This Tata Tigor EV Owner Fought Range Anxiety With Petrol Generator [Video]
The Electric Vehicle (EV) landscape in India is fast evolving. In recent years, we saw EVs get better and more exciting than before. The range and performance have both improved. People who buy EVs today do not develop range anxieties as big as those of early adopters. Doing long distance commutes was unthinkable for many early adopters of EVs, especially the budget ones. A video shared by a Tata Tigor EV owner shows how he did a long drive with his electric sedan, devising an interesting way to fight his range anxiety- using a petrol generator to recharge the EV battery!
This video was shared by Sinto Antony on YouTube. He is from Kerala and did a road trip with his Tigor EV. He drove it to Wagamon, a beautiful hill station in the state. It was a 90 km drive from his place.
In the beginning, we can see 199km as the estimated range on the car. They soon realize that the car needs a charging stop. We then see it plugged in at a DC charging station. The charger had some issues, and it took them around 45 minutes to get it fixed and get the charging initiated. They resumed the drive once the battery level reached 84%.
The EV then enters the ghat roads. The driver’s words reveal that the vehicle’s is going uphill. So, the driver has put it in the ‘Sport’ mode. This ensures optimal performance, but also drains the battery faster. A person from Sinto’s team also mentions that remote areas like the place they are now travelling through lack proper charging infrastructure. The nearest charger, they say, is at Thodupuzha. (This video was taken online in 2022. Now, you may be able to find more chargers here).
After reaching their destination, Sinto and his team give a detailed demonstration of how to charge an EV with a petrol generator. The uphill run significantly drained the EV’s battery. It now has approximately 23% charge left, and they are now in a remote resort, with no DC chargers nearby. If you own an EV, you’d know how tricky this situation is. Sinto and his team chooses to address this by charging the electric car with a generator. The video shows the right way to do this.
In the video, we see a 3KW petrol generator being used to charge the vehicle. Here the owner seems to be using the car’s AC home charger to draw power from the generator and charge the EV battery. He says that it is important to get the ‘earthing’ right to enable smooth charge flow. If ‘earthing’ is not done right, the vehicle will display an error and won’t get charged.
The host uses a metal rod and a couple of Copper wires to get the grounding right. The ‘Neutral’ and ‘Earth’ should be connected with a Copper wire before grounding. This is done by connecting the Neutral and Earth of the extension board used to plug the EV’s AC charger in. This is then grounded, by connecting to the metal rod that’s fixed to the ground. This will get the potential difference right and clear the error, thereby initiating charging.
After implementing these connections, the host starts the generator. The EV starts charging. It is then left on the charger for an hour. This pumped 10% charge into the EV’s battery. In his closing remarks, the EV owner says that the generator they used consumed about a litre of fuel in the process.
Let’s admit- living with EVs isn’t as easy as living with petrol/diesel cars, especially if the electric car is your only car! It is critical to know and devise workarounds such as these to charge the battery in emergency situations.
Yes, the EV infrastructure is definitely improving. So are EVs. Miscellaneous challenges and vulnerabilities such as poor maintenance of chargers, unprecedented power outages, and any potential bugs that delay or prevent charging continue to exist and are enough to spoil long drives with EVs, especially the more affordable ones.
You’d be much better protected if you drive EVs like the Mahindra BE6, which offer a range of over 500 km. But a person who drives a Tigor EV or Tiago EV, the real range of which is in the ballpark of 220km, will have to exercise extra caution while embarking on long drives to remote areas. If you are low on charge and can’t find a charger at your hotel, look for a generator or have one handy! No offence, but the priority then is to not be stranded and move to safety (a public charger maybe!)