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Post by richardh on Sept 18, 2012 0:09:33 GMT 11
Hi Guy's,
I was lucky enough to have a preview use of the NRMA's quick charger at George St North Strathfield. The official opening is not for a few weeks which wil be attended by the pollies and the media.
To charge from 10% to 80% should only take about 20 mins. The location is nearby to nice cafes and the charger will send you an SMS when finished as well! It will be free to use.
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Post by Jim Hare on Sept 18, 2012 12:52:33 GMT 11
Cool! My electrician, Jeff, installed that charger! He showed me lots of photos of it going in. Pretty substantial looking beast.
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Post by bobherbert on Sept 23, 2012 10:41:01 GMT 11
Brisbane City Council energy retailer ERM Power and GE Australia have just opened an EVC station in
a CBD car park.2 "bowsers".GE Australia says plans have begun to install stations under apartment blocks,office buildings and at car rental bases around Queensland.
we will see!
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Post by Jim Hare on Sept 23, 2012 19:44:17 GMT 11
Do you think these will remain free for long or will they be monetised soon? Given the enormous cost of a Level 3 you wouldn't think they would be very happy with $2.00 per charge. ;-)
I suppose it's always going to be a value-add service to the community since as an investment, the Level 3 chargers make no sense!
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Post by richardh on Sept 24, 2012 14:03:19 GMT 11
Here is a photo of my LEAF being charged by the level 3 charger at North Strathfield. I think the funding is from a collaboration between the NRMA, Origin Energy and Charge Point.
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Post by richardh on Sept 30, 2012 23:40:25 GMT 11
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Post by Jim Hare on Oct 6, 2012 10:09:07 GMT 11
Fantastic! Guess you weren't standing there to see just how fast it worked?
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Post by richardh on Oct 8, 2012 23:22:01 GMT 11
Just dropped into ALDI for 15 minutes and the charging was finished.
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Post by Jim Hare on Oct 9, 2012 9:10:55 GMT 11
Love it!
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Post by leafboi on Jan 3, 2013 19:47:57 GMT 11
Here is a photo of my LEAF being charged by the level 3 charger at North Strathfield. I think the funding is from a collaboration between the NRMA, Origin Energy and Charge Point. This charger is listed as 'Restricted' on the ChargePoint app... You used it... So what's the restriction? Office hours? NRMA members? Chargepoint is notoriously slow at question responses. |
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Post by richardh on Feb 17, 2013 13:35:09 GMT 11
There's no restriction. Have discussed it all with the manager at NRMA. They are very happy for everyone to use.
Richard
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Post by duncan on Feb 17, 2013 13:43:32 GMT 11
I also saw "restricted" on the Chargepoint App, but when I used it there was no issue. I went from about 8klm to empty up to 120klm in about 40min while I was shopping. Excellent service  |
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Post by Jim Hare on Feb 17, 2013 19:28:50 GMT 11
Nice! Gotta be happy with that.
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Post by David on Feb 18, 2013 20:29:58 GMT 11
As mentioned in another section, I charged my car at Strathfield today. I actually didn't really need to, but couldn't resist. However it is well placed for occasional post water polo training between my work and my son's water polo venue, so I might find myself using it again. when I got there and it was free, I thought, maybe I'm not in such a hurry after all for the leaf to take off, as it will. I might then face a queue
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Post by Brian on Feb 20, 2013 20:39:59 GMT 11
Although we don't have a Level 3 charge point over in the West, yet, in my view the supply of Level 2 public charge facilities is ahead of current demand, which is healthy . . . for us.
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Post by Feng on Jul 9, 2013 12:21:26 GMT 11
I checked out the quick charger in North Strathfield and it looks like good PR with all of its sponsors and green environmental livery attached to the panels. It also looks like it's getting regular use judging by slight wear on the connector so it's good that it's not going to waste.
I'm still hesitant to try it out for fear it'll harm my battery. I know they have more L3 than L2 chargers in Japan and the main cause for battery wear is heat buildup which is fine in winter. Am I being irrational about it?
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Post by leafboi on Jul 9, 2013 19:12:04 GMT 11
Speaking of fast chargers... Swinburne Uni in Hawthorn here is Melbourne recently commissioned their chademo fast charger by chargepoint. I used it the other day, have to love a free top up! The only current restriction is a one hour maximum parking limit which seems appropriate. It's listed on the chargepoint app now also. www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mellor.nsf/story2/74620E3F26C08882CA257B9F00232D97www.themotorreport.com.au/56873/victoria-launches-first-ev-fast-charging-station As I already mentioned there is a Chademo charger at Moreland City Council, it's launch is scheduled for the 18th of July. This charger will be free for its first year which is also great. I'm invited to the launch but not sure yet if I can make it. It's so exciting to have two fast chargers opened up here in melb. Theoretically anyone on the fringe of the city should be able to drive to the other side of the city now and grab a charge at one of the stations to enable their trip home. |
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Post by Feng on Jul 9, 2013 19:17:40 GMT 11
Victoria has more public chargepoints than NSW and Queensland combined! I get a serious case of charger envy when I look at the ChargePoint map!
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Post by leafboi on Jul 9, 2013 19:33:57 GMT 11
LOL! Not all of the spots on the map are available publicly though. So it's a little annoying that they are there. But I do think it makes Melb look very EV friendly. And right now there are 5 cars plugged in to the public stations, which is also amazing.
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Post by duncan on Jul 9, 2013 19:39:42 GMT 11
Great to see, the rollout certainly slowed (read stopped) here in Sydney!
Feng, don't worry about occasional use of a fast charger, there is no way Nissan would have included the function if it was not safe for the battery. They do recommend not to use a fast charger daily, but even then that doesn't mean they ban doing so from a warranty perspective.
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Post by leafboi on Jul 9, 2013 19:42:37 GMT 11
I follow a lot of of japanese blogs of EV owners and many of them use the chademo multipul times daily on their travels. It's amazing how many kilometers they can cover in a day!
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Post by Jim Hare on Jul 11, 2013 13:42:13 GMT 11
Indeed. I think the concept of leasing the battery is there to elevate these worries. We all are aiming to keep our batteries healthy for 8-10 years where those who lease can push their batteries as hard as they want for three years and swap them out if necessary.
I'm not a fan of that model as I don't like to continually pay for something I already have, but can see the advantages.
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Post by Feng on Jul 11, 2013 20:53:57 GMT 11
When the time comes to replace the battery in ~10 years I can only hope that the prices have come down. Even better if there are upgraded battery packs. Would Nissan have a business case to sell upgraded packs instead of encouraging owners to trade in for a new car? Doing +200km real world would appeal to a lot of current LEAF owners. I'd pay good money for that!
Considering Nissan is partnering with a Chinese company to make LEAF derived EVs in China, does this mean we can get cheap Chinese battery packs one day? I don't know if I'd trust them!
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Post by Jim Hare on Jul 12, 2013 11:30:31 GMT 11
Nissan would never put their reputation on the line for unreliable batteries so I don't think so.
The next few years is all about battery breakthroughs as everyone from smart phones to cars are crying out for more. I think we'll see great range at a much lower cost sooner than we think.
At that point even the sceptics will have another look.
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Post by leafboi on Jul 18, 2013 18:05:39 GMT 11
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Post by David on Jul 28, 2013 12:43:35 GMT 11
I used the fast charger at North Strathfield a couple of days ago. It seemed much slower than when I last used it. I took 30min to go from 49% to 80%. I noticed on the readout that it was around 30 amps, remembering numbers around 100 amps before
Luckily I had the time and did not need a huge amount of charge (ended up doing 140km that day), but wondered if anyone else has noted this problem
Also, are there any other fast chargers around Sydney?
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Post by leafboi on Jul 28, 2013 14:45:59 GMT 11
The times I've used the QC here in Melb and actually stuck around to watch it I have to agree it seems slow. I am usually at about the 49% mark it says too. Which is surprising since it usually only shows 4 bars remaining in the car.
I agree it takes around 30mins to charge to the 80% from there but it always starts at 100+amps then quickly tails off. I'm guessing its because the car isn't really that empty at all. If it was say from 20% or even Low battery warning probably it would take still around the 30mins to charge because the beginning of the QC is the most powerful.
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Post by David on Jul 28, 2013 19:58:24 GMT 11
Thanks for that. My need for fast charge is very limited
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marty
Half Charge
I like the idea of free transport....
Posts: 68
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Post by marty on Aug 8, 2013 15:08:27 GMT 11
Hi all, very cool. So those two are the only ones so far in Melbourne, correct? Would it affect battery life to use them all the time? And did I read that right, not only is charging free but the parking, as well? On all of the charging point on that map: www.chargepoint.net.au/index.php/device/devicelocation.htmlGotta love THAT!!! |
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Post by Jim Hare on Aug 8, 2013 15:25:01 GMT 11
Welcome Marty, great to have you here!
Yes, quick charging is tough on the batteries, but fantastic when you have the need. In other words, it's like chocolate cake, a wonderful treat once in a while but not so good for you if you eat it every day!
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