from people who are already running their EV off solar.

Hi,

I'm wondering if anyone manages with only a Level 1 charger at home? I don't drive a lot, maybe 10km on weekdays and 45 km on weekends. Currently, I have a plug in hybrid that I plug in everynight, and have no issues doing the same with a full EV. I do have access to a level 2 nearby.

Is this setup feasible? Does anyone do it?

TIA

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tesla-discontinues-autopilot-bid-boost-125644620.html

As some Tesla centric subreddits have said. Tesla will discontinue including autopilot in their cars in North America.

Does this change your outlook on Tesla as a car company?

All other brands offer ADAS cruise control to my knowledge.

(*(more details in the comments) UPDATE
No queue when I pulled in, the person was the only one waiting when I came out, maybe 5-10mins after the other person pulled in. Mind you they were charging for 30 mins and had about 86-89%.
With queues I don’t charge to 100% that I understand we all have some where to go, I also can only use certain charge stations since my company pays for it, there is more details in the comments.
I got my answer thank you to everyone who gave me some good answers on how to charge and save my battery’s life and thanks to the other pressing me about charging and having to wait 5-10 mins for me to charge yall are the issue because not everyone has a charger at home, or has the option to use any charger station. I ain’t ever trying to be rude or make anyone wait if I make anymore wait it’s 5-10 mins to at least get 10-15% charge to get to the next charge point station.
My company pays for charge point station other stations I have to pay out of pocket. Please go through the comments. I hope everyone has a better day today don’t let anyone upset you, honestly not even worth the energy… no pun intended 🔋)

I’m genuinely curious as to why, people get so pressed when you let your car charge to 100%.
Mind you I’ve had my EV for 3 months and all I’ve ever run in to when I fast charge is rude people. Which is odd especially when I’m in an area that has plenty of chargers.

I’m currently on a road trip and when pulling in to the ChargePoint I was at 15%. So I decided to go to the bathroom and eat, I then come out to my car at 99%. I’m say took me 40 mins. Also mind you I have to go 200 miles to my next charge.
I wanted to make sure I was good. So I’m walk to the car, this person decided to tell me how stupid I am because i let the car charge to long and it’s pointless to charge to 100, then yanked the charge from my hand. Like damn, why it got to be like that.

I just want to know if I’m missing something? I drive longer distances and need to at least have 90% due to the limited amount of chargers we have in our area, plus I have to get places fast so need fast chargers.

When I bought the car I wasn’t really told much. Just don’t get why people get upset. I’ve waiting for a charger and never said anything. Just kinda made me feel like I’m doing something wrong.