EV general discussion

**DoubleChevron** · 4th January 2026, 06:23 PM

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

The only multiple 350 plus I know is near me at Torquay. It has 2x 350 2 or 4 50kwh and several lower granny chargers for guests RACV Torquay Resort | Jan Juc, VIC | EV Station
There was one at Ballarat which was smashed up by people who hate EVs apparently. All of them go at 100%.

Fully agree with most lesser places that may half the charge rate like the one in Port Fairy. It has a CCS and another [COLOR=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87)]CHAdeMO[/COLOR][COLOR=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87)][/COLOR]type which is hardly used in my use there. It does go to 25 if the other plug is used. Your correct in assuming ramping and waiting for some at times. with so many options now I just skip to the next option usually. Portland, Warrnambool, Camperdown and Colac or others just of the main highway.

I am a electric jesus disliker. Dozens of those type are fequently skipped for the better price by other networks or just my very bias view on defimation and tirllion 4 pay packet for losing sales for two years running by that VIP

It was a PITA before with very few choices with my hospital runs for a few years.

Cool bit is you do it your way and I do it my way. No more chemo express runs means I have more time now.

Off topic- Doing a HR truck license again this week as my Navy one has clearly expired. Be warned I am likely to be in 13+ tonne driving mode at times again now

Hopefully not often with lights and sirens. It will be big and slow of course

Apparently I can go a bit over speed with code one runs. I note the loaded fire truck is incapable of the 110kpm freebie in Code One unless a downhill slope perhaps

That is interesting. Crazy places to put the high speed chargers really (then again, they are the affluent areas where people will buy EVs and be willing to charge them). I would have expected the high current charges to be at all the "average" recharge points on the major arterial highways across australia. It is quite remarkable they would put them at places like torquay ... then again, it is where the wealthy poeple that would own EVs are, so it doesn't make sense (or should I say where there holidays houses are located).

**DoubleChevron** · 5th January 2026, 08:23 AM

The hand wringing and complaints on here about the twin cab ute being a tax writeoff.....

https://www.drive.com.au/news/fbt-ex...medium=partner

EVs have no cost the 1.35 billion (with a

with the FBT exemptions

The NSW government is slinging at least $5000 a vehicle at any company keen to switch its fleet to EVs - Startup Daily

And more freebies and gifts from us poor tax payers. $5,000 -> $50,000 per vehicle of tax payer funded freebies if you wish to get and electric throw-away for your company.

it just defies belief. Why waste the $$$ here. Aged care and housing is where any revenue that exists to be thrown away needs to be spent.

**NavyDiver** · 6th January 2026, 10:49 AM

World’s First Solid-State Production Vehicle | Say Goodbye to Range Anxiety

The first sort of as Ducatti Qauntumscape rocket was 2025

The Future of Powering Electric Vehicles Is Here Today with Donut Lab Introducing New High-Performance Solid State Donut Batteries Ready for OEM Use Now and Powering All 2026 Model Verge Motorcycles On the Road in Q1 2026.
Always innovating and delivering new forms of electrification, Donut Lab shapes the future of mobility by relentlessly pushing the limits of electric vehicle performance while successfully bringing its technology to market as seen in Verge Motorcycles and other OEM brands across the global transportation sector. Now Donut Lab is proud to introduce the world’s first solid-state battery that is ready for use in OEM vehicle manufacturing. Donut Lab solid-state batteries will be placed immediately on the road, powering Verge Motorcycles’ current lineup, including the Verge TS Pro and Ultra.
“While the advantages are obvious, the future of solid state batteries has been a moving target constantly delayed when companies working in electrification are asked about when they will become a reality,” comments Donut Lab CEO Marko Lehtimäki. “At Donut Lab, our answer on solid state batteries being ready for use in OEM production vehicles is now, today, not later. Donut Lab has engineered a new high performance solid state Donut Battery that can be scaled to major production volumes and seen now in real world use in the Verge Motorcycles bikes out on the road in Q1.”

The record I missed

Can the batteries work on Salt water?

they claim "

Lower cost than lithium ion.
Designed for scalable production across all applications.

" Battery - Donut Lab

**NavyDiver** · 6th January 2026, 11:05 AM

final thoughts- Over claimed over hyped and lots of questions

Summary: Which is "Better"?

Choose QuantumScape if you are looking for the technology most likely to power the next generation of mass-market electric sedans and SUVs (like those from VW or Audi). They have the most peer-reviewed data and the strongest manufacturing partnerships.
Choose Donut Lab if you are looking for immediate application and "impossible" specs. If their claims of 100,000 cycles and 5-minute charging hold up in independent real-world testing, they will have fundamentally leaped over the entire battery industry.

Note on Skepticism: Many industry analysts remain cautious about Donut Lab's 100,000-cycle claim, as it is an order of magnitude higher than any other known solid-state chemistry. The next few months of Verge Motorcycle deliveries will be the ultimate "stress test" for these claims.

**DoubleChevron** · 6th January 2026, 11:16 AM

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

final thoughts- Over claimed over hyped and lots of questions

Summary: Which is "Better"?

Choose QuantumScape if you are looking for the technology most likely to power the next generation of mass-market electric sedans and SUVs (like those from VW or Audi). They have the most peer-reviewed data and the strongest manufacturing partnerships.
Choose Donut Lab if you are looking for immediate application and "impossible" specs. If their claims of 100,000 cycles and 5-minute charging hold up in independent real-world testing, they will have fundamentally leaped over the entire battery industry.

Note on Skepticism: Many industry analysts remain cautious about Donut Lab's 100,000-cycle claim, as it is an order of magnitude higher than any other known solid-state chemistry. The next few months of Verge Motorcycle deliveries will be the ultimate "stress test" for these claims.

I don't really see "cycles" of charge/discharge as really an issue. Unless you are using it as commercial transport (eg: Taxi). The issue will be how long does the battery chemistry last? Think of your laptop battery. How many cycles do most do versus the age they die at. I know mine probably hasn't been unplugged in two years and has never been cycled charged/discharged. It will still die at the 5 -> 8 years of age though. Even though in theory it has 99,999 cycles left.

**RANDLOVER** · 6th January 2026, 11:40 AM

I've seen two other solutions to motorbike range anxiety, in Africa where they'd converted petrol ones to electric they had a battery box where the engine used to be and they'd just swapped the 12v car batteries out in a few minutes at the taxi workshops.

In Vietnam they use two lithium ion batteries to power their mopeds, and have vending machines where riders swap used battery packs for fully charged ones. Also just takes a couple of minutes.

**DoubleChevron** · 6th January 2026, 12:43 PM

Originally Posted by RANDLOVER

I've seen two other solutions to motorbike range anxiety, in Africa where they'd converted petrol ones to electric they had a battery box where the engine used to be and they'd just swapped the 12v car batteries out in a few minutes at the taxi workshops.

In Vietnam they use two lithium ion batteries to power their mopeds, and have vending machines where riders swap used battery packs for fully charged ones. Also just takes a couple of minutes.

Sounds like an enormous amount of effort compared to just putting a few litres of fuel in a tank. Infact with a proper motorbike, you can just carry a jerry can with you and give yourself hundreds of more kms range.

It appears very few want an electric throw-away motorbike either. I would have thought they would be the perfect commuter (low daily milage) type motorbike you could buy

**scarry** · 6th January 2026, 03:53 PM

Originally Posted by DoubleChevron

It appears very few want an electric throw-away motorbike either. ]

We were in Vietnam a couple of months ago and quite a few of them were electric.

Around 15% of the 77Million,apparently.

Evs are pretty common as well,particularly taxis.Vietnam have their own brand of vehicles,Vinfast,only Evs.They stopped making ICE vehicles.

**V8Ian** · 6th January 2026, 09:25 PM

Originally Posted by DoubleChevron

Sounds like an enormous amount of effort compared to just putting a few litres of fuel in a tank. Infact with a proper motorbike, you can just carry a jerry can with you and give yourself hundreds of more kms range.

It appears very few want an electric throw-away motorbike either. I would have thought they would be the perfect commuter (low daily milage) type motorbike you could buy

How did we know you'd bag it? EVs are no more throw away than any modern vehicle
Your constant claim of electric throw away, indicates that you are trying to convince yourself, rather than us.

**NavyDiver** · 7th January 2026, 06:34 AM

Originally Posted by V8Ian

How did we know you'd bag it? EVs are no more throw away than any modern vehicle
Your constant claim of electric throw away, indicates that you are trying to convince yourself, rather than us.

Timeframe is a legitimate question. Death and taxes only certainty

"The Cycle of Automotive Skepticism."

Charging availability and quality are reasonable questions. Years ago, Japanese cars were bagged as cheap and nasty by Ford/Holden mad aussies. My Lada ute was both those thing

The Korean cars took the can from Japan for a while.

If you drove a Datsun or early Toyota in 1970s Australia, you were often ridiculed by the Ford/Holden faithful. The perception was that Japanese tin was thin rust buckets, the engines were like sewing machines, and they wouldn't last a summer on corrugated corrugated roads.

The Reality: They were actually over-engineered. They didn't leak oil like the British cars, and they started every time. The Result: Toyota may now be the undisputed king of the Australian bush? The skepticism was wrong; the "nasty" cars were actually just better than what we were used to.

Skepticism is a healthy survival instinct. Not every new entrant is a hidden gem. Lada (and to an extent, the early Proton Jumbucks) failed because they didn't solve the core problems of Australian driving. They rusted, the plastics turned to dust, and the electrics were a suggestion rather than a system. Great fun on the beach fishing and outback untill the gear box or rust over came them

In the 90s, the Hyundai Excel was $13,990 drive-away. It was seen as a disposable car. If you bought a Kia, people asked if it came with a spare ham. They were viewed as the "Lada" of the 90s. The Reality: They were rough but rapidly improving. They hired European designers and German engineers.

The Result: Today, a Hyundai Ioniq 5 or a Kia EV6 is considered premium tech. They are winning "Car of the Year" awards over Mercedes and BMW. The "cheap" tag is long gone

We are currently treating EVs (and specifically the Chinese brands like BYD and MG) exactly how we treated Japanese cars in the 70s and Korean cars in the 90s. Pretty sure Electric Jesus comment on Chinese EVs a few years ago would be embarrassing for most of us. He is special of course

The "Range" is the new "Reliability": Decades ago, you carried a spare fan belt and radiator hose in the boot of the Kingswood. Today, I plan my trip around charging stops which does take a time hit some cannot afford.

EV charging availability as a "reasonable question." It is the legitimate hurdle of this generation.

Japanese cars had to prove they wouldn't fall apart.
Korean cars had to prove they weren't disposable.
EVs don't have to prove the car works (the motors are million-kilometer units); they have to prove the network works.

If history repeats itself, in a few years, worrying about finding a charger will feel as outdated as worrying about a Toyota overheating on the Hume Highway.
It's not here yet clearly. My disco with long range tanks was a tool to replicate. I don't think I mentioned how small most of the cars in the UK were? Petrol or EVs. Most of them might look funny plus on a trip up the Hume or a lap around Oz

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