Michael Smyth got stuck when the electric courtesy car he was driving ran out of power – and it gave him the idea for a new Liverpool city region business. Tony McDonough reports
A new rescue service for electric cars that have run out of power has been launched by entrepreneur Michael Smyth.
EV Power 2 U now operates four vehicles on the road across the North West 24 hours a day. They ride to the rescue of electric vehicle drivers who are on the road and out of power. And demand for the service looks set to soar.
Last year saw a 74% increase in the ownership of plug-in cars compared to 2020. There are currently more than 420,000 electric cars on the road in the UK and over 780,000 plug-in models.
And the idea for the venture came when Michael found himself stranded in a courtesy car he had been given for the day. He explained: “I was told by the garage it would be okay to drive around in for the day but that wasn’t the case.
“Luckily my sister already had an electric car so I drove to her house and plugged the hire car in. And so while I drank coffee in that kitchen and waited to have enough charge to get back to the garage, the idea for EV Power 2 U was born.”
Michael immediately set to work doing research and trying to find solutions to the problem. He soon discovered that there was a gap in the market for a service that restored charge efficiently at the roadside.
Most existing rescue services were either slow and only available in a few areas, or involved towing the car to the nearest charging station. Electric cars need to be completely cool before being lifted onto a recovery vehicle or they risk long-term damage.
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For the next four years Michael developed and honed his idea, harnessing expert advice and knowledge where he could. Then he came up with the trademarked EV Power 2 U concept – a charging system that delivers a mile a minute charge.
Based in Runcorn, he has just launched the concept in the North West. He added: “I’ve always wanted to make a difference with what I do and if I can encourage more people to buy electric cars by taking away range anxiety then that can only be a good thing.
Michael is already looking to double the fleet available to keep up with demand. And Liverpool John Moores University were so impressed with the technology behind the system they approached Michael to discuss collaborating. EV Power is now an official partner of the university.
The two have already started to work together to try to improve the current concept. From January 2023, PhD engineering students from John Moores will be working on making the technology within the vans smaller and lighter.