Electric Cars

People going on about loads of street chargers in London.  It’s not in London where charging issues occur. 

cafcbrown said:

Had anyone used their EV for driving abroad? If so, was it easy to find chargers and were they in English?

I am looking to potentially get one as a company car, but drive abroad 3 or 4 times a year, usually no more then 500 miles once off the Eurotunnel

Thanks

I've done a 700 mile journey down to the south of France last two summers.  240-260 ish range BMW IX. 

First time I was only 2 months or so in an EV and did make one mistake (not to purchase a universal charging card, Chargemap - it's good, in France at least, and gives easy access to local 7kw chargers that can otherwise be tricky to make work) and had one bit of bad luck - a whole IONITY station being out of power on the way back, and on a bank holiday, which did hurt us to be fair.   Second time around, last summer, was totally fine. 

I speak a little bit of French, but generally using public chargers, especially on motorways, is straightforward - it's just tap the card or QR code with vehicle app and plug in.  The Ionity chargers have language options I think.  

Like others on here, the advice is to plan your stops on long journeys, with maybe alternatives in mind, and it helps having a passenger alongside if you decide to divert from plan A, which I have done several times. 

In general, by the time you need a charge you need a rest, and at 100kw or thereabouts, by the time you've had a coffee and a piss you're ready to go. 

The other thing I find, which of course will vary from model to model and much of which is also on ICE cars, is that the tech and integration between the car and navigation makes driving an EV on a long journey especially, but also in town, much less tiring as a driver.

Regen braking for example.  Don't know how I lived without it.  When I borrowed my dad's Kia the other day I could hardly drive it initially. 

I was apprehensive re range anxiety when I first went into an EV, but that soon goes away when you get used to a different mindset about driving and your car.  

I do accept I think much more, and sort of all the time, about how 'full' it is compared to when I had an ICE, but that just becomes a background thing and there are many upsides - the costs, especially as a company car, being a major one.  Not to mention the societal and environmental benefits. 

Humankind transitioned from the horse. 

cafcnick1992 said:

I know this is a wild example but I am driving from Vancouver to Toronto (2692 miles) in March and i'd be interested to know if that's even possible in an EV.

I would imagine it will take careful planning.

I live in Leeds. I regularly drive Leeds to London ( Kidbrooke, via A1 and Blackwall )return. I have had 2 electric cars since 2016. I stop once on the return journey to charge. No servicing, no tax , 300 miles costs about £6.00 with Ovo  charging at home. Happy days!

bobmunro said:

ShootersHillGuru said:

Chizz said:

ShootersHillGuru said:

Chizz said:

ShootersHillGuru said:

Chizz said:

follett said:

ShootersHillGuru said:

colthe3rd said:

ShootersHillGuru said:

Of course most of my journeys like most people are local so no big deal if I decided to get an EV. However I’m based in West Yorkshire so for family and other reasons I return to SE London on a reasonably regular basis. If my EV gave me 200 miles it wouldn’t get me there. Another full charge wouldn’t get me home. Might sound a bit daft but that alone puts me in two minds. 

I did a road trip in a Renault Zoe at Christmas 2022, went from south London to Manchester and then Liverpool and then back. The range of those is only about 170 at motorway speeds and in the cold. Never had an issue with a stop off at a service station for a quick break, grab a coffee, came back and I'd enough charge to get me to through the next leg. I've got a bigger EV now with a much longer range so it would be even easier, I think Tesla's charge from about 20% to 80% in around 30 minutes using on of their superchargers, depending on the model that's around 180 miles in the time it takes to stop off for a quick break and a drink.

Obviously really long distances for EVs at the moment are a slight issue as it will add some time to a journey but if you're traveling the length of the country you're probably stopping for a break anyway so the additional time then is minimal.

Not to detract from the excellent information in your post but I never stop for a coffee or a break when driving Leeds to London. Having to do so would really irritate me. Also when I get to London on my regular visits to visit my father in law I couldn’t charge my EV at his house. Having to drive to somewhere and spend the time doing so would also irritate me. Sounds like I’m just creating problems where there are none but at this point an EV is not for me. 

It definitely does cause a hassle if you wouldn't ordinarily stop as it does add a fair bit of journey time on. You would be able to charge at the house as they can be charged with a standard 3 point plug but it depends how long you stay for. They charge slowly and wouldn't do much damage if you were only there a few hours

Fewer people driving long-distances in one hit, tired, would be a good thing

The journey time for me from Leeds to London is under four hours. I certainly don’t need to stop because I’m tired. In fact stopping for forty five minutes would make little difference to my level of tiredness if I was stupid enough to drive in that condition.

The Highway Code recommends a "minimum break of at least 15 minutes after every two hours of driving". Drivers having to stop to recharge their car, as well as themselves, is a good thing. 

I don’t know many people that would follow that advice. Basically it’s bollocks, that why. I bet there is not a single poster on this thread that does. 

You'd lose that bet

You then ?

and me - so that's two

I’d almost certainly stop if I was driving to Leeds. 

colthe3rd said:

cafcnick1992 said:

I know this is a wild example but I am driving from Vancouver to Toronto (2692 miles) in March and i'd be interested to know if that's even possible in an EV.

Just use a petrol car, no need to take any breaks at all then.

I am going to do it all in one go #legend

BaileyHintonTocknell said:

I live in Leeds. I regularly drive Leeds to London ( Kidbrooke, via A1 and Blackwall )return. I have had 2 electric cars since 2016. I stop once on the return journey to charge. No servicing, no tax , 300 miles costs about £6.00 with Ovo  charging at home. Happy days!

Might I ask what EV you have please

valleynick66 said:

Rothko said:

valleynick66 said:

BaileyHintonTocknell said:

I live in Leeds. I regularly drive Leeds to London ( Kidbrooke, via A1 and Blackwall )return. I have had 2 electric cars since 2016. I stop once on the return journey to charge. No servicing, no tax , 300 miles costs about £6.00 with Ovo  charging at home. Happy days!

Make hay while the sun shines then. 

Once EVs are more common / nearing a significant percentage of users that financial situation will change. 

The charging costs won’t massively increase, I’m on the same OVO tariff and without it a full charge would be £15 for around 250 miles. The way they work is allowing energy companies to make money in times where there is an excess of electricity in the grid. 

You miss my point I should have been clearer. 

As tax revenues from the pump fall it will be switched to EV in some fashion. 

EV public charging have 20% VAT against it already, home charging at 5%. If your talking about road charging, then cool, much fairer 

valleynick66 said:

Rothko said:

valleynick66 said:

Rothko said:

valleynick66 said:

BaileyHintonTocknell said:

I live in Leeds. I regularly drive Leeds to London ( Kidbrooke, via A1 and Blackwall )return. I have had 2 electric cars since 2016. I stop once on the return journey to charge. No servicing, no tax , 300 miles costs about £6.00 with Ovo  charging at home. Happy days!

Make hay while the sun shines then. 

Once EVs are more common / nearing a significant percentage of users that financial situation will change. 

The charging costs won’t massively increase, I’m on the same OVO tariff and without it a full charge would be £15 for around 250 miles. The way they work is allowing energy companies to make money in times where there is an excess of electricity in the grid. 

You miss my point I should have been clearer. 

As tax revenues from the pump fall it will be switched to EV in some fashion. 

EV public charging have 20% VAT against it already, home charging at 5%. If your talking about road charging, then cool, much fairer 

My point is the financial situation (advantages) will change and not for the better compared to now. Fuel duty will be added (in some way) to to EV charging or potentially PPM - its inevitable / necessary

Less justifiable though, as taxing diesel and petrol is supposed to be a way of raising revenue to repair the damage caused by pollutants. 

I've had an EV for a year now, Mustang Mach E entended range rear wheel drive and love it. I do 9K pa and it's cost about £250 in electric to do that - I have a OHME Home Pro charger and have a cheap overnight rate from Ocotpus at 7.5p a kW.

I've never had to use a public charger, always makes sure I've got enough in the tank to do a run. In the summer I was getting 340 miles per full charge. In the winter it's only about 220, I knew it would drop off but the amount suprised me. Would improve if I garaged the car and or preconditioned it before a run. About town you do get more range compared to motorway - my driving is a mix.

Only other thing Ithat caught me out us how wide this car is - didnt pick that up on the test drives. Wish I could set my sat nav to avoid really narrow roads!

valleynick66 said:

Rothko said:

valleynick66 said:

Rothko said:

valleynick66 said:

BaileyHintonTocknell said:

I live in Leeds. I regularly drive Leeds to London ( Kidbrooke, via A1 and Blackwall )return. I have had 2 electric cars since 2016. I stop once on the return journey to charge. No servicing, no tax , 300 miles costs about £6.00 with Ovo  charging at home. Happy days!

Make hay while the sun shines then. 

Once EVs are more common / nearing a significant percentage of users that financial situation will change. 

The charging costs won’t massively increase, I’m on the same OVO tariff and without it a full charge would be £15 for around 250 miles. The way they work is allowing energy companies to make money in times where there is an excess of electricity in the grid. 

You miss my point I should have been clearer. 

As tax revenues from the pump fall it will be switched to EV in some fashion. 

EV public charging have 20% VAT against it already, home charging at 5%. If your talking about road charging, then cool, much fairer 

My point is the financial situation (advantages) will change and not for the better compared to now. Fuel duty will be added (in some way) to to EV charging or potentially PPM - its inevitable / necessary

I suspect telematics based road pricing will end up being the taxation solution. You pay based on type of vehicle and how far/when you drive. 

My lease runs on April and can't make my mind up whether to go hybrid or full electric (will be buying something second hand). 

Any suggestions for a small electric car (super-mini category), up to £15K? I'm guessing I'm looking at 2019-2021 models at that kind of price.

We only do about 4,000 miles a year with just a couple of longish trips so raneg not a massive issue. 

I suggest you look at the on line reviews. Narrow down your choice based on usual factors ie 4 doors,size of boot etc then choose the one with the biggest and most efficient battery. Factor in installing a charger at home, if you can. Not essential but brilliantly convenient. Not convinced by hybriids myself.

At the end of December took a 3 year lease on  a E power Nissan Qashqai,  It is a mild hybrid, so an 'introduction' to electric vehicles. I got it for the same price on a lease for 3 years as my Merc GLA. I do about 8-10,000 miles a year. What with servicing and Insurance the Merc was not going to get any cheaper, even with a £30 a month off. 
I live in an end of terrace house with no driveway, so charging is an issue, let alone the distance. Still not convinced that the battery in either guarantee, or distance is there yet, I would want it to be 400 miles, with a 10 year manufacturers warranty, and in my price range that seems unaffordable. Nissan have also  withdrawn their local garage KAP, so will have to go to Ashford for a service, issues?. It is the same dealer who has a branch at Dartford and Maidstone so no big deal. 

I fully expect both the price and reliability to improve in three years time, but will try and pick up a mini, as we hope to be moving back to the outskirts of Bexley. If In can put in a charging point, we shall see?
  
Have to keep an eye on the Ulez situation.
We have a Fiesta eco boost, and unlike another poster on here have found it a great little second car, cheap on Insurance and fuel, and parts are at present pretty cheap.  We will be going back to one car later this year, so will be selling it. Had about 5 previous Fiesta's, and was sad when they no longer produced it.

Insurance prices seem to have rocketed, despite having 2: 20 year NCB's, and anyway would be taking the train to London, and the locals bus as it's free, and frankly less hassle.