EV Preventive Service

A great advantage of EV over ICE is that they need less maintenance. Compared to ICE, EVs have very few moving parts: no Crankshafts, Pistons, Valves, Coolant, Clutches, or even Transmissions.

Manufacturers have specified a service schedule for all EVs, yet at in lesser frequence than ICE, HYBRID and PHEV. You may read about the PHEV maintenance in a different article.

ලාබදායී ධාවන වියදමට, බලයට, පරිසර හිතකාමී බවට අමතරව විදුලි රිය පාවිච්චියේ තවත් විශාලතම වාසියක් අඩු නඩත්තු වියදම්. ඉන්ධන රථ සමග සැසදීමේදී විදුලි රථයක ඇත්තේ ඉන් 80% පමණ අඩු කැරකෙන සහ සෙලවෙන කොටස්. විදුලි රථයක සේවා කිරීමේදී වැදගත්වෙන්නේ නිවාරණ නඩත්තුව.

Any Car user will wants to ensure minimum expenditure on its repairs, and keeping an eye on intervals is justified from their side. Different EV manufacturers different scedules for their makes. However the country specific conditions havent been considered mych by many. The good thing is Sri lanka s conditions are better then the average global road, environmental and usage conditions.

E.V. for Economy and Value as well. Lets look at what to be done and what not!

Are we doing too much or too little?

The question needs answering for both cars with a warranty and without. Most Sri lankan automotive dealers make the service mandatory at dealerships to keep the warranty live. This is agreeable since any automaker wants to keep its warranty costs low, adhering to the preventive mesures.

The question arises weather the costs, components and the intervals are justifiable?

There are recent public uproars on Service Intervals and Costs, specially from the Chinese EV owners. This is understandable and justifiable since saving time and money is a prime concern of buying an EV. Lets look at the service intervals and costs in general. Here we give you an indication of both above, IN GENERAL!

Grey EV with no dealer warranty are very popular in most parts of the world, from New Zealand, UK, Australia to Sri Lanka, due to their cost-effectiveness and higher features. Even for grey cars, there are third-party warranties that need you to adhere to specific schedules.

Time or Milage based Service?

Are Sri Lanka conditions Severe?

For many makes, there are two standards for maintenance. Hers the Nissan classification for good old LEAF EV.

Dealers would love to say “severe use” schedule is the default for Sri lanka. (Schedule 1). However, other than the clause on Repeated Short Trips Sri Lanka s conditions are related to Schedule 2 (“less severe operating conditions”).

Most drivers live in cities with stop-and-go traffic and less usage on highways at moderate speeds. Again, warmer and highly humid and dusty conditions make the severe operating conditions more applicable.

Some makes / components specify very long intervals or lifetime use. But we observed some repair places replaced the transmission fluids and the coolant (of Nissan Leaf). This is a waste. Coolant is for 15 years or 200,000 km, and the reduction gear replacement has not even scheduled. However, this does not eliminate the need for checks as scheduled.

In the case of PHEV, its been recommended changing its petrol engine oil and filters, although the engine running odometer records much lesser milage. Please refer to our article on the subject.

Driver and the Interval

All automakers have mandated comprehensive MPI checklists to follow. There’s no argument that it is a must, whether the EV is Grey (non-destination oriented) or not. And it’s not a costly affair to follow, although a dealership may apply a fee based on its structure. In Sri Lanka, eMotion executes this from $35 + taxes (Refer to the details at the bottom)

CHINESE EV – BYD

The most sold EV in Sri Lanka, BYD severe conditions are as follows.
● Frequent driving in dusty areas or frequent exposure to salt-laden air.
● Frequent driving on bumpy, puddled, or mountain roads.
● Driving in cold weather.
● Frequent and sudden braking.*
● Frequent use of a towed trailer.
● Use as a Taxi.
● Driving in congested urban areas at temperatures above 32°C for more than 50% of total travel time.*
● Driving at speeds over 120 km/h at temperatures above 30°C for more than 50% of total travel time.
● Frequent driving with maximum load.

Two line items above qualify most Sri Lankan EV s to severe conditions (marked *)

Here is a Schedule eMotion practice on BYD SEAL

There’s a lot less to replace in an electric car during periodical maintenance. However, there are some new systems, and owners need to be aware that the very lack of use can increase the need for maintenance of some items.

These requirements are largely based on the manufacturer’s preventive maintenance schedules and guidelines. But not limited to, there are some destination-related checks also based on our learnings over-time.

Few Critical Areas

Brake service & fluid replacement.

Brake servicing is mandatory, including caliper lubrication, especially in the tropics. But even under Schedule 2 (less severe conditions), the Leaf manual calls for changing the brake fluid only in 2 years or 30,000 kilometers.

We learned that there can be changes to the brake fluid with high humidity and the impacts on lubricity. Once you know that the fluid has lost its character or color, you are too late. The concern is even more valid in our high humid conditions, where the moisture content may change trhe characteristics drastically.

Brakes & Battery Check

Dont forget the regenerative braking has much higher impact on your EV performance, getting the EV sriviced once a year by a qualified technician is mandator with all manufacturers.

The status of the 12V battery matters a lot for EV, atop conventional cars. The charging of the auxiliary battery is from the traction battery. Hence you may not feel a weak battery, until your instrument cluster throws an error, unexpectadly!

A qualified service shop will save your time and money by predicting the status of your 12V battery.

All at what cost?

EV Master offers a preventive maintenance service package that includes the following.

• MPI inclusive of but not limited to: Preventive maintenance program # Drive shafts & suspension check # Mounts & boots check # Ball joints & tie rod ends check # Steering gear & linkage # Brake fluid, Inverter coolant fluid check # 12V Battery scan # Charging ports # Cabin microfilter check/clean # Rotate tires # Reduction fluid check # Displays & controls check: – 3 Hours (@ Hourly Rate 2,300) LKR 6,900.
• Complete brake service (Brake pads, rotors, pins – cleaning and lubrication): 1 Hour – LKR 2,300
• HV/Traction Battery scan and consultation (ChaDeMo-LeafSpyPro) – LKR 1,000.
• Electrical system diagnostic scan ( iSmartSafe / Launch ) – LKR 2,500.

The total process will take up to 4 to 5 hours if no additional work is required.

• Optional: EV/PHEV Diagnostic scan and analysis 30 min (equipment used – iSmartSafe): LKR 5,000

• Optional: Undercarriage degreasing and high-pressure wash –  LKR 2,500.
• Optional: Motor bay de-greasing – LKR 2,150 + Consumable cost LKR 2,000
• Consumable: Silicone Lubricant Spray 0.5 ml –  LKR 1,100.
• Consumable: Rubber Grease 35ml –  LKR 675.
• Consumable: Hub Grease 250ml –  LKR 1,575.
• Optional: Body wash and interior vacuum – LKR 1,000.

Other services at a flat rate: LKR 2,300 per hour (excluding specified/specialized services)

• Please note that all the above prices are subject to VAT.

EV Master is situated at 294, Gangarama Road, Boralesgamuwa. (You may Google for the location as eMotion or Mobility Alliance)

Further information on other services & reservations: https://mobility.lk/product-category/evservice/

Or dial our Hotline – 0768 177 044

Another advantage of having the softcopy scans saved on your PC or phone is that you will surely have a much higher resale value if all your scans are available in 6-month intervals to prove the authenticity of your EV. Because, the car trade is not very ethical, and sadly we cannot expect all to be honest.

Prevention is better than cure, and it needs to be within the fundamental principle that maintenance of EVs is a fraction of the cost of an ICE. If you are a PHEV or REEV owner, visit below.

PHEV Service

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