Helpful Tips To Take Care Of Your Electric Car | Bharti AXA

Introduction The first practical production-ready electric car dates back to the 1870s. Electric vehicles were quite popular among the consumers in the late 19th century and early 20th century but were taken over by the advances made in internal combustion engines and cheaper gasoline vehicles being mass-produced. Come 2008; the electric vehicle manufacturing industry saw a boom in their production and reception in the general market. Governments all around the globe have started to promote EVs through tax rebates and other such subsidies. The number of components suffering wear and tear decreases significantly with the efficiency of the electric motor, rendering the EV car as an innovative alternative of fuss-free travel. So if you own an electric vehicle or are planning to own one in the future, here are some points to help you in your electric car maintenance. Take proper care of the tyres Tyre maintenance is a must for any car a person drives or owns. Tyres are essential for the proper conditioning of the vehicle. In the case of Electric Vehicles, they exert a lot more pressure on the tyres than regular combustion engine cars. The extra weight is due to their more massive battery packs and instantaneous torque they provide. So to avoid any wear and tear to the tear, avoid sudden and robust acceleration or braking and maintain correct tyre pressure. Proper conditioning of the motor The best part about owning an electric vehicle is that the electric motors need much less maintenance than combustion engine vehicles. The electric motors have much lesser parts when compared to the combustible engine. It doesn't come with the burden of changing the oil, replacing the spark plugs or changing the dust filter. But still, to provide longevity to the car, a regular visit to the mechanic should be made and get the motor serviced timely. Coolant's care has to be prioritised With such a bulky battery pack powering the entire car, heating has to play a factor in the degradation of the battery cells. To curb the damage caused by this heating, EV manufacturers install a thermal management system to keep the battery motor from overheating. Overheating causes shortening of the battery life of the vehicle; this leads to a quicker fall in the value of the car. The battery replacement is a costly and unwanted expense to the owner. So to avoid this, the vehicle should be driven at optimum speed, and sudden accelerations should be avoided. Perform periodic coolant system flush at regular intervals as directed by the manufactures. Maintaining the health of the brakes Electric cars come blessed with a unique feature currently just available to them; which is regenerative braking. To explain what it is, let's consider the moment when while driving, we take our foot off the accelerator, and the car starts to come to a halt. EV motors use this part of driving to generate back some fuel to the battery pack; this is called regenerative braking. The electric vehicles are quite remarkably heavy in itself, so using conventional braking regularly would be mean regular wear and tears to the brake pads and discs. So to maintain the top health of the vehicle, drivers should resort to regenerative braking even inside the city by anticipating the traffic flow and curtailing the tendency of hard braking. Battery care is the essence of electric car maintenance For an EV, batteries are of more importance than the engine itself; this makes it an essential part of the maintenance regime followed for the vehicle. A huge 500 kg battery in a standard EV consists of 100 large lithium-ion cells utilising materials such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese. One of the significant limitations of these batteries is that they have a limited lifespan. So to get the best of it avoid quick charging to the most extent. Fast charging regularly takes a hit on battery life. Try and charge the battery up to 80 % of its capacity through standard charging and home charging stations at home for regular daily drives. Try and avoid overcharging the vehicle as much as possible by setting a timer and fixing the charging time, which can help decrease the electricity bill and increase the longevity of your car.