HALIFAX GETS HIGH-VOLTAGE EDUCATION AS LAST STOP ON EV REPAIR TOUR, SUPPORTED BY FIX NETWORK
Story by ALLISON ROGERS
Collision Repair magazine concluded its cross-Canada EV Repair Tour, supported by Fix Network, this October, with a final stop in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
This event, which featured stops in Toronto, Ontario; Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; Calgary, Alberta; Vancouver, British Columbia; Montreal, Quebec, and Halifax, Nova Scotia, brought all verticals of the collision repair industry together. The goal: to present expert EV speakers to industry members so they may gain the EV knowledge required to take on EV repairs and claims.
The events featured a broad audience at each and every location. Attendees included collision repair facility owners and personnel; insurance representatives; OEMs; suppliers; distributors; educators and more.
“There was so much information made available to the industry throughout this landmark EV Repair Tour,” said Daryll O’Keefe, senior vice president of Fix Network Canada. “It is exceedingly important that the industry understands these high-voltage systems. The time to learn about electric vehicles is now—and we at Fix Network are honoured to have been part of this incredible cross-Canada tour.”
Read the highlights from the final Halifax event below, and visit www.evrepairmag.com/ ev-repair-tour for coverage from all of the events.
NOT SO DIFFERENT AFTER ALL
Kurt Sampson of CAA Atlantic was first on the mic. As CAA Atlantic’s “EV Guy”, Sampson drives a Tesla Model S with 500,000 kilometres on the odometer. Previously, he owned a Nissan Leaf and electric Kia Soul. “A lot of EV maintenance is the same as you would do on a regular car,” explained Sampson, adding that he replaced his Tesla’s brakes and control arms in his driveway. David Giles, EV education product specialist for Consulab and president of PoweredEV Training and Consulting, delivered his signature fast-paced crash course in high voltage technologies, stressing, like Sampson, that EVs and ICE vehicles aren’t so different after all. “Batteries have packs,” explained Giles. “Inside the pack are modules; inside the modules are cells. When we’re rebuilding a battery pack, we’re actually rebuilding battery packs with cells.” Giles said he purchased a Tesla Model 3 with a “bad battery.”
“I took another battery from a car that was still good and replaced the bad battery,” he said. “It took less than an hour and a half to do it, and that EV was back on the road.” He added that EV batteries typically outlast the vehicles they’re housed in, to an average of 600,000 kilometres. “I had a gentleman from Saint John call me up and said his EV battery is perfect, but the bodywork to restore his car isn’t worth it.”
Giles also stressed that EV-keen repairers need to understand high voltage terminology. Loss of isolation, high voltage interlock loop, ICE, kilowatt, kilowatt-hour, state of health— all terms that are critical in understanding the state of an EV.
Finally, Giles warned the industry that EVs aren’t the only massive shift threatening challenging repairs—advanced driver assistance systems are just as tricky and critical to understand if you want to perform modern collision repairs.
“ADAS, camera calibration systems are also significantly impacting repairs—but we’re here to talk about EVs today.” “Electrification is not a threat. It is an opportunity.”
“As a collision repair facility, turning away EV business is “silly,” said Giles. “You’ll wind up without business if you choose not to pursue electric vehicle technology.”
WHY ELECTRIC?
Brendan Piper, EV engagement specialist for the Clean Foundation at Next Ride, not only provided EV test drives at the event, but also took the mic to clarify some common EV hearsay. “If you’re looking for safety, you’re looking for an EV,” said Piper.
He said that, while it’s true that EV fires are difficult to stop once they’ve started, the rate of EV fires is “really low.” “About seven per 100,000 EVs experience a fire. In comparison, the rate of fires in gaspowered vehicles is about 1,500 per every 100,000.
“Yes, it’s risky; yes, we have to be prepared for it. But we must understand that the occurrence [of fires] is way less in EVs.” He added that EVs also have a lower centre of gravity, thanks to heavy batteries housed in the bottom of the vehicle.
“We rarely see rollovers in these vehicles— EVs are notoriously difficult to flip,” said Piper, referencing a Tesla crash-test video. “You can throw a top-heavy SUV around and it’ll almost flip over, but it always comes back down. This is part of the reason these vehicles keep dominating the top three spots on ‘the safest vehicle’ type surveys.” Aluminum bodies and stronger frames also add to increased safety, he added.
The “not so rosy side” of Piper’s presentation revolved around range loss, “Nickel cobalt batteries, which are largely used today, can resist the cold a bit better than lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries. Both experience range loss. How much, it just depends.” he explained.
“For instance, temperatures in Nova Scotia get down to negative 20 degrees [Celsius]. You could lose up to a third of range on your EV.” He added though that, as battery range technology improves, this will become less of an issue.
“We’re starting to see ranges greater than 600 kilometres [per cycle]. I mean, there’s not a lot of people who need to travel that far on a single charge.”
DID YOU KNOW?
A single litre of gas is equivalent energy to 9 kwh of electricity. On average, one litre of gas will power a car for 11 kilometres. In comparison, 9 kwh of electricity— the same equivalent power as one litre of gas—could power an ev for up to 50 kilometres.
CRASH! WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Andrew MacDonald, owner of Maritime Auto Salvage and two Fix Auto locations, said first is rescue and extraction—depending on severity—then vehicle storage, handling procedures and PPE are just a few things to consider.
“All EV collisions are different—have you thought about towing considerations, too?” said MacDonald.
The first step, depending on severity, is on first responders, who must safely extricate the driver and any passengers. First responders are constantly undergoing training to address the changing Canadian car fleet and the growing frequency of EV collisions.
“When we’re in the shop, we have the same diagrams that tells us which wires are safe to cut. The different is that first responders have minutes to complete the whole process. Waiting five minutes to figure it out, or to wait for the fire to die down—it’s just not an option.”
Next, the vehicle is sent to a tow yard, auto recycler or auto repair facility, in most cases. “If you handle those services, you need to be prepared to receive these vehicles. What if you’re closed on a Saturday and they come and drop it? Think about what needs to be ready to safely receive that car. You’re going to need a designated spot.”
Thermal runaway—while rare, said MacDonald—can send an EV ablaze at more than 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit for two hours or longer, requiring between 4,000 gallons and 6,000 gallons of water to put out. Storage of damaged EV systems is a paramount consideration.
“If a vehicle catches fire and it’s sitting next to another vehicle, or inside your building, that’s a massive risk.”
MacDonald did specify that EV batteries are rarely penetrated in collisions—about three percent to five percent of the time. As a recycler, MacDonald must pull the EV battery from the car, should one end up in his yard.
“It’s a real question for us, whether it’s safe on the shelf; where I’m going to store it; how do I ship it if someone buys it? Could it burn my facility down? Maybe.”
Handling procedures, too, must be understood by all staff interacting with high voltage technologies. This includes lockout and interlock procedures, a standard in companies that deal with EVs.
MacDonald then delivered some fast facts regarding EV claims. Seventy-eight percent of all EV estimates are less than three years old, he said, and less than one percent of EV claims are total losses. Total losses are typically routed to auction channels, auto recyclers or exporters.
“At the end of the day, I think a lot of these EV parts [received by recyclers] will be sent to recycling to recover the precious metals and valuable parts,” said MacDonald.
