Which electric car to buy?

[soulstyledevon]

That needs a “knee cap rating” in case it bumps into pedestrians

Trying to work out which would sustain more damage. The car or the pedestrian…

 

[pjm-84]

I want one of these to sit next to our Cali.

Citroen Ami Review 2023 | Top Gear

Yes, it’s a rubbish ‘car’... because it isn’t one. But it is fun to use and an entirely loveable object

www.topgear.com

Lol,

I've reserved one......

 

[ArunAlec]

Wonder if you could get it on the Cali cycle rack?

 

[Amarillo]

Lol,

I've reserved one......

View attachment 86801

It really is a great solution for city errands.

Length: 2.41 m.
Width: 1.39 m (excluding mirrors)
Height: 1.52 m.
Turning circle (wall to wall): 7.20 m.
Weight without battery: < 425 kg.
Total weight with battery: 485 kg.
Battery: 5.5 kWh.
Engine: 6 kW.
Max speed: 28mph
Range: 46 miles
Charge time: 3hrs (from a standard 13amp socket)

 

[Amarillo]

Wonder if you could get it on the Cali cycle rack?

8 times the 60Kg weight limit for the bike rack. But if you remove the bench seat in the Beach you might be able to drive it up a ramp and park it in the boot.

 

[pjm-84]

Thats the key. My office is 1.7km away but I have to make the trip 4x a day. Plus great for shopping, dog to the vets (super small car park), errands, dentist runs, oestopath visits....etc.

Its all linked to what SUV turns up.

I'm also wondering if I can tow it behind the Cali.

 

[Amarillo]

Thats the key. My office is 1.7km away but I have to make the trip 4x a day. Plus great for shopping, dog to the vets (super small car park), errands, dentist runs, oestopath visits....etc.

Its all linked to what SUV turns up.

I'm also wondering if I can tow it behind the Cali.

Good question. There are very specific rules about towing cars, but the Ami is not a car.

 

[RodCouncil]

I'll stick to my VanMoof and decent jacket, Tesla does the rest.

 

[Ch1pbutty]

Despite vowing never to get a Tesla!....We leased a Tesla 3 Long Range and have now had it a few months.

Very impressed with it so far. Only took 6 weeks from ordering to be delivered to our front door despite having more chips than Harry Ramsdens. Arrived on the morning of the fuel crisis.

Very nice to drive, don't think have needed to use the brakes yet, just lift you foot off the throttle and slows instantly. Reads traffic lights, signs etc and will emergency brake for you. Self drive feature is great, although strange at first.

Over the air software updates so no need to visit a dealer; Noticed a bolt was missing from one of the mudflaps, logged on the online App and a mechanic arrived at the house 3 days later to fit the bolt. No need to wait for months for a slot at the dealer!

360 dashcam which records your entire journey and can also be set in Sentry mode whilst parked. Built in tracking so you see where you car is instantly. Iphone can be set to act as the key. Can be set to prewarm interior/battery for a given time each day....plus a load of other features that will probably never get used (ie - Boombox, Netflix etc).

Only downside is the built-in satnav that is Google Maps, would prefer Waze.

Hopefully Tesla will move into the Campervan market!

(...and its superquick!)

 

[reserves]

Despite vowing never to get a Tesla!....We leased a Tesla 3 Long Range and have now had it a few months.

Very impressed with it so far. Only took 6 weeks from ordering to be delivered to our front door despite having more chips than Harry Ramsdens. Arrived on the morning of the fuel crisis.

Very nice to drive, don't think have needed to use the brakes yet, just lift you foot off the throttle and slows instantly. Reads traffic lights, signs etc and will emergency brake for you. Self drive feature is great, although strange at first.

Over the air software updates so no need to visit a dealer; Noticed a bolt was missing from one of the mudflaps, logged on the online App and a mechanic arrived at the house 3 days later to fit the bolt. No need to wait for months for a slot at the dealer!

360 dashcam which records your entire journey and can also be set in Sentry mode whilst parked. Built in tracking so you see where you car is instantly. Iphone can be set to act as the key. Can be set to prewarm interior/battery for a given time each day....plus a load of other features that will probably never get used (ie - Boombox, Netflix etc).

Only downside is the built-in satnav that is Google Maps, would prefer Waze.

Hopefully Tesla will move into the Campervan market!

(...and its superquick!)

Loved our Model 3 when we had it, best selling car in the UK recently. Despite that I’d still say it’s under rated. Unless you’ve driven one it’s hard to imagine how good they are.

 

[andyinluton]

Good question. There are very specific rules about towing cars, but the Ami is not a car.

There are no specific rules about towing cars! The rules are about towing trailers, the bit that causes a lot of debate is whether a car becomes a trailer once it is being towed & whether it complies with the trailer legislation.

Towing this with its wheels on the ground will have exactly the same problem as towing any other small car the main one being the brakes- any trailer with brakes has to have them working, whether thats a mechanical device to press the pedal when the trailer catches up with the towing vehicle, or an electronic device that applies them when the towing vehicles brake lights come on.

 

[Amarillo]

There are no specific rules about towing cars!

Is the below advice, applicable to any towing, or complete balderdash?

=====

“An 'On Tow' sign must be placed at the back of the vehicle being towed

When the vehicles are attached solely by a rope or chain, the maximum distance allowed between the vehicles is 4.5 metres

If the distance between the two vehicles exceeds 1.5 metres, the rope or chain must be clearly visible within a reasonable distance from either side to other road users, by tying a coloured flapping cloth in the middle, for example

The person in the broken down vehicle must be a qualified driver

If it's dark, the broken down vehicle must have its lights on as it would under normal circumstances.”

=====

Towing a car – tips and rules for towing | RAC Drive

Whether you find yourself needing a tow or coming to the rescue of someone else, it’s a good idea to know how to tow a car safely and legally.

www.rac.co.uk

 

[andyinluton]

Is the below advice, applicable to any towing, or complete balderdash?

Completely irrelevent in the context of towing a working vehicle without a driver in it.

You are quoting the advice for recovery of a broken down vehicle.
Unless of course you were suggesting towing the "car" on the end of a rope & without anyone braking / steering it.

 

[WelshGas]

Stick the wife in the Towed car and you drive the Towing California. Perfect compromise.

 

[Amarillo]

Completely irrelevent in the context of towing a working vehicle without a driver in it.

You are quoting the advice for recovery of a broken down vehicle.
Unless of course you were suggesting towing the "car" on the end of a rope & without anyone braking / steering it.

I wasn't suggesting anything. I was just wondering if the specific rules about towing a car apply also to a quadracycle.

If someone is contemplating towing an Ami, a tow bar, A-frame or dolly trailer might be a solution. All would keep the weight below 750Kg.

 

[andyinluton]

I wasn't suggesting anything. I was just wondering if the specific rules about towing a car apply also to a quadracycle.

If someone is contemplating towing an Ami, a tow bar, A-frame or dolly trailer might be a solution. All would keep the weight below 750Kg.

I'll say it again. There are no specific rules about towing a car in this context, there are rules about towing a trailer.
A car with no one in it towed with its wheels on the ground is a trailer, from the Gov website :

Legal issues
When an A-frame is attached to a vehicle (eg a motor car) we consider the A-frame and car temporarily become a single unit. When towed by another motor vehicle (eg motorhome) we believe that this single unit is, for the purposes of its construction, treated in GB legislation as a trailer.

3. The brakes on the trailer
This depends on the weight capacity of the trailer.

A trailer with a GVW of 750kg or lower, is not required to have brakes, but if brakes are fitted they must be in full working order.

Towing dollies - a frame which tows a vehicle with 2 wheels off the ground is only legal for recovery purposes.


The only legal way to tow anything like this is either on trailer with all the wheels off the ground, or on an A frame with the brakes connected so that come on when the towing vehicle slows down.

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Batteries could be the next big environmental issue. Extract from an article I read:
And now because of China’s EV dominance, that country is discovering a new and severe environmental problem. EV batteries are toxic and carry great power to pollute. Early on, the problem was less evident. These batteries last for 5 to 8 years so it took time before China needed to find ways to dispose of them safely. But in the last year, China had to get rid of some 200,000 tons of these things. The government expects that number to grow to 800,000 tons over the next four years, an annual growth rate of over 40%.
EV batteries contain heavy metals such as cobalt and nickel, neither of which break down in nature. They also contain manganese that can pollute soil and water as well as air. Only 500 micrograms of magnesium in a cubic meter of air will produce manganese poisoning in most people. As lithium batteries degrade, they produce hydrogen fluoride and other pollutants. China has already had to deal with a bout of manganese poisoning tied to battery disposal in Guangdong Province. To give a sense of levels of toxicity, one scientist involved in the Guangdong incident, Professor Wu Feng of the Beijing Institute of Technology explained that one “20-gram cell phone battery can pollute three standard swimming pools of water, and if abandoned on land, it can pollute one square kilometer for 50 years.”

More climate sceptic guff. Like the last thing you shared from the famously climate sceptic Global Warming Policy Foundation.

This one is from an “investment strategy consultant” in Forbes business magazine. I wonder perhaps if he has some oil investment interests…?
Why do you repeat this stuff without saying where you got it from?
Do you have oil investments!?!
Can’t you just start your own thread “I don’t believe in climate change”?
People who are interested in buying an electric car don’t need your clearly biased cut and paste balderdash.
People write articles that masquerade as “news” and people then share them on Facebook and Forums like this. This is how fake news happens.
Is the author of this article shorting Tesla? Maybe his son-in-law is? The point is this is another clearly one-sided article pretending to be journalism. It’s not.
Next time you share something tell us where you got it, otherwise it’s dishonest.

 

[Algor]

More climate sceptic guff. Like the last thing you shared from the famously climate sceptic Global Warming Policy Foundation.

This one is from an “investment strategy consultant” in Forbes business magazine. I wonder perhaps if he has some oil investment interests…?
Why do you repeat this stuff without saying where you got it from?
Do you have oil investments!?!
Can’t you just start your own thead “I don’t believe in climate change”?
People who are interested in buying an electric car don’t need your clearly biased cut and paste balderdash.
People write articles that masquerade as “news” and people then share them on Facebook and Forums like this. This is how fake news happens.
Is the author of this article shorting Tesla? Maybe his son-in-law is? The point is this is another clearly one-sided article pretending to be journalism. It’s not.
Next time you share something tell us where you got it, otherwise it’s dishonest.

Behave. The guy simply posted that this is from an article I read and you have just done a complete character assassination on him. There is absolutely no need. if you don't agree with what he read, fine. Point out the flaws in the article and point him to articles that are in your opinion more enlightened. Or perhaps you should start your own thread " Anyone who doesn't toe my line is a dishonest climate denying balderdash speaking guffer"

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Behave. The guy simply posted that this is from an article I read and you have just done a complete character assassination on him. There is absolutely no need. if you don't agree with what he read, fine. Point out the flaws in the article and point him to articles that are in your opinion more enlightened. Or perhaps you should start your own thread " Anyone who doesn't toe my line is a dishonest climate denying balderdash speaking guffer"

The trouble is people regularly post things on social media that is pretending to be honest when it’s is actually completely dishonest. There are people who spend all their time debunking this stuff. There are whole websites devoted to fact-checking.
He has a specific habit of re-posting clearly biased stuff. It’s dishonest.
If it was his opinion I honestly wouldn’t care or bother replying, but fake news is a big problem. It’s stuff pretending to be honest that isn’t that’s a global problem. There is going to tonnes of this climate denial guff for the next 20 years.

I admit I have a real problem with dishonest stuff.

I started reading “The Uninhabitable Earth. A Story of the Future” By David Wallace-Wells last summer. It’s supposedly what they give politicians as a climate primer. I had to stop half way through. The chapters are called “Floods”, “Plagues”, “Famine” if you have children, it’s frightening. I can call out climate deniers or go chain myself across the M25. Which would you rather?

 

[andyinluton]

What is dishonest about what was posted ? Or is the disposal of batteries not a problem?

 

[Algor]

The trouble is people regularly post things on social media that is pretending to be honest when it’s is actually completely dishonest. There are people who spend all their time debunking this stuff. There are whole websites devoted to fact-checking.
He has a specific habit of re-posting clearly biased stuff. It’s dishonest.
If it was his opinion I honestly wouldn’t care or bother replying, but fake news is a big problem. It’s stuff pretending to be honest that isn’t that’s a global problem. There is going to tonnes of this climate denial guff for the next 20 years.

I admit I have a real problem with dishonest stuff.

I started reading “The Uninhabitable Earth. A Story of the Future” By David Wallace-Wells last summer. It’s supposedly what they give politicians as a climate primer. I had to stop half way through. The chapters are called “Floods”, “Plagues”, “Famine” if you have children, it’s frightening. I can call out climate deniers or go chain myself across the M25. Which would you rather?

Not fussed to be honest, I am neither a climate denier or a user of the M25, knock yourself out. I just feel that education gets you further than humiliation, most people are open to evidence based debate and are more likely to adjust their opinion. Humiliation just hardens opinion and creates division. That's my two pence worth, I will watch the thread with interest going forward as we would love to add an EV to the family if we can.

 

[Lambeth Cali]

What is dishonest about what was posted ? Or is the disposal of batteries not a problem?

Have you thrown a phone battery in a swimming pool? Have you thrown one in the bin?
Nope?
I’ve posted my last 4 phone batteries to be recycled and got £50 each time. Heavy metals are terribly polluting but they are also terribly valuable which is why they are no longer thrown away.
It’s an article written by someone who is fully aware what they are doing. When people re-post stuff without saying where it’s from it lends it a validity.
This is honestly how fake news gets everywhere and clogs up the system. Re-posting.

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

More climate sceptic guff. Like the last thing you shared from the famously climate sceptic Global Warming Policy Foundation.

This one is from an “investment strategy consultant” in Forbes business magazine. I wonder perhaps if he has some oil investment interests…?
Why do you repeat this stuff without saying where you got it from?
Do you have oil investments!?!
Can’t you just start your own thread “I don’t believe in climate change”?
People who are interested in buying an electric car don’t need your clearly biased cut and paste balderdash.
People write articles that masquerade as “news” and people then share them on Facebook and Forums like this. This is how fake news happens.
Is the author of this article shorting Tesla? Maybe his son-in-law is? The point is this is another clearly one-sided article pretending to be journalism. It’s not.
Next time you share something tell us where you got it, otherwise it’s dishonest.

I most certainly do believe in climate change. I also have my eyes open to possible future unintended consequences of alternatives. No I don’t have any shares in oil companies and when the time is right I will be replacing another car we have with an EV. I also have children and grand children so believe me, you don’t have a monopoly on worry for the future.
Take a chill pill @Lambeth Cali

 

[westfalia]

After going into it I've come to the conclusion that Tesla are
the best out there, they are a country mile ahead of the others.

A few weeks ago I watched -I'M SHMEEEEEEE- on u tube driving his Taycan turbo
London to München.
He got a 12 o'clock crossing on the tunnel and got to the German border
at 9pm, thats a trip that I've done often in 5hrs. Seems like his problem is the
charging network and Tesla have got that nailed.

 

[pjm-84]

Its a narrative that suit a side but can be dissected . Umicore for example, turnover was 11.9 billion euros in 2017. Didnt make that by dumping stuff in a field, or throwing it into a swimming pool.