Electric Cars: The Basics
For those of you new to zero-emission electric driving, we recommend a read of the following articles:
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The All-Electric Abarth 500e Scorpionissima Hatchback
Though, both Abarth and Fiat are owned by the same parent company, the Netherlands based Stellantis N.V., there are significant differences in the positioning of the two brands. Abarth & C. S.p.A. is a high performance automotive manufacturer, based in Turin, Italy.
Abarth was founded in 1949 by Carlo Abarth, an Italian automobile designer. Move forward two decades, the company was acquired by Fiat (1971). In 2007, Abarth was re-launched as an independent automotive company and brand.
In fact, the company is keen to stress that Abarth is much more than just a sportier version of Fiat cars. The Abarth brand has grown from a ‘performance tuner’ to a ‘full grown brand’ and is currently sold in a number of international markets. Interestingly, Brazil is their largest market, even bigger than their home market, Italy. The brand has established a loyal following, which the company refers to as ‘tribe’.
The tribe has 160,000 members globally, across 95 clubs. The ethos of the brand is ‘small cars, big fun’. The company views itself as ‘performance creators’ and ‘in the business of wow factor’. Abarth is now committed to global expansion and a new lineup of cars. Watch this space!
The development of the all-electric Abarth, the first pure electric sports car, was ‘driven’, not only for environmental reason, but primarily for improving ‘performance’. Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) offer instant torque and immediate response. Bottom-line, the scorpion is back with an ‘electric sting’!
According to the manufacturer, the “New Abarth 500e is “more Abarth than EVer” thanks to its electric architecture, improved weight distribution, improved torque, and wider wheelbase. It is faster and more exciting in both urban and suburban driving”.
Keeping true to its legacy, the 500e incorporates a sound generator to replicate the brands legendary Abarth engine sound. Indeed, it is now common place for pure electric cars to have an onboard artificial sound generator, mostly, to warn pedestrians that an EV is in operation. The Abarth takes it to another level!
Like the all-electric Fiat 500e, the Abarth 500e targets primarily urban drivers, but the difference being, offering more ‘hardcore fun’ than the Fiat 500e. Like the Fiat 500e, the Abarth electric also offers an onboard 42 kWh EV battery. The manufacturer has not yet released the WLTP range for the EV, but we can expect it to be close to the claimed 320 km (WLTP) range of the Fiat 500 electric car. In any case, given that most commutes for urban driving are short, the 42 kW EV battery will offer a practical and useful electric range.
The Abarth EV offers DC rapid charging up to 85 kW as standard. The electric car can be charged up to 80% in 35 minutes. The EV also incorporates a 11 kW AC (3-phase) onboard charger. For those with access to three-phase charging at home or the workplace, the battery can be fully charged in 4 hours and 15 minutes. Do keep in mind that most homes in Ireland are powered by a single-phase power supply (7.4 kW), resulting in longer charging times.
Though the Abarth pure electric car can be charged via a domestic 3-PIN socket, we at e-zoomed discourage the use of a domestic socket to charge an electric car. It will take up to 15 hours and 15 minutes to charge the 42 kWh battery via a standard domestic plug. We encourage charging an electric car using a dedicated EV home charging station like myenergi zappi.
The Abarth electric car does not disappoint in terms of its exterior iconic appeal. The company has upgraded its iconic logo. The Abarth electric launches the new electrified Scorpion signature logo, in a sportier exterior styling. A number of design elements have been introduced to give the electric vehicle a more aggressive appearance. These include: a new sporty bumper, sporty lines of the lateral skirt, rear diffuser inserts, new titanium grey mirror caps and more!
The Abarth 500e Scorpionissima features as standard, the Uconnect radio touchscreen 10.25” with an integrated navigation system. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility is also available. The electric car also offers: dusk and rain sensors, keyless go, automatic climate control, automatic high low beam headlights, advanced 360° drone view sensor system, ultra-high-definition rear camera and more.
The EV also incorporates a number of driving safety aid, to include: traffic sign information, autonomous emergency brake with pedestrian and cyclist recognition, intelligent speed assistant, lane keeping assist, drowsy driver detection, blind spot warning and more. In terms of practicality, for urban driving, its compact size and turning circle are certainly useful. However, the rear seats are a tight squeeze for taller adults.
The front-wheel drive Abarth 500e can achieve 0-100 km/h in 7 seconds (by way of comparison, the Fiat 500e takes 9 seconds). The maximum power is up to 155 hp (235 Nm) and a 155 km/h top speed. The EV delivers 50% faster acceleration from 20 to 40 km/h compared to the internal combustion engine (ICE) variant.
The electric car offers 3 driving modes: Turismo, Scorpion Street and Scorpion Track. From the three available driving modes, the highest performance driving mode is the Scorpion Track. For those seeking smoother acceleration, the Turismo mode is the best option. In this mode, the performance is lower. The maximum available power is 100 kW instead of 113 kW, torque is 220 Nm, instead of 235 Nm.
Of course, for those keen to get the most of the available EV range, the Turismo range is most suitable. The Scorpion Street mode sits in between the two other mode, offering the best of both performance and regenerative braking! For those new to electric driving, follow this link to learn more!
The electric vehicle (EV) is only available as a limited edition, with 1949 units to be manufactured. A homage to the founding of the company in 1949. The launch edition is available as both a hatchback and cabrio. Prices have yet to be confirmed by the manufacturer, but of course, it will be higher than the Fiat electric car.
Bottom-line, electric driving is good for the environment and the wallet!
PROS | CONS |
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DC charging up to 85 kW | Rear seats with limited headroom and legroom |
Iconic and attractive exterior styling | Not practical for a larger family |
11 kW AC (3-Phase) onboard charger as standard | Only available in one EV battery size |
The All-Electric Abarth 500e Hatchback (credit: Abarth)
At A Glance | |
---|---|
EV Type: | Battery-Electric Vehicle (BEV) |
Body Type: | Hatchback |
Engine: | Electric |
Available In Ireland: | No |
Variants (1 Option) |
---|
Abarth 500e Launch Edition (from N/A) |
EV Battery & Emissions | |
---|---|
EV Battery Type: | Lithium-ion |
EV Battery Capacity: | Available in one size: 42 kWh |
Charging: | 85 kW DC Fast Charging (10%-80%: 35 mins). Onboard charger 11 kW AC (0%-100%: 4 hrs 15 mins) |
EV Cable Type: | Type 2 |
Tailpipe Emissions: | 0g (CO2/km) |
Battery Warranty: | 8 years or 160,000 km |
Average Cost Of Residential Charging | |
---|---|
Battery net capacity: 16.7 kWh | € 4.00 |
Battery net capacity: 30.0 kWh | € 7.19 |
Battery net capacity: 39.2 kWh | € 9.39 |
Battery net capacity: 45.0 kWh | € 10.78 |
Battery net capacity: 50.0 kWh | € 11.98 |
Battery net capacity: 64.0 kWh | € 15.34 |
Battery net capacity: 71.0 kWh | € 17.01 |
Battery net capacity: 77.0 kWh | € 18.45 |
Battery net capacity: 90.0 kWh | € 21.57 |
Battery net capacity: 100.0 kWh | € 23.97 |
- Note 1: The average cost of residential electricity in Ireland varies depending on the region, supplier and type of energy used. An average for Ireland is 23.97 cents/kWh.
- Note 2: Not all EV manufactures make available the data on net EV battery capacity, and in a number of instances the EV battery capacity advertised, does not state if it is gross or net capacity. In general, usable EV battery capacity is between 85% to 95% of the gross available capacity.
Charging Times (Overview) | |
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Slow charging AC (3 kW – 3.6 kW): | 6 – 12 hours (dependent on size of EV battery & SOC) |
Fast charging AC (7 kW – 22 kW): | 3 – 8 hours (dependent on size of EV battery & SoC) |
Rapid charging AC (43 kW): | 0-80%: 20 mins to 60 mins (dependent on size of EV battery & SoC) |
Rapid charging DC (50 kW+): | 0-80%: 20 mins to 60 mins (dependent on size of EV battery & SoC) |
Ultra rapid charging DC (150 kW+): | 0-80% : 20 mins to 40 mins (dependent on size of EV battery & SoC) |
Tesla Supercharger (120 kW – 250 kW): | 0-80%: up to 25 mins (dependent on size of EV battery & SoC) |
- Note 1: SoC: state of charge
Dimensions | |
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Height (mm): | 1527 |
Width (mm): | 1900 |
Length (mm): | 3632 |
Wheelbase (mm): | 2322 |
Turning Circle (m): | 9.3 |
Boot Space (L): | 185 |
500e Scorpionissima | |
---|---|
EV Battery Capacity: | 42 kWh |
Pure Electric Range (WLTP): | N/A |
Electric Consumption (kWh/100km): | N/A |
Charging: | 85 kW DC Fast Charging (10%-80%: 35 mins). Onboard charger 11 kW AC (0%-100%: 4 hrs 15 mins) |
Top Speed: | 155 km/h |
0-100 km/h: | 7 seconds |
Drive: | Front-wheel drive (FWD) |
Electric Motor (kW): | 113.7 |
Max Power (hp): | 155 |
Torque (Nm): | 235 |
Transmission: | Automatic |
Seats: | 4 |
Doors: | 3 |
Kerb Weight (kg): | N/A |
Colours: | 2 |
NCAP Safety Rating: | N/A |
Solar And EV Charging: An Overview
The benefits of renewable energy, in particular, solar and wind energy, is already well established across Europe, and in other parts of the world. With the increase in sales of electric vehicles (EVs) over the past three years, the advantages of using clean and renewable energy has been further enhanced.
Firstly, on-site renewable energy can be used for powering both business premises and homes. For on-site generation, we have witnessed a significant increase in distributed clean energy generating plants i.e. many commercial buildings and residential buildings have become generators i.e. generating electricity on-site! Solar roof projects have been popular for such on-site generation installations.
The ongoing war in Ukraine has further amplified the need to develop energy security, not only at a national level, but also at a local level, to include, businesses and households. Those households and businesses that already generate and consume clean energy on-site have been spared the significant onslaught of energy price rise in 2022, which is expected to continue in 2023.
Installing solar panels on-site, mitigates the risks associated with energy price inflation, a significant contributor to costs for a business or a household. On-site renewable energy generation also impacts the environment positively. For those with electric vehicles (EVs), in particular, pure electric vehicles, we strongly encourage the use of renewable energy for EV charging. Of course, we also encourage the use of solar energy for charging a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV).
Apart from the significant cost benefit i.e. generating renewable energy is a nominal cost per kWh (after initial set-up/ installation costs), to achieve true zero-tailpipe emission electric driving, renewable energy needs to be used for EV charging. This is also known as ‘well-to-wheel’. Just one electric car on the road can save an average of 1.5 million grams of CO2.
The good news for electric car owners is that a number of EV charging stations are now compatible with solar/ wind generation and battery storage. The UK manufacturer myenergi zappi is a good example of a solar/ wind compatible EV charger.
We encourage business and households to adopt an on-site ecosystem of ‘renewable energy-battery storage-EV charging’, to gain the maximum from the advantages of low carbon generation and zero-emission electric driving. Bottom-line, renewable energy is good for the environment and the wallet!
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