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....and another update from my mate re the EX30
Just thought i would charge up the brand new EX30 Volvo...plugged in the charger... charging started at an extremely low rate....34 hours to charge the car to 90%. Googled the problem and hey ho...there's a bug on charging. You have to stop the car charging force the charge limit to 32amp and then restart. Yep that worked BUT!!!! THIS IS A NEW CAR.... WITH BUGS!!!
!
That shouldn't happen but I would think it will be sorted fast. I had charging bugs with our Peugeot van that shouldn't have happened, and were still there a year later.
If anyone is interested, first 1000 miles done in the Q4.
Average is 3.4 miles per kw hour. Charging is averaging me £12 per week. I tend to charge every evening. Petrol was costing me £60 a week.
Todays drive was the most economical I’ve completed so far, 40 miles at 3.8 miles pKWh.
Driving style has completely changed. I’m now consciously driving to conserve battery life. Mine is the 300hp Quattro version, I wince if the acceleration shows more than 25% usage! Absolutely loving just cruising in the left lane on the motorway. I previously drove “making progress” in my Cupra.
There’s a couple of irritations. The car has a SIM card, when I use wireless Apple Drive it uses the Audi sim…..that needs me to add money to it monthly. Otherwise I can just use a wire and it connects. My phone is then the one being used for data. Just annoying that there’s no option to say use my phone data connection when wireless.
I struggle to understand this mentality- you used to spend X, you now spend Y so you’re making a huge saving *BUT* you say you are being much more careful with how you drive. So the old ICE car could have cost you Z had you driven it equally conservatively.
I’d say the two things are likely not massively connected - if Woodster was just driving like use used to drive his ICE he’d still be saving massively - say £15 a week vs the £12 but that’s still enormously less than the £60 for the ICE.
EVs are generally nicer places to be than their ICE equivalents, so cruising is a bit more appealing. There’s also “nothing to prove” as from a rolling start an EV will out accelerate a much faster ICE which means that paradoxically you just chill.
I’ve found that in my i4 I also now just cruise along most of the time - even when I don’t care about range or cost. It’s simple a nicer way to travel.
One thing to note - in an EV using the acceleration doesn’t really hurt efficiency so long as you are accelerating to the same speed - yes it’s more power but for less time (clearly if you end up going faster or are accelerating and braking between corners etc this doesn’t apply)
in an EV using the acceleration doesn’t really hurt efficiency
I agree. Driving gently doesn't make a lot of difference in an EV, only overall speed. That's why EVs are more efficient in town than on motorways, the opposite of ICEs.
However W00dster does mention keeping to the left lane which suggest driving at lorry speed i.e. 58mph which means they've slowed down a lot. But even then, in your ICE you might be pleased with getting 70mpg instead of 50, but that's a trivial improvement in carbon emissions compared to driving an EV, especially lately.
My ICE car was a 300hp Cupra. Getting 50mpg was never going to happen!! 38mpg on most journeys and that’s taking it easy. I’ve had much more powerful cars than the Cupra, but there’s something about a hot hatch that is like a badly behaved spaniel…..it’s just pulling all the time wanting to get off the lead.
My point I was making is that in the month I’ve had the EV my driving style has changed. It’s only a personal anecdote. I didn’t get the EV because of the difference in cost between petrol and electricity, but it’s an added bonus.
And yeah I’m generally keeping to the left lane, I leave before the roads are too busy so I do overtake the odd truck, but generally the cruise control is set to 65. I’ll pull out if a vehicle is going much slower or I’ll just wait behind if it’s going at a similar speed. In the Cupra no chance of me being like that…..yes the car would be fine doing it, but for some reason that type of car feels completely different than driving the EV.
Another personal anecdote, my partner is a driving instructor…..in the Cupra I would be given a driving lesson every time I drove it, in the Audi she’s not once gave me a free lesson!
<quote>My point I was making is that in the month I’ve had the EV my driving style has changed<endquote>
yes, it is odd, but EV's seem to be a lot more relaxing to drive. My other car is a GR Yaris - which is the polar opposite to the EV.
I haven't owned a hot hatch but generally I go for relaxing cars, partly because I don't want to encourage myself to drive fast. Driving should be chill, everyone benefits including the driver. I approve of w00dster's posts.
I do a fair bit of work on my cars but unlike most car tinkerers it's all in the name of making it smoother and quieter.
That's good efficiency..
I've still not averaged 3m/kWh yet in the polestar...eek!
Currently the last 100miles (well, nearly) has been 38.4kwh/100 miles..
I do ahve the roof rack on, and frequently carry bikes.
Economical it's not! But, doesn't really matter! Still pennies to run. And on long trips (like when I went to teh netherlands) I took the roof racks off...
Will see what warmer weather brings.
DrP
@DrP - I’m in the tropics (North Wales) and commute into Liverpool, it’s far warmer here than Southern England!
On Tuesday when it was wet and cold my average for the 33 miles was 3.2. It was 2.9 for the motorway journey and then improved for the slower last 5 miles.
Last weeks electricity bill was £19.83, that includes general usage as well as charging. And having checked the app the week before the car arrived my electricity usage was £10.84 for the week. Its just insanely cheap!
I have a fairly long trip coming up soon. North Wales to Milton Keynes and back the same day. Be interesting to see how this goes. I’ll have to charge on motorway charging.
It'll be a cinch. It's only going to be what, 1.5x the range of your car? So you just need a top up, and that can be more or less anywhere after the first 100 miles or so. If I were you I'd stop once on the way out for 20 mins at whatever place I like the coffee, then once on the way back for a similar time. Or you could just charge in MK, it's stuffed with chargers both slow and fast.
EDIT ah it looks like due to MK's unique situation a lot of these chargers might be restricted access...
New company van arrived today. Previous is an 11plate Ducato that has been good. It only does short local trips and site use but even so has been 100% reliable. It is abused horribly as you can see.
Let's see how long it's replacement lasts in a hairy arsed maintenance department!
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Those vans are Leafs in a different body, and it'll be pretty reliable.
Interesting how people's mindsets are shifting now they have electric cars.
I don't have an electric car and have never driven one, but have generally done long commutes for the last 20 years or so.
At least for the last 10 years, I have been generally sticking to 60-65mph on my commute & taking it easy. I do this for various reasons:
I find it less stressful
I get better MPG (60mpg is a given & for most of warmer months it will be nearer 70/75mpg from a 2 litre diesel estate)
I leave home early to beat the traffic & driving faster just means I get to work a few minutes earlier, which is still way earlier than I need to be.
I find it funny, as I always used to be the slowest on the road & it was very much seen as a tight-arse thing to do; people used to regularly take the piss about it at work.
Now though it seems a lot more accepted & even something of a badge of honour for the savvy EV car driver 😆
I work with a guy (typical petrolhead) who always used to comment on it, but now drives an i8 and gets in a right grump if the charging point has been taken by someone else & he can't save 15p charging his teeny battery at work, even though he spent £45k on the car.
I've been looking at options for replacing my Wife's Ibiza with something either PHEV or full EV as she's bored of it (2012 plate that she'd owned since 2013) and she really doesn't need a diesel anymore, but there's still not a great deal of choice unless we wanna spend more than we've ever spent on a car.
@Stumpy - someone posted earlier, there's some new Fiat 500 EVs on AutoTrader going for silly cheap money.
I think you'd have to be quick though - there were loads a couple of days ago, but this is the only one I could find today.
there’s still not a great deal of choice unless we wanna spend more than we’ve ever spent on a car.
What is the budget? Everyone's complaining about used EV prices but that is great news for used buyers. That Fiat is an outstanding deal - too short range for me though. My Ioniq Electric was £12k a couple of months ago, I think it's a brilliant car. There are plenty of Leafs around too for peanuts since Nissan sold the last few new ones for ridiculously low prices. A lot of people love them although I didn't. Lots of other choices too.
@johndoh - cheers, that Fiat 500 is only an hour up the road from us. But, I don't think she'd want something with such limited range unfortunately. 118 mile stated range - so, 100 miles in real life? 80 miles in the winter?
She could probably make it work, but I think it would be a hard psychological sell.
Also, probably a bit on the small side. The Ibiza is a bit too small and she doesn't want another 3-door. The boot in that 500 looks tiny.
I think she'd be aiming for something nearer Golf size.
@molgrips. Budget. Not entirely sure, but something that doesn't seem like your having your pants pulled down.
Is that Fiat really such a good deal? As a pure city car maybe, but £14k for a car that will do realistically 100 miles during the warmer months...!?
Also, further to my comments above I had a quick look at the photos and have you seen the interior?! It looks worse than her 02 Ford Ka in terms of cheap hard plastics. I'm not a car snob by any stretch (hence why I drive a Leon, not a Golf or A4) but it just looks cheap & nasty.
Ioniq & Leaf - yeah, I get it. There are cars out there. But, my Wife would not be at all interested. She's far from someone who is solely worried about image & looks, but.......nah. If she was gonna spend that much money & end up in one of those, I would bet my entire bike collection she'd rather just stick with what she has or get a different car with an engine.
She did seem quite interested in the Golf/A3 PHEV that I showed her the other day, but they seem to be around £15k at least for a used one.
Is that Fiat really such a good deal? As a pure city car maybe, but £14k for a car that will do realistically 100 miles during the warmer months…!?
I was thinking it was a good deal because it's £14k for a 2023 car!
But you're right, a bargain is only a bargain if it's useful to you. I would recommend an Ioniq Electric (not Ioniq 5) as a basic EV. It's a great car to drive has a 190 mile range which is actually realistic and doesn't drop much in the winter, and is very well equipped. It's also very reliable and the battery is very durable. Only downside is slow charging which would slow you down on a multi-charge trip, but given the decent range you'd have to be on a proper long road trip for it to matter.
What kind of driving to you want to do? If it's for local commuting, and you can charge at home, even a 100 mile range isn't an issue.
Corsa e or peugeot e208?
I haven't done any big winter trips where a recharge was needed but reckon comfortably over 125miles and a decent 160 - 180 miles in summer for the 45kWh.
A quick filter of Auto Trader for Electric cars with more than 200 mile range for between £15k and £18k (roughly the price of a base spec 1-2 year old Seat Leon) returned 1532 results for me.
The second hand EV market is blossoming.
@retrorick - yeah, I have mentioned the Corsa-e to her a few times. Seems like a good option to be honest, for a few k more than the Fiat500.
Peugeot 208 - she had a 308 that she hated with a passion. I think that's put her off them. And to be honest, I had a (petrol) 2008 as a hire car last year and thought it was toilet.
@molgrips - yeah, to ME, the Ioniq electric looks OK. But to her.....nah. She would rather keep what she has.
We paid off the loan for it 7 years ago & so it costs us very little, is rapid enough and looks good. She doesn't really NEED a new car, but is just bored of what she has.
If you could get something like an electric Puma with a 150 mile range for £12k she'd probably be up for that. But a Hyundai Ioniq.....nope.
I appreciate the info & the thought process though!
perchypanther
A quick filter of Auto Trader for Electric cars with more than 200 mile range for between £15k and £18k (roughly the price of a base spec 1-2 year old Seat Leon) returned 1532 results for me.
I suppose that reflects how much car prices have rocketed. My 2 year old Leon FR estate was £12k with 27k miles on it in June 2020.
£15k would be more than she'd want to spend, and more than we've ever spent on a car.
You could (almost) get an e-bike for that!
I imagine she'll just keep what she's got for a few more years.
If you could get something like an electric Puma with a 150 mile range for £12k she’d probably be up for that. But a Hyundai Ioniq…..nope.
Aren't they basically the same thing? Or are you on about looks? Also, do you really want 150 miles of range?
The other thing to factor in when discussing purchase price is the running cost savings. We save £80/mo even with a relatively short commute. It's as if petrol were 15p a litre.
Although, if you don't really need a new car, don't get one.
I replaced a 10yr old Kia picanto with a 2.5yr old Corsa e. The Kia probably would of gone on for a fair few more years but I'm expecting the Corsa to last beyond 2030 and the savings started as soon as the home charging point went in.
I'm not a car person but I like the electric car. Clever matrix headlights, heated seats, bigger boot than the Kia and a nice to drive.
Go and have a test drive in one. Probably the best way of seeing if its an option.
Yeah you get far more kit on EVs. Our £12k three year old Hyundai has:
- Leather
- Heated and cooled electrically adjustable memory front seats
- Heated rear seats
- Heated steering wheel
- Auto dimming mirror, auto dip LED headlights and auto wipers
- Adaptive cruise control
- Lane follow assist (steers for you on motorways)
- Automatic braking if you are going to hit something
- Blind spot alerts
- Live traffic based satnav routing and live charging information
- Reverse camera and front and rear beepers
- And of course remote locking and AC/heating via the app and on a schedule
- BOSE stereo
It's fantastic. On newer top spec Leafs you get all that plus 360 degree parking bird's eye view too.
@stumpy01 have you looked at BMW i3? I had one and loved it. Small externally but feels pretty spacious inside. Nice to drive, quirky design, plenty available, OK range wise if you're driving sensibly. Only thing I hated in mine was no AA or Carplay, which was an option in 2020 I think.
@richpenny, I really like the i3, but I think it's perhaps a bit wacky for her. Whenever we see one and I point them out, she turns her nose up. There's no accounting for taste , I suppose.
I always liked the Audi A2 and the i3 follows a similar vein. Rear legroom looks a bit tight?
I think really she's decided that she'd rather stick with what she has for a while until there's more options out there. She's always hankered after an Audi TT so part of me thinks she should just scratch that itch before they disappear.
Yeah you get far more kit on EVs.
Unless you get a VW ID 3 then the steering wheel is standard and thats about it.
Rear legroom looks a bit tight?
I've been in one, they are much bigger than they look. They are the shape of a small car which fools the eye - they are not small.
1000 mile update on the Model Y RWD. Averaging 4.3 mpkwh (233wh/mile) on a variety of motorway and town driving, including a 340 mile motorway round trip to Nottingham.
It may not be the prettiest car on the road, but that slippery shape really helps with efficiency on the higher speed runs.
Helps with the warmer temperatures too, of course.
*It may not be the prettiest car on the road*
Agreed.
Is the Tesla Model 3 the best value Electric Car, I friend who is a fleet manager advised they are starting to recommend to all company drivers. Also he advised there charging network is the cheapest, I Tesla was more expensive than most.
Wether or not it's the best value depends on what you do with it. Our Ioniq Electric was cheaper and is significantly more efficient, but I have to pay 73p per kWh at public chargers. However, I use public chargers about 3x a year so that's not a significant factor for us. If you're running up and down the motorway every week, then yes. However, if you were to do that, you'd be paying less than the 73p I pay probably since you'd be subscribing to something. But probably more than 44p.
Anyone got a Cupra Born or EV6 GT?
Choose a New lease time. The Cupra is very cheap, EV6 a bit less than a tesla.
I'll go and sit in some but always useful to hear people's experiences. 👍
We’ve just bought another i3. A 42kWh (actually 37kWh) version to replace our previous 33kWh (27kWh) REX version. We’re easily getting 180-190miles of range from it.
Plenty of space in the rear. They’re quite tardis like so long as you don’t have large amounts of specifically shaped luggage.
Anyone got a Cupra Born or EV6 GT?
Choose a New lease time. The Cupra is very cheap, EV6 a bit less than a tesla.
Assume your talking about the EV6 GT line rather than the 577bhp GT
One of my work colleagues has the GT line and it’s a cracking car. IMHO the KIA/Hyundai e-GMP platform is currently the best balance out there. Thats why I picked one for myself. The EV6 is a fair bit larger than my Genesis but not anywhere near as nice.
We also have a fleet of Borns which are cracking little cars, they are the car the VW ID3 should have been, but not in the same league as the EV6.
If I had wanted a small car Id probably have chosen the Born
EV second hand prices seem to have tumbled and I'm in the market potentially for a replacement to my 2015 Passat diesel.
What can I get for around 12k that can transport two bikes (one of them an ebike so has to go in the boot or a towbar rack) and can do at least a trip to Leeds and back without charging?
Edit: from Newcastle upon Tyne 🙂
Anyone got a Cupra Born or EV6 GT?
I’ve got an EV6 GT Line S and love it. Had it since late September last year and no issues so far.
It’s really nice to drive; comfortable, spacious, smooth and has all the toys.
Seat and steering wheel heating was great over winter and run off the 12V battery so have no negative impact on range.
Was getting around 235 miles from a full charge over winter but as the weather temperature is increasing so is the car’s range. Now up to 275 miles.
Ohme charger and Intelligent Octopus Go tariff means 7.5p/kWh to charge overnight so cheap enough to run.
@pictonroad - drop me a DM if you have any questions.
and can do at least a trip to Leeds and back without charging?
I think that'll depend on where you live 🙂
Seat and steering wheel heating was great over winter and run off the 12V battery so have no negative impact on range.
Everything runs off the main battery when the car is switched on. However, heated seats and steering wheel use very little power in general, less than heating the air in the whole car.
What can I get for around 12k that can transport two bikes (one of them an ebike so has to go in the boot or a towbar rack) and can do at least a trip to Leeds and back without charging?
Well I would put two bikes in the back of my Ioniq with the seats down, but that seems to not be fashionable these days. However, I wouldn't be put off by having to stop to charge on a long trip. If it's only just outside your range you only need a quick top up, it's really nothing. In our Leaf the trip to my parents was just outside the winter range, so we got our coffee for the return trip at a place with a charger and by the time we'd gone in and bought drinks and snacks we had enough to get home.
You’re correct, molgrips. My mistake. I’m sure I read somewhere a while ago that they were fed from the 12V battery but have just checked and it is indeed the main battery that powers them.
"I think that’ll depend on where you live"
D'oh! Newcastle upon Tyne.
Bikes in the back isn't a massive issue until they're covered in mud and grime so would prefer if rear seats folded right down enough to lie a bike down fully (with the front wheel taken out).