I made a post on the off-topic thread about looking for a new car for my wife and that we were looking to purchase an EV as it made the most sense for her work/commute. Well we did it! Brought home a Galaxy Grey Metallic 2026 Chevrolet Equinox EV LT1 with the comfort package, last night. Got it for a dealer discounted $5,500 below MSRP plus 0.9% for 72 months financing through GM financial. Wife even got the extended bumper to bumper warranty for 72 months/120,000 miles and kept the payments under $520 a month. We looked into lease deals but with the amount of miles she puts on a vehicle leasing doesn't work out for us.
The Dealer Experience
Got up at 5am and were on the road by 6am. Drive was roughly 5 hours from Pittsburgh PA to the Dale City, VA area where the dealer was. Arrived at 11am, met with the sales advisor. Looked over the vehicle in question, took it for a quick test drive (we'd done drives at local dealerships so knew what to expect). Dealer had it charged up to 100% for us. Went over the numbers (they matched what we agreed upon via email and text). Filled out the financial papers (working through getting insurance transferred and GM rewards credited was a minor hold up along with getting the credit union to provide payoff amount and date for the car bein traded in). Completed final walk around at 5pm (noted one very small lite scratch on drivers door. Got paper work from them and they told us take it to any body-shop of our choosing back home and they'd handle payment). On the road home by 6:30pm. (had our dogs with us so stopped and took them for a walk at a nearby park and fed them some food).
Will give props to Lindsay Chevrolet, they were very easy to work with and their discounts were legitimate and there were no surprises during the entire experience.
The Drive Home
Now comes the fun part. My wife got behind the wheel and piloted an EV from NOVA to western PA on her own! The drive wasn't without it's minor concerns though... First half of the drive went smoothly, we had selected a GM super charger along I-68 just a few miles before we were to get off onto SR40 in PA. We got to the charger at 37% SOC and I needed fuel in my giant gas hog (2018 Ford Expedition with 33' A/Ts and tune and mild lift).
I should note that VA weather was mid 60s and pleasant but as we headed west, temps dropped into the low 30s and the winds were sustained at 50+ mph out of the west, a direct headwind... And all this while driving through the mountains in the dead of night...
The fun/excitement/nerves ratcheted up when we encountered our first major concern/issue... 2 of 4 chargers were offline and the remaining 2 would not accept payment... uh oh... We panicked a little bit, but then took a few deep breaths and started strategizing. Checked distance to home and estimated SOC for arrival based on current conditions (10%) found a 180kW blinq charger along SR40 on the way (roughly 20 miles from home). Made the decision to keep moving and assess whether to charge as we got closer to the charger and home. We set cruise control at the posted speed limit and headed into the wind...
We kept the phone line open and stayed in constant communication the remainder of the drive. We didn't need to stop at the charger and ended up making it home with 11% SOC showing on the gauge. Time of arrival was 11:08pm... The care averaged 2.9 mi/kwh through the entire trip, surprisingly good, I feel for the conditions encountered.
Super proud of my wife for taking the jump with my encouragement and then driving the whole way home and handling the adversity like a true champion.
Level 2 Charger Install
I had begun installing an Emporia Pro charger the days before but hadn't completed installation yet. So first thing this morning I rolled out of bed and installed my hardwired whip (needed more length than the installed charger whip provided), mounted the charger on the wall, secured the hardwired whip to the exterior wall (everything is mounted on the exterior of the house right next to the main meter with distribution panel), installed whip into the panel and secured it, installed 60 amp breaker (48 amp install with 6 awg wire) and torqued to specified torque. Placed panel cover back on initialized the charger app, cleaned up the work area in 30 degree F temps and hooked up the car.
I confirmed the car was charging and then walked back inside to drink my coffee...
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
The Dealer Experience
Got up at 5am and were on the road by 6am. Drive was roughly 5 hours from Pittsburgh PA to the Dale City, VA area where the dealer was. Arrived at 11am, met with the sales advisor. Looked over the vehicle in question, took it for a quick test drive (we'd done drives at local dealerships so knew what to expect). Dealer had it charged up to 100% for us. Went over the numbers (they matched what we agreed upon via email and text). Filled out the financial papers (working through getting insurance transferred and GM rewards credited was a minor hold up along with getting the credit union to provide payoff amount and date for the car bein traded in). Completed final walk around at 5pm (noted one very small lite scratch on drivers door. Got paper work from them and they told us take it to any body-shop of our choosing back home and they'd handle payment). On the road home by 6:30pm. (had our dogs with us so stopped and took them for a walk at a nearby park and fed them some food).
Will give props to Lindsay Chevrolet, they were very easy to work with and their discounts were legitimate and there were no surprises during the entire experience.
The Drive Home
Now comes the fun part. My wife got behind the wheel and piloted an EV from NOVA to western PA on her own! The drive wasn't without it's minor concerns though... First half of the drive went smoothly, we had selected a GM super charger along I-68 just a few miles before we were to get off onto SR40 in PA. We got to the charger at 37% SOC and I needed fuel in my giant gas hog (2018 Ford Expedition with 33' A/Ts and tune and mild lift).
I should note that VA weather was mid 60s and pleasant but as we headed west, temps dropped into the low 30s and the winds were sustained at 50+ mph out of the west, a direct headwind... And all this while driving through the mountains in the dead of night...
The fun/excitement/nerves ratcheted up when we encountered our first major concern/issue... 2 of 4 chargers were offline and the remaining 2 would not accept payment... uh oh... We panicked a little bit, but then took a few deep breaths and started strategizing. Checked distance to home and estimated SOC for arrival based on current conditions (10%) found a 180kW blinq charger along SR40 on the way (roughly 20 miles from home). Made the decision to keep moving and assess whether to charge as we got closer to the charger and home. We set cruise control at the posted speed limit and headed into the wind...
We kept the phone line open and stayed in constant communication the remainder of the drive. We didn't need to stop at the charger and ended up making it home with 11% SOC showing on the gauge. Time of arrival was 11:08pm... The care averaged 2.9 mi/kwh through the entire trip, surprisingly good, I feel for the conditions encountered.
Super proud of my wife for taking the jump with my encouragement and then driving the whole way home and handling the adversity like a true champion.
Level 2 Charger Install
I had begun installing an Emporia Pro charger the days before but hadn't completed installation yet. So first thing this morning I rolled out of bed and installed my hardwired whip (needed more length than the installed charger whip provided), mounted the charger on the wall, secured the hardwired whip to the exterior wall (everything is mounted on the exterior of the house right next to the main meter with distribution panel), installed whip into the panel and secured it, installed 60 amp breaker (48 amp install with 6 awg wire) and torqued to specified torque. Placed panel cover back on initialized the charger app, cleaned up the work area in 30 degree F temps and hooked up the car.
I confirmed the car was charging and then walked back inside to drink my coffee...
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
. Sooo now I have some fur removal/seat cleaning to do in the coming days before her covers arrive.
