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Tried to comment on the existing electric car post from the summer, but it’s disappeared?
Thinking of biting the bullet and getting an EV. However, I live in a flat/apartment. I won’t be able to charge at home very easily.
Is it feasible to get an electric vehicle and rely on charging points? We will have a charging point at my office where I go once a week. But this is 70 miles away. Appears to be several charging points around me where I could drop the car off and grab a coffee or work from the café for a few hours while it’s charging, that’s not a problem. I know charging points offer different costs/speeds. I drive around 400 miles a week max and my idea is to integrate charging when I go about my daily travels. For instance, the gym, supermarket, driving into London. all should have charging points readily available, I would assume.
Just wondered what any of you all have done.
Any advice is appreciated.
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Electric cars again on 15:32 - Dec 30 with 3822 views
Use zapmap and find out where your nearest charge points at home and work are.
Don't expect the council to install a charger outside your house. It doesn't work like that (and may not be feasible anyway).
There are several types of public charger. You council will probably have a contract with a provider or two. Find out which (zapmap again) and look at the contracts you can have with them. There are interoperability arrangements but it's a bit like roaming on your mobile, you only do it when you have no option. Slower chargers are cheaper.
having the same discussion at home as a plan for next few months.
From what I can see so far, it is much more convenient to charge at home, but certainly not having a home charger doesnt rule out having an EV. From friends/family who have made the change they told me its a matter of slightly different mindset and a little more planning (but not much knowing some of my relatives). I think that the current plethora of charging options will slowly consolidate over time, which will hopefully do away with the seemingly unending different apps/charging arrangements needed to charge.
My take at the moment is that perhaps a year/18 months ago when I first looked at this it probably wasn't quite viable for me, it now looks much more encouraging. Charging network is improving and I'm now pretty certain we'll be getting an EV in the next 3-4 months.
Never knowingly understood
1
Electric cars again on 16:04 - Dec 30 with 3712 views
Had an electric car for over 2 years - quiet, clean, quick . We have a Pod Point 7KW charger on the side of the house. Charges over night. When we go longer distance I have started using newer Shell Garages as they have 35KW chargers and going from 20% to 80% (over 80% to 100% charge is slower) is about 30 min. Its cheaper to charge from home (avarage half price of public charging). It costs me still about £15 for 200 miles at home. However, with all that said - without a charger at home I would not go electric.
1
Electric cars again on 19:58 - Dec 30 with 3508 views
As someone who hasn't paid more for a car than a new battery in an electric car costs. I don't expect you to think I am an expert but if the price you get when you sale matters to you, I think you'll be disappointed with the price. Electric cars do not age as well as petrol/diesel
Electric cars again on 21:06 - Dec 30 by Miss_Terraces
As someone who hasn't paid more for a car than a new battery in an electric car costs. I don't expect you to think I am an expert but if the price you get when you sale matters to you, I think you'll be disappointed with the price. Electric cars do not age as well as petrol/diesel
I hope the best for you whatever you decide
...make sure they come with abundant fire extinguishers..
I have a 3 ton electric van . Only a range of 150 miles . I mostly drive in and out of London everyday so do about 300 miles a week . It’s a company van and have been provided with a shell charge card. Sadly the garage I use has 8 charging points and embarrassingly 6 of those have been out of order for months now. I have got to know many of the charging posts in inner london and are cheaper to charge from. Some councils offer reductions on parking charges sadly not Westminster. You wonder do they want to save the planet or not. Be careful with sped cameras as the EVs have got some poke which is difficult with 20 zones everywhere in London oh and as they’re silent watch out for f**wit pedestrians and cyclists who won’t hear you approaching. All round good experience though and beautiful to drive.
1
Electric cars again on 23:30 - Dec 30 with 3237 views
I bought an EV in May 2022 and managed without a home charger for about ten months mainly due to where I work being next to a multi storey car park that had a dozen BP Pulse chargers that were free to use, you only had to pay for the parking.
This soon went for a burton when Wiltshire council decided to make the charging points for council use only. I then relied on public charging points for a bit but realised I would have to get a home charger installed as my daily commute is nearly one hundred miles. Luckily my energy supplier OVO have an EV tariff where I pay 6.7p per kWh.
So what I'm trying to say is I wouldn't recommend getting one without having a home charger.
if you have the time, these might be 'enlightening'......
1)
2)
3)
Lots of chat around hybrid vehicles not being exactly 'honest' either. Mine, for example (i no longer have it, and am driving an ICE) only worked for 3-4 miles on battery before going into charge mode... Honda CRV Hybrid.
Indeed are Tesla about to save the planet? Doubtful, batteries way more and scrub the tyres accordingly, the cars cost more, look like shyte, and although you can upgrade them by paying for features online, they apparently, tell Tesla and maybe whoever else is watching, what your doing, how your driving etc etc. However, not only Tesla do this, Merc, and higher spec cars do too, for instance Hyundai electric report everything back to Hyundai, and if you scrape or dent the battery box, you basically have to scrap the car because a replacement battery costs almost the same as the car, if not more.
Electric cars again on 23:47 - Dec 30 by RangersDave
if you have the time, these might be 'enlightening'......
1)
2)
3)
Lots of chat around hybrid vehicles not being exactly 'honest' either. Mine, for example (i no longer have it, and am driving an ICE) only worked for 3-4 miles on battery before going into charge mode... Honda CRV Hybrid.
Indeed are Tesla about to save the planet? Doubtful, batteries way more and scrub the tyres accordingly, the cars cost more, look like shyte, and although you can upgrade them by paying for features online, they apparently, tell Tesla and maybe whoever else is watching, what your doing, how your driving etc etc. However, not only Tesla do this, Merc, and higher spec cars do too, for instance Hyundai electric report everything back to Hyundai, and if you scrape or dent the battery box, you basically have to scrap the car because a replacement battery costs almost the same as the car, if not more.
ICE only for me.
Audi Q7 for me Tesla model Y for the wife , give,e the Tesla any day of the week to drive, we charge t home prob 4 quid for a charge to 80% which is enough for 240 miles , fill the Audi up £90 quid for 490 miles , Tesla is more comfy faster cheaper to run , just and all round better car
Electric cars again on 23:30 - Dec 30 by CamberleyR
I bought an EV in May 2022 and managed without a home charger for about ten months mainly due to where I work being next to a multi storey car park that had a dozen BP Pulse chargers that were free to use, you only had to pay for the parking.
This soon went for a burton when Wiltshire council decided to make the charging points for council use only. I then relied on public charging points for a bit but realised I would have to get a home charger installed as my daily commute is nearly one hundred miles. Luckily my energy supplier OVO have an EV tariff where I pay 6.7p per kWh.
So what I'm trying to say is I wouldn't recommend getting one without having a home charger.
Thanks everyone, sound advice as always. I work from home regularly and go to the office once a week. I was hoping to plan work appointments alongside charging points, which I think can be done. Doing a bit more research, it may cost me a little bit more money at certain charging points. But it should still work out cheaper than petrol. The plan was to buy an EV 6 month old, pretty much half of the RRP. My current AMG does about 30 mpg if I’m lucky Looking at a jaguar ipace, someone at my tennis club has one, took me for a ride, and I thought it was superb
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Electric cars again on 01:33 - Dec 31 with 3134 views
got an MG4 and I love it although I only do a round trip of around 30 miles a day... I have a home charger so its extremely convenient to run it. If you do a lot of motorway driving then get a diesel (I would say this even if you could have a home charger!). I firmly believe EVs are the future but we will not see their full potential for around 5-10 years. It's like any technology where big business spend millions on R&D... they will by then out perform ICE cars on every single metric.
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Electric cars again on 07:57 - Dec 31 with 3026 views
I have had various EVs as my only car since 2015. I do not regret for one minute changing from ICE to EV. But key to EV ownership is either a home charger or being able to charge on the pavement outside your home using a granny cable. This will allow you to charge your car for around 7.5p per kw. Most EVs can do between 3 and 4 miles per kw , so £7.50 of electricity should give you around 300 to 400 miles of motoring. Many cars can get more than 4 miles per kw, my current car averages over the year at around 4.5 miles per kw.
Many employers have chargers in staff car parks and can get government subsidies to do so. This should also allow “cheaper” charging but not nearly as cheap as charging at home.
If you have to rely on the public charging network, most likely Rapid Chargers, then you’ll easily be paying between 60p and 80p per kw. 10 times the price of charging at home. To do so can often make the full cost for an EV almost the same as a petrol car. At public chargers you could easily pay around £70 for 100 kws , enough for around 350 miles of motoring. A petrol car getting 40 mpg would need about 40 litres of petrol to do the same distance. If petrol is £1.50 per litre that’s around £60. So you can see why home charging makes all the difference.
In the past 6 months you will also have seen loads of anti EV articles in the press, and like wise anti EV videos on YouTube. 95% of this is utter rubbish and often blatant lies. Much of this has been promoted/ financed by “interested” parties
And people like MacMaster on YouTube know that they can generate high incomes for posting anti EV videos as many people believe everything they read in the Mail/Sun/Express etc. Macmasters anti EV videos generate many more views and therefore income for him than his other holiday / fish and chip videos. Indeed one of his latest videos is complaining about the extortionate cost of servicing his EV. He has a £80,000 + luxury Car - a Porsche Tycan. And he’s astounded at the cost of servicing a Porsche! My Kona EV service cost me £69 at the dealer
I would say to anyone thinking about an EV - new or secondhand - go an do a test drive, I am sure you’ll be impressed. If you can charge at home somehow then it’s a no brainer. If you must rely on the public charging network then do your research (use ZapMap to find your nearest chargers and the cost per kw). Don’t believe all the negative press, most all of it is fiction.
Despite all their advantages EVs are not for everyone. People requirements differ and for some a ICE will suit better.
If anyone genuinely has questions about owning/running an EV I am happy to answer any questions via DM
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Electric cars again on 11:01 - Dec 31 with 2883 views
Electric cars again on 07:57 - Dec 31 by MelakaRanger
I have had various EVs as my only car since 2015. I do not regret for one minute changing from ICE to EV. But key to EV ownership is either a home charger or being able to charge on the pavement outside your home using a granny cable. This will allow you to charge your car for around 7.5p per kw. Most EVs can do between 3 and 4 miles per kw , so £7.50 of electricity should give you around 300 to 400 miles of motoring. Many cars can get more than 4 miles per kw, my current car averages over the year at around 4.5 miles per kw.
Many employers have chargers in staff car parks and can get government subsidies to do so. This should also allow “cheaper” charging but not nearly as cheap as charging at home.
If you have to rely on the public charging network, most likely Rapid Chargers, then you’ll easily be paying between 60p and 80p per kw. 10 times the price of charging at home. To do so can often make the full cost for an EV almost the same as a petrol car. At public chargers you could easily pay around £70 for 100 kws , enough for around 350 miles of motoring. A petrol car getting 40 mpg would need about 40 litres of petrol to do the same distance. If petrol is £1.50 per litre that’s around £60. So you can see why home charging makes all the difference.
In the past 6 months you will also have seen loads of anti EV articles in the press, and like wise anti EV videos on YouTube. 95% of this is utter rubbish and often blatant lies. Much of this has been promoted/ financed by “interested” parties
And people like MacMaster on YouTube know that they can generate high incomes for posting anti EV videos as many people believe everything they read in the Mail/Sun/Express etc. Macmasters anti EV videos generate many more views and therefore income for him than his other holiday / fish and chip videos. Indeed one of his latest videos is complaining about the extortionate cost of servicing his EV. He has a £80,000 + luxury Car - a Porsche Tycan. And he’s astounded at the cost of servicing a Porsche! My Kona EV service cost me £69 at the dealer
I would say to anyone thinking about an EV - new or secondhand - go an do a test drive, I am sure you’ll be impressed. If you can charge at home somehow then it’s a no brainer. If you must rely on the public charging network then do your research (use ZapMap to find your nearest chargers and the cost per kw). Don’t believe all the negative press, most all of it is fiction.
Despite all their advantages EVs are not for everyone. People requirements differ and for some a ICE will suit better.
If anyone genuinely has questions about owning/running an EV I am happy to answer any questions via DM
spot on Melaka. ... you could buy 3 MG4's with the amount of money MacMasters Porsche has depreciated... Right now you can get an entry level MG4 for around £26,000 ... I think VW will be pitching the ID2 at around £22,000 and this one will blow the 'all electric cars are ugly' myth clean out of the water.
ps - I've given up watching the MacMaster, his EV bashing is getting boring now.
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Electric cars again on 11:31 - Dec 31 with 2841 views
Nothing against electric cars perse, they suit some and not others, but the underlying problem will be ultra high electricity prices which are already crippling the poor and will have an increasingly negative effect on society as a whole.
The recent doubling of electricity bills has little to do with world conflict, despite that being the excuse given. The uplift in price has largely been deliberately manufactured so we become psychologically conditioned to higher prices so the next kick ups appear less exorbitant. If the Ukraine war ended tomorrow, don’t expect prices to halve back to where they were a couple of years ago, they won’t.
We’ve never before heard of subsidies on energy prices for the poor being suggested, it is now, which gives you an idea of how governments are preparing for a price onslaught that will create civil unrest.
The answer should be hydrogen but governments and big business are too far invested in electric and don’t want hydrogen to succeed.
0
Electric cars again on 11:42 - Dec 31 with 2820 views
Nothing against electric cars perse, they suit some and not others, but the underlying problem will be ultra high electricity prices which are already crippling the poor and will have an increasingly negative effect on society as a whole.
The recent doubling of electricity bills has little to do with world conflict, despite that being the excuse given. The uplift in price has largely been deliberately manufactured so we become psychologically conditioned to higher prices so the next kick ups appear less exorbitant. If the Ukraine war ended tomorrow, don’t expect prices to halve back to where they were a couple of years ago, they won’t.
We’ve never before heard of subsidies on energy prices for the poor being suggested, it is now, which gives you an idea of how governments are preparing for a price onslaught that will create civil unrest.
The answer should be hydrogen but governments and big business are too far invested in electric and don’t want hydrogen to succeed.
Hydrogen should be the solution but my nearest petrol station selling hydrogen is in Cobham (about 15 miles away). … Electric prices have shot up but I switched to Octopus recently and it’s 2/3 off the standard rate overnight.
0
Electric cars again on 11:49 - Dec 31 with 2821 views
Balloon payment finance, fixed monthly cost when the balloon payment is due trade in. If you get the car from new or nearly new make sure the finance runs within the arrant period and the car will hold its value, so you should get the deposit back at least and maybe a bit more. Been doing this myself for years and allows me to have a car that is £40K new without having £40k to buy it and trade uo each time. Dont have an electric yet, as bought last one 2 years ago and felt tat the time it was one generation away from being viable for me
1
Electric cars again on 12:02 - Dec 31 with 2804 views
Electric cars again on 23:30 - Dec 30 by Paddyhoops
I have a 3 ton electric van . Only a range of 150 miles . I mostly drive in and out of London everyday so do about 300 miles a week . It’s a company van and have been provided with a shell charge card. Sadly the garage I use has 8 charging points and embarrassingly 6 of those have been out of order for months now. I have got to know many of the charging posts in inner london and are cheaper to charge from. Some councils offer reductions on parking charges sadly not Westminster. You wonder do they want to save the planet or not. Be careful with sped cameras as the EVs have got some poke which is difficult with 20 zones everywhere in London oh and as they’re silent watch out for f**wit pedestrians and cyclists who won’t hear you approaching. All round good experience though and beautiful to drive.
This serious issue is going away in the UK because from 1 July 2021, all new electric and hybrid vehicles registered in the UK need to have a sound generator installed to make a sound similar to a conventional engine.
There is now a reasonable second hand market for EVs and that ID2 someone mentioned looks like it will be tremendous value at well under £25K.
Most new electric cars will do well over 200 miles on a charge.
The claims that the range of batteries declines over time may not be true. Tesla saw a drop off of under 2% even after a million miles of testing.
"Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1."
1
Electric cars again on 14:13 - Dec 31 with 2725 views
I average only a couple of thousand miles a year in the car as it’s just local weekend useage. I know short runs aren’t good for ICE cars (needed new middle and rear exhaust last year) but are EV’s affected by this? Charging at home is not a problem.
My heart wants a big fk-off 4x4 simply because I do so little mileage it would actually have less impact on the environment than someone in a Toyota Yaris who does 15,000 miles a year, like my flat mate from years ago yet I got the paddington bear stares from people because I had a Pajero 4x4 that I did 2-3k a year. Which of us had the bigger impact on the environment?
[Post edited 31 Dec 2023 14:14]
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Electric cars again on 15:29 - Dec 31 with 2639 views
Nothing against electric cars perse, they suit some and not others, but the underlying problem will be ultra high electricity prices which are already crippling the poor and will have an increasingly negative effect on society as a whole.
The recent doubling of electricity bills has little to do with world conflict, despite that being the excuse given. The uplift in price has largely been deliberately manufactured so we become psychologically conditioned to higher prices so the next kick ups appear less exorbitant. If the Ukraine war ended tomorrow, don’t expect prices to halve back to where they were a couple of years ago, they won’t.
We’ve never before heard of subsidies on energy prices for the poor being suggested, it is now, which gives you an idea of how governments are preparing for a price onslaught that will create civil unrest.
The answer should be hydrogen but governments and big business are too far invested in electric and don’t want hydrogen to succeed.
There's no compelling argument for hydrogen from any angle except for HGVs. If there was, it would be happening. Businesses just want to make money, they don't care how.
Electric cars again on 07:57 - Dec 31 by MelakaRanger
I have had various EVs as my only car since 2015. I do not regret for one minute changing from ICE to EV. But key to EV ownership is either a home charger or being able to charge on the pavement outside your home using a granny cable. This will allow you to charge your car for around 7.5p per kw. Most EVs can do between 3 and 4 miles per kw , so £7.50 of electricity should give you around 300 to 400 miles of motoring. Many cars can get more than 4 miles per kw, my current car averages over the year at around 4.5 miles per kw.
Many employers have chargers in staff car parks and can get government subsidies to do so. This should also allow “cheaper” charging but not nearly as cheap as charging at home.
If you have to rely on the public charging network, most likely Rapid Chargers, then you’ll easily be paying between 60p and 80p per kw. 10 times the price of charging at home. To do so can often make the full cost for an EV almost the same as a petrol car. At public chargers you could easily pay around £70 for 100 kws , enough for around 350 miles of motoring. A petrol car getting 40 mpg would need about 40 litres of petrol to do the same distance. If petrol is £1.50 per litre that’s around £60. So you can see why home charging makes all the difference.
In the past 6 months you will also have seen loads of anti EV articles in the press, and like wise anti EV videos on YouTube. 95% of this is utter rubbish and often blatant lies. Much of this has been promoted/ financed by “interested” parties
And people like MacMaster on YouTube know that they can generate high incomes for posting anti EV videos as many people believe everything they read in the Mail/Sun/Express etc. Macmasters anti EV videos generate many more views and therefore income for him than his other holiday / fish and chip videos. Indeed one of his latest videos is complaining about the extortionate cost of servicing his EV. He has a £80,000 + luxury Car - a Porsche Tycan. And he’s astounded at the cost of servicing a Porsche! My Kona EV service cost me £69 at the dealer
I would say to anyone thinking about an EV - new or secondhand - go an do a test drive, I am sure you’ll be impressed. If you can charge at home somehow then it’s a no brainer. If you must rely on the public charging network then do your research (use ZapMap to find your nearest chargers and the cost per kw). Don’t believe all the negative press, most all of it is fiction.
Despite all their advantages EVs are not for everyone. People requirements differ and for some a ICE will suit better.
If anyone genuinely has questions about owning/running an EV I am happy to answer any questions via DM
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