Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Det billigste alternativet er å lade bilen i garasjen med den nye stikkontakten. - The cheapest option is to charge the car in the garage with the new power outlet.

billigste (with -e) is the attributive superlative used before a noun in definite phrases: det billigste huset.
billigst (without -e) is the predicative superlative used after a verb: Dette alternativet er billigst.

Why does alternativet end in -et?

That’s the definite singular ending for neuter nouns. Paradigm:

Indefinite singular: et alternativ
Definite singular: alternativet
Indefinite plural: alternativer
Definite plural: alternativene

What is å doing before lade?

å is the infinitive marker (like “to” in English). å lade = “to charge.” Don’t confuse å with og (“and”).

Is the pattern er + å + infinitive normal, even if it sounds odd in English?

Yes. Norwegian often uses an infinitive clause as a subject complement: Det beste er å…, Målet er å… It’s fully natural: Det billigste alternativet er å lade …

Could I say Det billigste er å lade bilen … and drop alternativet?

Yes. That’s idiomatic and slightly lighter in style: Det billigste er å lade bilen i garasjen …

Why bilen (definite) and not en bil?

Using bilen implies a specific car (usually “the/our car” from context). en bil would mean “a car (any car),” which doesn’t fit well here.

Is å lade correct for cars, or should it be å lade opp?

Both occur. For EVs, plain å lade bilen is very common; å lade opp can add a “charge up” nuance but isn’t required. Conjugation (Bokmål): å lade – lader – ladet/ladda – har ladet/ladda.

Why i garasjen and not på garasjen or til garasjen?

i garasjen = in the garage (inside it) — correct here.
på garasjen = on the garage (on top/surface) — wrong here.
til garasjen = to the garage (movement toward) — not intended.

What does med mean here?

Instrument/means: med den nye stikkontakten = using/by means of the new outlet. You could also say fra den nye stikkontakten (“from the new outlet”), depending on emphasis.

Why do we get both den and the -en ending in den nye stikkontakten?

This is Norwegian “double definiteness.” With an adjective before a definite noun, you need:

Determiner: den/det/de
Adjective with -e: nye
Noun with definite ending: stikkontakten So: den nye stikkontakten.

Why nye and not ny in den nye stikkontakten?

In definite noun phrases (and in all plurals), adjectives take -e: den nye stikkontakten, de nye stikkontaktene. Use ny only with indefinite singular common gender: en ny stikkontakt.

What gender is stikkontakt, and how does it inflect?

Common gender (en). Forms:

en stikkontakt
stikkontakten
stikkontakter
stikkontaktene

Could med den nye stikkontakten be read as modifying garasjen (a garage with the new outlet) instead of the verb?

Grammatically there’s mild ambiguity, but the default reading is instrumental with lade. If you want to say the garage has the outlet, make it explicit: i garasjen, som har den nye stikkontakten or i garasjen der det er en ny stikkontakt.

Is the order i garasjen med den nye stikkontakten fixed?

It’s flexible. Place often comes before instrument/means, so the given order is natural. You could also say … med den nye stikkontakten i garasjen for a slightly different rhythm or emphasis.

Any quick pronunciation tips?

å like the vowel in “law.”
lade ≈ LAH-deh.
garasjen has an “sh” sound: ga-RAH-shen.
ny in nye is the front rounded vowel [y], like German “ü.”
In det, the final t is often silent in everyday speech.