First EV Rapid Charge with an Unimpressed Wife

In this episode of Ramby Electric I take my nice new EV for its first ever rapid charge! I'm on the way to an ultra rapid electric vehicle charger. I talk about how I've been getting on since my first home charge drama with the hope that public charging will be a little more smooth that that was. If you want to see how I got on, check out that previous video here: xxx
As there will likely be plenty of EV newbies watching this, I talk about the different kinds of EV charging: Slow, Fast, Rapid and Ultra Rapid and suggest names for the very fast speeds you can find out there these days. I also cover the Nissan Ariya's charging speed and demonstrate its battery pre-heating techology - will that make a difference to the charge?
I'm delighted to welcome my wife Mel to the video who gives her opinion on how I'm getting on, and I'm not sure it's entirely complimentary. I'd also like to thank Phil for filming some great b-roll with his new drone. It will hopefully make the parts where I'm waffling on about kilowatts and ports a little less painful to sit through.
Thanks so much for watching, subscribing, liking, commenting and sharing.
There's a thriving community on this channel who regularly post very helpful tips and ideas in the comments. Join in! You won't regret it!
00:00 Intro
00:17 We're going shopping!
00:38 Rambly Guide to EV Charging: Slow and Fast
03:27 Home charging properly
04:15 Rambly Guide to EV Charging: Rapid and Ultra
05:47 Battery temperature and charging
06:28 An impressed wife. Not.
06:59 Time to shop
07:18 Preheating the battery
08:04 Arriving at the charging station
09:17 Initiating my first ultra rapid charge
12:21 Charging - Take 2
15:30 Into the Subway
15:55 4 Bays = 1 Bay
16:42 Charging progress
17:10 Time to stop the charge
17:53 How did we do?
18:07 Closing thoughts
18:48 End Credits
19:03 Was that an Ariya?

[@bruk48]

So refreshing and educational. We get out Ariya tomorrow and your trials and tribulations have been a god send, well done. Love your sense of humour.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thank you. That's so kind of you. Enjoy your new motoring addition to the family!! I have a couple of new Ariya videos on the way. The first one should be out in a few days. Thanks for watching!

[@markg99]

Such a comedy duo 😂😂 You explained that brilliantly, Andy! Mel did a good job of hiding what a great time you were showing her 👍🏻😄

[@TheRamblyChannel]

She was clearly rivited by my explanation. She just hid it very well. 😁😉😆

[@bellshooter]

I'm going to AHEM! you a bit here. It's perfectly feasible to charge on a 3-pin EVSE all the time, I've done it for 7 years + . You need a decent direct connection socket, and of course check for socket condition regularly. You only need to charge what you use, not top up empty to full , that is fossil thinking. You mentioned not doing abou 6-8,000 miles a year, so I make that's 120-160 miles a week, so that would only take 54-72 hours charging a week. That works out to 8-10 hours a night/day. If I do more than that a week it's because I've been on a road trip and Rapid charged on the road...

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks for your thoughts. I should’ve mentioned the different mindset needed for EVs, I’ve spoken about it in other videos. I agree with what you say. I prefer having a home fast charger, however it’s entirely possible to use a plug in some situations. Thanks for watching! ☺️

[@EriksenClaus]

I love the video, and your wife's enthusiasm when it comes to charging. 😊 BTW, what brand and model name is her sunglasses? HA, you didn't see that coming, did you?

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thank you! So pleased you enjoyed the video. The sunglasses aren’t a brand. I asked my wife and she said that they’re just some cheap tat. I’m not sure how helpful that is?!? 😂😂🕶️😎 EDIT: She’s changed her mind. They’re Timberland. But still cheap she says! 😂

[@MrVeeBlog]

Great video. Thanks for sharing your first fast charge experience.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks for watching!

[@mikesmith9559]

Another brilliant video. So good to see someone learning, just like me, with the Ariya. Keep the videos coming, it's great to see your good lady trying not to laugh. BRILLIANT!😂😂

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks Mike, I really appreciate your positive feedback. My other half has the look of a long suffering wife who can easily tune out the white noise emanating from the driver's seat. 😁

[@willielarsson9651]

I'll have a look at your video later when I get home..however my missus just can't be bothered learning about EVs and the time to charge. Several times on a recent road trip, she asked me to a) stop talking about range b) stop talking about EVs in general c) why does it take so long to charge and why do so many chargers not work and d) she hates EVs full stop lol. All things said, it was a good trip

[@TheRamblyChannel]

I'm sorry to hear that. Perhaps tell her that the particulates from the exhaust pipe of a "normal" car will probably give her an incurable disease and then see if that takes the conversation in a new direction... 😬

[@tonywalsh5036]

Excellent video again Andy! Picking my Aria up next Friday. Similar to yours but with the tech pack, can’t wait 👍🏻

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Nice one Tony. A couple of weeks after I placed my order I phoned the dealer to see if I could add the tech pack, but it would've meant cancelling and re-ordering. As I'd secured a decent discount from the dealer, I decided not to rock the boat!! The tech pack sounds like an excellent choice and I'm sure you won't be sorry! Exciting times for you!

[@jmilleronaire]

There's a part where you talk about how 'slow charging' isn't what you should do and nobody would, but really, you can refill a day's driving while you're sleeping almost any day with the smallest charger. The length of charging time isn't important, it takes seconds to plug in and then you're off doing other things for that time. Saying that isn't enough might put a lot of people off that could easily (but only) do a wall plug charger and fulfill almost all their transit needs. No need to have service upgraded if you're only driving 50 miles a day or less.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

You make a valid point there @jmilleronaire and I apologise for my clumsy description. From other feedback I've also just discovered that there is such a thing as a "Commando socket" and that offers a reasonable (and slightly cheaper) alternative to a dedicated wall box at home. I'm learning all the time and will most definitely be correcting my information in a future video. Thanks for your feedback! Andy

[@jmilleronaire]

@@TheRamblyChannel I wasn't trying to be super critical, your videos are a great way to show the learning curve of electric. I just recently went electric myself, and now trying to explain to people that I didn't need to get a special circuit installed at my house shows there is a lot of misunderstanding of how much power can come out of just a regular wall socket over time (overnight charging)

[@joeodriscoll434]

Great video and so humorous as usual!! Thinking seriously about going down the EV road at some stage. Although rapid chargers still very scarce in the remote part of the country we live in over here.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks for your kind words. Glad you enjoyed the video. Rapid chargers are a bit of a lottery at the moment in many countries. If you can charge at home then it's a much easier decision to make. That's me most of the time, although I will need to charge out and about when we go away on jolly hols. That's usually a cottage somewhere out in the sticks (and in the past that's included parts of the ROI). I hope the situation improves and I have no doubt it will over time. 😊

[@michaelgoode9555]

We collected our ID.3 on Friday. Wonderful bit of kit. I'm going to try a public charger tomorrow ... 😉

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Lovely car! Congratulations. I wish you well for your first public charge!!

[@michaelgoode9555]

​@@TheRamblyChannel Well, that didn't happen. First charger was out of service, second and third required dedicated charge cards or apps. We have identified two charge locations locally now where we can pay using contactless. We'll give it another go on Thursday ... 🤔 I have a sparks booked to come and fit a commando 16amp socket as we do not need a 7kw charger. The charge (not range) anxiety will then evaporate and the car will be at 80% every morning.

[@trumpetscall8910]

Starting to se Ariyas her up in Northern Norway, soon i hopefully get my Evolve e-4orce.

[@JeRiMarAV]

Great video with a laugh! Any idea why the charger did stay at such a low rate?

[@TheRamblyChannel]

No idea. I'm very new to all of these things so I don't know. I plan to ask someone who knows a good deal more about that kind of thing than I do, and if I receive an answer that warrants sharing I'll post an update, perhaps via a short? Glad you enjoyed the video! 😊

[@MrEV]

Not the best start for you, but the only way is up! Preheating needs 30-60 minutes - how long did it take to get from the shop to the charger? Also, despite saying 150kW, these older style MFG chargers will only ever give you 100kW because the Ariya is 400V. Only 800V+ cars will get the full 150kW. The same is true for Instavolt chargers. And yes, it's needlessly complicated and an absolute minefield!

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Great info there - I’m learning all the time! It probably only had about 15 minutes pre heating. I’ll make sure I give it much longer next time. So useful to know about the maximum 100kW on those chargers. I can feel a follow up attempt coming…! 😂👍🏻

[@tomcole2517]

My wife found your partner relatable. We’ve spent many an hour doing exactly that. 😂

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Hahaha. I'm glad I'm not alone!! 🤣

[@asboss63]

Congratulations 👏

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thank you! 😊

[@gryzman]

Good ramble. Well done wife for playing it cool :-) --- take It ev ;)

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks Gregg. I don't think she was expecting to feature so much. I won't tell her if you don't. 😂

[@RiddickHBG]

Mate, the pre-heating takes about 30 minutes to heat up the battery-pack. Give it some more time next time and you should see better charging speed...

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks Peder. I've been told it can be up to an hour! I probably gave it 20 minutes or so in total. Something else I found out is that as my car has a 400 volt architecture, these MFG chargers won't give me more than 100kW speed, so I'd never get to the 150kW available. As it turned out, the 60ishKw I was getting was still perfectly acceptable.

[@BenMitro]

What does ultra rapid chargers charge per kWh in the UK? Here in Australia it costs 70c per kWh (around 37p /kWh) Our domestic power here costs 32c /kWh (17p).

[@TheRamblyChannel]

G'day! Rapid chargers are a lot more expensive here. Typically 70p/kWh compared to charging at home that I've had as low as 11p/kWh (and can be even lower on some tariffs). Part of the problem is we pay 5% VAT on home energy, but rapids pay the full rate of 20%. Even then, that doesn't quite make up the huge difference, but it's a factor that doesn't help things. I'm lucky and charge up at home all the time. My only rapid experience was for this video - and that was an unncessary top up. Even when I did a recent 180 mile round trip (my latest video) I didn't need to rapid charge. Australia is now making huge leaps in EV adoption after years of being behind, not to mention solar (a no-brainer in your part of the world). I have a feeling you'll be way ahead of us before too long. It's not a competition, of course, just great to see things moving in the right direction. Thanks for watching and sending your thoughts.

[@121158bob]

Did i work this out right?? you added 33% charge, with a 220 mile range that gives you 72.6 extra miles at a cost of £16.85 wow would def stick to home charging.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Hi @121158bob I added 21.32kWh at a cost of 79p per kWh. At home I pay 34.225p per kWh so you won't be surprised to learn that I normally charge at home. I'll only use public chargers when I go away on holiday so this was partly a dry run for that, but mostly to make a video!

[@proevo1502]

Your wife is funny, looks like mine would. Bored. Good video.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thank you. She makes me laugh too. I have to laugh or she'll hit me with something.

[@fryingpanjoe]

Great video as always! I just got my Ariya and I really like it so far. I was aware of the limited top charging speed before I bought it, but the charging curve is actually really good compared to a lot of other cars. Since I've got two dogs I would love if you could talk a bit about how dog friendly you find the car!

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks for your kind words and congratulations on your new vehicle! The rapid charge in this video is my only one to date... I've been charging at home the rest of the time. It's good to know the charging curve is working well for you. Nissan promotes that, but it's good to hear it's a real thing in the real world. It's a great idea for me to include something about dog transport in a video as it's something that's close to my heart. I'm in the process of making a "6 months on" video so will look to inclide it in that! 😊🐾

[@proevo1502]

So 30% cost £16.50 ish. Is that expensive, I'm thinking of going down the ev route but that sounds similar to filling my car with petrol.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

If you can charge at home then the cost is definitely much cheaper than petrol especially if you can get on a suitable tariff. It doesn't have to be an EV specific one. Many energy providers have appropriate options. If you're charging out and about then it will be more expensive, however when I made this video the cost of both electricity and petrol was much higher than it is today. Remember that EVs have fewer moving parts and so require much less complex (and often less regular) servicing. Additionally, they have a much lower environmental impact and probably most relevant of all are far FAR more fun to drive than any ICE car. Trust me, if you haven't driven one yet take any EV out for a test drive and you'll be convinced! Thanks for watching and good luck!

[@proevo1502]

@@TheRamblyChannel have you driven more than the ariya,I'm looking at the ariya 242 engage 22w charger comfort auto 396 a month. Does that seem a good deal.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

@@proevo1502 The Engage trim wasn’t available when I got my Advance. If I was buying now I’d want the Evolve trim as it’s a very nice finish - however the Engage is a great price and still a decent spec. Everyone’s needs are different and if it meets all of yours and the deal is affordable then it’s got to be on your short list! Thanks for watching! ☺️

[@fenlandwildlifeclips]

Well, we're all proud of you anyway.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Thanks! 😊

[@foxylady1048]

There is one newspaper that would be very anti EV and that is the Daily Mail which is owned by the Fossil Fuel industry.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Just one? 😉

[@valleysofneptune]

So to summarise , it gave you 33% of charge, and it cost roughly £16 …that’s £49 for max milegage of around 220 miles? Wow…that’s why I want to do home charging…surely rapid charging is more expensive than filling up my car at £59 for 380 miles

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Home charging is preferable that’s for sure. It saves a small fortune in fuelling costs when compared to ICE. The cost of rapid charging at the time I filmed this was high, it has come down a lot since then.

[@magicbb8148]

Godzilla charging should be a thing 🧐

[@TheRamblyChannel]

It so should! Roooaaarrrr!!!

[@magicbb8148]

😂😂

[@ImaEarlyAdopter]

As a new EV owner I wonder how long it will take before you begin to get frustrated with being considered a second class customer? EV owners don't get much respect from EV charging companies here in the USA. As a former ICE vehicle owner, when was the last time you went to a gasoline station and find the pump was not covered, not lighted, malfunctioned, was nowhere near a bathroom, and could not purchase anything to eat or drink? Would you ever stop to fill-up your ICE car at a gasoline station on a dark, cold, rainy night that did not have a cover and lights? No, you would not. But EV most charging stations here in the USA are placed out in the open, no cover, no lights, no facilities for food, drink, or restrooms. I hope that if you are upset by this in your experiences you will speak up about it. After owning EVs for over 12 years, this is my main complaint about EV ownership, yet no one seems to speak up about it. Enjoyed your videos, thank you. FYI, we have been waiting over a year for our AWD Ariya here in Oklahoma. It will be our 5th EV.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

Hi Murray. You make valid points. I'm sure it must've been hard in the early days of ICE cars - there's a period where rapid uptake of vehicles doesn't match the infrastruture and reliability is a problem. Many of the chargers here in the UK have traditionally been as you describe where you are, however here there are now many charging hubs opening up - most have at least 4 chargers and some refreshments, and there are more popping up that have a large number of chargers in place. It's noticeably improving by the day. With the UK being a much smaller country that the USA I suspect it's an "easier" transition, but perhaps that's not an excuse? Good for you sticking with EVs despite the issues. I'm sure the future is a bright one! Thanks for watching and leaving your comment with your experiences, very interesting to read.

[@Mark-wx1ho]

She looks fuming. Lol.

[@TheRamblyChannel]

She tolerates me 😁