To add a wallbox to the garage would take "at least 50 meters" of digging in the yard. The arrows were drawn on a video of the location for the proposed line during a chat with wallbox provider Wall-E in Germany to determine the feasibility of adding a charger to the garage.
Another painful setback to making the EV switch was encountered recently when I took advantage of a user-friendly wallbox assessment program that Volvo is offering in Germany.
In mid-February Volvo announced a deal with Wall-E to provide free installation checks in the homes of customers interested in going electric.
The offer was timed to coincide with the market debut for the Volvo EX30, the automaker's most affordable full-electric model.
The small SUV is expected to be Volvo's runaway top-selling model with private customers in Germany, where it historically has sold the vast majority of its cars to fleets and small businesses.
The entire first step of the process would be done via a video. The live chat with a certified installer could take place on smartphone or tablet.
The chat would provide Wall-E with a look at whether technicians would have a clear path to put in the wallbox as well as the location of the house's main power distribution to determine whether modern circuit breakers are available.
It was easy to make an appointment for the chat online.
When we got on the phone, the technician was knowledgeable and did a good job explaining which areas of the house and garden he needed to see. Within about five minutes it became clear we had several problems.
Due to the house's age -- some parts are nearly 100 years old, with the newest section added in the 1980s -- the power box would need an upgrade.
That, however, wasn't the the biggest hurdle.
Because the garage is detached, we would need to have a special electrical line dug between the house and the garage.
The technician was apologetic when telling me it appeared we would be looking at a serious investment to make this work. He said I would get an official email from Wall-E within a day or two.
That correspondence confirmed that "the entire electrical distribution" would need to be replaced "and that at least 50 meters" of digging would be needed to connect the house and the garage.
That work would need to be done by a civil engineering company, which would need to work in conjunction with whomever we chose as an electrical partner.
In the note Wall-E said it also could book an installation check with its electrical partner, "but this would cost €295."
That leaves three choices if we want to become part of the EV generation at this house: 1) use a home plug and get used to double-digit-hour charge times 2) spend a small fotune to make the house wallbox-friendly or 3) get used to using public chargers.
