Cadillac Lyriq and Solar System

[Romer]

We bought a Cadillac Lyriq last week to replace Bonni's RX450H.

It has a range of 314 miles on a full charge

The batteries are modular and elements can be replaced in the vehicle rather than having to change out the whole battery.

It is AWD

Very comfortable with lots of leg room in back seat.

I like the large one screen appearing display (It is actually two)

It rides very nicely. This is a good review for a 2023. This is a 2024, the 2nd year

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vl962mMnUsU
We did not get the one with massaging seats or the speakers in the headrest

We looked at Tesla's, you can get a great deal at a much lower price right now. Rachel has the Y long range and the ride is just too bouncy

Sarah has the Ioniq 5, nice vehicle but just not what Bonni was looking for

We went and looked at the Lexus EV. 220 miles range and a slow charger. If you keep to the 80% charge level, that could make a trip to Fort Collins Anxious with traffic in the winter. Stopping to charge would take a while compared to others

So we then went to look at The Cadillac. The new Acura shares/ will share the same platform.

Had the best ride and was the most comfortable. Still trying to figure out all the software options

Why were we looking? There is a glut of EVs right now on dealer lots. That glut will go away as manufacturers are slowing production. The current glut provides an opportunity. In addition, the current Colorado $5K incentive reduces to $3.5K next year

So we negotiated to $2400 below MSRP. They provided the $7500 Fed EV credit directly. We will reduce our state taxes $5000 that we will get when we file, or just not pay tax now as the year goes on.

so we got almost $15K off MSRP, plus got a good price for the Lexus on a trade in

I converted my 3 prong Welder plug to a NEMA 14-50 plug using a GFI 50 Amp breaker and 6AWG wire to provide margin

I am expecting charging the Lyriq to utilize the reduction in consumption from getting rid of old AC's and replacing them with Heat Pumps

I wait until about 10AM to charge it. The Solar Panels are producing a lot and the batteries are fully charged by then. Unless we have driven a lot it utilizes the panels and batteries to recharge 20% (~60 miles)in 2 hours allowing the batteries to recharge when done to cover the night usage of thee house. I have the batteries set to discharge to 70% unless the grid goes down. Yesterday the Lyriq went down to 40% with lots of driving and it took us 5 hours to recharge to 80%. That used 20kWh more than we produced, but that was easily made up the next day when we didnt need to charge.

The real test will come over the summer, my first with two heat pumps. With just one Heat pump in 2023, we had a 1.9mWh surplus of generated over used. Also for 2023 with just one Heat pump, used for 2023 went down 1.3mWh's compared to 2022. Not expecting as big a reduction as the 2nd AC was a bit newer and a 13 SEER vs 10 SEER

Note, the 13th below is incomplete as of 5:30PM. This does not include the 10kWh of battery power available before it reaches the set point. That just means that the rest of the day is covered by batteries and part of the next morning

Since all the EV charging smarts are in the cars these days, I bought the highest rated level 2 dumb charger for $350
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B082LMVSLY?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

So far we are pretty happy with this.

We will have 1 EV I hope to be fully covered by Solar and two ICE vehicles; The 200 and future Tacoma. We should be ready for anything

 

[Jenny Cruiser]

Very nice. I've driven a few Caddys in the past and they are nice to drive. It's crazy what seems to be going on right now with electric vehicles. Did you find other marques were offering e-vehicles below msrp right now as well? Tesla and others have dropped prices and it seems the second hand market has fallen through the floor. I almost bought Toyota's EV a year ago on impulse. Super nice, but I'm glad now I didn't.

 

[DanInDenver]

WSJ article from Monday indicates dealers may be interested in making deals if inventory isn’t moving as quick as they would like.

“Electric-vehicle sales further decelerated in the first quarter, as purchases of gas-electric hybrids remained strong, accentuating a trend that started last year.

Industry figures released earlier this month showed that hybrid sales rose 43% in the January-to-March period, while EV sales flattened, up only 2.7% in the quarter. Contributing to the sluggish EV sales were weak numbers from Tesla, which accounts for about half of the U.S. electric market, according to data from research firm Motor Intelligence.

Following years of strong sales gains, EVs have cooled in recent months. Consumers are leery of charging availability and hassles, and prices remain too high for many buyers, according to dealers and survey data.”

 

[rover67]

Careful running a charger plugged into a 14-50 socket at the full 48a if it allows it. I’d recommend limiting the charging to a lower amperage to prevent it from melting. Hardwire is best if you can do that instead

 

[DaveInDenver]

Careful running a charger plugged into a 14-50 socket at the full 48a if it allows it. I’d recommend limiting the charging to a lower amperage to prevent it from melting. Hardwire is best if you can do that instead

6AWG on a 50A breaker is good for extra safety (and to make an inspector happy for sure). NEC Article 625 does require EV charging to be considered continuous duty so would be subject to the 125% rule, meaning a 50A circuit should be limited to 80% or 40A. But that would be the case for any continuous load (this is defined as 3 hours or more) on a circuit, not just EVs or branches with outlets. The 6-50 and 14-50 are what they are, so getting warm is partially the underlying basis for the 125% rule.

 

[Romer]

Careful running a charger plugged into a 14-50 socket at the full 48a if it allows it. I’d recommend limiting the charging to a lower amperage to prevent it from melting. Hardwire is best if you can do that instead

Agreed Marco. It is set to 40A max, why I said I had margin and it is per code

 

[rover67]

The cheap Sockets (lectron for example) struggle even at that amperage in my experience. I've replaced two now. If you have a lower quality socket consider replacing with a nice one. or hardwiring to avoid the issue entirely. With a cheap plug I'd run it closer to 30-35 amps max and always prefer hardwiring over a plug/socket combo. Electricians seem to like the plug/socket combo. I understand code on this well FWIW but am no electrician or EE. Just personal experence and a lot of stuying. so take it FWIW.

THe car seems fantastic, awd, range, price, etc.

 

[DaveInDenver]

@rover67, using substandard parts is a separate issue. Hubbell, Cooper/Bussman, Bryant or Pass and Seymour are generally good in my experience.

The Levitron they sell at Home Depot is hit or miss and I suspect even worse sometimes counterfeit. But you didn't hear that from me. The problem is access since some distributors only sell wholesale. You may have to pay the Grainger penalty.

When you hold a commercial grade 14-50 or 6-50 in your hands compared to the DIY you get at the hardware store you'll understand why they cost $25, $50 or perhaps $100 or more and not $10.

A legitimate NEMA/IEC 50 amp outlet and plug will not have an issue holding 50 amps for continuous duty and at 40A should be barely above room temperature. The NEC is very conservative with respect to heat as the primary concern is fire prevention.

 

[rover67]

@rover67, using substandard parts is a separate issue. Hubbell, Cooper/Bussman, Bryant or Pass and Seymour are generally good in my experience.

The Levitron they sell at Home Depot is hit or miss and I suspect even worse sometimes counterfeit. But you didn't hear that from me. The problem is access since some distributors only sell wholesale. You may have to pay the Grainger penalty.

When you hold a commercial grade 14-50 or 6-50 in your hands compared to the DIY you get at the hardware store you'll understand why they cost $25, $50 or perhaps $100 or more and not $10.

A legitimate NEMA/IEC 50 amp outlet and plug will not have an issue holding 50 amps for continuous duty and at 40A should be barely above room temperature. The NEC is very conservative with respect to heat as the primary concern is fire prevention.

Yes, exactly!

 

[Romer]

@rover67 I used an Industrial grade Hubbell receptacle. I used 6 Amp Wire. The charger I bought max is 40 Amps (can be adjusted lower) and I have a 50 Amp GCI breaker. All to code and all what is recommended after researching for a bit on proper components. I heard cheap receptacles from Home Depot don't last long and to use an Industrial Grade full time rated receptacle. I research the crap out of things before I do them. It is the engineer in me,

Thanks for looking out for me

 

[rover67]

Should be good to go at 40amps then.