So, you finally got rid of your last gas-guzzler, and took the step into the wonderful world of all electric cars?
Congratulations!
From now on, your life as a motorist will be a bit quieter, cleaner, neater. Simply put it will be just a bit better in all aspects.
However, getting the car is just the start. Now you need to adapt the rest of your life to your new mode of transportation and get rid of some old stuff.
Let’s start with the garage.
What to throw out
As a long-time owner of one or more petrol or diesel driven cars you’ve probably accumulated a few items made specifically for maintaining cars with combustion engines. These can now all go, as you won’t need to do any of that nonsense anymore.
So, what can you throw out? Quite a few items, as we’ll see below.
- Oil changing gear – Unless you belong to the odd bunch who do their own transmission maintenance, it is now time to throw out everything related to motor oil, because you simply don’t need all that old crud. Just make sure that any old oil is disposed of properly
- Spark plug tools – Throw out your spark plug sockets and wrenches, or give them to your unfortunate neighbour, who hasn’t yet come into the future.
- Ignition tools – If you’ve ever done troubleshooting on a combustion engine you have these odd tools somewhere, and now it’s time for them to go. Don’t forget to also throw out the odd set of ignition cables you have laying around.
- Petrol cans – The old petrol can goes. So do any pumps, hoses and other things used for petrol.
- Parts – After years or car ownership you’re sure to have some odd parts laying around. Get rid of it all! It’s probably mostly rubbish anyway
Revamp your garage
Now, after getting rid of all that crud, have a look at your garage. Perhaps there is room for improvement.
Maybe that old oil-stained floor deserves refinishing. You won’t spill much oil or anything else on it in the future. Perhaps the walls have turned a yellowish colour, after years of exposure to exhaust fumes. Maybe the whole room is dark and depressing and deserves a fresh coat of paint and some new lamps.
What to buy
As the owner of an electric car, there really isn’t much you need to buy, simply because there probably isn’t that much that you can repair if, eventually, your car breaks down.
What you should buy, if you’re interested, is a good diagnostic tool that can read your car’s diagnostic codes. That may help you determine what’s wrong, if something seems out of order.
In addition to this you should think about your driving habits and what kind of charger you need. Some people will get along just fine by using public charging stations or a charging station at work, but if you drive a lot and often come home with a close to empty battery, perhaps a fast charger is the right investment for you.