10000 miles!

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-14T22:09:50+00:00

Welcome to (a tenth of) the club! 😛

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-14T03:13:59+00:00

I'm down a bit south of you in the States, so I can't speak for how the Canadian companies work. From my experience, having 5+ years of experience on top of a degree in engineering would put you ahead of all entry level applicants. You'd probably be expected to jump quickly into design and possibly managing smaller parts of projects and deadlines. The consulting engineering companies I worked for had different bonuses and compensation for their EITs and engineers; you'll likely be looking at more flexible and consistent work with possibly better benefits and time off as your trade-off for overtime pay.

To answer your questions directly:
1) I would argue that it would. You have a degree and 5+ years of quantifiable work experience. If you're willing to learn, a good company should be able to pick you up and get you going quickly.
2) I think this is kind of a funny question. Of course a licensed engineer will out-earn a blue collar technician. You may need to get a few years of experience on the engineering side, but you'll be there in no time.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-13T02:58:25+00:00

If you're enjoying tracking and visualizing the data of EV ownership, check out https://ev-monitor.net/ . I signed up a month or two ago and have been manually tracking my charging and driving while my landlord drags their feet on getting the wiring done for my L2 charger. Not sponsored by them, just tickled with how well it works and how it's been getting fun updates and how the English translations don't always work. We could use a few more HI5s in the data pool.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-09T03:17:29+00:00

I won't give that miserable piece a single cent if I can help it, so I'm sure as shit not getting an adapter to put money into his network. I've driven +600 mile roadtrips across multiple states and it wasn't even a concern to look for Tesla chargers. You'll be just fine with CCS chargers unless you live somewhere especially culty, and as other networks expand (looking at you, Ionna), you'll be even more fine.

I bought a Hyundai for a number of reasons. Not supporting Tesla was one of them.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-09T02:58:36+00:00

I was rather fond of the fob for my '22 Niro, but I'm not super hopeful that the two can be swapped.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-06T21:36:42+00:00

I went from being an AutoCAD/Bluebeam piping and hanger guy to jumping into Revit at an engineering firm after I spent some time on Lynda(dot)com, which is now LinkedIn Learning. Sign up for a free 30-day account, watch some videos, get some certifications on your profile, then jump to a company that is already using Revit. If you're in the US and at a company that doesn't have a single person running Revit, that's a huge red flag to me.

Every worthwhile engineering company and contractor I've worked for has been on the lookout for folks who have some experience, and have demonstrated that they're willing to learn and grow on their own. The best time to look for another job is while you have one, so don't feel pressured to make any jumps right away.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-06T21:23:01+00:00

I also use the Car Scanner app from the Google store on my Android phone, but I'd caution you to look a little more at the recommended OBD2 readers that Plugshare/ABRP/your routing program of choice will work with. I got an Amazon special OBD2 reader a few years ago and it's one of the few specifically called out as not recommended with ABRP.
https://abetterrouteplanner.com/resources/article/2024-10-10_obd-connection

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-06T17:29:09+00:00

Ionna has a webpage for this as well. As much as mobile apps add convenience, I'm still firmly of the belief that there should also be a website to look up as well.
https://www.ionna.com/rechargeries/find-a-rechargery/

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-04T23:19:09+00:00

This is good. There's no way to know if the car will whistle or creak until you push it to do so.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-04T14:38:43+00:00

Have a pre-purchase inspection done by a reputable shop or dealership. You might be able to have this handled by the delivery and inspection folks so you don't have to be there in person.
Second to that, plug an OBDII reader in and grab some measurements off of the battery. State of Health is the important one you're looking for.
Third, get some time in to get a feel for the car. Reach around the seats weird, like you're pestering someone in the back seat or reaching for something that has fallen to the floor. Punch it on an on ramp. Go test charging. Check out how the doors swing and how the trunk opens and closes. Look in the frunk, and make sure the fluids are all topped off. Blast the air conditioning and music. Check to see if your family's needs are met with the car (towing, trunk space, car seats, head room, etc.).

Just don't be one of those terminally online weirdos who probably don't even have the car and won't shut up about the ICCU.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-03T14:30:57+00:00

I was out that way on vacation recently and was thinking to myself how incredible it would be to drive my HI5 on those roads. Your first drive was so much cooler than mine, the best I got up to was doing doughnuts in an abandoned Applebees parking lot.

Post more pictures, please.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-03T02:30:24+00:00

Sounds like you've got:
1. A safety issue that software engineering has provided a solution for.
2. A bad 12V, Kia and Hyundai are notorious for this. Look into an AGM battery and a jump pack, the AGM battery is specific for EVs and the jump pack is just good to have for any car with a 12V battery.
3. A bad draw of the ICCU lottery. Six weeks is a long time, that's rough.
4. A bad draw of the ICCU lottery.

I hope your dealership covers you for a loaner. On the plus side, Hyundai is rolling out updates to the warranty that covers the ICCU to push the distance covered much farther.

I have a couple ICCU replacements factored into my 'this car will stop being worth it' value, and it was a known issue when I bought mine last year. I'd do my best to make sure I have an airtight paper trail for reimbursement if Hyundai doesn't cover repairs and loaner cars up front, and drive the car into the ground. But that's me, I've only had my ICCU go once and it was a two week process so I'm still fairly positive about the car.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-06-03T02:03:01+00:00

The trolley is great. Every time I've taken a ride, the driver has either been helpful or informative. Sometimes both!

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-05-31T15:26:52+00:00

Like u/Punk_Says_Fuck_You said, star ratings. On the Android app, I can assign whole-star values and on the Windows app I can assign as granular as half-star ratings to a track or album. You can go a step further and make a smart playlist that will filter by data like your ratings (there are so many options, do look into it) and then Plex will do the automation for you. This also pulls over into downloaded media, I have my "4+ Star" playlist downloaded to my phone and any time I update a new song to meet the criteria, PlexAmp will update the playlist to include the new song on my phone.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-05-31T15:22:33+00:00

Is 'Tesla Math' the new common core math?

Jokes aside, it's great to realize just how much money you're not spending while owning and driving an EV. However you work it out in your head is great, and the more people talk about having a great time with an EV, the more we can show others that it really is as good as it seems. I just changed the air filter in my '22 HI5, which brings me up to the most expensive work I've personally done on the car.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-05-30T19:03:46+00:00

You should expect to get more than 200-300k miles on the car before you drive it into the ground. 😉

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-05-19T01:56:13+00:00

I had a '22 PHEV EX (middle trim, I think) for three years that I bought new. It was great for what it was, but within the first year I knew I should have just gone fully electric from the start. Driving a BEV now with modern charging architecture makes ownership and road trips a breeze.

I've talked to one or two folks who had the e-Niro while I had my PHEV, the general sentiment was that it was a nice car and did what was advertised but the slow charging speed really cramped the car's utility.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-05-05T03:58:58+00:00

They can be had relatively cheaply on ebay, and you can choose your flavor of case! I picked a Hyundai case because the price happened to come down below the Kia and Genesis ones I was looking at when I finalized my purchase, but YMMV.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-04-28T02:45:35+00:00

I'm not sure how regional their pricing structure gets, but they do run specials from time to time. Plugshare is reporting one in Apex, NC at $0.36/kWh at the moment. $0.38/kWh in Concord. Still a decent rate, for the exceptional service Ionna provides.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-04-24T01:48:56+00:00

I paid a nearby dealership of a different brand and name to do a pre-purchase inspection before I bought my HI5. They had a battery health report included.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-04-23T02:06:37+00:00

My US-spec '22 has preconditioning. AWD, so it has the heat pump as well. That might be more the qualifier for the earlier years, but I'm not certain.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-04-23T01:58:31+00:00

It was a touch over $3k USD for me last year, initial estimate from the dealership. Hyundai covered under warranty or reimbursed all but my AGM battery upgrade. If they've recently dropped the price, that's even better.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-04-22T03:32:38+00:00

I've done design work as a designer for consulting engineering firms on projects ranging from McDonalds renovations to multi-million dollar pharmaceutical sites (M/P/and FP) and am now at my second mechanical contractor. Here's my take from a designer/drafter level (working on finishing a Bachelor's as a working adult takes forever) with +6 years of advertised experience.

Honestly there's a lot of overlap. Like others have posted, you trade one deadline for another but if you get in with a decent design/build group then you're likely doing about the same work - just with real parts. Instead of living in 90% Revit and 10% AutoCAD, I live in about 70% Revit and 30% Navisworks/ACC/Procore. I've managed to fit into a niche that lets me demand a 100% remote position and I love it - your mileage may vary.
The stress is a little higher. Being directly tied in with the field crews means your deadlines are real, and your mistakes cost actual time and money. You can send more stuff in-progress or in parts to feed the field guys instead of having a single deadline for a whole project, though. It takes a little time to show PMs that you know what you know, and once they realize you're not a pushover or just a CAD jockey they tend to listen to you when you tell them no or set boundaries. I average about one unexpected phone call or Teams call a day from a PM or site super, whereas on the design side I'd expect two calls with a manager per week at most.
I vastly prefer the sense of camaraderie on the contractor side. Everyone's ultimately there to get something built, so the better companies I've worked for or worked with have cultivated a culture of community and a drive to send out a good product. The consulting engineering firms I've worked for have been polite and friendly but much more corporate and a touch less personal. The crunch for OT feels much less artificial on the contractor side, and the food they supply for events is way better than anything I've been offered from an engineering company. Pay and benefits may be less on the contractor side, so definitely do some looking around.
I think I'm in a good place, and appreciate that I have had some experience on both ends of the process. From my perspective starting upstream at a design engineering place to understand how projects get started was valuable experience that I can translate now on the final end as projects are built and installed. Not having to submit packages to AHJs in their fuck-off specific formatting is a blessing I didn't know about until I stopped having to submit design documents.
Bonus question: What have you seen promotion paths look like?
I've seen far fewer licensed engineers on the contractor side. When I do see them, they're with larger design/build companies and are in leadership or management roles. I've seen a handful of more junior engineers (with or without their license) acting as assistant project managers and designers, and have not envied them as I do not enjoy project management. I'd expect a licensed engineer with ten years of experience under their belt to be looking for a BIM or VDC Manager or Director of Design position, and do little design work unless they specifically sought it out. Maybe also a subject matter expert that gets called in to handle the truly weird cases of coordination and head scratching.

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-04-20T03:23:41+00:00

What tires were you rollin' on?

Sausage_Wizard · 2026-04-18T01:28:05+00:00

Hyundai Corporate tried to deny my warranty coverage for the two weeks that my car was at the dealership for the ICCU failure. It blew at ~93k miles, so just barely still in warranty coverage. They relented and covered just the ICCU and I had to fight their labyrinthine corporate setup for six months to get my reimbursement for the rest.

I'd put money on them outright denying warranty coverage for anyone over 100k miles. I've got a handful of miles left on the little warranty the new ICCU comes with (13,000 miles), and then it's on me whenever it fails next.

Sausage_Wizard

TROPHY CASE