Electric / Hybrid cars in Korat

[ken kenobie]

Just recently Ive been seeing what look like more and more Electric / Hybrid  cars on the Korat roads . The one thing that I’m not seeing are any public electric charging stations . I’m not sure if I would personally ever consider buying an electric / hybrid vehicle .

Any one have any thoughts about buying and running an electric / hybrid car in Thailand .


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[Pompui]

Some PTT stations have charging points.

The shopping malls need to look at getting some, if they haven't already.

[Coolkorat]

Any one have any thoughts about buying and running an electric / hybrid car in Thailand .

With electric it's always about the infrastructure. It would be great if the government put more emphasis on renewable energy - if industrial buildings were covered with solar panels, solar farms etc. Even then, it's going to require nuclear to generate the power needed.

[Roger]

Hi Ken - there's a lot of info. around electric/hybrid vehicles in the Media and YouTube - some of it is really worth a look. You may have seen it, but here's the bits I remember.

Months ago I read of a long detailed report by Volvo about the environmental costs of manufacturing an EV versus ICE. The main conclusion was that the EV had to do an extra 160,000 km to recover the extra environmental cost. That's from Volvo !

Yes an EV produces less pollution as it runs, but in China which has many EV's, the recharge electric is likely to be produced at a coal fired power station. And Europe struggles to maintain power supplies during the war in Ukraine.

I read yesterday that because of the extra vehicle weight, tyre wear is reduced AND the amount of harmful to health micro dust produced by tyre wear is increased.

EV's are ideal for short commutes or city driving but not IMO for longer journeys. You need off road parking to recharge at home. Not everyone can have an EV - the supply grid will need upgrading to make that possible.

Longer journeys - my Son returning Leeds to St Austell recently had to make two stops for recharging. Motorway services might have say 12 recharge points but you might have to queue. Imagine the wait to recharge during bank Holiday weekends. I guess a drive to Scotland might take a day or three 

The extra weight of the vehicles causes Architects concerns about multi storey parking - a floor in a New York multi storey recently collapsed   

The batteries need vast quantities of scarce elements in manufacture. Lasting maybe 8-10 years, replacement costs are reported to be up to £10,000 and new EV's and Hybrids are more expensive to buy.

Safety issues - very rapid acceleration, extra weight in collisions and silence don't IMO augur well for accident rates.

There are concerns about spontaneous combustion, especially after the low slung batteries may have been in flood water.

For me - never an EV.

But EV is ideal for City/Urban use and shorter journeys.

[Hector]

EVs are going to come, that's for sure, but when is the Thai public going to be able to afford them and when (as Ken mentions) are there going to be enough EV charging stations around?  There are also plenty of negative aspects in Roger's post to give you thought!  Personally, I wouldn't buy one at the moment, but only because of cost and lack of charging facilities.
As an aside, I lived in Rome for 4 years in the mid-90s and they introduced a few electric buses in the city.  After about 6 months they removed them; the accident rate with pedestrians simply not hearing them had gone sky high!  There was a similar situation here around the turn of the century when Bangkok introduced some electric long tailed boats on the Chao Praya.  That experiment didn't last long either, not because of accidents, but because the boatmen hated the loss of the macho noise element!

[slimeball]

As mentioned there are charging points at some PTT stations, plus there are a bank of these at Terminal 21 in the car park second floor I think.
I have a recharge car & have the charger at home, the cost scans are significant imo.

[caller]

I would have thought all the Malls in Korat would have chargers, as they all do in Bkk.

I recently twice travelled to Khon Kaen from Hua Hin by car, via a few days in Bkk and Korat and I really wouldnt have liked to do that journey by EV. Khon Kaen and the surrounding area, in particular, is not well covered by chargers, Even the newest, best and ultra modern hotel in Khon Kaen, didn't have a single charger. The sole Tesler I saw there looked forloon parked amongst the oil guzzlers! And although we mainly use Esso, because of my other halfs business card, we still stopped at PTT's as well. I am sure EV's would find them, but by and large my random search for a charger wasn't successdful. I have a new Honda Hybrid by the way, not plug in.

 

[ken kenobie]

Some PTT stations have charging points.

The shopping malls need to look at getting some, if they haven't already.

Thanks, I never knew about the PTT stations . 👍

[ken kenobie]

With electric it's always about the infrastructure. It would be great if the government put more emphasis on renewable energy - if industrial buildings were covered with solar panels, solar farms etc. Even then, it's going to require nuclear to generate the power needed.

Good point about the nuclear power .

[ken kenobie]

Hi Ken - there's a lot of info. around electric/hybrid vehicles in the Media and YouTube - some of it is really worth a look. You may have seen it, but here's the bits I remember.

Months ago I read of a long detailed report by Volvo about the environmental costs of manufacturing an EV versus ICE. The main conclusion was that the EV had to do an extra 160,000 km to recover the extra environmental cost. That's from Volvo !

Yes an EV produces less pollution as it runs, but in China which has many EV's, the recharge electric is likely to be produced at a coal fired power station. And Europe struggles to maintain power supplies during the war in Ukraine.

I read yesterday that because of the extra vehicle weight, tyre wear is reduced AND the amount of harmful to health micro dust produced by tyre wear is increased.

EV's are ideal for short commutes or city driving but not IMO for longer journeys. You need off road parking to recharge at home. Not everyone can have an EV - the supply grid will need upgrading to make that possible.

Longer journeys - my Son returning Leeds to St Austell recently had to make two stops for recharging. Motorway services might have say 12 recharge points but you might have to queue. Imagine the wait to recharge during bank Holiday weekends. I guess a drive to Scotland might take a day or three 

The extra weight of the vehicles causes Architects concerns about multi storey parking - a floor in a New York multi storey recently collapsed   

The batteries need vast quantities of scarce elements in manufacture. Lasting maybe 8-10 years, replacement costs are reported to be up to £10,000 and new EV's and Hybrids are more expensive to buy.

Safety issues - very rapid acceleration, extra weight in collisions and silence don't IMO augur well for accident rates.

There are concerns about spontaneous combustion, especially after the low slung batteries may have been in flood water.

For me - never an EV.

But EV is ideal for City/Urban use and shorter journeys.

Thanks Roger , some interesting information, especially the battery replacement costs .

.

[ken kenobie]

EVs are going to come, that's for sure, but when is the Thai public going to be able to afford them and when (as Ken mentions) are there going to be enough EV charging stations around?  There are also plenty of negative aspects in Roger's post to give you thought!  Personally, I wouldn't buy one at the moment, but only because of cost and lack of charging facilities.
As an aside, I lived in Rome for 4 years in the mid-90s and they introduced a few electric buses in the city.  After about 6 months they removed them; the accident rate with pedestrians simply not hearing them had gone sky high!  There was a similar situation here around the turn of the century when Bangkok introduced some electric long tailed boats on the Chao Praya.  That experiment didn't last long either, not because of accidents, but because the boatmen hated the loss of the macho noise element!

Thanks, the Rome and electric buses not making enough sounds , is an aspect I had not thought of .

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[ken kenobie]

As mentioned there are charging points at some PTT stations, plus there are a bank of these at Terminal 21 in the car park second floor I think.
I have a recharge car & have the charger at home, the cost scans are significant imo.

Can you please tell me the type of car you had to recharge ?, and what does the '' cost of scans '' mean .

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[ken kenobie]

I would have thought all the Malls in Korat would have chargers, as they all do in Bkk.

I recently twice travelled to Khon Kaen from Hua Hin by car, via a few days in Bkk and Korat and I really wouldnt have liked to do that journey by EV. Khon Kaen and the surrounding area, in particular, is not well covered by chargers, Even the newest, best and ultra modern hotel in Khon Kaen, didn't have a single charger. The sole Tesler I saw there looked forloon parked amongst the oil guzzlers! And although we mainly use Esso, because of my other halfs business card, we still stopped at PTT's as well. I am sure EV's would find them, but by and large my random search for a charger wasn't successdful. I have a new Honda Hybrid by the way, not plug in.

If I still lived in the UK and won the lottery , this is the car I would buy .

The Ultimate High Tech Luxury Electric Car

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXFnJcpCFtk

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[Alfie]

This map might help you find charging stations.

https://www.plugshare.com/

[slimeball]

Can you please tell me the type of car you had to recharge ?, and what does the '' cost of scans '' mean .

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haha sorry typo. The cost savings are significant.
I have a volvo recharge.

[caller]

This map might help you find charging stations.

https://www.plugshare.com/

Yes, aware of all the maps. Thats why I said I'm sure the EV's will find them, but I couldn't by just looking randomly, and if they have the same problems as reported elsewhere, then there simply won't be enough.

2/3 months back, I watched, amused, as a lady in a merc, pulled up to one of two chargers in a TOPs supermarket in the Phrom Rhong area of Bangkok. Whatever the problem was, was fatal, as staff all tried to get the charger to work, to no avail. They wouldn't let her use the other, then free one, as we found out later, as someone else had pre-booked it. She went ballistic! When we came out another car was being cherged in the previously empty space. 

I am sure the wealthier condos in Bkk may well provide chargers, but where we are don't, and I do see a few German EV's parked there, so presumably they use chargers elsewhere?