Which electric car to buy?

[Lambeth Cali]

The biggest negatives seem to be upfront cost and charging away from home.
Thankfully I avoided both of those.

 

[Corradobrit]

Maybe the owner got the quote for a replacement battery

Firefighters tackle raging Texas Tesla fire

The car's owner told local news outlets that they heard a hissing sound from the vehicle before the fire.

www.bbc.com

 

[JuanVecino2023]

In the same boat and looking at the best car to complement our Cali as well.

Currently have a EcoBoost Fiesta which is a great little car, but daughter starts work and needs a good car. If she buys the Fiesta from us, then we will need a second car and this may be our opportunity.

Started looking at ID3 .. but not impressed with the software part of it ... at least yet. Same issue with the ID4
Tesla - not greatly impressed with the build quality after driving German cars
Kona electric - not sure ...
Peugeot/MG ... etc. etc. - debateable build quality and handling characteristics.

... will need to read up a bit more reviews before going for one ...

or else, just get a petrol VW T-ROC/T-CROSS ... as we have bicycles for in town travel and anything further than that, may just use a small petrol.

Currently tending towards the T-ROC.

Not sure of your budget, but best EV by far I’ve driven was the i4. The single motor 40 RWD feels and drives like a proper BMW.

German built as well, which is a bonus.

 

[JuanVecino2023]

Agree with so many comments here. The California (long distance vehicle) and small electric car (for short run arounds) such a great combination.

We have a slightly oddball choice but absolutely love it. The Honda E. We drove everything and to be honest, it's a case of test driving first and not looking at stats sometimes. The honda is such a lovely place to be, not the fastest, most practical, best value or range. However given we have a beach on the driveway range has never been an issue at all. The price is higher than some of it's competitors but the standard spec (heated seat, 360 birdeye view camera, car play, lane assist, laser cruise control, dual touch screens) is far higher. I actually thought before hand the i3 might be a practical choise but the rear doors, windows and seats just not practical for kids. We got a great PCP deal with trade in and government grant for our 11 year old lexus hybrid. So costs us £190 a month.

As I said, it's a niche choice (much like the Cali) so wouldn't expect anyone to agree.. but it's been perfect for us. Even have a multimac in the back so 3 kids perfectly comfortable and we're using it far more than we thought we would for the whole family.

Of course no where near as cool as the California though!

View attachment 81150

Love the Honda. Looks great in that colour.

Does anyone know if available on a salary give up scheme?

 

[JuanVecino2023]

I used to think so too, until I saw this one...

The price though

Abarth 500e

If it weren’t for the daft fake engine noise. Which you can’t turn off permanently. You need to toggle every journey

 

[Barry Chuckle]

If you can live with the pitiful range, The Mini EV is also pretty good, they're less than half price after 2 years. But you can't really go much further than 100 miles between charges in winter

 

[Lambeth Cali]

I was reading yet another “How to Avoid Dementia” article the other day which suggested having something simple to look forward to most days releases beneficial hormones. The example was morning yoga.

I always like driving the Cali, even just to the shops, as it makes me feel like I’m on holiday.

But, that article made me realise I actually look forward to driving my EV to work every morning, listening to my favourite podcasts in calm silence. The same is true for the return journey.

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Anyone here got Octopus Go? I have a question.

It’s a dynamic tariff. It gives you cheap 8p per kWh 11.30pm to 5.30am but also says it may give you cheaper electricity at other times if available. The Octopus app decides when to charge the car. I’ve just plugged the car in and it has decided to charge 6.30pm-7.30am


My question is, will all our household electricity be 8pence per kWh for that 12 hours?
How can the smart meter know which power is charging the car and which is powering the oven, tv etc? It is quite a proactive clever setup. I suppose it knows the car has a 33 kWh battery so perhaps it just charges that amount (well or the 70% I’m charging) at 8 pence.

 

[willwander]

Anyone here got Octopus Go? I have a question.

It’s a dynamic tariff. It gives you cheap 8p per kWh 11.30pm to 5.30am but also says it may give you cheaper electricity at other times if available. The Octopus app decides when to charge the car. I’ve just plugged the car in and it has decided to charge 6.30pm-7.30am
View attachment 116349

My question is, will all our household electricity be 8pence per kWh for that 12 hours?
How can the smart meter know which power is charging the car and which is powering the oven, tv etc? It is quite a proactive clever setup. I suppose it knows the car has a 33 kWh battery so perhaps it just charges that amount (well or the 70% I’m charging) at 8 pence.

Have you pressed the ‘charging explained’ button ?

 

[Boomer]

Anyone here got Octopus Go? I have a question.

It’s a dynamic tariff. It gives you cheap 8p per kWh 11.30pm to 5.30am but also says it may give you cheaper electricity at other times if available. The Octopus app decides when to charge the car. I’ve just plugged the car in and it has decided to charge 6.30pm-7.30am
View attachment 116349

My question is, will all our household electricity be 8pence per kWh for that 12 hours?
How can the smart meter know which power is charging the car and which is powering the oven, tv etc? It is quite a proactive clever setup. I suppose it knows the car has a 33 kWh battery so perhaps it just charges that amount (well or the 70% I’m charging) at 8 pence.

The whole house will benefit from the cheap rate whilst the car is actively charging. At the moment, there are periods where there is a surplus of electricity in the grid and so to help balance it certain suppliers (such as Octopus) are able to offer wider, cheaper charging schedules.

That said, the only guaranteed cheap period is the overnight slot. And whilst octopus might give you a charging schedule outside of that, it also reserves the right to change it at the last minute and stop the charge should it benefit the grid. But, too confirm, the whole house will benefit during the guaranteed 23.30 to 5.30 overnight slot.

OVO energy has a different tariff called charge anytime, whereby only the car benefits from the cheap rate but you can plug in whenever you want. But the rest of the house will not benefit.

If you have an OHME charger, there is a very good Facebook group with loads of advice etc.

 

[Boomer]

Here's a little more detail:

Octopus customers become the first to help balance grid with electric cars

octopus.energy

 

[SusiBus]

Costco offer.
£8000 off an ID.Buzz. Glad we decided to sell ours with a £895 loss, and buy another Cali.

 

[Corradobrit]

Costco offer.
£8000 off an ID.Buzz. Glad we decided to sell ours with a £895 loss, and buy another Cali.

Good decision. Now that the novelty has worn off it will be just like any other depreciating luxury EV

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Have you pressed the ‘charging explained’ button ?

Doesn’t really say though

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Here's a little more detail:

Octopus customers become the first to help balance grid with electric cars

octopus.energy

Great, I’ll put the dishwasher on then!!

So it’s taking power out aswell!?
My BMW app keeps sending me “charging paused” messages. I wonder if that’s what’s happening.

 

[Barry Chuckle]

Good decision. Now that the novelty has worn off it will be just like any other depreciating luxury EV

Firstly I'm not anti EV as I've said previously I own one and also have another on order, but I just think many are getting carried away with all the hype around these vehicles. Many are saying that they will evolve quickly and we'll see real world range of over 500 in the very near future. My view is, if you really believe this, then don't buy an EV now as the value of the current EV's with ranges on average of 200 - 250 will absolutely hemorrhage as buyers will want them even less..........

 

[Boomer]

Great, I’ll put the dishwasher on then!!

So it’s taking power out aswell!?
My BMW app keeps sending me “charging paused” messages. I wonder if that’s what’s happening.
View attachment 116354

No idea how it all works - witchcraft probably - but at the moment there does appear to be lots of opportunity to load shift onto the cheaper tariff. We have our first EV arriving next month so looking forward to seeing what we can shift over.

 

[Corradobrit]

Firstly I'm not anti EV as I've said previously I own one and also have another on order, but I just think many are getting carried away with all the hype around these vehicles. Many are saying that they will evolve quickly and we'll see real world range of over 500 in the very near future. My view is, if you really believe this, then don't buy an EV now as the value of the current EV's with ranges on average of 200 - 250 will absolutely hemorrhage as buyers will want them even less..........

EV's are becoming like any other electrical appliance. As the tech progresses buyers will be less and less interested in older models (irrespective of the brand) resulting in precipitous depreciation. And the manufacturers are going to be forced by governments to produce more EV's as a percentage of their outturn than they can perhaps sell, further eroding the market for used vehicles. Who goes into a shop today demanding an iPhone X?

 

[Lambeth Cali]

No idea how it all works - witchcraft probably - but at the moment there does appear to be lots of opportunity to load shift onto the cheaper tariff. We have our first EV arriving next month so looking forward to seeing what we can shift over.

What EV?

 

[Boomer]

What EV?

Tesla Model Y long range. I actually prefer the looks of some others on the market (ioniq 5, and the new Volvo EX30) but the supercharging network swung it for us. It will be a company car so addresses any concerns about depreciation.

 

[ArunAlec]

EV's are becoming like any other electrical appliance. As the tech progresses buyers will be less and less interested in older models (irrespective of the brand) resulting in precipitous depreciation. And the manufacturers are going to be forced by governments to produce more EV's as a percentage of their outturn than they can perhaps sell, further eroding the market for used vehicles. Who goes into a shop today demanding an iPhone X?

How many years until the manufacturer withdraws support for the cars operating system?

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Firstly I'm not anti EV as I've said previously I own one and also have another on order, but I just think many are getting carried away with all the hype around these vehicles. Many are saying that they will evolve quickly and we'll see real world range of over 500 in the very near future. My view is, if you really believe this, then don't buy an EV now as the value of the current EV's with ranges on average of 200 - 250 will absolutely hemorrhage as buyers will want them even less..........

Yes BUT
That rather ignores that the majority of new cars these days are leased or PCPs. I suspect the former will take over from the latter. Then used values are the dealers’ and lenders’ problem.

Also I was listening to a very encouraging interview with Mark Carney yesterday. He believes we are now locked into 2 degree C or less temperature change. Why? Because of investment momentum that has now tipped the balance. Mercedes spent 100billion euros developing their last diesel engine. That will never happen again.

In a few years people will be buying 2, 3 or 5 year old EVs with range of 250miles because that’s what will be available. Car companies plan ahead and Rishi and the Daily Telegraph aren’t part of their maths equation.

 

[GrannyJen]

I suppose I am fortunate. Worries over residuals have never bothered me, not because I can afford to have no worries but mostly because I have an amazing talent for boring my head into the sand.

Residuals are something that will influence my decision when the consideration of whether to change or not becomes a serious one, This conversation, having piqued my interest, has prompted me to pop onto WBAC, who being terribly nice,v would offer me for my Cupra 55% of what I paid for it, absolutely no different to what I would expect from any ICE car that I have bought from new, Cali's excepted.

Now, more practical worries. After a 160 mile trip yesterday I need to charge it up but the weather is crap. Do I wait for tomorrow and the promise of some sunshine or do I bite the bullet and charge at my domestic tariff? I have a realistic range in the car of over 50 miles, nothing to do today, my diesel camper feeling very unloved at the moment and would welcome a turn of its wheels so I will probably wait until tomorrow.

 

[Barry Chuckle]

Yes BUT
That rather ignores that the majority of new cars these days are leased or PCPs. I suspect the former will take over from the latter. Then used values are the dealers’ and lenders’ problem.

Depreciation is ultimately the problem of the owner/leaser as with increased interest rates and uncertain residuals, this will all be factored into the monthly lease costs and make them significantly more costly. The only thing which slight edges leases for EV's is contract hire includes the cost of road tax which is much lower on EV's......for now.

 

[Barry Chuckle]

How many years until the manufacturer withdraws support for the cars operating system?

They don't need to, they'll just start charging for an update at the maintenance service like they do for Sat Nav updates which used to be free.