First time with an EV and want to get a charger for my home.

We bought a Jaecoo J5, we have a Powerwall 2 and we have about 8kw solar system.

I want the EV charger to have flexibility to charge only with excess solar, but also solar and/or grid - bypassing the powerwall if I want it to so it doesnt completely drain the battery.

Does this sound feasible? What EV charger can do this and what do I need to know or consider when wanting to do this??

Per the sub reddit post rules:

💰 **Budget**

* What is your maximum budget: Around $50k drive-away, through a novated lease

🚗 **Typical driving**

* Average weekly km: About 100 km (roughly 5,000 km a year, mostly around town)

* Longest *regular* trip: The odd regional trip, e.g. Melbourne to Bendigo (about 150 km each way)

🔌 **Charging**

* What charging is available at home/work? None. Street parking, so public charging only

🚙 **Vehicle class**

* Open to SUV, hatch or liftback

---

I'm about to get my first EV and I'd really appreciate some perspective from people who've had theirs for a while. So far it's been the classic analysis paralysis whirlwind.

To be fair, on mileage alone I'm not the obvious EV buyer. But it's going through a novated lease, and once you factor in the FBT exemption, depreciation, selling my current car and losing its running costs, it actually comes out slightly ahead of keeping what I've got. So I'm not too worried about running costs, I'm more focused on finding something I'll actually enjoy being in.

The main things for me:

- Comfort and a quiet cabin. I'd honestly take a nice place to sit over performance.

- Lane keep and adaptive cruise that feel smooth and natural, not jumpy.

- Easy to park. I'm on the street in Melbourne's inner west, so good cameras and sensors matter a lot.

- Public charging that just fits in, ideally topping up while I do the groceries rather than planning around it.

- Room to grow, as there'll probably be a baby in a couple of years and a pram to fit.

- And I'll admit I want something I like the look of.

I'm coming out of a CX-30 that's been a really good car, so that's my benchmark for comfort and build.

I know these are quite different cars, but they've ended up at similar money on a lease. Discounting has felt pretty significant lately, so is there a lot of stock sitting around? Here are my choices:

- Mazda 6e GT, my favourite on looks and cabin, but I'm a bit unsure about the length and pram life, and about judging the corners when parking

- Geely EX5, comfy and roomy, but a bit plain on the outside and I'm not sure how it'll hold its value

- XPENG L03, a bit of a wildcard, mostly because remote parking might get it into a tight side passage at home. Can these be test driven at the moment? Dealers seem a bit unresponsive

- BYD Atto 2, the sensible cheaper pick, easy to park but a bit plain for me, and charging seems really slow?

I've test driven the EX5 and the Atto 2. I think I could live with any of them, so this is really just optimising and finalising the choice.

What I'd love to hear:

- If you do low km and charge publicly, how has it actually been?

- What's turned out genuinely comfortable and quiet a few months in, not just on the test drive?

- If you own any of the above, what surprised you?

- Anything obvious I might be missing?

Thanks in advance, this sub's always been really helpful.

I have an Ioniq9 and and one tyre is slowly losing pressure, about 15 psi per week. Calling around tyre shops near me they all say they will only replace not repair these tyres (at about $850!). I found one place who would have a look but they said they couldn’t find the leak.

I’m in Melbourne.

Any advice as to what’s going on or how to get it repaired.

The car is only 6 months old

I find it bizarre that that legacy car makers are offering fuel cards to entice buyers. Skoda was doing the same. Seems to highlight the problem with these cars.

Tbf, I struggle to understand why anyone would be buying an Outlander in 2026

Hey everyone,

I made a post not too long ago about what EV to buy, I have gone down the biggest rabbit hole since then and I think I'm set on going back to Tesla.....

Now, all that aside, I have narrowed this down to 2 choices and I'd love some feedback/thoughts from anyone who will give it.

Option 1:

2022 (AMD CPU) Model 3 Performance - 65,000km's $37K

Option 2:

2023 Tesla Model Y Long Range - 70,000km's $40k

I originally was really after an SUV for a growing family, which is still true, however there is only going to be 3 of us so I feel like a model 3 would work for the foreseeable future and be much more fun....

Any insights or anything I may not have thought of as some feedback would be amazing. Cheers.

I pre-ordered it the day Mazda had orders open, back in April. Mazda notes to dealers back then said approx September 30 deliveries. Well that didn't happen for anyone.

Dealer at end of September told me they hoped to get a test car first week of November and deliveries should be a week or two after that.

Now, the only email we ever have received from Mazda themselves, on 1st Oct, says the car is scheduled for production .. then it'll be Built, shipped etc.

So who has ordered and what real details/dates from Mazda have you received.

Really like the look of this CX-6e SUV and thought the sedan drove great, but my wife is tired of waiting so long and is starting to look for something else.

From the email ...

"Now that your vehicle has been scheduled for production, we will keep you updated across all key steps in the process and ensure you have the most up to date information available.

The next update you will receive will be to inform you that your vehicle has been built at one of our state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities."

Chery Group’s new premium sub-brand has confirmed pricing for its first Australian model. Key specs: 65kWh LFP battery, 160kW, 275Nm, 440km WLTP range, 30-80% DC charge in 22 minutes on a 120kW charger. Sony audio, wireless CarPlay and Android Auto, 13.2-inch screen, panoramic sunroof and 50W wireless charging all standard. Premium paint is free for a limited time. Warranty is generous at 7 years unlimited km vehicle, 8 years/200,000km battery.

One thing to watch: Lepas hasn’t clarified whether the $47,990 is before or after on-road costs, which affects how it competes with the XPeng L03 ($41,900 before ORC, 445km) and Geely EX5 Inspire ($45,990 before ORC, 450km). Both rival it closely on range but at notably lower starting prices.

Thoughts on the pricing and how it will fair in such a stacked segment?

Long post, sorry. Partly venting, mostly so other EV buyers know what to document, and in case anyone here has been through this with Kia.

The car
2024 Kia EV9 GT-Line AWD, bought new from Metro Kia in Brisbane and delivered December 2023.

The fault
The 12V battery drains while the car is parked. When it happens the car won't start, and sometimes won't even unlock. Warnings we've had on the dash include:
"Check 12V battery. Stop safely and engage parking brake"
"Check electric vehicle system"
"Check brake system"
"Motor-driven Power Steering system malfunction"
It first went flat one month after delivery. It's failed repeatedly since March 2025.

What's been tried
11 requests for Kia Roadside assistance (we have Kia's own text messages for every one)
4 tows
Countless own jump starts
12V battery replaced twice, the negative terminal and battery sensor replaced, and a camera mirror replaced, all by Kia under warranty
Two different Kia dealers have had it. One kept it for six weeks. The other had it twice and couldn't reproduce the fault either time
Both times it came back from that dealer, it failed again within weeks. The second time it was the very next day, with the 12V sitting at 4.49 V
Separately, both camera mirror displays randomly go green or black until the car is restarted

Each new 12V battery buys a few months of normal running, then the failures come back closer and closer together. That looks to me like a drain that has never been found, not a battery problem.

The car has been off the road for more than 10 weeks in total. It's currently sitting at a Kia dealer, again.

What we did about it

Under the ACL, if goods have a major failure you can reject them and ask the supplier (the dealer, not the manufacturer) for a refund. A car that strands your family without warning, and that two years of repairs haven't fixed, is a major failure in our view.

21 Sept: rejection letter to the selling dealer asking for a full refund within 7 days. Copy to Kia Australia

1 Oct and 7 Oct: phone follow-ups. We were told it was being handled and we'd get a call back. We didn't get anything back.

9 Oct: final written demand with a deadline. No response
Kia Australia hasn't replied either, not even to confirm they received the letter

We've now lodged a complaint with Qld Office of Fair Trading.

What I'd tell anyone buying an EV

Log every failure the day it happens. Date, time, what the dash said. Phone photos keep the date and location, which saved us when our own notes had a date wrong

Always call roadside, even if you can jump start it yourself. Their text messages became our best evidence. The times we used our own jump starter left no record

Put everything in writing. Phone calls with dealers leave nothing you can rely on later

Know it's the supplier who owes you the remedy under the ACL, not the manufacturer

Keep receipts for anything you buy because of the fault

Questions for the sub

Any other Aussie EV9 (or E-GMP) owners with repeated 12V drain? Did anything actually fix it?

Has anyone got a refund or buyback from Kia Australia or a dealer? How long did it take, and did it need Fair Trading or QCAT?

I'll update this if anything changes.

Opened today at Italian Forum Carpark.

6 V4 superchargers but with V4 cabinets (which are capable of 800-1000V).

On Plugshare already an Ioniq 6 reporting 170kW at 40% SOC, whereas never more than 100kW at older Tesla sites

https://www.plugshare.com/location/2183563

Good rates too - $0.34-0.52/kWh (Tesla/subscription) , $0.48-0.73/kWh (others)

Original post: https://www.reddit.com/r/AustralianEV/s/axGXmlbega

Posted RangeGlide here last week, got some really useful feedback, so I’ve spent the last week working through it.

The idea behind RangeGlide was pretty simple: an EV road-trip planner for Australia and New Zealand that plans around your breaks.

Instead of just finding chargers along the route, it works out where you’d stop to eat, walk or stretch, then look for a compatible charger, ideally the car charges while you’re doing something else.

Since the last post I’ve added elevation and speed limit into the range calculations, expanded the database of EVs, added custom vehicle settings and fixed a number of issues people found.

It’s still a work in progress and I’m not trying to pretend it’s ABRP. I’d genuinely appreciate honest opinions, testing and criticism, especially from anyone who tried the previous version.

Long story short, I’ve been keen to replace my XTrail with an EV for a while but I like in a complex with standalone villas (I own mine).

The strata has sent out notice that the charging of EVs onsite is prohibited due to insurance requirements (or the difficulty in getting insurance that includes EV changing).

Obviously charging at home would be the ideal solution but has anyone else faced similar issues?

It otherwise looks like I’ve got no choice but to stick with petrol until I buy a standalone non strata property.

Edit: located in QLD

Hello everyone!

EV newbie here - in the market for my first one now, and also my first ever new car! I would love some advice on what to do / cars to consider.

We are a family of 3, currently down to 1 car (2012 Hyundai i30 wagon) after passing on my husband's 2021 Toyota Hiace due to no rear seats.

Requirements:

💰 Budget

• Max budget: $55K may be scope for some creep if I really love the car

🚗 Typical driving

• Average weekly km: 180-240km
• Longest regular trip: 350km (with some 1000km trips each year)

🔌 Charging

• What charging is available at home/work? None, but will install a charger

🚙 Vehicle class

• SUV

Other things I'd like

• at least 400+km real-world range on highway, as we do longer trips several times a year to visit family (ranging from 300km - 1000km in distance)
• regular door handles - I just can't with flush door handles, and it seems the trend will be going back to regular handles in the coming years with the new regs in China.
• enough space for 1x rear-facing baby seat (no more kids planned at this stage)
• decent boot size for above-mentioned road trips and general kid-related gear
• prefer: rear charging port, RWD, more buttons = better, remote climate control

If I were to buy now, we are considering:

MGS6 EV Essence RWD

• Pros: Ticks all the boxes above. Test drive was fine but I wasn't blown away.
• Cons: Feel a bit 'meh' about the purchase, worried that it will be cumbersome to manoeuvre in tight spaces (but I have been fine driving the Hiace with parking assists), sound system sucks, boring colours, software not amazing (btw I'm not phased by no OTA). I also NEVER thought I would ever buy an MG as I didn't rate their ICE cars!

Geely EX5 (2026 model)

• Pros: I just liked this car during the test drive! Fun to drive, like the green colourway option.
• Cons: WLTP range is probably too short for us, flush door handles, front charger port, FWD, boot maybe a little tight for us but I think may be fine with seats down/utilising rear footwell space for bags, minimal buttons/very screen-focused, software not amazing, cruise control not great.

Skoda Elroq 85

• Pros: I really like the design of this car, inside and out. Yet to test drive, but reviewers also seem to love it.
• Cons: Maybe too small for our needs? No app/remote capabilities. No dealer in our area. $$$.

I have heard the new Geely EX5 2027 model will solve a lot of the pain points mentioned above. Real door handles, RWD, better range, rear charging point, frunk for extra storage.

While we can make do with 1 car for a while, I would prefer to have the car in the next 6-8 months. I know there will always be the next latest tech coming out but I wonder if it is best to wait a little until there are more options that tick my boxes.

Plus, we plan to keep this car for 6+ years so I want to be happy with the car. FWIW, I still love my 2012 Hyundai i30 - it's been a great car!

So... Do I wait for the new Geely EX5 2027 model (TBC release date here)?

Or go ahead with MGS6?

Or are there other options I should have on my radar?

Thank you 😄

Hi all, after some advice from people who've been through this recently.

I'm in the ACT and keen on the Ora 5 Ultra. I've seen a few posts here from people getting a brand new one for around $33k to $34k through brokers, some with premium paint and accessories thrown in. I haven't had the same luck.

The best offer I have right now:

- Ora 5 Ultra demo, white, ~3,000km

- $34,000 drive-away with some accessories (mats, mudflaps, weather shields), or $33,500 without

- Already registered to the dealer, so rego transfers to me and the warranty has already started

For comparison, the same dealer's best on a brand new white Ultra was $36, 000 drive-away.

A few questions:

1. Is $34k fair for a demo with 3,000km, or should a demo be cheaper than that?

2. Has anyone in the ACT or NSW landed a new Ultra closer to $34k in the last few weeks?

3. Would you hold out for a new one in green, or take the demo and move on?

Alternatives I've looked at are the MG4 Urban Essence 54 and MG4 Essence 64, but the Ora is still my first pick.

Any thoughts or recent experiences appreciated. Thanks!

I've placed an order for an xpeng x9 standard model that has 11kw AC charging. I've never owned an EV and I need to buy a home charger.

My home has 3 phase set up. I don't have solar, but it might be something I look at getting down the track (holding me back is the thought I might do a knock down rebuild or move houses in the next 5-8 years). An electrician suggested it go on the exterior brick wall of a chimney under a well sheltered carport.

Any tips on what I should look out for or what I should avoid? Thanks!

Edit: we don't drive locally most days with the a weekly or fortnightly longer trip (say 45min each way) to the in laws .

Longer than the Kia EV9 and Hyundai IONIQ 9, the G9L is XPeng’s flagship large SUV. Two powertrains confirmed:

The REEV uses a 1.5L petrol engine purely as a generator. Worth noting for novated lease buyers: only the EV variant qualifies for the FBT exemption. The REEV is classified as a PHEV under Australian rules.

Standard equipment includes Nappa leather across all three rows, a 26-speaker sound system, built-in fridge, rear-wheel steering and dual-chamber air suspension. XPeng’s NGP self-driving system is due to roll out in Australia in 2027.

Australian pricing and launch timing still to be confirmed. Q4 2026 launch with early 2027 deliveries was the previous guidance.

How do you think this will sell? Could this be the model that catapults 7-seat EVs into the mainstream?

Im on the market on novated lease and my agent told that the S7 is just $25/week compare to AV.
S7 has 4k cash back while AV has 2k cash with 22kw home charger.

Cash back will help me repay my current car that i will trade in.

Which should i choose.

Byd has an established name but Aion V is just luxurious and has fridge.

Thanks

Morning All,

Novated lease is coming to an end on my 2021 Nissan Navara and have been looking at options moving forward, Originally was looking at going over to a Shark 6 but while browsing cars around that price range the RAV4 GR Sport took my fancy as something a bit smaller.

I currently drive 62km each way to work 4 days a week (120km a day 90% freeway)

Over the weekend I was planning to get down to BYD and Toyota just to have a look and feel of the cars, Upon arriving at Toyota the 'ex-BYD' salesman told me to not even bother looking at either and to stay away from PHEV vehicles with the amount of daily KM i drive.

Now to my point, I see a butt load of Sharks on the freeway every single day, plenty of EV's / PHEVs etc. obviously I understand that I would need to charge every single night to keep it efficient, But a salesman pushing me away from a 70k car and telling me to not even bother looking at it, Was he just being lazy or does he have a point ?

Anyone driving a Shark or a GR Rav4 around that many KMs per day and can comment how they find it ? I think i read the SHARK operates differently to the RAV4 with the way it recharges etc. ? Want to work out if I should rule out certain cars etc. main thing for me was looking at getting something more comfortable, nicer to drive. Didn't care if i stayed with a UTE or went SUV. Plan would have been if i went PHEV to look into what point i needed to have installed in my garage to charge each night.

Cheers !

**EDIT** Just to add for context, I am not looking at either of those because they are PHEV, I like the car and they just happen to be PHEV, Trying to weigh up the pros and cons. I have been driving diesel for the past 7 years, not desperately trying to reduce running costs etc. so its not a case of 'this is better etc.'

I've been waiting on my Geely ex2 to arrive. I was told 24th September it would dock, but then told 12th October and now told it has berthed but still no idea.

Is anyone else waiting for this and has any information the actual vessel or something specific? I don't want to keep bugging the dealer but I would like to know where it's at.

ETA - Melbourne