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Anonymous · ‎01-06-2021

As has come up on occasion here...I have the Chevy "Bolt EV". I just call it Bolt. Chevy already weirded things up naming it similarly to their earlier hybrid - Volt. Too similar speech method. What were they thinking. It's a great name but that's just silly.

Anyway: I had been thinking about EV's since the Leaf but the range wasn't useful living in a more rural area at the time. I had been eyeing the Bolt since it came out for 2017. Rated for 383km. Still expensive though certainly not like a Tesla. BC had a $5K rebate. Still expensive but a little better. BC car dealers also had the scrap-it rebate for up to $6K. Well ok maybe we need to look at this more. Then May '19 the feds came out with their $5K rebate. Alrighty then. I was in the door the morning it came out and scrapped my 1992 Geo Metro for six thousand dollars.

Love it. Not paying for gas all the time is awesome. Everybody has "gas" at home which of course is paid in the bill with all your other usage. In BC there are plenty of free chargers. The fast type along many highway corridors and the slower type at hotels or offered by towns and cities. Then there's an expanding network of other charging fast chargers.

It's also a little rocket. Even with my second car (now sold) one has to think about passing something on the highway. The Metro...fuggedaboudit. This little rocket boots out and flies around. Leaving people in the dust at lights still hasn't got old. You have to start a little easy at first otherwise you'd just sit there spinning tires there's so much power being applied to them.

The power regen going down hills and one pedal driving are amazing. One rarely needs to touch the brake pedal. Also some regen just slowing down.

If I were rich then maybe I would have looked more at a Tesla. But there's still the sort of warm comfort knowing the Bolt is good ol' Chevrolet.

Due to some circumstances, this will be my first winter using the car. Charging speed at fast chargers takes a bit of a hit as does range. You can maintain some control of power consumption but the batteries themselves take their own power to maintain their temperature. But we're still talking upwards to 300km.

As for fast charging traveling somewhere, yes you need to plan a little. So when you stop to charge then that's time to eat and stretch and other activities. It's just a shift in lifestyle of driving places. It's not hard. It's so doable in BC nowadays.

So that's my start.

darlicious · ‎05-19-2021

@Anonymous

Any luck getting that offer?

I discovered something new about my e-bike that suddenly made me realize why I don't like going over 25 km/hr. The speedometer/odometer is set for miles! ( It may say km but it is definetely in miles!)

Anonymous · ‎05-10-2021

@darlicious : Then quelle surprise an agent from an evil big bank lied to me. Sound familiar? 🙂 I'll see what happens after linking the petro-points to that other card. Until I can see the offers in my account anyway.

darlicious · ‎05-10-2021

@Anonymous

Apparently the eligible cards that will show up in your offers are only the ones you currently have with exception of your debit card as only the VIP card will get the offer. RFDers reported just about every RBC credit card offered was listed as eligible including the low interest visa and the westjet m/c. But unlinking/relinking was key to getting the offer to show up if it wasn't already appearing in "Offers".

Anonymous · ‎05-10-2021

@darlicious : Note those key words: "Eligible RBC Card". There are only two that are eligible. I've enrolled in the RBC Offers and it still says 4-6 weeks.

The spouse has a different RBC card that had already been enrolled and can view whatever offers are available and the EV one does not show up therefore I can't click Load Offer on it. That one is not linked to Petro-Points. Maybe I'll give that a whirl. I highly doubt it knowing these evil big banks.

Thanks for sticking to it. 🙂

darlicious · ‎05-10-2021

@Anonymous

Here's a better explanation of this promo for anyone interested....

still not clear/confirmed
>>oops I can't edit out above...ignore it.

I don't believe this is a YMMV offer as it is publicly posted on RBC's website. https://www.rbcroyalbank.com/petro-canada/

Here are the terms and conditions based on clicking the icon in the overview:

This offer is not transferable. To take advantage of this offer, you must sign in to RBC Online Banking and activate the offer by clicking the “Load Offer” button in the RBC Offers platform before you make your purchase. Once the offer has been activated, you will get a 100% refund for electric vehicle charging purchases via statement credit (« Statement Credit ») when you charge your electric vehicle at Petro-Canada EV locations (« Qualifying Purchase »), between May 1 2021 – April 30 2022 inclusively (« Offer Period ») and pay using one of your eligible linked RBC Royal Bank credit or debit card(s) shown in the RBC Offers platform (« Eligible RBC Card »). USD currency accounts and credit cards are excluded from this offer. Please allow up to 30 days from the date of your Qualifying Purchase, provided your credit or banking account was in good standing at that time, for the Statement Credit to appear on the account statement tied to your Eligible RBC Card. Please note that if you paid for your Qualifying Purchase using an Eligible RBC Card that is a credit card, the Statement Credit will not be applied as payment towards the balance of your credit card account. This offer may be combined or used in conjunction with any other offer, and cannot be applied retroactively to previous purchases. Royal Bank of Canada reserves the right to cancel, modify or withdraw this offer at any time.

To participate in this offer, you must have an RBC debit or credit card which is issued by Royal Bank of Canada (excluding RBC commercial credit cards) (“RBC Card”) that is linked to a Petro-Points card. Please click here for full terms and conditions.

Petro-Canada, and Canada’s Electric Highway are registered trademarks of Suncor Energy Inc. used with permission

I can only suggest that if you have done all this and the offer doesn't show up, then send a question to RBC in the secure online communications while logged into online banking and ask why the offer is advertised but not available to load.

Edit:

There are several posts confirming that you must...after calling RBC 2 days ago to enroll in "RBC Offers", I was able to opt in from the 'My Offers' tab in Online Banking now or unlink your rbc credit from your petro-can card/offers and relink them to have the offer show up a few days later in your rbc offers.

stevenanto · ‎05-09-2021

@Anonymous Yes, thanks to those early tesla adopters spending over 100k on these cars who can't do quite as much as the current ones can do at half that price.

Yes literally one day after I had posted I had seen that Flo was also found in other provinces on a facebook post.

Anonymous · ‎05-06-2021

@stevenanto : We do hear about fatal accidents, road closed due to fatal accident etc. But it seems like to us they go out of their way to add that it was an EV.

But this isn't just about fatal accidents. You never hear about the motorhome fire leaving a charred black surface and burned area around it. Or the truck towing a trailer. Or tire fires from stuck brakes. These are quite often over here in the mountains of BC. Up and down mountain passes hauling loads is pretty tough on a weak vehicle. All fine and dandy pounding along the prairies.

It's also a Tesla because there are so many of them. I still say thank you Tesla and its early-adopters for disrupting the market causing other manufacturers to jump in. But they're too rich for my blood.

I'm personally not interested in these partial self-driving things. I'm fine with warnings or even releasing cruise control/braking. But I'm driving this thing thank you very much.

When the day comes that a car does everything then sure. Hop in in your garage, tell it where you want to go and it whisks you off to your destination. We ain't there yet.

And flo is not just Quebec.

stevenanto · ‎05-06-2021

The fact of the matter is that there are so many articles out there that are just trashing EVs constantly. You wont have them covering articles about other ICE vehicles catching fire or getting accidents. Even reading through the comments in the article people are mentioning this. Guess which EV company is at the forefront of these targeted articles.....Tesla. Just yesterday they state that there was another crash where the driver died and others injured because the autopilot was on and crashed into an overturned truck.

Articles like this come up on the weekly. why dont they have articles that state "today a honda civic crashed and two died"?

On a Tesla, autopilot doesnt drive you completely, that is call FSD or full self driving. Autopilot is jsut cruise control while keeping you in the middle of the lane. So the regular non EV person thinks well look another automated car just crashed and people died. One needs to look at the total combined miles of all these cars driven on a daily basis and how often they have sever crashes. Cool thing about these EVs is that they have a sort of blackbox that they can check if certain things were engaged, but news articles couldn't care less about that.

Anonymous · ‎05-05-2021

@popping : Yes I know. I've been watching it all since November. The recent one still doesn't have all the facts. There are several variables.

Again...how many gas car fires happen? Many, many more per capita. One could go all conspiracy theory that the media pumps up EV fires rather than the constant gas car fires.

popping · ‎05-05-2021

https://electrek.co/2021/05/03/another-devastating-chevy-bolt-fire-just-days-after-fix-announced/

stevenanto · ‎05-04-2021

So I charged at work just for the heck to trying it out, it was ok. it charged at a rate of 41 km per hour. The car was plugged for just over hours and charged a total of 43.4KWH. This is a 30 amp flo charger which are found all over QC, im not sure if they are in other provinces as well

srlawren · ‎05-04-2021

@popping wrote:
@darlicious
Wow... $6k BC scrap it program...
Great. All I have are old cars...

@popping sorry just catching up with all the recent replies. I'm not sure which EV you're thinking of purchasing, but if it's a Tesla, unfortunately that seems to be the one brand of EV that's not eligible for the scrap-it program 😭. We would have taken advantage if it had been an option. There are other vehicles as expensive as a model 3/Y that are eligible, such as Mustang Mach-E, Polestar 2, Volvo XC40 recharge, etc (though all with a price cap to be eligible), so it's not a cost issue. Discussion I've seen elsewhere seems to think the issue is there's a clause that the EV has to be purchased from a participating dealer, so there's probably involvement of the Dealers Association, of which Tesla is definitely not a member (nor welcome).

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Anonymous · ‎05-04-2021

@darlicious : I just gotta say thanks for all the suggestions and ideas on this. These things get quickly overwhelming for me to keep track of. It's not something I do much at all. I want something. I find it. I go get it. I buy it.

Your stories of all the promos and coupons and codes etc are just amazing.

Thanks again for this one.

darlicious · ‎05-04-2021

@Anonymous

Oh well it was worth a look see and our conversation may help someone else who is already an RBC customer. And yes you have all of those other fees that I do not have for the most part or have figured out how to pay for otherwise.... I've never been a fan of apartments ( lived in a couple for a total of maybe 18 months my entire life) so the thought of owing one ( a condo) and paying a strata fee that can be as much as rent is a non-starter but to each his own.

I no longer have a cell phone bill(s), my internet is now $9.95, the optik tv is the next to go now that I have a couple of fire sticks and a digital antenna just in case, fortis, hydro and rent offset by a couple of roommates. No real debt to speak of other than the 15 months left in my O% 24 month financing I took advantage of with my cdn tire m/c when I bought my e-bike.

A free rec pass w/half price golf whenever I can stand and walk again for longer than 10 minutes. I can barely skate even when I had two good hips but I can still swim all day ( well just float if I want with my new covid-19lb built in pfd!🤣) I pay 75% of what most pay for groceries if they are not free....like cereal! Free or reduced camping fees, free fishing and hunting (?!!) licenses, 1/2 price and free companion ferry fares ( if I ever get around to applying for it!) Life is good....not the phones though!

Now all I need is a good bf with a job, a vehicle and his own place!😉

Anonymous · ‎05-04-2021

@darlicious : It's all becoming way too much bother (and overwhelming). I hate big banks to begin with. I would be loathe to give them money just for the privilege of being a customer with them. I hate everything to do with that business practice. Like Costco. Unfortunately for that front, the spouse likes Costco.

I pay monthly for electricity, internet, tv, WHP, strata fees. I pay annually for property taxes and car insurance and condo insurance. That's it. (iirc 🙂 ) This place is covered so I'm not paying for cell service. Other expenses are incidental, not obligatory. I am fortunate to not have any debts.

darlicious · ‎05-04-2021

@Anonymous

You may have to open an account first then apply.....you can also look into all the features of the VIP account including the Right Account Guarantee so there may be the $30 fee to be paid "up front" to then qualify have the card fees waived since the 35K in avion points offer does not specifically mention waiving the fees. I still think its worth an investigation for the promos. I have never downgraded my credit card......

https://www.rbcroyalbank.com/accounts/vip-banking.html?utm_dc=ks_SEG_78304016_90770062062_509510595821_kwd-346217132124_t&gclid=Cj0KCQjw4cOEBhDMARIsAA3XDRiv6ZFXeHDz6m5MX341SpbrVQFv5vhoOd057wNE2-Bf4alGLpMcuvQaApzMEALw_wcB

Anonymous · ‎05-04-2021

@darlicious : We don't do any other banking with RBC. I have a card with a pretty good limit that I used to use for a little sole-proprietorship business I once had. The spouse has the same one. We also have a WestJet one. No bank accounts, no mortgages nothing else to do with RBC.

Maybe I should inquire about the fee if it's up front and/or waivable. Then what would happen if I switch back down after this promo ends. Maybe. I put in a bunch of time with this already and it reassured my why I don't deal with big banks. But this is an enticing offer and wanting to kinda support it.

darlicious · ‎05-04-2021

@Anonymous

This is what I do....I switch to the $30 account about a week before my yearly fee is charged. They charge the fee to your credit card. A couple days later they rebate it back on your card. The I usually use all the free services I can that come with that account as I usually tell them I'm taking a trip which is why I'm switching ( so they don't try to offer me a different account). So I order checks, exchange money etc...then I switch back just before the month is over. Annual fee is paid. I have done this for 4 years now with no issues.

I was a little upset that the higher bank account fees will only be waived when your third financial product is a mortgage ( There's a big difference in mortages between metro Vancouver and Moosejaw!) so I think that policy is BS! However I do get my regular $4 fee waived for having a $500 GIC that earns me about $0.36 a year but saving $48 in fees is like getting a 10% return on my money.

Here is the current deal listed on rfd....

https://forums.redflagdeals.com/royal-bank-rbc-avion-visa-35k-points-upon-approval-no-minimum-spend-2459749/

This may interest you too for future reference if you can't use your points for travel.....

https://forums.redflagdeals.com/royal-bank-rbc-financial-rewards-sale-100pts-1-2459169/

Anonymous · ‎05-04-2021

@darlicious : I'm in the fortunate situation of having invested-assets. It's whether paying the annual fee is worth it in light of how often I might or might not use it for EV charging. I didn't know the fees were waived. I had assumed one pays them up front. If I were to switch back down would they want a fee afterwards?

I don't pay any monthly fees anywhere. Haven't for many years since I left a big bank for a credit union.

A favourite story I have is leaving a bank. I went in asking about closing the account. They said I would have to pay accrued fees up 'til then. I said what if I don't and never use the account again. They said nothing happens, no credit hit and eventually the account dies. I turned around and walked out.

@popping : the scrap-it car needs to be ICBC-insured and road-worthy for 6 months. It really is a great deal. I did it with a '92 Geo Metro.

Be aware that there's lots more than just Tesla out there. There's the Chevy Bolt, Hyundai Kona, Hyundai Ioniq and soon some models from VW. I think I read about Mazda coming out soon. Not sure of their starting cost though. But I'm just thinking of the lower cost options. There are lots more higher end models. Porsche for starters. I have the Chevy Bolt. I couldn't justify the cost of a Tesla. ecowen has the Hyundai Kona.

darlicious · ‎05-04-2021

@popping

They got rid of air care so that's no longer an issue. Don't gift it just "sell" it for $100 and your son can pay the $12 in tax as they are always suspicious about "gifted" cars.....be sure to read the 12 months of insurance rules after you purchase the EV/ get the scrap it rebate. You also save on road tax however that works since its a carbon neutral car.

popping · ‎05-04-2021

@darlicious

Wow... $6k BC scrap it program...

Great. All I have are old cars...

My 91 Civic with only 103K km after 30 years still worth $6k! 2001 and older internal combustion engine will qualify for EV and scrap it rebate. Although it has only 103K km, I cannot sell it for $1k.

I can start it after parking outside without plug-in overnight below 30°C. All I need to do is gift it to my son living in BC. I am wondering whether ICBC will insure my 91 Civic. Iol.

darlicious · ‎05-04-2021

@Anonymous

I'm assuming you are talking about the avion card. Are you sure you can't get it offered to you? ( A good credit score should be able to achieve that as that's how I qualified while on disability and working part-time.)

The card currently comes with 35,000 welcome points and the fees are waived for the first year. If you want to keep the card ( and companion card) the $180 ($120+$60) the fees are waived if you have 3 financial products ( unfortunately a mortgage is one of them) or do as I do and switch to the rich peoples account ( $30 monthly fee) for the month that your yearly fees are charged to your card and the fees are waived ( order your cheques that month too and save another $10).

The card's travel, purchase and device insurance ( yes they have device insurance if its lost, stolen or broken!) is well worth that $30 monthly fee....less if you are really savvy and switch back to your normal account in less than a month as the fees are prorated.

darlicious · ‎05-04-2021

@popping

Yes I suppose you get a "rebate" on nearly every purchase in Alberta. BC does still offer the scrap it program with $3K and $6K rebates. One could sell their "good" car and buy a scrapper to drive for 6 months to a year while saving up for the purchase and banking the difference to put towards their purchase of a new EV. $50K-$14K($5K+$6K+$3K)=$36K (×7% pst)=$2520 in pst since the rebates reduce the pst charged on EV's .

Alberta $50K-$5K=$45K×5% gst($2225)=$47,225
BC $50K-$14K=$36K+7% pst($2520)+5% gst($1800)=$40,320

So if you take advantage of the scrap it program you do still come out ahead in BC.

Anonymous · ‎05-04-2021

I _finally_ got some reasonably definitive information on "Eligible RBC card" for this offer.

Two. With over $100 annual fees. With minimum income levels or non-property investments. We're not talking minimum wage here either.

I don't think it's worth it for what remains of this year and into next Spring while we're still under restrictions currently...hopefully loosened by Summer. But would I be driving around so much that I wouldn't otherwise pay less overall for charging than to pay the annual fee? I kinda don't think so. That would take quite a bit of driving around to need fast charging on the go. I would charge overnight at a hotel, at someones home, starting out with a charge. So it's just the travel part that would need it. How many times would I be going somewhere really. For this year into next Spring. Maybe if I was an Uber or food delivery driver.

Pass.

Thanks though @darlicious.

popping · ‎05-04-2021

@darlicious wrote:
@popping
Lol....as I suspected Alberta does not offer rebates for EV's. Edmonton offers a rebate for charging stations and apparently one for e-bikes. BC only currently offers rebates for cargo e-bikes and still charges pst on class A or 1 e-bikes : pedal assist only and regular bikes but does not charge pst on e-bikes classified as vehicles (class B or C/2 or 3) that have a throttle. You still qualify for federal rebates.

http://albertaev.ca/ev-incentives/

Federal rebate is $5k, BC is 3k.

The extra sale tax 7% over the GST is $3.5k if I buy a Tesla Model 3 in BC.

It will be a while before I am getting a new car.

stevenanto · ‎05-03-2021

@darlicious Thank you very much for tagging me, Yes I had already seen that thread as I am also on RFD (amazing site as well btw).

This is a great direction for the EV movement. However the biggest drawback is that the chademo adaptor is crazy expensive. Depending on which type of EV you have it would be beneficial for this offer. I'm not sure about other provinces, but in QC we have tons of chargers and a good chunk of them are free or very cheap. However most of the time EV owners do charge at home as we get charged 0.08 cents per KWH. One would only need to use these charging stations or supercharging stations when on roadtrips or when they are in a rush in the day.

I am lucky enough to have a 6 free 30 amp chargers at work, too bad my wife drives the EV to her work, but she does have 2 free 30 amp stations 500 meters from work. She would only be usuing it if she really needs it. Her roundtrip from home to work is 99.8km which if we charge at home comes out to about 0.82 cents of energy (thats very cheap)

Anonymous · ‎05-03-2021

@popping : I got the map I posted from an app called PlugShare. It's crowd-sourced. The vendors put their things on it as well. They have a web site but I couldn't find your Honda dealer on it. https://www.plugshare.com/

Filter for CCS or DC Fast or J1772 Combo connectors to find the fast chargers. They can vary in output. The plain J1772 is the slower charger and can vary also. But the so-called fast chargers are what EV'ers want for travelling. Or free with RBC 🙂

I don't think AB has any rebates. There's the $5k Fed one though. BC and QC are pretty good. I got the Fed one on the first day it came up. I got the BC one before it dropped to $3k. And a BC dealers group have a scrap-it program where I scrapped a '92 Geo Metro and got $6k to go towards an EV. So I got all of $16k off. Rock n roll.

darlicious · ‎05-03-2021

@popping

Lol....as I suspected Alberta does not offer rebates for EV's. Edmonton offers a rebate for charging stations and apparently one for e-bikes. BC only currently offers rebates for cargo e-bikes and still charges pst on class A or 1 e-bikes : pedal assist only and regular bikes but does not charge pst on e-bikes classified as vehicles (class B or C/2 or 3) that have a throttle. You still qualify for federal rebates.

http://albertaev.ca/ev-incentives/

srlawren · ‎05-03-2021

@popping wrote:
@srlawren
I read someone who owns a Tesla for 10 years. He pays very little to charge his Tesla at Supercharging stations. Are you on the Tesla referral program?

@popping in the early days, when Tesla only offered the [relatively] expensive roadster, S, and X models, they used to include free unlimited supercharging. I think some of the early model 3's even had that included. A few years ago they stopped that on the 3 (and subsequently it's cousin the model Y) as they are cheaper vehicles--not sure if they still include on S or X but both are out of my price range ;). Now it is quite easy to get 1,500km* worth of free supercharging by using a referral code to make your purchase. And if you refer someone else**, both you and they get 1,500km worth of free supercharging credited*** to your account, so it's a pretty decent referral program**!

* interestingly, not sure how that translates to the per-min billing in use. Haven't had need to try supercharging yet.

** ...unless the person giving the referral code happens to live in BC, where apparently our dealer association must have some powerful lobbyists. There is a technicality here where anyone that receives any compensation for helping sell someone a car has to be an official salesperson with certain credentials yada yada the bottom line is: anyone anywhere in Canada can use a referral code from anyone and get 1,500km credit, while anyone living in any province but BC can also get 1,500km for referring someone. Sigh.

*** these credits do expire and unfortunately quickly; I believe 6 months for ours so I'd assume that's standard. Doubt we'll get to use them all due to much less travel these days, but still a nice perk for zero effort.

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popping · ‎05-03-2021

@Anonymous wrote:
@popping : Seems to me to be quite a number of chargers in AB. The orange ones are fast chargers like the ones at Petro-cans. The green ones are not. There are also many orange ones "under" green ones. The "wrenches" are being built. Edit: The grey ones are ~~being used~~ restricted at the time I took this screencap. Canadian Tire has chargers. Many car dealers do as you mentioned. A lot of towns are putting them in as a bit of a business draw.

.

I did a google map search on EV charging stations near me. There are 2 stations near where I live. One is the Honda dealership which I mentioned and the other is inside the underground parking of a big shopping mall. 6 stations in Calgary downtown core. There are 3 charging stations along the TransCanada Highway #1 (16 Ave N, Calgary). There is a Tesla Destination Charger at one of a suburb of Calgary near the highway 1A. If you are driving through Calgary, you need to plan ahead where to charge your EV.

AB does not have cheap hydro power like QC, ON and BC. I need to do my research on what rebate is available for AB buying a EV after the lockdown.

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A PM EV Chat Thread