Long Trips In EVs Require Proper Planning: This MG Windsor Owner Is Proof
Many people buy electric vehicles because they are cheaper to run on a daily basis. However, many people believe that taking EVs on long road trips is still filled with hassle if the trip is not planned properly. Recently, an MG Windsor EV owner took his electric SUV to Manali, Himachal Pradesh, and has now been sharing updates on how he is struggling on the trip due to problems that most EV owners face on long journeys.
MG Windsor EV owner shares his struggles
The video in which this particular MG Windsor EV owner explains his struggles with an EV in Manali has been shared on Instagram by Sachin Rose Cars on their channel. In this short clip, the vlogger highlights that he has come to Manali, Himachal Pradesh, in his MG Windsor EV and has been struggling to find a charger for the vehicle.
He shows a hotel by the name of “Sarthak Regency” and mentions that this is the only place where he managed to find EV chargers. The vlogger shows that there is a small charger in front of the hotel, and then there is an Adani Power 60 kWh DC fast charger in the parking lot. Apart from this, there is also another smaller wall-mounted charger.
In addition to this clip, he has also shared another video in which he elaborates on another incident. He mentions that his vehicle was at 4 percent charge, so he reached a charger to charge it. However, that particular charger was not functional, so he had to move ahead.
As a result, he drove his vehicle ahead and reached a different charger with just 2 percent battery. Thankfully, this charger was working, so he plugged in the vehicle. He highlighted that EVs are good vehicles, but they teach their owners to plan properly and also become more patient, as it takes a lot of time to charge.
Challenges faced by EV owners during long trips
Electric cars are amazing when it comes to city drives, as access to chargers is much easier and more abundant. However, EVs, especially vehicles like the MG Windsor EV, which only have a 38 kWh battery pack, are very troublesome. The range of EVs with smaller battery packs is very low, and when combined with a poor charging network and infrastructure, it becomes a recipe for disaster.
Currently, there are over 90,000 petrol pumps across the country, but there are only around 30,000 EV charging stations in India. This means that the number of places where people on long road trips can charge their vehicles is very low. This makes it very difficult for EV owners to travel in peace. Hence, before any long trip, every EV owner has to plan their journey with proper markings of chargers they plan to use on the trip.
Another major issue in India is that if an EV owner manages to find a charger, there is a high chance that the charger will not be functional. There are multiple reasons behind this issue. As a result, the owners always have to find a new charging spot to make sure that they do not get stranded.
In addition to these problems, there is a bigger problem in tier II and tier III cities, which is power cuts. A lot of chargers in such cities do not work because there is no electricity supply. Lastly, another major problem is overcrowding at charging stations. Each EV takes a lot of time to get charged, and as a result, other EV owners have to wait for a long time before their turn to charge comes up.
Overall, we are not saying that electric vehicles and their ownership are filled with troubles. However, if you are planning to buy an electric vehicle and want to embark on a lot of long journeys, then we would like to recommend that you become good at planning. Because if you drive your EV without enough battery, you can easily get stranded in the middle of nowhere.