EV drivers in South Africa struggling with panel beaters after crashes

JerryMungo said:
Here you go
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So basically if airbags deploy, the EV is effectively uneconomical to repair (aka a write-off).
Automatic Disconnects: If a crash triggers an airbag deployment or heavy impact, pyrotechnic safety switches disconnect the high-voltage battery from the rest of the vehicle in milliseconds. This makes the car body safe to touch and protects first responders.
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Binary_Bark said:
The issue is not just disconnecting the battery. These battery packs are quite fragile once removed and could trigger a cascade, even during removal, if not done properly with care. If one of the cells is accidentally punctured, the rest will go with it and can burn for a few days and keep catching fire.
Most of the current workshops around are not properly equipped to work with and deal with EVs
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Under normal conditions, an EV battery pack is encased in a rigid, heavy-duty titanium or high-strength steel structure. It is highly resistant to impact. Agree with the fire risk and runaway thermals, but it would be a significant accident to put you at major risk of battery fire. Driving on the road and the accident itself is the greater of the two risks.
 
Gordon_R said:
So basically if airbags deploy, the EV is effectively uneconomical to repair (aka a write-off).
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Disconnected battery is a safety aspect, nothing to do with write off. That said, almost any car is a write off in a significant accident. Mine was nearly a write off after it rolled into a pole on it's own steam without the engine.
 
Binary_Bark said:
The issue is not just disconnecting the battery. These battery packs are quite fragile once removed and could trigger a cascade, even during removal, if not done properly with care. If one of the cells is accidentally punctured, the rest will go with it and can burn for a few days and keep catching fire.
Most of the current workshops around are not properly equipped to work with and deal with EVs
Click to expand...
Fragile? There are about a million screws holding the cover on. You would have to try very hard to puncture a closed battery after it has been removed. Not even an EV workshop can stop a cascade.
 
wingnut771 said:
Fragile? There are about a million screws holding the cover on. You would have to try very hard to puncture a closed battery after it has been removed. Not even an EV workshop can stop a cascade.
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Never, ever underestimate the stupidity the human race can get. Backyard mechanics, quick-fix mechanics in the CBD, etc.
Years down the line, your neighbour's garage is catching fire because he heard of Steve around the corner who works on cars in his yard and charges very little
 
Binary_Bark said:
The issue is not just disconnecting the battery. These battery packs are quite fragile once removed and could trigger a cascade, even during removal, if not done properly with care. If one of the cells is accidentally punctured, the rest will go with it and can burn for a few days and keep catching fire.
Most of the current workshops around are not properly equipped to work with and deal with EVs
Click to expand...

A real selling point for EVs right there.
 
OutlawJoseyWales said:
A real selling point for EVs right there.
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To be fair, as stated previously, the risk of this is very small, unless you are Hammond rolling down a hill because you did not read "FINISH".
It's human stupidity and incompetence that are the issue

JerryMungo said:
Under normal conditions, an EV battery pack is encased in a rigid, heavy-duty titanium or high-strength steel structure. It is highly resistant to impact. Agree with the fire risk and runaway thermals, but it would be a significant accident to put you at major risk of battery fire. Driving on the road and the accident itself is the greater of the two risks.
Click to expand...
 
This is all a bit of a nothing burger. There are lots of these type of things with modern cars, petrol or electric where you don't have people trained on the advanced systems, or not having the correct tools, whether it is dealing on-board computers, to calibrating ADAS sensors and cameras.

My frikken windscreen replace on my 2012 Mercedes required a specialist to come do some calibration that couldn't be done by PG Glass themselves.

So we need more people trained and more equipment. We always do. The days of doing everything with a 10 spanner and a wrench has been over a long long time ago.

Interesting Ukraine has a cottage industry of fixing EVs that other countries write off. EVs in Ukraine. So maybe this "problem" is just people doing serious CYA and just trying to follow a flow chart and not using their brains.
 
Herr der Verboten said:
Dis beslis ’n groter probleem as wat baie mense besef. Elektriese en hibriede voertuie word al hoe meer algemeen op Suid-Afrikaanse paaie, maar ons herstelbedryf, versekeraars en selfs sommige handelaars is nog nie heeltemal gereed vir die praktiese werklikheid daarvan nie.

Met ’n gewone petrol- of dieselmotor kan ’n paneelklopper relatief vinnig bepaal wat beskadig is, onderdele bestel en die herstelwerk doen. Maar sodra ’n EV of ’n hibriede voertuig betrokke is, is daar ’n heeltemal ander vlak van risiko. Die hoëspanningsbattery, kabels, omsetters en ander HV-komponente kan lewensgevaarlik wees as iemand sonder die regte opleiding daaraan werk. Dit is dus verstaanbaar dat ’n paneelklopper nie sommer net aan so ’n voertuig wil begin werk sonder dat ’n gekwalifiseerde HV-tegnikus die motor veilig verklaar of die stelsel ontkoppel nie.

Die probleem is egter dat die kliënt uiteindelik die prys betaal. In hierdie geval klink dit asof die skade aan die GWM Ora 03 relatief gering was net die voorbuffer maar omdat dit ’n elektriese voertuig is, raak die proses skielik baie ingewikkelder. Die motor kan vir weke of selfs maande staan, nie noodwendig omdat die herstelwerk self so moeilik is nie, maar omdat daar nie genoeg mense beskikbaar is wat gemagtig en opgelei is om die HV-stelsel veilig te hanteer nie.

Dit wys ook ’n groter strukturele probleem in Suid-Afrika. Die mark beweeg vinniger as die vaardigheidsontwikkeling. Vervaardigers bring EV’s en hibriede modelle in, verbruikers begin dit koop, versekeraars dek dit, maar die naverkoop-ekosisteem is nog dun. Daar is nie genoeg opgeleide tegnici nie, nie genoeg goedgekeurde herstelnetwerke nie, en waarskynlik ook nie genoeg duidelike kommunikasie aan kopers oor wat gebeur as die voertuig in ’n ongeluk betrokke is nie.

Dit is iets wat motorvervaardigers ernstig moet aanspreek. As ’n handelsmerk EV’s in Suid-Afrika verkoop, behoort hulle ook seker te maak dat daar ’n voldoende nasionale netwerk van opgeleide tegnici, goedgekeurde paneelkloppers en beskikbare onderdele is. Dit help nie ’n voertuig lyk bekostigbaar en modern op papier, maar ná ’n ligte stamp sit die eienaar met ’n motor wat niemand vinnig kan herstel nie.

Versekeraars moet ook hul rol speel. Hulle behoort duidelik te weet watter herstelers werklik EV-gesertifiseer is, hoe lank sulke herstelwerk gemiddeld neem, en of daar genoeg kapasiteit is voordat hulle kliënte na sekere werkswinkels verwys. Anders beland die kliënt tussen die versekeraar, paneelklopper, handelaar en vervaardiger, met niemand wat volle verantwoordelikheid neem vir die vertraging nie.

Daar is ook ’n veiligheidsdimensie wat nie geïgnoreer kan word nie. Niemand wil hê ’n onopgeleide persoon moet aan ’n hoëspanningsvoertuig werk en beseer word nie. Maar veiligheid kan nie as ’n verskoning gebruik word vir ’n swak voorbereide stelsel nie. Die oplossing is nie om die risiko af te maak nie; die oplossing is om dringend meer mense op te lei en duidelike prosedures landswyd beskikbaar te stel.

Vir verbruikers beteken dit dat hulle voor die aankoop van ’n EV of hibriede motor baie meer vrae moet vra as net oor reikafstand, laaityd en brandstofbesparing. Hulle moet vra: Waar is die naaste HV-gekwalifiseerde tegnikus? Watter paneelkloppers mag aan hierdie voertuig werk? Hoe lank neem battery- en botsingsinspeksies? Is onderdele plaaslik beskikbaar? Wat gebeur as die voertuig in ’n ongeluk is ver van ’n groot stad af?

EV’s en hibriede motors is beslis deel van die toekoms, maar Suid-Afrika moet eerlik wees oor die huidige tekortkominge. Die voertuie kan uitstekend wees, maar sonder die regte herstel- en ondersteuningsnetwerk word selfs klein ongelukke ’n groot kopseer. Die industrie moet nou vinnig beweeg, anders gaan baie kopers eers ná ’n ongeluk uitvind dat die land se infrastruktuur vir EV-herstelwerk nog nie op dieselfde vlak as die verkoopsbemarking is nie..
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We really need a one-click translate button on this forum. I'm too lazy for Google lol
 
JerryMungo said:
Under normal conditions, an EV battery pack is encased in a rigid, heavy-duty titanium or high-strength steel structure. It is highly resistant to impact. Agree with the fire risk and runaway thermals, but it would be a significant accident to put you at major risk of battery fire. Driving on the road and the accident itself is the greater of the two risks.
Click to expand...

And not the kind of accident anyone would repair, so somewhat irrelevant really.
 
longboy said:
The main problem is how silent they run - one d00s decided to switch off the mandatory "engine noise" in his SUV...dangerous for pedestrains if a car is completely silent.
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As an EV owner,who loves EV's for everyday cars and long distance cars, I agree...even with the noise on pedestrians especially in parking lots get caught off guard often...need to be extra vigilant as a driver to not run them over,why anybody would be dof enough to turn it off is beyond comprehension.Maybe he wants to kill somebody.
 
longboy said:
The main problem is how silent they run - one d00s decided to switch off the mandatory "engine noise" in his SUV...dangerous for pedestrains if a car is completely silent.
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A lot of newer petrol cars are damn near silent too - especially if you're in a parking area or there's any background noise.
 
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