Kona EV Hacking(techno-fandom.org) |
Kona EV Hacking(techno-fandom.org) |
The car is somewhat reliable on the battery side (still have SOH over 101% after 90k km / 50k miles), but the gearbox and motor bearings issue can be tricky to fix.
Also the MY2019 vehicles do lack remote climate controls and battery preconditioning (which I'm still trying to fix with the app).
This is the kind of hacking / upgrades I’d love to see. All in cost was about $6k when I last checked probably a little more now. You get a pack teardown, and new CATL cells. Range goes to 400km~.
Later models, 120ah full electric version, the range is about 250km. In comparison to newer cars, not a lot, but considering you can buy newish used ones for under 15k, its not a bad deal if it fits your needs.
It was either 1.9 or 2.4 gallons depending on the model year, but they physically had the same gas tank.
As for the range, I'm getting about 110 miles of range. It depends how you drive. This is the 94Ah battery, the later models had more range.
If this was written 5 years ago they might have a little more leeway. Here's one:
> trying to force everyone to download janky apps just to play is disingenuous and short-sighted
The biggest networks do not require apps to use their chargers (excluding Tesla, who built a huge network with no screens and then decided to open it up without hardware retrofits). Some offer memberships which obviously use an app, but that's not surprising or relevant.
I didn't know they were billing for DC charging in the US based on Time instead of kwh. Thats odd. In Europe its just kwh.
Wow, instantly stopped reading after this. I can't comprehend how someone would even remotely have the courage writing such in a public posting.
Weird bit of self-righteous misanthropy.
No doubt that driver inattentiveness leads to loss of many lives year on year. But publishing the personal details of someone you got into a car crash with won’t do anything to improve road safely.
However if you use the App, the charger works. This is in late 2025 and 2026, so it's better, but the non-app route is not fully fleshed out yet.
My worst experience was a charger near Yosemite ran by the local power utility. They required you use a website to turn the charger on, and the instructions were incomplete and it took me a half-dozen tries to figure out the right set of magic steps to get the dumb charger to work. Had it not been the only charger in like 100+ miles, I'm sure it would never ever get used due to how insanely broken it was.
But they're certainly not obvious.
How many apps must people put on their phones, or payment cards people must carry, to pay to charge their vehicles with the convenience of a petrol station?
* https://parking.ubc.ca/are-there-electric-vehicle-ev-chargin...
"Charging fees can be paid through the Honk Mobile App or using a web browser with internet access."
* https://electricvehicles.bchydro.com/bc-hydro-ev-mobile-app
"You can use the BC Hydro EV app to activate stations on other networks across North America."
* https://www.flo.com/en-ca/products/software/flo-mobile-app/
"Download the FLO app for free. Access thousands of chargers on-the-go in our network and start your session with a tap."
* https://www.chargepoint.com/en-ca/drivers/mobile
"Get the ChargePoint App. The easiest way to find available stations, start charging and get updates when your EV is fully charged."
"Download the AmpUp our mobile app from the Apple or Google Play store to."
* https://www.electrify-canada.ca/mobile-app/
"Use the Electrify Canada mobile app to schedule your home charging and find a public charging station. Sign up for an account to enjoy exclusive, members-only public charging features and pricing."
"iPhone & Android app. No download required via SWTCH’s in-browser app. Tap-and-go charging with our complimentary RFID card."
I could not charge my Kona at multiple public charging stations around Vancouver:
* "Free" FLO Level 2 charger at New Westminster High School (requires sign up).
* BC Hydro Level 3 charger near a Real Canadian Superstore (requires sign up).
* AddEnergie Level 2 charger at Tsawwassen Mills (requires sign up).
* Honk Level 2 charger at a University of British Columbia parkade (requires sign up).
* Bonus: Most Tesla stations (no adapters available).
From Aging Wheels:
* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92w5doU68D8 (Oct 15, 2023; bad experience)
* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouPiwt5hxXQ (Nov 24, 2024; better experience)
It's steadily improving, though!
Tesla and ChargePoint are the only ones that require an app. For those, my car's app can activate them if I don't want to download them.
Of course, I'm referring to the United States, I have not done a lot of charging in Canada.
You could not, or you did not want to? There is a difference.
In the EU, yes. When you go to those dark corners of Europe that never achieved the membership, all bets are off.
In Montenegro and Serbia they charge per minute because the only entity allowed to sell kwh's is the national electricity company (in Serbia it's owned by Russia, so it is heavily legally protected).
Some have reasonable limits to prevent abuse [0], others just charge the customer as much as they can get away with.
Most states have updated their laws to account for EV charging providers, and in those states we pay per kWh.
I don't think you want that as no car will be able to charge at 250kW for very long for example.
And I believe we're starting to see even higher peak charging rates. As always, there's no simple answers
Other systems I've seen (Chargepoint) also seem to be energy-based.
The Supercharger network is well done. It's a shame that they took this long to open up to other car models because they really do get a lot of things right.
And the app situation is as dire as the author says too.
Two Audis (one of them written off to the point it had to be lifted onto the breakdown truck with a Hiab), one Hyundai of some sort, and one bicycle.
The cyclist was the only one I felt in any way sorry for, because he did actually hurt himself pretty badly and obliterated his carbon wheel and forks, but he shouldn't have been dicking around with his phone while riding down a steep hill at what I can tell from his Strava trail was around 35mph.
At no time did my car suffer any more than a bit of scuffing and damage to the old tennis ball over the tow hitch to stop the grease getting on my trousers.
I understand the reasoning but sympathize with the luddites who shun all this technology. Imagine going on a road trip with your EV, stopping for a bite to eat and refresh while putting your car on the charger. Maybe there was a long line or you needed a long bathroom stop, so your car sits at the charger "too long" and you get a nice penalty.
It also came in handy for a bad road trip (charging stations more than my range apart, so I couldn’t otherwise get there from here, but hold state of charge kept it up at 75% with frequent gas stops)
So I can slag off others in my demographic all I want. Yeah, male white middle-aged crabbit auld bastard privilege, if you like.
If I was in it for the karma I'd be in the billions by now.
Fine to leave for a few hours if your car needs a few hours to charge fully.
Not fine to leave for a few hours if your car was 15 minutes from full.