Electric Vehicles in Thailand

[firefly17]

Decided against purchasing a C40 after researching range figures on various YouTube tests. Much higher consumption per mile than anything else. Not sure how Volvo can claim 'up to 590km'. It's just so far from the truth. Wd be lucky to see 375km in normal driving, as for motorway driving, it's around 250km.

[Puccini]

The EV charging station in Sena Fest, Khlong San, Bangkok seems to be the nearest public charging station to The River condominium. What is the current price per kW there?

[Sophon]

5 hours ago, Puccini said:

The EV charging station in Sena Fest, Khlong San, Bangkok seems to be the nearest public charging station to The River condominium. What is the current price per kW there?

According to Plugshare 6.5 baht/kWh:

[KhunLA]

1 hour ago, Sophon said:

According to Plugshare 6.5 baht/kWh:

I don't think we've paid over ฿7.5 / kWh.   I always use negative figures of ฿8 / kWh when posting about CS cost, so nobody is surprised when paying.  

 

Same with home charging, and use ฿5/kWh, though yet to pay more than ฿3.8, since monthly usage is so small, if any, or payment needed.

 

฿8/kWh is good to use when O&A, and yet to be charged that.  Using MG CS, EV Station PluZ or PEA Volta vendors.

 

PlugShare is good accurate site

Charge Loma app, is good to have also.

[matchar]

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

I don't think we've paid over ฿7.5 / kWh.   I always use negative figures of ฿8 / kWh when posting about CS cost, so nobody is surprised when paying.  

 

Same with home charging, and use ฿5/kWh, though yet to pay more than ฿3.8, since monthly usage is so small, if any, or payment needed.

 

฿8/kWh is good to use when O&A, and yet to be charged that.  Using MG CS, EV Station PluZ or PEA Volta vendors.

 

PlugShare is good accurate site

Charge Loma app, is good to have also.

I just looked up the charging stations at my local Central on PlugShare and it seems quite expensive:

On-ion, Pile E12-G12, 60 THB/hr, 7kw

60THB/hr, fractional will be counted as full hour

[KhunLA]

3 minutes ago, matchar said:

I just looked up the charging stations at my local Central on PlugShare and it seems quite expensive:

On-ion, Pile E12-G12, 60 THB/hr, 7kw

60THB/hr, fractional will be counted as full hour

Yea, I'm not getting the ones that charge by the hour, especially @ their silly 7kWh rate.   

 

I see another, 22kWh @ ฿60 per hour, slow, but actually works out to be inexpensive, if actually 22kwh received @ ฿2.7272/kWh.   OK if at the mall or somewhere needing or wanting to be.  But not on the road, as can top up from 25ish % in 45 minutes at faster CS (50-75kWh), and much faster if stopping at around the 80% mark.

 

That last 15-20% slows things down a bit.  Add another 5-7 mins if completely balancing the cells, though most don't and stop as soon as it hits 100%.

 

I notice most (if in the car) MG CS will hit 100%, then takes another 6 ish mins to complete, assume balancing the cells.  Other CS simply stop at 100%.  And the computed range in 'eco' mode will be 359 kms instead of 360 ????

[Yellowtail]

At Central I just hang the cord on my back wheel to get good parking. 

[CLW]

On 6/29/2023 at 10:57 AM, Bandersnatch said:

Mini car show at my local Robinson so asked about Hyundai Ioniq 5 and 6 coming to Thailand expecting a “don’t know”

 

“Both coming at the end of this year”

 

 

Yeah, coming to Thailand for a price tag 2+ million baht

[Issanman]

 

[mogandave]

Best parking spots at Siam Square:

 

 

 

[Bandersnatch]

16 hours ago, Issanman said:

 

@Issanman - this guy always gets quoted by EV haters. He never has anything positive to say about any EVs.

 

We have already discussed the the Dolphin and MG4 and the consensus was the MG4 was the better car.

 

This guy clearly hasn’t even see this car in person or he would have posted his own pictures not pics that he found on the internet.

 

Are we really supposed to take a reviewer seriously when they haven’t even sat in the car!

 

I have seen this car in person and can say that it’s very roomy inside far more so that an equivalent sized ICE car as it has wheels at the corners.

 

Pictures that I took at this year’s Bangkok Motor show:

 

 

 

 

.

 

 

Edited July 1, 2023 by Bandersnatch

[matchar]

The top gear review of the dolphin isn't very favourable either (with some caveats) and they gave the MG 4 a 9/10.

https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/dolphin/first-drive

[Bandersnatch]

19 minutes ago, matchar said:

The top gear review of the dolphin isn't very favourable either (with some caveats) and they gave the MG 4 a 9/10.

https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/dolphin/first-drive

Happy to see a review by someone who has actually seen the car. TG did say the car tested was not the UK spec car and “TG will test again when the car is in the UK and update our findings”

[Bandersnatch]

Just now, Bandersnatch said:

Happy to see a review by someone who has actually seen the car. TG did say the car tested was not the UK spec car and “TG will test again when the car is in the UK and update our findings”

I have posted previously that the BYD Seal has been seen testing in Bangkok before it’s launch here. 

 

[Yellowtail]

35 minutes ago, Bandersnatch said:

@Issanman - this guy always gets quoted by EV haters. He never has anything positive to say about any EVs.

 

We have already discussed the the Dolphin and MG4 and the consensus was the MG4 was the better car.

 

This guy clearly hasn’t even see this car in person or he would have posted his own pictures not pics that he found on the internet.

 

Are we really supposed to take a reviewer seriously when they haven’t even sat in the car!

 

I have seen this car in person and can say that it’s very roomy inside far more so that an equivalent sized ICE car as it has wheels at the corners.

 

Pictures that I took at this year’s Bangkok Motor show:

 

Was he not mostly going by information provided by the manufacturers? 

[JBChiangRai]

Having watched the video and read the top gear review, my advice to anyone thinking about the Dolphin would be don't be one of the first ordering it.  Wait and see how the market reacts.

 

Thai's love performance, if it delivers pedestrian performance it's going to be bad news on the second-hand car market.

 

I'm reminded of the Suzuki Ciaz versus the Honda City, both almost identical to look at, one of them only has 90 hp, the other 120 hp, the low powered one loses 50% of it's value in year 1 because the Thai's don't want it.

[RMD1]

ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGERS FOR HOME:

Does anybody know what a good electric vehicle home charger (level 2) is?  

I am looking for the highest power that can plug directly into the wall socket and not need to be wired up directly into the electrical box.

The Feyree brand looks good but it seems to only have a 3.5kw option that plugs into the wall … any higher looks like it needs special wiring.

My Lexus RZ450e arrives on Monday ????

[JBChiangRai]

8 minutes ago, RMD1 said:

ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGERS FOR HOME:

Does anybody know what a good electric vehicle home charger (level 2) is?  

I am looking for the highest power that can plug directly into the wall socket and not need to be wired up directly into the electrical box.

The Feyree brand looks good but it seems to only have a 3.5kw option that plugs into the wall … any higher looks like it needs special wiring.

My Lexus RZ450e arrives on Monday ????

16 amp (around 3.5Kw) is the most you can plug into a wall socket, but I wouldn't advise it.

 

I would stick to around 10 amps, the reason being that wall sockets are rated for a short time at 16 amps, but you risk a fire if you do it longer.  Your car probably comes with a charger rated about 10 amps.

 

I had a Feyree and it failed the first day, local guy took it apart and couldn't fix it.  If you want 16 amps then ask your electrician to fit a blue industrial 16 amp socket and buy a charger with a 16 amp plug on it, but if your supply is adequate, might as well fit a 32 amp blue industrial socket and go for a 7.2kw charger with plug on it (cables/breaker etc to match, i.e. one size larger on the breaker)

Edited July 1, 2023 by JBChiangRai

[Issanman]

47 minutes ago, Bandersnatch said:

@Issanman - this guy always gets quoted by EV haters. He never has anything positive to say about any EVs.

 

We have already discussed the the Dolphin and MG4 and the consensus was the MG4 was the better car.

 

This guy clearly hasn’t even see this car in person or he would have posted his own pictures not pics that he found on the internet.

 

Are we really supposed to take a reviewer seriously when they haven’t even sat in the car!

 

I have seen this car in person and can say that it’s very roomy inside far more so that an equivalent sized ICE car as it has wheels at the corners.

 

I posted it because it was a brand new review that seemed relevant to this thread as the Dolphin is one of the models under discussion. But it did seem that he was only comparing the specs without having a car.

 

My personal opinion is that everyone should buy Teslas.

They are actually very cost competitive, even in Thailand. 

 

A very good friend loaned me a Tesla Model X P100D for a week while I was in Florida. I'm a believer.

 

Full disclosure: I own shares of Tesla stock.

 

 

 

[Bandersnatch]

9 minutes ago, Issanman said:

I posted it because it was a brand new review that seemed relevant to this thread as the Dolphin is one of the models under discussion. But it did seem that he was only comparing the specs without having a car.

 

My personal opinion is that everyone should buy Teslas.

They are actually very cost competitive, even in Thailand. 

 

A very good friend loaned me a Tesla Model X P100D for a week while I was in Florida. I'm a believer.

 

Full disclosure: I own shares of Tesla stock.

 

 

 

Tesla model 3 Highland and model Y Juniper are both on my shortlist for my next EV, but I will also consider other cars including BYDs.
 

[Bandersnatch]

48 minutes ago, RMD1 said:

ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGERS FOR HOME:

Does anybody know what a good electric vehicle home charger (level 2) is?  

I am looking for the highest power that can plug directly into the wall socket and not need to be wired up directly into the electrical box.

The Feyree brand looks good but it seems to only have a 3.5kw option that plugs into the wall … any higher looks like it needs special wiring.

My Lexus RZ450e arrives on Monday ????

Are you certain that the car is not supplied with any chargers? I got a free mobile charger and a wall charger.

[transam]

5 minutes ago, Bandersnatch said:

Are you certain that the car is not supplied with any chargers? I got a free mobile charger and a wall charger.

Was that from MG....?

[Bandersnatch]

52 minutes ago, JBChiangRai said:

Having watched the video and read the top gear review, my advice to anyone thinking about the Dolphin would be don't be one of the first ordering it.  Wait and see how the market reacts.

 

Thai's love performance, if it delivers pedestrian performance it's going to be bad news on the second-hand car market.

 

I'm reminded of the Suzuki Ciaz versus the Honda City, both almost identical to look at, one of them only has 90 hp, the other 120 hp, the low powered one loses 50% of it's value in year 1 because the Thai's don't want it.

At the Bangkok motor show it seemed to be mostly women looking at the Dolphin. BYD probably had this in mind by choosing and pinkie purple colour. 
 

The 0-100km/h time maybe slow, but being an EV it will have instant torque which will probably fine for BKK traffic.

 

 

 

 

 

[vinny41]

150,000 baht discount ! TESLA Model 3 : 1,659,000 – 2,159,000 baht (imported CBU) | Free first class insurance

https://autolifethailand.tv/discount-tesla-model3-thailand-round2/

[BKKBike09]

 

 

Some random thoughts after 6 months / 7500 km of BYD Atto 3 ownership (the 'Extended Range' one).

 

Generally-speaking I like the car and would recommend to anyone looking to buy an EV that doesn't cost too much and has reasonable performance and range. Build quality and materials are good and nothing has broken yet / started rattling / leaking etc.

 

Around town (Bangkok) it's way more comfortable and relaxing to drive than my other car (a Scirocco). Only need to charge every week or so and I would say the published range estimate of 420 km is not unrealistic for urban driving.

 

On the highway it's still comfortable and relaxing but wallows in corners and doesn't track very well on poor highway surfaces. I'm hoping it will be improved with better tyres and a suspension upgrade. However the instant torque is great for overtaking. 

 

At sustained speeds of 110-120 kmh the range goes down considerably. I just made a quick trip to Jomtien and back: started with 95% battery and got home showing 15% and range 78km. Trip was total 300 km so basically 40% battery to do 150 km. My sense of usable range for Atto 3 Extended Range at reasonable highway speeds (110-120) is 350 km; this also tallies with the average battery consumption figure of around 17-18 kwh/100km on the highway. Around town it's around 14-15. 

 

It's important to note that the range displayed is the 'theoretical' range, not real-time adjusted based on actual use. In some markets there's an option to select a real-time estimate, but not here. Dumb. I nearly alway leave the drive mode in Sport; I've tried highway trips using Normal and Eco and don't think it makes much difference to range/consumption. 

 

I would be nervous trying to do this (a 300 km trip) in the 100K cheaper 50kw Atto. I don't really see the point of buying this model: the more battery capacity in an EV the better. Plus I expect second-hand demand will be heavily focused on the bigger battery model, especially in a couple of years when even 60 kw will seem like 'entry-level'.

 

 

 

 

[Andrew Dwyer]

6 minutes ago, BKKBike09 said:

 

 

Some random thoughts after 6 months / 7500 km of BYD Atto 3 ownership (the 'Extended Range' one).

 

Generally-speaking I like the car and would recommend to anyone looking to buy an EV that doesn't cost too much and has reasonable performance and range. Build quality and materials are good and nothing has broken yet / started rattling / leaking etc.

 

Around town (Bangkok) it's way more comfortable and relaxing to drive than my other car (a Scirocco). Only need to charge every week or so and I would say the published range estimate of 420 km is not unrealistic for urban driving.

 

On the highway it's still comfortable and relaxing but wallows in corners and doesn't track very well on poor highway surfaces. I'm hoping it will be improved with better tyres and a suspension upgrade. However the instant torque is great for overtaking. 

 

At sustained speeds of 110-120 kmh the range goes down considerably. I just made a quick trip to Jomtien and back: started with 95% battery and got home showing 15% and range 78km. Trip was total 300 km so basically 40% battery to do 150 km. My sense of usable range for Atto 3 Extended Range at reasonable highway speeds (110-120) is 350 km; this also tallies with the average battery consumption figure of around 17-18 kwh/100km on the highway. Around town it's around 14-15. 

 

It's important to note that the range displayed is the 'theoretical' range, not real-time adjusted based on actual use. In some markets there's an option to select a real-time estimate, but not here. Dumb. I nearly alway leave the drive mode in Sport; I've tried highway trips using Normal and Eco and don't think it makes much difference to range/consumption. 

 

I would be nervous trying to do this (a 300 km trip) in the 100K cheaper 50kw Atto. I don't really see the point of buying this model: the more battery capacity in an EV the better. Plus I expect second-hand demand will be heavily focused on the bigger battery model, especially in a couple of years when even 60 kw will seem like 'entry-level'.

 

 

 

 

Thanks for the update, always good to get a first hand report .

 

I noticed recently that the “ Batman “ moniker had been dropped from a car at a mini motor show near me and only stated Atlas, whether it was the same spec tyre I don’t know. Also the European version was destined to get a Continental tyre on their Atto 3’s with a small spec change.

 

Also seen on FB many have upgraded the shocks and springs at a 27/28k price, some hopefuls trying to sell the old parts.

 

 The Atto 3 certainly seems to have sold well and am seeing far more of these on the roads than any of the other EV’s.

 

[josephbloggs]

6 hours ago, Issanman said:

I posted it because it was a brand new review that seemed relevant to this thread as the Dolphin is one of the models under discussion. But it did seem that he was only comparing the specs without having a car.

 

My personal opinion is that everyone should buy Teslas.

They are actually very cost competitive, even in Thailand. 

 

A very good friend loaned me a Tesla Model X P100D for a week while I was in Florida. I'm a believer.

 

Full disclosure: I own shares of Tesla stock.

 

 

 

I admire Teslas for the technology and the fact they really changed the industry. I have ridden in a few as Ubers in Dubai and they are cool, but I find them pretty ugly and dumpy and not special. I am all for EVs and my next car will definitely be one, but Teslas just don't do it for me. Almost certainly I will go with an EX30 or one of the Chinese brands (depending on what's on the market in a year or so from now) - I don't think a Tesla will come in to the reckoning.

Not sure why I felt the need to post that but there you go.  ????

[KhunLA]

42 minutes ago, Andrew Dwyer said:

 The Atto 3 certainly seems to have sold well and am seeing far more of these on the roads than any of the other EV’s.

Also noticed more than a few Atto 3s while out & about lately.  Quite the nice looking ride. 

 

Along with the Ora Good Cat, though more of those 'locally', while driving between Krung Thep, Hua Hin & PKK & Kanchanaburi

[Yellowtail]

22 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Also noticed more than a few Atto 3s while out & about lately.  Quite the nice looking ride. 

 

Along with the Ora Good Cat, though more of those 'locally', while driving between Krung Thep, Hua Hin & PKK & Kanchanaburi

I like the look of the Goodcat, the Atto # not so much, but I see a lot of them. Quite a few of the Havel as well, and more and more Teslas. 

 

Nissan dealer close to me was converted to GWM, Havel & Goodcat dealer. 

[Yellowtail]

Who else is going?