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Author: Subject: Anyone on here work on EV's
russbost

posted on 16/1/25 at 07:16 PM Reply With Quote
Anyone on here work on EV's

Hi Guys,

Just looking for advice re servicing on a Skoda Citigo EV I've purchased.

Obviously there's the usual running gear to check, brake fluid, screenwash etc, but are there such things as axle oil, any other lubricants, coolant etc to be topped up Any other requirements for servicing or is it largely fix it when it goes wrong?

TIA Cheers Russ





I no longer run Furore Products or Furore Cars Ltd, but would still highly recommend them for Acewell dashes, projector headlights, dominator headlights, indicators, mirrors etc, best prices in the UK! Take a look at http://www.furoreproducts.co.uk/ or find more parts on Ebay, user names furoreltd & furoreproducts, discounts available for LCB users.
Don't forget Stainless Steel Braided brake hoses, made to your exact requirements in any of around 16 colours. http://shop.ebay.co.uk/furoreproducts/m.html?_dmd=1&_ipg=50&_sop=12&_rdc=1

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Mr Whippy

posted on 16/1/25 at 11:57 PM Reply With Quote
That looks like an EV Up! I did not like my Up! but it was all down to the crap engine & gearbox so an EV version should be great.

On my Leaf there is a fixed reduction gear also sharing the oil with the diff. It uses automatic gearbox oil and there are notorious for people not changing the oil, ever. I changed mine at 50k miles and should really have done it at 25k as it was a bit dark. Super easy job too, just like an old gearbox oil change. Coolant should be changed but maybe not as often as an ice since they don't get very hot or even warm, but on yours its a bit involved as the coolant is going through the battery too, best to YouTube that. Brakes also need a regular service as they are not used much so don't get the usual heat though them, they won't be worn at all, just dirty. Service the car like normal tbh just missing out the engine bit. You'll find the "engine bay" stays spotless, mine looks like a new car yet is 8 years old.





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russbost

posted on 17/1/25 at 09:57 AM Reply With Quote
The car itself is absolutely great, had it a little while now, bought it with some minor accident damage - '20 plate with 8,000 miles on it - Cat S as there was a dink the size of your little finger nail in the sill & it had broken the TRE & gouged the inner w/arch a bit - like any of that affects driving the car!

It actually drives better than my previous EV, Kone premium 64kWh, which was, in itself a great little car. That's now been replaced with a new lease on an Ioniq 6 which is better again - apart from a couple of annoying niggles like having to use the touchscreen to turn heated steering wheel & seats on!

Sounds like the information is out there, if no one's familiar with the Skoda, I'll need to do some more Googling, hadn't found much, hence the Q

I can assure you the engine bay won't stay clean where I live, tale a look at the dirt track underneath the Furore in my avatar - gets very dusty in summer, but at least there's no oil residue to stick to!





I no longer run Furore Products or Furore Cars Ltd, but would still highly recommend them for Acewell dashes, projector headlights, dominator headlights, indicators, mirrors etc, best prices in the UK! Take a look at http://www.furoreproducts.co.uk/ or find more parts on Ebay, user names furoreltd & furoreproducts, discounts available for LCB users.
Don't forget Stainless Steel Braided brake hoses, made to your exact requirements in any of around 16 colours. http://shop.ebay.co.uk/furoreproducts/m.html?_dmd=1&_ipg=50&_sop=12&_rdc=1

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Mr Whippy

posted on 17/1/25 at 10:21 AM Reply With Quote
Yeah I'd expect that to be a cracking little EV, the Up! was amazingly agile and perfect for in town. About the same size battery as my Leaf but a much lighter car so should perform better. Exactly the kind of EV that most people need for a daily.

We're still delighted with the Leaf, at some point in the future I'll give it a new bigger battery (still 86% SOH @ 57k miles on Leafspy) as there is zero rust anywhere on the car, been the best totally trouble free car I ever bought





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NuZil

posted on 22/1/25 at 09:05 PM Reply With Quote
I understand that Clevely EV generally recommend final drive fluid change in most EVs, even though the manufacturers seldom do.

We currently have a Kona and are also tempted by an Up / Mii / Citigo EV as we have a petrol Citigo and can see how an EV version would be a great thing.

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Mr Whippy

posted on 22/1/25 at 11:04 PM Reply With Quote
quote:
Originally posted by NuZil
I understand that Clevely EV generally recommend final drive fluid change in most EVs, even though the manufacturers seldom do.

We currently have a Kona and are also tempted by an Up / Mii / Citigo EV as we have a petrol Citigo and can see how an EV version would be a great thing.


There seems to be a misunderstanding that if an EV does not have an engine there is no oil in it or even that there is nothing to service. However the only thing that is different from an ICE car is the lack of engine oil, there is plenty of other things in there that need serviced or changed. As the drive unit does not get very warm these fluids etc seem to last longer than in a hot engine but they still need changed. If you car has liquid cooled batteries (most do) then there is a huge amount of coolant in there that will need changing maybe every 5 years or so (you can ask a garage to test the strength to see if it is still ok). There also is a fixed ratio gearbox and diff swimming in oil that is going to need changed just as often as you would need to change it in an axle housing, although they seem to run autobox oil in them. Brakes can seize up due to lack of heat and use and the brake fluid will need changed just as often as usual. Same goes for the aircon service, which is actually more important than usual as like in my car it has a heat pump for the heating rather than just using a heating element, so you don't just loose your aircon but heating as well. Everything else is the same as every other car, just even more computers!





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David Jenkins

posted on 29/1/25 at 10:22 PM Reply With Quote
The other thing to consider is the 12v battery - if that fails then the car won't come alive when you press the start button (and the doors may not unlock, unless they're purely mechanical). Usually this happens without warning, often on a freezing cold morning, when the battery can't provide sufficient voltage to close the big battery's connectors. Usually the battery on an ICE car will give some indication that it's failing, e.g. when it doesn't turn the engine over quite as smartly as it used to - no equivalent with an EV.

The battery will be much smaller than those found in an ICE car as it doesn't have to turn over the starter - it is only used for closing the contactors for the high-voltage battery, run any security system, running parking lights, etc. The trouble is that they get overlooked, even though they are just lead-acid batteries that can degrade over time; the manufacturers usually recommend replacement after 5 years, even though they may go on for quite a while longer.

Quite a few EV owners carry one of those 12v battery starter packs, as you don't need much current to get the car going (I have a small NOBO pack). Once it's alive then the car's own charging circuit will keep things going.

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MikeR

posted on 30/1/25 at 11:41 PM Reply With Quote
Talking about batteries, my hybrid has a button to dump the electric motor battery into the 12v battery if it goes flat so you can start the engine. I want to try it for the hell of it .......... but don't want to as i've not idea what it will do to a decently charged battery.
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SteveWalker

posted on 31/1/25 at 09:09 AM Reply With Quote
Our EV automatically charges the 12V battery from the HV battery if the voltage gets low. It will suspend charging if the HV battery is too low. Theoretically, unless the car is left with almost zero HV charge, for a lengthy period or the 12V battery is failing, the 12V battery should never have a low enough charge to cause problems.
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Mr Whippy

posted on 31/1/25 at 09:43 AM Reply With Quote
Saying that I know for a fact that my Leaf is still on the same 12v battery when it was built and that's 8 years ago! I haven't even thought about checking it tbh. I would have thought it would last a very very long time as unlike a ICE car the battery does not go through the same punishment of having to start an engine and is probably sitting at the same voltage most of the time. Without being cycled it should last for ages and certainly seems to be. I can open the car up with a normal car key so no issues if it ever went flat.





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Mr Whippy

posted on 31/1/25 at 10:27 AM Reply With Quote
It's funny I was very wary of buying an EV and actually chickened out getting an EV the first time buying a VW up instead, which was a huge mistake I lost several thousand on. I can now honestly say the Leaf was the very best car purchase I have ever made and I saved so much money I paid it off a whole year early! Literally not one thing has ever went wrong with it and it's still totally rust free, even underneath (also very coated, drenched, in lanolin oil).

I wonder how many more years I will keep using it?? I do expect I will put in an new bigger HV battery in a about 10 years but won't grudge paying for that as I always have a big smile when driving it

[Edited on 31/1/25 by Mr Whippy]





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David Jenkins

posted on 1/2/25 at 03:34 PM Reply With Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Mr Whippy
Saying that I know for a fact that my Leaf is still on the same 12v battery when it was built and that's 8 years ago! I haven't even thought about checking it tbh. I would have thought it would last a very very long time as unlike a ICE car the battery does not go through the same punishment of having to start an engine and is probably sitting at the same voltage most of the time. Without being cycled it should last for ages and certainly seems to be. I can open the car up with a normal car key so no issues if it ever went flat.


I believe that you've got a Mk 1 Leaf, which was a reliable car. I had a Mk 2, and many owners had 12v battery problems with them. The car would suddenly not cooperate when you tried to wake it up - which is when I bought the booster battery. Ironically, a while later I bought a Kia Niro and the booster has only left the space under the boot floor for recharging, very occasionally.

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