Thinking of moving to EV

I did it for 10 years charging, planning, working around infrastructure gaps. It’s not that the issues don’t exist, it’s just that over time, you adapt your life around them.

That might work fine for some, but let’s not pretend the compromises magically disappear, they just become part of the routine. For people considering EVs, it’s worth being honest about that instead of downplaying it.

I drive one for work & am up & down to Belfast in it no bother. I've also done a holiday down to west Cork in my EV without any bother. Charging was really straightforward & I was surprised at the number of chargers around. Never an issue. Even the Aldi near us had one! As for climbs - we drove around without any issue in it & I've never had a problem on steep roads etc. I get from your posts you don't seem to like it but again you can't lump all EV's in together as each brand & model will be different. The same was as ICE cars are all different. It's just lazy arguing.

Glad to hear it’s working well for you, genuinely. That’s the kind of experience I was hoping to have long-term, but it didn’t quite work out that way.

I’m not lumping all EVs together, I’ve owned a few over a 10 year stretch, and I’m well aware of the differences between models and generations. I’ve done road trips, mountain climbs, winter commutes, all the usual scenarios. It’s not that EVs can’t do these things, they absolutely can. But there’s a big difference between can and conveniently.

You might not see charging as an issue, and that’s fair, but for many people, the reality of having to wait around at chargers (especially on longer journeys or in unfamiliar areas) is still a real factor. You adapt, sure, but it’s not the same as the near-universal ease of refuelling an ICE car.

I did two trips from Carlow to Belfast in the ID.3 (77kWh) and found charging there a pain. Some chargers were in petrol stations I couldn't access without specific cards, and I eventually ended up using a slow 45kW charger — stuck in the car much longer than I wanted. On the second trip, I charged at the Transport Museum (great spot, by the way), which just barely got me to the Ionity in Stamullen, arriving with low charge and restricted power.

In the Outlander, I could have done the whole journey on a single tank of diesel. Even in the Kia Cee'd I could do all that including the trip to the Zoo and transport museum and still have plenty of kms left when I get home. There’s no getting around the extra planning and downtime with EVs, it just becomes part of the routine. But after a while, even adapting gets tedious.

I did

The point I'm making is we have heard this all 100 times.

I never claimed to be driving 400 km a day. I’m not sure where that came from. Longer trips, occasional travel, or lacking home charging at both ends are very normal scenarios. Even with home charging, the public network matters as soon as you leave your local bubble.

I had home charging and managed fine for ten years, but it was never completely seamless and there were always compromises. That is the point I’m making. EVs can be fantastic in the right circumstances, yet being open about their limitations helps people decide if they truly fit their lifestyle. That honesty is far more useful than dismissing any experience that doesn’t match an ideal even if there are longer range cars than my old id3 77 Kwh the range difference isn't massive and you still have to charge and even the fastest charging EV is limited by the amount of proper fast chargers 350 Kw + and even then they still can't come close to ICE full up time.

893 has done high mileage in a relatively short period, hasn't had issues with public charging because like most people he rarely has to do it....

lads I just discovered the “ignore” button. Hides messages from annoying irrelevant posters who might be clogging up a thread. A revelation

The OP has clocked out already and judging by their last comment, are staying away from EV for now. This is not because EV was not a great match for the OP, but because this thread is filled with complete nonsense, FUD, and negativity from two people.

One has lots of EV experience, but relied on the public charging network everyday, so grew bitter of EV ownership. I would too if I had to rely on public chargers every day. When public charging was free, people too the mickey and Taxi men hogged certain charge points routinely. I would not have stuck it out as long as he did, so kudos there!

The other hasn't a clue about EVs. Has no investment in them and won't even bother to plug the thing in at home, using the excuse that they are moving in 3 years and a charger would cost 2-3 grand. When told it would only cost €700, the story changed again to we are moving in 3 years. I would suggest that an investment of €700 to enable convenient charging over 3 years is a good one, but then the story changed again to the Mrs is not staying in the job anyway. I call BS.

For anyone who has made it this far into thread without jumping off a bridge, I say this.

Buy an EV that suits you. If you have to rely on public chargers and can't install a home charger, stay away from EVs. It's not worth it. If you are worried about the range of EVs, get one with a battery big enough to last at least 2 days of commuting. That's not a big ask. My old 24kWh Leaf could only do my return commute and needed a full charge every night, so I changed it for a car that could do 4 or 5 days of commuting. Buy right, or you'll be compromising. Buy right and you'll realise that ICE is where you compromise.

If you can put a charger in your home and avail of overnight rates then its a great idea, if not don't bother, the public network is still rubbish and way overpriced.

If anyone is concerned about the price of chargepoints, a very cheap way of doing it is to buy a Tesla granny charger on ebay or Donedeal, buy the adapter for 32 or 16 amp, and get your local sparks to install a commando socket for you. Cost should be around 350 - 400 quid.

You're absolutely right that for someone driving 56 km a day with home charging, EV ownership can be a great fit, I’ve never said otherwise. In fact, I’ve repeatedly said EVs can work really well in the right use case, and that’s likely one of them.

But my point, consistently, has been that ownership beyond that ideal use case, things like longer trips, no home charging at the destination, or needing to rely on public chargers, introduces compromises that aren’t always obvious until you live with them.

The OP didn’t just ask if it works for commuting 56 km, they’re also looking for the full picture, including what might come up beyond the daily routine. That’s the only reason I’ve shared my experience, to balance out the honeymoon period takes and give a longer term view.

If we only allow enthusiastic, hassle free experiences, and dismiss anything else as irrelevant or cynical, then we’re not really giving people honest advice , we’re just curating a highlight reel.

The difference is if they asked about a Qashqai people would talk about the space, the boot size, the reliability.

No one would start bleating on about the poor fueling infrastructure in Ireland because rural petrol stations are not 24/7 like EV chargers.

That’s not really a fair comparison. Nobody brings up fuelling infrastructure for ICE cars because, realistically, it hasn’t been a widespread concern for decades. Petrol stations are everywhere, and refuelling takes just a few minutes, even in rural areas, it’s rarely a limiting factor.

EV infrastructure, on the other hand, is still maturing. Charging takes a lot longer, charger reliability and availability vary by location, and the user experience isn’t yet as seamless as pulling into a petrol station. That’s not bleating, it’s simply acknowledging where things stand today.

If someone’s asking about an EV, I think it’s responsible to point out where things can be great and where there might still be trade offs. That’s not negativity, that’s giving people the full picture so they can make an informed decision.