we just charge couple times a week, using a normal plug from an extension lead in our garage.
Still hate longer trips, where you hope one of the three charging points at the service station is free.
I was never sure if it’s safe to do that.
It’s quite safe. Done it for over 10 months.
How does that compare with a dedicated EV home charger ?
Time to charge. Normal plug would charge at 3KWh - a wall charger typically 7KWh. So more than twice as quick with a wall charger.
But presumably no special tariff as its drawing from the normal house circuit and not a dedicated EV point?
A dedicated EV point will be using the same source of electricity as the plug. Mine does, but I'm not sure how some of the special tariff rates for EV charging work.
No idea if there’s an average for this but how long does it take using a dedicated home charger to fully recharge a depleted battery?
Depends on the battery size, Shooters - but typically an EV with a decent size battery/range will charge fully overnight. e.g. a battery that needs another 70KWs to top up would take 10 hours.
No idea if there’s an average for this but how long does it take using a dedicated home charger to fully recharge a depleted battery?
The time it takes to fully recharge a depleted EV battery using a dedicated home charger depends on several factors:
1. Charger Type (Level 1 vs. Level 2):
Level 1 Charger (120V): This is a standard household outlet. Charging is slow, typically adding 3-5 miles of range per hour. It can take 20-40+ hours to fully charge a large EV battery from empty.
Level 2 Charger (240V): This is a dedicated home charger, often professionally installed. It can add 20-60 miles of range per hour and can take 4-12 hours to fully charge a depleted battery.
2. Battery Size:
Smaller batteries (e.g., 40 kWh): Charging time can be as quick as 4-6 hours with a Level 2 charger.
Larger batteries (e.g., 80-100 kWh): These could take 8-12 hours or more to charge fully, depending on the charger’s speed and efficiency.
For most EVs, a full overnight charge (6-10 hours) using a Level 2 charger is typical.
No idea if there’s an average for this but how long does it take using a dedicated home charger to fully recharge a depleted battery?
The time it takes to fully recharge a depleted EV battery using a dedicated home charger depends on several factors:
1. Charger Type (Level 1 vs. Level 2):
Level 1 Charger (120V): This is a standard household outlet. Charging is slow, typically adding 3-5 miles of range per hour. It can take 20-40+ hours to fully charge a large EV battery from empty.
Level 2 Charger (240V): This is a dedicated home charger, often professionally installed. It can add 20-60 miles of range per hour and can take 4-12 hours to fully charge a depleted battery.
2. Battery Size:
Smaller batteries (e.g., 40 kWh): Charging time can be as quick as 4-6 hours with a Level 2 charger.
Larger batteries (e.g., 80-100 kWh): These could take 8-12 hours or more to charge fully, depending on the charger’s speed and efficiency.
For most EVs, a full overnight charge (6-10 hours) using a Level 2 charger is typical.
You also have to factor in charging reduces from 80% to extend battery life. This certainly applies to higher powered public chargers but I don’t know if the same process applies to home charging.
I also make 3-5 miles per hour about right. I get about 2% per hour which equates to 4.8 miles.
Have a Nissan Leaf as a pool car at work. Was used to a company shindig in Reading, there and back one charge.
But despite its green credentials I can’t warm to it.
Would take any old petrol over any electric.
Probably because I am an old dinosaur.
Rather than dismiss you as a dinosaur, could you explain why driving "any old petrol" would be better than an electric.
I have been in the Motor Trade, in one form or another since i left school in 1973. I had a 4 year apprenticeship and enjoyed being a mechanic.
As in any job the satisfaction you derive from “doing the job “ in my case was from repairing Trucks, Buses and Cars. To fire up a big diesel after an engine rebuild was a real buzz. Now the Technician that looks after your car now can not begin to diagnose a fault without the help of a pretty sophisticated computer . Electric vehicles and autonomous vehicles are the future, I have seen in my career the progress from old crash gearboxes to Electronic control systems which eliminate the need for synchronisers.
But modern cars are for the most part soulless. ADAS is the electronic cacoon that ensures that you don’t operate the vehicle outside of its design parameters. This for me makes driving a chore.
Driving for me was a pleasure from my MK2 Zodiac, to my Avenger Tiger and my favourite of all cars my Triumph Dolomite Sprint.
So yes I will drive Old petrol car because they were fun to drive.
And I realise that to bang on about the past may put me in to dinosaur territory
Thanks for the explanation.
Driving in general used to be more pleasurable but there's too many cars on today's roads so perhaps your anti EV stance is better aimed at crowded roads. There's nowhere to take a pleasurable drive.
I have found our EV even more pleasurable to drive than the BMW. The regenerative breaking takes some getting used to but, without trying to, I have found myself letting the car do a lot more of the work by allowing it to do most of the breaking. It can also steer itself. Overall I find it more relaxing.
Some EVs are more fun than others but for me personally once the novelties wore off, the immediate acceleration with no fuel injectors, regenerative braking (golf carts and milk floats have this too and they are both fun) I was not overly impressed. I'm a self confessed petrol head, love the tingle the roar and bark of a V8 gives me, how engines pop and burr. I love the smell of petrol, 2 stroke especially and I love how you need to be at one with a particular car to really get the best out of it.
I say all that understanding that alternative fuel vehicles are the future be that hydrogen or old fashioned electricity stored in a big battery and it makes me a bit sad, especially now that combustion engines are so good, economical and reliable, after 100 years we've close to cracked it and they will be discarded.
I also don't like the doctrine with all things EV and the talk about how cheap they are. They are not, they are prohibitively expensive new and I would only consider a new one due to the battery, charging them publicly is expensive, charging from home overnight is great value however that is part of what makes them a prohibitive thing. Only people with drives get access to the cheap method of charging them. All this shit about cables across footpaths makes heave. We live in a country so rightly and tightly regulated for what you can and cannot do working on the road and footpath then you have people dragging cables across the things to charge their car!
Also the inherent distrust in me does not like how eager the world seems to be to have autonomous vehicles. I want to be in control of where I go, not a computer. I'm not anti-EV I just want them to be better than whats the legacy and they are a long way off that currently
The first two points aren’t really true (prices have come down, and are continuing to come down, and there are increasing numbers of EVs in my street that are charged overnight with no issues).
The third point is debatable. There are plenty of superb EVs out there already.
I also love the sound of a throaty petrol engine (have been to the Goodwood festival of speed a couple of times, and loved it) but they’ll still be around for a long time.
It’s all a question of whether you think climate change is real, and if you think we need to take action for the sake of future generations. PS I’m with you on autonomous vehicles. Wouldn’t trust them, and how many jobs would be lost!?
What you are disagreeing with is fine subjectively in terms of your street. Dragging cables over footpaths is fine until it isn't. I would not leave a worksite with cables all over the place as I dont want anyone, me included to trip over them and smash their face in/break any bones/knock their teeth out.
EVs are expensive brand new, how is a 17 year old trying to get out in the world, gain independence, get to work when the options are all over 15k and then run the risk of battery failure. I wouldn't have gotten a car until I was 30 if that's the pricing point.
Teslas, the Mercedes-Benz models, Audi and BMW have decent electric vehicles but again, if I've got 30-40k to drop on a vehicle I won't be spending it on one that means I'm looking at the range nervously whenever I want to overtake someone or put the air conditioning on. Besides that the work EVs regularly and merrily go from showing 80 miles on the range to an alarm sounding telling us the range is less than 5 miles.
I'm not anti-EV, I'm just not convinced they are the future and they are 1 step away from being autonomous
I'm torn between Hybrid and full EV. Thinking about changing my car soon. The one thing that is making me think EVs aren't quite ready yet is the battery technology. The weight, size and slow home charging. There are lots of rumours and stories that the chinese are close to developing a much smaller, lighter battery system that will re-charge in minutes - i'm sure that would be a game changer and existiung EVs would becomem obsolete. Might be wrong but I'm tempted to wait.
I think they already have. But how far away from being marketable isn’t known yet.
Old EVs wouldn’t become obsolete because you could still use them. The current batteries are fine - I know quite a few people who own EVs, and they say it’s not an issue, for them. One of them drives to Newcastle every so often and has to stop at a motorway service station for forty minutes for charging, but says they just have lunch.
Have a Nissan Leaf as a pool car at work. Was used to a company shindig in Reading, there and back one charge.
But despite its green credentials I can’t warm to it.
Would take any old petrol over any electric.
Probably because I am an old dinosaur.
Rather than dismiss you as a dinosaur, could you explain why driving "any old petrol" would be better than an electric.
I have been in the Motor Trade, in one form or another since i left school in 1973. I had a 4 year apprenticeship and enjoyed being a mechanic.
As in any job the satisfaction you derive from “doing the job “ in my case was from repairing Trucks, Buses and Cars. To fire up a big diesel after an engine rebuild was a real buzz. Now the Technician that looks after your car now can not begin to diagnose a fault without the help of a pretty sophisticated computer . Electric vehicles and autonomous vehicles are the future, I have seen in my career the progress from old crash gearboxes to Electronic control systems which eliminate the need for synchronisers.
But modern cars are for the most part soulless. ADAS is the electronic cacoon that ensures that you don’t operate the vehicle outside of its design parameters. This for me makes driving a chore.
Driving for me was a pleasure from my MK2 Zodiac, to my Avenger Tiger and my favourite of all cars my Triumph Dolomite Sprint.
So yes I will drive Old petrol car because they were fun to drive.
And I realise that to bang on about the past may put me in to dinosaur territory
Thanks for the explanation.
Driving in general used to be more pleasurable but there's too many cars on today's roads so perhaps your anti EV stance is better aimed at crowded roads. There's nowhere to take a pleasurable drive.
I have found our EV even more pleasurable to drive than the BMW. The regenerative breaking takes some getting used to but, without trying to, I have found myself letting the car do a lot more of the work by allowing it to do most of the breaking. It can also steer itself. Overall I find it more relaxing.
Some EVs are more fun than others but for me personally once the novelties wore off, the immediate acceleration with no fuel injectors, regenerative braking (golf carts and milk floats have this too and they are both fun) I was not overly impressed. I'm a self confessed petrol head, love the tingle the roar and bark of a V8 gives me, how engines pop and burr. I love the smell of petrol, 2 stroke especially and I love how you need to be at one with a particular car to really get the best out of it.
I say all that understanding that alternative fuel vehicles are the future be that hydrogen or old fashioned electricity stored in a big battery and it makes me a bit sad, especially now that combustion engines are so good, economical and reliable, after 100 years we've close to cracked it and they will be discarded.
I also don't like the doctrine with all things EV and the talk about how cheap they are. They are not, they are prohibitively expensive new and I would only consider a new one due to the battery, charging them publicly is expensive, charging from home overnight is great value however that is part of what makes them a prohibitive thing. Only people with drives get access to the cheap method of charging them. All this shit about cables across footpaths makes heave. We live in a country so rightly and tightly regulated for what you can and cannot do working on the road and footpath then you have people dragging cables across the things to charge their car!
Also the inherent distrust in me does not like how eager the world seems to be to have autonomous vehicles. I want to be in control of where I go, not a computer. I'm not anti-EV I just want them to be better than whats the legacy and they are a long way off that currently
The first two points aren’t really true (prices have come down, and are continuing to come down, and there are increasing numbers of EVs in my street that are charged overnight with no issues).
The third point is debatable. There are plenty of superb EVs out there already.
I also love the sound of a throaty petrol engine (have been to the Goodwood festival of speed a couple of times, and loved it) but they’ll still be around for a long time.
It’s all a question of whether you think climate change is real, and if you think we need to take action for the sake of future generations. PS I’m with you on autonomous vehicles. Wouldn’t trust them, and how many jobs would be lost!?
Off topic slightly but the number of jobs lost to autonomous vehicles compared to those that will be lost to AI is going to look quite attractive.
I had an EV as a Company car but bought an ICE as a 'range anxiety antidote' for longer journeys - my wife also has an ICE. When I retired last December I was gifted the EV as part of my retirement package and as it was hard to justify three cars between the two of us I had to choose which one to sell - I opted to sell my ICE and retain the EV.
Last weekend I went on a longish round trip (the longest since I've had the EV and my wife was using her car) and spent the entire journey focusing on the ever decreasing range left in the batteries! Seven miles from home on the return leg the car died on me with an 'Electrical Failure - park the car safely). Having waited 90 minutes for the RAC who then told me it would be another 90 minutes and with the Police Officer saying they would call out their recovery as the car had to be moved (70mph dual carriageway with no hard shoulder). So I just double checked and the fault had reset and the car was working perfectly. Having an EV die at 60mph was a bit scary!
Bugger that for a game of soldiers - ordered a new ICE yesterday and will trade in the EV.
Fair enough, based on one experience. But again, none of the people I know who drive EVs have had any issues at all.
I'm torn between Hybrid and full EV. Thinking about changing my car soon. The one thing that is making me think EVs aren't quite ready yet is the battery technology. The weight, size and slow home charging. There are lots of rumours and stories that the chinese are close to developing a much smaller, lighter battery system that will re-charge in minutes - i'm sure that would be a game changer and existiung EVs would becomem obsolete. Might be wrong but I'm tempted to wait.
I think they already have. But how far away from being marketable isn’t known yet.
Old EVs wouldn’t become obsolete because you could still use them. The current batteries are fine - I know quite a few people who own EVs, and they say it’s not an issue, for them. One of them drives to Newcastle every so often and has to stop at a motorway service station for forty minutes for charging, but says they just have lunch.
I feel like this is a big part of it for me, it's great for people who do long journeys and live their lives (both metaphorically and literally) in the slow lane, but if you actually don't want to spend 40 minutes hanging around a human cesspit of misery that is a British motorway service station, you need an alternative.
I think my next car will most likely be an EV (and I'm quite excited about it!) 99% of my miles are driven in 10-15 mile distances at most, I probably only do 4-5,000 miles in an entire year.
If I still did a lot of driving to the south of France it would be out of the question for me.
we just charge couple times a week, using a normal plug from an extension lead in our garage.
Still hate longer trips, where you hope one of the three charging points at the service station is free.
I was never sure if it’s safe to do that.
It’s quite safe. Done it for over 10 months.
How does that compare with a dedicated EV home charger ?
Time to charge. Normal plug would charge at 3KWh - a wall charger typically 7KWh. So more than twice as quick with a wall charger.
But presumably no special tariff as its drawing from the normal house circuit and not a dedicated EV point?
There are two ways that Octopus (my supplier) allow special tariffs for EV charging.
1. Time of charge (eg Agile). Lower rates overnight. This applies to all consumption in the home, not just EV
2. dedicated connectors in their app for certain brands of car or charger. Creates a connection with the device (via API) to confirm it’s an EV or charger, applies special rate for electricity draw from this device. Can be used any time of day or night.
Word of warning on the 2nd, neither my EV (Hyundai Kona) or charger (Pod Point) were supported.
Wow you really can get second hand electrics for way cheaper than I would have thought. £12k will get you a leaf that's a couple years old with under 20k miles by the looks of it... That's around the same price for a second hand ICE Corsa...
Previously my view was to use my wife's salary sacrifice scheme to get a new EV but I might push the boat out spend a decent chunk on a second hand EV instead, especially as I will be able to almost exclusively charge at home, I feel like I'm exactly the kind of person an EV should work for.
To Carter's point though, my first car was £850, and I wrote it off so that's just as well!
I have sold my recharge Volvo and replacing with a diesel BMW. The Volvo was fine as my usual journey was 60 miles round trip which gave me an overall 50mpg. Due to a change in my lifestyle I shall now be taking longer journies and have no wish to have the hassle of charging as I go, far easier to go to a pump and do a diesel fill.
Wow you really can get second hand electrics for way cheaper than I would have thought. £12k will get you a leaf that's a couple years old with under 20k miles by the looks of it... That's around the same price for a second hand ICE Corsa...
Previously my view was to use my wife's salary sacrifice scheme to get a new EV but I might push the boat out spend a decent chunk on a second hand EV instead, especially as I will be able to almost exclusively charge at home, I feel like I'm exactly the kind of person an EV should work for.
To Carter's point though, my first car was £850, and I wrote it off so that's just as well!
Very true on 2nd hand values of EVs. My 3.5 year old lease Hyundai kona was offered to me to purchase for 10.5k. 21k miles. Some bargains to be had.
I'm torn between Hybrid and full EV. Thinking about changing my car soon. The one thing that is making me think EVs aren't quite ready yet is the battery technology. The weight, size and slow home charging. There are lots of rumours and stories that the chinese are close to developing a much smaller, lighter battery system that will re-charge in minutes - i'm sure that would be a game changer and existiung EVs would becomem obsolete. Might be wrong but I'm tempted to wait.
I think they already have. But how far away from being marketable isn’t known yet.
Old EVs wouldn’t become obsolete because you could still use them. The current batteries are fine - I know quite a few people who own EVs, and they say it’s not an issue, for them. One of them drives to Newcastle every so often and has to stop at a motorway service station for forty minutes for charging, but says they just have lunch.
I feel like this is a big part of it for me, it's great for people who do long journeys and live their lives (both metaphorically and literally) in the slow lane, but if you actually don't want to spend 40 minutes hanging around a human cesspit of misery that is a British motorway service station, you need an alternative.
I think my next car will most likely be an EV (and I'm quite excited about it!) 99% of my miles are driven in 10-15 mile distances at most, I probably only do 4-5,000 miles in an entire year.
If I still did a lot of driving to the south of France it would be out of the question for me.
If I do any drive I’ve four hours I’m very likely to stop now. Newcastle is a good 6 1/2 hours away, and I suspect most people would break that journey. Even when working in the news industry we’d try to break a journey like that. In fact we were told it was mandatory to do so for health & safety reasons.
I’m sure there are those who are really up against it who might prefer to only stop for a refuel and a sandwich to eat as they’re driving alone. Petrol or diesel would suit them right now, but charging times are set to decrease according to Goldman Sachs.
‘New report by Goldman Sachs forecasts EV battery prices falling by 50% by 2026!
Why? 👇🏼
(1) New battery products that feature about 30% higher energy density & lower cost
(2) A continued decline in battery metal prices
Global avg battery prices declined from $153/kWh in 2022 to approx. $111/kWh by the close of 2024.
Continued forecasts put battery prices in the low-to-mid $60/kWh price point around 2028-2030.’
i agree about trips the the South of France. Southern Europe is lagging behind, where as the Scandinavian are (predictably) way ahead of us.
A fair few petrol stations have already installed EV chargers.
I bought an EV last month & have had no issues at all so far. Plus I’m already noticing the benefit of not having to fork out £200 - £300 on Diesel every month.
A fair few petrol stations have already installed EV chargers.
I bought an EV last month & have had no issues at all so far. Plus I’m already noticing the benefit of not having to fork out £200 - £300 on Diesel every month.
You also find a lot of Starbucks & McDonald's have chargers too, especially the ones that are right next to a major road. On long journeys I tend to find one of these on the route or look for something like an MFG or Fastned dedicated charging point as these have lots of chargers and from my experience are never full. I rarely charge at a services but assume that's where most people try and charge so is always going to be a bit busier
I had an EV as a Company car but bought an ICE as a 'range anxiety antidote' for longer journeys - my wife also has an ICE. When I retired last December I was gifted the EV as part of my retirement package and as it was hard to justify three cars between the two of us I had to choose which one to sell - I opted to sell my ICE and retain the EV.
Last weekend I went on a longish round trip (the longest since I've had the EV and my wife was using her car) and spent the entire journey focusing on the ever decreasing range left in the batteries! Seven miles from home on the return leg the car died on me with an 'Electrical Failure - park the car safely). Having waited 90 minutes for the RAC who then told me it would be another 90 minutes and with the Police Officer saying they would call out their recovery as the car had to be moved (70mph dual carriageway with no hard shoulder). So I just double checked and the fault had reset and the car was working perfectly. Having an EV die at 60mph was a bit scary!
Bugger that for a game of soldiers - ordered a new ICE yesterday and will trade in the EV.
Fair enough, based on one experience. But again, none of the people I know who drive EVs have had any issues at all.
Have you got an estimate for delivery yet ? There appears to have been a lot of interest in the EX30 (including Mrs Hex) so it may be quite long lead times. Another consideration is that you will be dealing direct with Volvo over price as the dealer no longer ‘buys’ the cars.
I had an EV as a Company car but bought an ICE as a 'range anxiety antidote' for longer journeys - my wife also has an ICE. When I retired last December I was gifted the EV as part of my retirement package and as it was hard to justify three cars between the two of us I had to choose which one to sell - I opted to sell my ICE and retain the EV.
Last weekend I went on a longish round trip (the longest since I've had the EV and my wife was using her car) and spent the entire journey focusing on the ever decreasing range left in the batteries! Seven miles from home on the return leg the car died on me with an 'Electrical Failure - park the car safely). Having waited 90 minutes for the RAC who then told me it would be another 90 minutes and with the Police Officer saying they would call out their recovery as the car had to be moved (70mph dual carriageway with no hard shoulder). So I just double checked and the fault had reset and the car was working perfectly. Having an EV die at 60mph was a bit scary!
Bugger that for a game of soldiers - ordered a new ICE yesterday and will trade in the EV.
Fair enough, based on one experience. But again, none of the people I know who drive EVs have had any issues at all.
Have you got an estimate for delivery yet ? There appears to have been a lot of interest in the EX30 (including Mrs Hex) so it may be quite long lead times. Another consideration is that you will be dealing direct with Volvo over price as the dealer no longer ‘buys’ the cars.
This. I'm in the process of buying a Volvo at the moment and dealing direct with Volvo UK (they are very efficient). The dealer hands the car over, deals with any P/Ex, and provides after sales servicing.
I'm torn between Hybrid and full EV. Thinking about changing my car soon. The one thing that is making me think EVs aren't quite ready yet is the battery technology. The weight, size and slow home charging. There are lots of rumours and stories that the chinese are close to developing a much smaller, lighter battery system that will re-charge in minutes - i'm sure that would be a game changer and existiung EVs would becomem obsolete. Might be wrong but I'm tempted to wait.
I think they already have. But how far away from being marketable isn’t known yet.
Old EVs wouldn’t become obsolete because you could still use them. The current batteries are fine - I know quite a few people who own EVs, and they say it’s not an issue, for them. One of them drives to Newcastle every so often and has to stop at a motorway service station for forty minutes for charging, but says they just have lunch.
I feel like this is a big part of it for me, it's great for people who do long journeys and live their lives (both metaphorically and literally) in the slow lane, but if you actually don't want to spend 40 minutes hanging around a human cesspit of misery that is a British motorway service station, you need an alternative.
I think my next car will most likely be an EV (and I'm quite excited about it!) 99% of my miles are driven in 10-15 mile distances at most, I probably only do 4-5,000 miles in an entire year.
If I still did a lot of driving to the south of France it would be out of the question for me.
This is a good point. What is the public charging like in for example France and Spain ?
EV drivers are generally more likely to stay with EVs than return to ICE vehicles, especially when they have access to reliable charging and are satisfied with their vehicle's performance.
A small percentage of early adopters of EVs have switched back to ICE cars, primarily due to range anxiety or charging infrastructure limitations, but this trend appears to be decreasing as EV technology and infrastructure improve.
ICE drivers are increasingly likely to switch to EVs, driven by lower long-term costs, environmental concerns, and government incentives. However, concerns about range and charging infrastructure still pose barriers for many drivers considering the switch.
There's lots of anecdotal evidence of drivers switching back to ICE cars, from EVs. But it's worth looking at more substantial evidence in the form of reliable survey information.
According to a J.D. Power 2022 EV Index, around 30% of U.S. drivers surveyed said they were considering switching to an EV for their next vehicle purchase. And, according to a 2023 survey from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, around 40% of new car buyers in Europe were considering an EV.
A 2023 Consumer Reports survey found that 92% of current EV owners in the U.S. planned to buy an EV again; and a AAA survey in 2020 revealed that 96% of EV owners in the U.S. said their next vehicle would also be electric.
In short, the move from ICE to EV is sustained, significant, substantial and accelerating.
I had an EV as a Company car but bought an ICE as a 'range anxiety antidote' for longer journeys - my wife also has an ICE. When I retired last December I was gifted the EV as part of my retirement package and as it was hard to justify three cars between the two of us I had to choose which one to sell - I opted to sell my ICE and retain the EV.
Last weekend I went on a longish round trip (the longest since I've had the EV and my wife was using her car) and spent the entire journey focusing on the ever decreasing range left in the batteries! Seven miles from home on the return leg the car died on me with an 'Electrical Failure - park the car safely). Having waited 90 minutes for the RAC who then told me it would be another 90 minutes and with the Police Officer saying they would call out their recovery as the car had to be moved (70mph dual carriageway with no hard shoulder). So I just double checked and the fault had reset and the car was working perfectly. Having an EV die at 60mph was a bit scary!
Bugger that for a game of soldiers - ordered a new ICE yesterday and will trade in the EV.
Fair enough, based on one experience. But again, none of the people I know who drive EVs have had any issues at all.
Have you got an estimate for delivery yet ? There appears to have been a lot of interest in the EX30 (including Mrs Hex) so it may be quite long lead times. Another consideration is that you will be dealing direct with Volvo over price as the dealer no longer ‘buys’ the cars.
It was available on my wife’s salary sacrifice scheme before it closed. But it’s about to reopen.
A fair few petrol stations have already installed EV chargers.
I bought an EV last month & have had no issues at all so far. Plus I’m already noticing the benefit of not having to fork out £200 - £300 on Diesel every month.
You also find a lot of Starbucks & McDonald's have chargers too, especially the ones that are right next to a major road. On long journeys I tend to find one of these on the route or look for something like an MFG or Fastned dedicated charging point as these have lots of chargers and from my experience are never full. I rarely charge at a services but assume that's where most people try and charge so is always going to be a bit busier
I used an app called ‘zapmap’ which is will route you (via charging points) from start to destination.
I generally ended up filtering by faster chargers (50kw) if visiting an area an area for the first time so I know where I have available to charge and how far away it is.
One of the reasons I have gone petrol hybrid as I have much better things to do with my life.
A fair few petrol stations have already installed EV chargers.
I bought an EV last month & have had no issues at all so far. Plus I’m already noticing the benefit of not having to fork out £200 - £300 on Diesel every month.
You also find a lot of Starbucks & McDonald's have chargers too, especially the ones that are right next to a major road. On long journeys I tend to find one of these on the route or look for something like an MFG or Fastned dedicated charging point as these have lots of chargers and from my experience are never full. I rarely charge at a services but assume that's where most people try and charge so is always going to be a bit busier
I used an app called ‘zapmap’ which is will route you (via charging points) from start to destination.
I generally ended up filtering by faster chargers (50kw) if visiting an area an area for the first time so I know where I have available to charge and how far away it is.
One of the reasons I have gone petrol hybrid as I have much better things to do with my life.
A fair few petrol stations have already installed EV chargers.
I bought an EV last month & have had no issues at all so far. Plus I’m already noticing the benefit of not having to fork out £200 - £300 on Diesel every month.
You also find a lot of Starbucks & McDonald's have chargers too, especially the ones that are right next to a major road. On long journeys I tend to find one of these on the route or look for something like an MFG or Fastned dedicated charging point as these have lots of chargers and from my experience are never full. I rarely charge at a services but assume that's where most people try and charge so is always going to be a bit busier
I used an app called ‘zapmap’ which is will route you (via charging points) from start to destination.
I generally ended up filtering by faster chargers (50kw) if visiting an area an area for the first time so I know where I have available to charge and how far away it is.
One of the reasons I have gone petrol hybrid as I have much better things to do with my life.
Fair enough. I use the same app about 1 minute before my journey and find it very accessible and intuitive to use.
I'm torn between Hybrid and full EV. Thinking about changing my car soon. The one thing that is making me think EVs aren't quite ready yet is the battery technology. The weight, size and slow home charging. There are lots of rumours and stories that the chinese are close to developing a much smaller, lighter battery system that will re-charge in minutes - i'm sure that would be a game changer and existiung EVs would becomem obsolete. Might be wrong but I'm tempted to wait.
I think they already have. But how far away from being marketable isn’t known yet.
Old EVs wouldn’t become obsolete because you could still use them. The current batteries are fine - I know quite a few people who own EVs, and they say it’s not an issue, for them. One of them drives to Newcastle every so often and has to stop at a motorway service station for forty minutes for charging, but says they just have lunch.
I feel like this is a big part of it for me, it's great for people who do long journeys and live their lives (both metaphorically and literally) in the slow lane, but if you actually don't want to spend 40 minutes hanging around a human cesspit of misery that is a British motorway service station, you need an alternative.
I think my next car will most likely be an EV (and I'm quite excited about it!) 99% of my miles are driven in 10-15 mile distances at most, I probably only do 4-5,000 miles in an entire year.
If I still did a lot of driving to the south of France it would be out of the question for me.
This is a good point. What is the public charging like in for example France and Spain ?
You could download one of the apps for locating charge points (I've got ChargeMap, and the Shell one, but for sure EV owners could suggest better). Then you could just play with it, select a journey you could imagine doing, and see what's offered you. Trouble I find in Germany is that it's difficult to determine from the app if a charge point doesn't require you to have signed up for a German-only provider such as CCS. Actually I could write a long post about how crap it is in Germany. It's ironic that when we drive to the German coast for holiday we drive right past the Tesla "gigafactory", very happy to be in a plug-in hybrid.
This summer we went on hols to Western France, renting an apartment from a Lifer and we hired a car. When I asked him whether I could select an EV he told me bluntly to forget that idea.
In
most car finance deals, this is not a problem for drivers as – provided
they have kept up with their payments – they can hand back the keys and
walk away.
However,
the issue creates a headache for dealers that often allow customers to
“roll over” positive or negative equity into new financing deals to win
repeat business.
The steep drop in electric cars’ value is being
partly fuelled by the discounts offered on new vehicles, as
manufacturers attempt to boost sales to hit legally-binding government
targets.
Rob Forrester, Vertu’s chief executive, said: “We all
know that battery electric vehicles have depreciated at a significant
rate, and that tends to feed into the creation of negative equity.
“If
you think about when many cars were bought two to three years ago, new
car prices were quite high because of supply constraints, but since then
there’s been a reduction in used car value.”
It follows warnings
last month that so-called fleet operators, such as car leasing firms and
rental companies, were having to swallow large losses when reselling
EVs because of “accelerated, exceptional depreciation”.
In the
past two years, the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association
(BVRLA) said the average amount of “residual value” left over at the end
of a car’s lease period had plunged from 60pc to 35pc.
That means a car worth £50,000 when new would drop to £17,500 in value over three years – instead of £30,000.
Car
leasing agreements tend to last two to three years, with monthly
payments generally agreed to cover the vehicle’s predicted depreciation
over that period – minus a deposit.
However, the vast majority of
these deals are personal contract purchase (PCP) deals where the lender
agrees to a “guaranteed minimum future value” at the end of the deal,
also sometimes known as a balloon payment.
Consumers can typically hand the car back and walk away if the car’s estimated worth drops below the minimum guaranteed value.
But
many dealerships allow them to add the value of negative equity to a
new financing deal, or take positive equity off the price of their next
car if it is in surplus, in a bid to retain customers.
As a result, Vertu warned that rising instances of negative equity could hurt forecourt profits.
It
came as the company said it continued to see instances of car
manufacturers “rationing” supplies of petrol and diesel cars to
dealerships, as they prioritise trying to shift to electric models
instead.
In the six months to the end of August, Vertu said EV sales had increased 10pc, compared to a year earlier.
That was better than the 7pc drop in private sales of EVs seen more broadly across the industry, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
Comments
A dedicated EV point will be using the same source of electricity as the plug. Mine does, but I'm not sure how some of the special tariff rates for EV charging work.
Depends on the battery size, Shooters - but typically an EV with a decent size battery/range will charge fully overnight. e.g. a battery that needs another 70KWs to top up would take 10 hours.
I also make 3-5 miles per hour about right. I get about 2% per hour which equates to 4.8 miles.
EVs are expensive brand new, how is a 17 year old trying to get out in the world, gain independence, get to work when the options are all over 15k and then run the risk of battery failure. I wouldn't have gotten a car until I was 30 if that's the pricing point.
Teslas, the Mercedes-Benz models, Audi and BMW have decent electric vehicles but again, if I've got 30-40k to drop on a vehicle I won't be spending it on one that means I'm looking at the range nervously whenever I want to overtake someone or put the air conditioning on. Besides that the work EVs regularly and merrily go from showing 80 miles on the range to an alarm sounding telling us the range is less than 5 miles.
I'm not anti-EV, I'm just not convinced they are the future and they are 1 step away from being autonomous
https://www.volvocars.com/uk/l/offers/ex30/
I think my next car will most likely be an EV (and I'm quite excited about it!) 99% of my miles are driven in 10-15 mile distances at most, I probably only do 4-5,000 miles in an entire year.
If I still did a lot of driving to the south of France it would be out of the question for me.
2. dedicated connectors in their app for certain brands of car or charger. Creates a connection with the device (via API) to confirm it’s an EV or charger, applies special rate for electricity draw from this device. Can be used any time of day or night.
Previously my view was to use my wife's salary sacrifice scheme to get a new EV but I might push the boat out spend a decent chunk on a second hand EV instead, especially as I will be able to almost exclusively charge at home, I feel like I'm exactly the kind of person an EV should work for.
To Carter's point though, my first car was £850, and I wrote it off so that's just as well!
i agree about trips the the South of France. Southern Europe is lagging behind, where as the Scandinavian are (predictably) way ahead of us.
I bought an EV last month & have had no issues at all so far. Plus I’m already noticing the benefit of not having to fork out £200 - £300 on Diesel every month.
This. I'm in the process of buying a Volvo at the moment and dealing direct with Volvo UK (they are very efficient). The dealer hands the car over, deals with any P/Ex, and provides after sales servicing.
- EV drivers are generally more likely to stay with EVs than return to ICE vehicles, especially when they have access to reliable charging and are satisfied with their vehicle's performance.
- A small percentage of early adopters of EVs have switched back to ICE cars, primarily due to range anxiety or charging infrastructure limitations, but this trend appears to be decreasing as EV technology and infrastructure improve.
- ICE drivers are increasingly likely to switch to EVs, driven by lower long-term costs, environmental concerns, and government incentives. However, concerns about range and charging infrastructure still pose barriers for many drivers considering the switch.
There's lots of anecdotal evidence of drivers switching back to ICE cars, from EVs. But it's worth looking at more substantial evidence in the form of reliable survey information.In short, the move from ICE to EV is sustained, significant, substantial and accelerating.
This summer we went on hols to Western France, renting an apartment from a Lifer and we hired a car. When I asked him whether I could select an EV he told me bluntly to forget that idea.
Falling electric vehicle (EV) prices are leaving a growing number of drivers in negative equity, a top dealership chain has warned.
Vertu Motors said on Wednesday that car retailers were coming under pressure as EVs coming off financing agreements were found to be worth less than the loan they are attached to.
In most car finance deals, this is not a problem for drivers as – provided they have kept up with their payments – they can hand back the keys and walk away.
The lender that funded the leasing deal then typically takes the financial hit.
However, the issue creates a headache for dealers that often allow customers to “roll over” positive or negative equity into new financing deals to win repeat business.
The steep drop in electric cars’ value is being partly fuelled by the discounts offered on new vehicles, as manufacturers attempt to boost sales to hit legally-binding government targets.
Rob Forrester, Vertu’s chief executive, said: “We all know that battery electric vehicles have depreciated at a significant rate, and that tends to feed into the creation of negative equity.
“If you think about when many cars were bought two to three years ago, new car prices were quite high because of supply constraints, but since then there’s been a reduction in used car value.”
It follows warnings last month that so-called fleet operators, such as car leasing firms and rental companies, were having to swallow large losses when reselling EVs because of “accelerated, exceptional depreciation”.
In the past two years, the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) said the average amount of “residual value” left over at the end of a car’s lease period had plunged from 60pc to 35pc.
That means a car worth £50,000 when new would drop to £17,500 in value over three years – instead of £30,000.
Car leasing agreements tend to last two to three years, with monthly payments generally agreed to cover the vehicle’s predicted depreciation over that period – minus a deposit.
However, the vast majority of these deals are personal contract purchase (PCP) deals where the lender agrees to a “guaranteed minimum future value” at the end of the deal, also sometimes known as a balloon payment.
Consumers can typically hand the car back and walk away if the car’s estimated worth drops below the minimum guaranteed value.
But many dealerships allow them to add the value of negative equity to a new financing deal, or take positive equity off the price of their next car if it is in surplus, in a bid to retain customers.
As a result, Vertu warned that rising instances of negative equity could hurt forecourt profits.
It came as the company said it continued to see instances of car manufacturers “rationing” supplies of petrol and diesel cars to dealerships, as they prioritise trying to shift to electric models instead.
In the six months to the end of August, Vertu said EV sales had increased 10pc, compared to a year earlier.
That was better than the 7pc drop in private sales of EVs seen more broadly across the industry, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.