By Kamlesh and Raphae

The PluginIndia team recently met some members of the Tata Motors RnD team and we were discussing about the Nexon EV's performance in the market. In this article, we document certain charging tips that are were mentioned to us by the Nexon EV team, that will significantly boost battery health.

By Raphae Halim

We share a useful writeup with beautiful pictorial illustrations by team LightSpeed on how to take care of your e-Bike in the rains!
Great job, team LightSpeed!  Amazing!

By Shikha Krishna

Adopting Electric mobility within your organisation, would not just benefit your bottom-line but it can truly set you apart in the league.

By Sonendra 
Mr Sonendra from Lucknow, shares his Real Life EV Story!
He modified his Hero Electric Photon which had a Lead Acid battery into a super duper Lithium-Ion based e-Scooter!
Do read to find out more and also watch his video!

By Kedar Soman​

Recently I read some posts about companies and groups that were interested in building charging infrastructure in India. Charging infra is crucial part of Electric vehicle spreading. It suffers from age old chicken or egg problem. Since there aren't enough EV's to justify large charging infrastructure, there isn't enough push to build and since there isn't enough push, EV adoption in the society is hampered.

It's very encouraging to see someone trying to build this paradoxical problem. Because it's high time.

This is my attempt to articulate charging needs if I were to buy an EV. Being an engineer, I love to put numbers on my thoughts. So here it goes.

By Kedar Soman

For a while now I have had this obsession with electric vehicles. I can’t seem to stop dreaming about the whole world using electric vehicles and solar energy. Can’t stop dreaming about that feel of clean crisp air in my lungs when I take a deep breathe, that so far I get only in deep mountains. 
Some point I will buy an electric vehicle for sure. But I have been hanging out with this cool group of electric vehicle enthusiasts in Mumbai and one thing they seem to be working on is spreading charging infrastructure. We are brainstorming some ideas of how to spread the infrastructure, but I decided to dip my toes in by, well, by creating a charging point in my parking spot. 
​Here I am going to outline the steps I needed to take, from start to finish to create such a charging point. Hope this helps others when they try to do the same.

By Kamlesh

The best practices used to charge batteries of gadgets like laptops, can also apply to the lithium-ion batteries of electric cars and e-bikes.  If you have an EV, it makes sense to follow these bests practices, as lithium-ion batteries for automobiles can be very expensive.  You might want to keep them healthy and happy for many years. 

By Kamlesh Mallick

Most urban dwellers in our country live in multi storied apartments. This can also be a hindrance to lots of people, who would like to own an electric vehicle. 

PluginIndia.com investigates on how big a problem this really is.

By  Kamlesh Mallick

Brr! Its freezing!   
Many people in our country hardly use this phrase, as it never cold in lots of places in India even in peak winter. India is a tropical country and with the Himalayas protecting us from the cold arctic winds, our winters are short and manageable. Although places above the tropic of Capricorn do experience night time temperatures between 0 to 10°C and temperatures plummet even lower in high altitudes.
Batteries used in Electric Vehicles function best at room temperature, and any deviation towards hot and cold changes the performance and/or longevity. Cold weather presents two main challenges for electric vehicles: cold air limits battery performance, and running the heater drains the battery. 
Batteries that would provide 100 percent capacity at 27°C will typically deliver only 50 percent at –18°C (0°F). The capacity decrease is linear with temperature.

By  Kamlesh Mallick

Batteries don't like Heat!  Heat is a killer of all batteries and high temperatures cannot always be avoided.  As we know, in India we are blessed with warm/hot weather for more than 6 months in a year in major cities and towns.

If you are an E-Bike rider using VRLA (Valve or Sealed Regulated Lead-Acid) batteries or an electric car owner with the latest Lithium-Ion battery packs, its important to understand and mitigate the effects of heat on your pack.