Joined
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541 Posts
Hi all,
I've been lurking on the SpeakEV forms for quite a while now and thought it was about time I signed up. I like the range of opinions on the site and it’s quite unique to have a such an even mixture of brands on an EV forum.
In the last year or so I have become something of an EV advocate, without actually owning one!
I'm not really what you would call a traditional 'car person', I have been quite happy with my 1.4 TDCi diesel Fiesta for the past six years and despite repeated suggestions from my wider family, have not upgraded to a slightly larger car for massive cost. I've never seen much point in going for anything faster as our lovely UK roads don't really suit, plus spending most of your time in traffic doesn't make any sense at all in a gas guzzler. I would like my next car to be larger, but only as I would want to keep it for as long as possible, which would have to cover the eventual arrival of small people.
My little Fiesta has been very reliable (touch wood) and has been used for several round-trip commutes ranging from a measly 12 miles, up to a huge 85 miles, down to my current daily drive of between 50-60 miles. Of course there have also been several holiday trips and distant family visits.
My obsession really took off last August whilst on holiday. The hotel we were staying at offered a pair of Renault Twizys for rental. Despite some mild range anxiety I absolutely loved it! Such good fun. Even the lack of windows didn't matter (too much) in the warm climate. I've always said that I would get a new car whenever a 'better way' came along, either electric, hydrogen or flying!
When we arrived back home, I quickly organised a test drive of a Zoe having been bitten with the EV bug! Having not done too much research I was disappointed to find that the indicated range remaining was less than 60 miles, what had happened to the 120 miles+ per charge? At that point I learnt about the greatly inflated manufacturer range numbers, which took some of the shine off the idea. I wasn't too excited about the battery lease either as I would be keeping the car for more than three years.
I considered the Ampera but decided that if I was going to spend a lot of money on an electric car then it would have to at least cover my daily commute on electric power comfortably. Considering that my commute can consist of over 80% motorway there was no way that would happen without burning any dino juice.
At the time I dismissed the Nissan Leaf as a larger Zoe. Having done a lot more research now, I have since determined that the Leaf could cover my commute to work and back but unfortunately not much more than that. Sometimes I will drive back to my parent's after work and home again which results in a motorway and dual carriageway-heavy round-trip of around 100 miles. Charging at work would be a necessity and currently, that doesn't look hopeful in our small, rented office space.
The i3 Rex was shaping up to be a solution for me and two weeks ago we took a test drive of the BEV model. Whilst I basically fell in love with it, it didn’t convince the other half who quite rightly pointed out that it isn’t actually any bigger than my Fiesta and has less boot space. Also, I do occasionally end up carrying a total of 4 passengers. Why do practical reasons have to get in the way?
Maybe the i5 will present a more convincing case.
The Model S is quite a bit more than I can afford (although I would love to have one) and so the current holy grail for me is the coveted Tesla Model E. On paper this sounds like the solution with at least 200 miles of range. The only problem is having to wait three more years. The idea of the supercharger network is very interesting.
I’m currently waiting for my 32A socketed charge point to be installed at which point I’m going to take a 24 hour test drive of a Leaf anyway to see how it copes with my commute. If that works out, I may consider grabbing a Leaf for the next few years, even with the limited range.
My other options are to hold out for either the fabled 150 mile Leaf or carry on saving up for a Model E. However, I’m not sure I can wait that long!
I should also add that my car is now at over 120,000 miles old and will need replacing in the near future. I really don’t want to buy another diesel if I can help it!
Apologies for the lengthy first post.
tl;dr - My current ICE is getting on and I would like an EV, but I’m not certain they are suitable for me yet.
I've been lurking on the SpeakEV forms for quite a while now and thought it was about time I signed up. I like the range of opinions on the site and it’s quite unique to have a such an even mixture of brands on an EV forum.
In the last year or so I have become something of an EV advocate, without actually owning one!
I'm not really what you would call a traditional 'car person', I have been quite happy with my 1.4 TDCi diesel Fiesta for the past six years and despite repeated suggestions from my wider family, have not upgraded to a slightly larger car for massive cost. I've never seen much point in going for anything faster as our lovely UK roads don't really suit, plus spending most of your time in traffic doesn't make any sense at all in a gas guzzler. I would like my next car to be larger, but only as I would want to keep it for as long as possible, which would have to cover the eventual arrival of small people.
My little Fiesta has been very reliable (touch wood) and has been used for several round-trip commutes ranging from a measly 12 miles, up to a huge 85 miles, down to my current daily drive of between 50-60 miles. Of course there have also been several holiday trips and distant family visits.
My obsession really took off last August whilst on holiday. The hotel we were staying at offered a pair of Renault Twizys for rental. Despite some mild range anxiety I absolutely loved it! Such good fun. Even the lack of windows didn't matter (too much) in the warm climate. I've always said that I would get a new car whenever a 'better way' came along, either electric, hydrogen or flying!
When we arrived back home, I quickly organised a test drive of a Zoe having been bitten with the EV bug! Having not done too much research I was disappointed to find that the indicated range remaining was less than 60 miles, what had happened to the 120 miles+ per charge? At that point I learnt about the greatly inflated manufacturer range numbers, which took some of the shine off the idea. I wasn't too excited about the battery lease either as I would be keeping the car for more than three years.
I considered the Ampera but decided that if I was going to spend a lot of money on an electric car then it would have to at least cover my daily commute on electric power comfortably. Considering that my commute can consist of over 80% motorway there was no way that would happen without burning any dino juice.
At the time I dismissed the Nissan Leaf as a larger Zoe. Having done a lot more research now, I have since determined that the Leaf could cover my commute to work and back but unfortunately not much more than that. Sometimes I will drive back to my parent's after work and home again which results in a motorway and dual carriageway-heavy round-trip of around 100 miles. Charging at work would be a necessity and currently, that doesn't look hopeful in our small, rented office space.
The i3 Rex was shaping up to be a solution for me and two weeks ago we took a test drive of the BEV model. Whilst I basically fell in love with it, it didn’t convince the other half who quite rightly pointed out that it isn’t actually any bigger than my Fiesta and has less boot space. Also, I do occasionally end up carrying a total of 4 passengers. Why do practical reasons have to get in the way?
The Model S is quite a bit more than I can afford (although I would love to have one) and so the current holy grail for me is the coveted Tesla Model E. On paper this sounds like the solution with at least 200 miles of range. The only problem is having to wait three more years. The idea of the supercharger network is very interesting.
I’m currently waiting for my 32A socketed charge point to be installed at which point I’m going to take a 24 hour test drive of a Leaf anyway to see how it copes with my commute. If that works out, I may consider grabbing a Leaf for the next few years, even with the limited range.
My other options are to hold out for either the fabled 150 mile Leaf or carry on saving up for a Model E. However, I’m not sure I can wait that long!
I should also add that my car is now at over 120,000 miles old and will need replacing in the near future. I really don’t want to buy another diesel if I can help it!
Apologies for the lengthy first post.
tl;dr - My current ICE is getting on and I would like an EV, but I’m not certain they are suitable for me yet.