Random EV thoughts.....

MightyMunster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279471#Comment_118279471

Don't forget to add in the time taken for the other 20-30 garage trips, queuing to get a pump, stand in the cold filling it, (move the car if a longer stop), queue in the shop to pay. Guaranteed it's more than time than the 30seconds a week an EV drivers spends plugging/unplugging

UID0

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279881#Comment_118279881

Refuelling on the road is only sometimes quicker in a diesel. If you are stopping for diesel and to grab a bite to eat, you have to fill the car with diesel, pay, move the car (about 10 minutes) and then go back in to get your food. If you are charging, and there's no queue for the charger, then you park, plug in and start charging (about 30 seconds) and then go in to get your food. If the amount of charge you're looking for is less than or equal to the charge you get when eating, then you've saved 9.5 minutes by using an EV.

If you don't need food, then a diesel is quicker.

DrPhilG

I was referring only to the refuelling which is and always will be quicker on the road in an ICE.

NCC1701

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118281647#Comment_118281647

Pretty hard to argue with that (impossible actually but you'll always get someone who will!). Since covid induced lockdowns and curtailed all the motorway miles I used to do, my diesel has suffered from the short hops to shops and kid's football training etc (about 5kms in each case and so too far to walk). Battery died and had to be replaced, DPF filter became clogged etc. An ev would have been perfect for these runs to shops, schools and football practice, with no belching diesel exhaust fumes and far more efficient. As for the whole "range thing", we live on a fairly small island. Like how much range do we really need? Its not as if we'll ever get stuck in the middle of a desert miles from anywhere. As someone else said, most of our daily runs are short (and I'd consider my commute of 80kms round trip to be short) and even the smallest ev range will cope with that. Having 400-500kms of range is just bragging, or at best it means you don't have to spend a few seconds plugging the car in every night.

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118283366#Comment_118283366

Agree except for your last line.

I'd always need one car that can do that range. A second car doesnt need to.

kanuseeme

Just playing around with the calculator, full load, summer time, 25c AC, highway and ECO, the range is 366 km, I am 320 km to and from Dublin airport so 46 km to spare. I think its a big ask for people to spend 45 k on a car that with every year that passes will knock a % or so from that total.

I filled my phev up the 12th of November 60 euro, it showed a range of 730km, still have 100 km range left and I have done 880 km, plugged in 4 times out and about and at home most days. Only 1 long trip of 360 km and 2 x 100km trips, rest are school runs 10km (kids were coughing 2 weeks) and grocery shopping 40/50 km

Even take a normal hybrid or diesel, that sort of driving is not that expensive, last thing I would want to be doing is driving at 100 kph or making up excuses to stop for a pee or burger.

Just go to the zoo or airport pee eat there or some nice restaurant and come back, hard see why people would bother with the hassle of range/charging or even worry about it when a normal car is around the same price.

https://rangecalculator.skoda-auto.com/941/en-ie

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284346#Comment_118284346

why do you have to get to the airport and back without a charge somewhere? how often do you make that trip? If doing a trip of that length do you normally get to your destination immediately turn around and go back?

Im having this same discussion with my Mum, she is looking at a Q4 and thinks she needs the larger battery at an extra 6k, she doesnt, they have an ICE car if for some reason fast charging is beyond her, she will have charging at home, i have a charger at my place 130km away, and mostly she drives 30-40k a day.

micosoft

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279881#Comment_118279881

Honestly how much time do you waste in filthy service stations every week and then end up buying junk food laid out in the shop. 30 min a week = 28 hours a year stuck in service stations minimum...

I went for a lower range model on the based the six times I go West every year that 6k could buy a lot of burgers.

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284433#Comment_118284433

People want to be able to drive a normal distance 50-200km without having to worry about making it or having to stop.

Most people stop on a 350-400+ km journey anyway so it's less of an issue to recharge then.

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284471#Comment_118284471

I dont understand your point. EVs have to charge at the same service stations usually. Also tend to be somewhere out the back and not covered from the elements. At least when I go to a motorway services in my fossil cars I can park under a canopy, fill up in 3-5 mins and go in to pay without being rained on.

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284903#Comment_118284903

Sure, any new EV can do that though, its not an issue.

ec_pc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118280479#Comment_118280479

You can get a Smart meter removed and replaced with a Day Night meter, I did this in January of this year. It costs nothing to get a day night meter installed but there is a fee to get it removed. Also, I think you can refuse to get a Smart Meter fitted, they are not a mandatory requirement. I'll be keeping my day night meter.

zg3409

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284969#Comment_118284969

Smart meters at least when they were installing first could not do day/night and so anyone who needed day night did not get a smart meter. Smart meter pricing is much higher at the moment due to confusion and lack of competition at this early launch stage. In terms of cost of filling EV, if you do 100km a day it may make sense to go night meter, but it depends on actual usage. I recommend go day/night for a year, then check actual consumption and switch to 24 hour rate if it works out cheaper. If you switch to 24 hour rate they leave same meter and add the 2 numbers together. On night rate my 110km commute a day cost roughly 400 euro a year, so a relatively low amount of the annual electricity bill, but it was cheaper to have night rate due to high early morning usage of instant showers, washing machines etc.

Manion

I ran the numbers there last night and if it wasn't for the including the increase in standing charge on the basis of Bord Gais day night rate (21.62/10.7) versus 24 hour (20.1) and recharging the EV (72 Kw) every 2 weeks. The Day night is a moderate saving without the EV but with it, it's significant. The more I use the EV the more worth it, it becomes.

micosoft

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284915#Comment_118284915

EV's charge at home 95% of the time. EV's will only charge at a traditional service station in an emergency hence the punitive rates. For the most part EV's will charge off at fast chargers on the motorway network a couple of times a year, or top up at destinations like supermarkets. Your service station cover is not going to help you when Climate Change changes the elements to mass flooding. It really saddens me how far people will go to avoid making the tiniest change whether wearing a facemask or going electric...

I get you may be one of those rare people who commutes to Dublin from Malin head. Oldish data but won't have changed - 61% of journeys are less than 8km. That's walking distance.

Manion

You folks with your fancy ICE cars, what happens when you need to shelter it in a stables overnight during a storm, sure it will never fit. Think people , think...

It's kinda interesting how people grow attached to the things that limit us today, and actually start to see them as features. Filling up at a petrol station is not a convenience, it's a burden. Because EV reviews will always feature some form of range test we can be conditioned to thing we'll be used fast chargers here and there, but frankly I could see myself never going into a station again or as another poster mentioned, stopping off to have a slash or get a coffee and leaving the car on charge. I think the net amount of time I'll spend in filling stations will be drastically reduced.

fits

We have requested our smart meter be replaced with day night ( in September - hasn’t happened yet) but with us wfh it will hardly save us a whole lot.

kanuseeme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284433#Comment_118284433

Its at least 2 times a year some times 4, for the sake of 30 euro a trip I am not going to invest 45 k ( would not spend that much anyway) in a car that might or might not need a stop, I could stop for petrol, normally I would get it before the trip, but if I do stop I know I will have it done in 5 minutes not guessing praying or waiting on some 2014 leaf.

I find phevs great, most of the local trips cheap, the longer trips as with any normal car, just thinking about tayto park or Newgrange, 175 km and 200 km from me, I want to enjoy the day with the family not b0ll0ck$ around at some charger.

I helped my mum buy a 225xe and dad a c350e both are extremely happy with reduced spending on petrol and none of the whining about ecars .

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118286139#Comment_118286139

If you wouldn't buy one anyway what's the point exactly ?

Can't speak for anyone else but have never used e cars for fast charging personally.

kanuseeme

what's confusing you?

I can understand why a journalist would not spend 45k on a EV or any one else for that matter, I made the point that a 45k car for me would only give me 46 km to spare on a regular trip, in summer time, not winter, not rainy, not any other time , in summer, its absolutely useless, I picked the airport run because its an important trip most people make and something you dont need any extra hassle or faffing around with chargers, I also made the point that such a trip only cost me 30 euro, its only one scenario would you like more?

Read any thread here for ecars, you might learn something,

MightyMunster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284915#Comment_118284915

The difference is an ice has to do that regularly, every week? An EV had to do it 3 or 4 trips a year. That's a difference for 40+ garage stops a year. And on those trips you'd be stopping for fuel, coffee, toilet, lunch anyway so it's no longer in an EV. Last two cross country trips I've been on the food wasn't ready from burger king or supermacs by the time the car was recharged enough to get me home.

liamog

Its at least 2 times a year some times 4, for the sake of 30 euro a trip I am not going to invest 45 k ( would not spend that much anyway) in a car that might or might not need a stop, I could stop for petrol, normally I would get it before the trip, but if I do stop I know I will have it done in 5 minutes not guessing praying or waiting on some 2014 leaf.

That's the classic false equivalency that journos make. If you are not in the market for a new car that cost's around €45k, then why are you looking at one and complaining it's expensive against a €20k second hand car?

innrain

Random enough. Today I helped (over the phone) someone to start a charge on an Octavia PHEV the guy just picked (in a different country) brand new. First the guy was puzzled by how quickly the battery depleted; less than 40km. He was on a 500 km drive and wanted to charge while on a snack break. I told him it is kinda pointless but curiosity... So I managed to start his charger with plugsurfing app after explained which side of the cable where and so on. His break was of exact 39 minutes, time in which he got 2.29kWh and the car reported 9 km range. Pointless to say the guy was deflated. I've checked the specs the car should have 13kWh battery but specced range 65km. Pretty bad @ 20kWh/100km. What's funny though the WLTP of this car is 1l/100km petrol. It's a company car so not his choice but neither his company nor his apartment have chargers or even chargers nearby. He's driving 1000s of km a week and will carry that battery across Europe for the sake of some tax credits.

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118285283#Comment_118285283

EV charge at home 95% of the time. I know, I've done over 150k electric km so far. Including 60k in a leaf24 with mostly home based granny cable only charging. However EVs will not charge on fast chargers at a traditional service station in an emergency only. That's nonsense.

The rest of your post is quite frankly bunkum in this forum to a poster who has spent almost €100k to date on EVs, driven them, complained about them, bought different ones etc and generally posted honest good and bad opinions about the reality of driving EVs

Looking at your 2012 join date I can only guess you don't post here much if you're targeting that drivel at me.

cannco253

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/renault-zoe-given-zero-stars-euro-ncap-safety-tests

Popular EV is third car in history to get zero stars, while Dacia's new Spring EV lands just one star

"When we first tested the Zoe, it did reasonably well and had all the elements you needed back then to get a reasonable score. But if you've still got the same design 10 years later, you aren't going to score as well.....the previous model's five-star verdict wouldn't necessarily still apply, given changes to the testing process.”

How is this even possible in 2021? Disaster in PR terms for Renault.

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118286360#Comment_118286360

I might learn something? Me who owns an EV and has practical experience, i wont be learning it from you anyway it seems.

handpref

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118289039#Comment_118289039

That’s shocking, my wife may miss the Zoe when the T5 arrives but I certainly won’t, it has dated dramatically the past couple of years.

fits

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118289039#Comment_118289039

That’s really shocking tbh. Has the new megane e tech been tested yet?

cannco253

Don't think the megane has been tested yet

https://www.thatcham.org/zero-star-rating-for-first-five-star-carmaker/

"Avery continues: “Drivers should not have to trade off safety for zero emissions. Motorists can still save the planet and enjoy a car that could play a vital role in saving their family in the event of a crash. There are many other options of a similar price and size that have achieved solid ratings and feature a host of active safety systems as standard too. Even looking within the Renault stable, the Clio is an affordable five-star hybrid vehicle that retails at £10,000 less than the Zoe and still allows drivers to be environmentally conscious without sacrificing safety.

Avery comments: “The Spring and Zoe have made savings on safety, but these reduced costs are not necessarily reflected in a cheaper PCP deal; they only serve to present a higher risk to occupants and other road users.”

Reminds me a bit of the Ford Pinto story from the 1970's (was studying it recently).

kanuseeme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118289249#Comment_118289249

You own a EV and know nothing of ECars and never used Ecars? I advised you to read any thread on Ecars, pick some other single word from this paragraph and come back, just because you want the last word does not make you right.