Hi all
I have had ev's since 2017, started with a Leaf, MG, Tesla.
Now looking to buy a second car and looking at 52kwh Zoe.
Does anyone have any advice or tips on what to look out for please.
I intend to plug in an OBD2 to check the battery.
Thanks up front.

Probably depends on quite a few factors, age, money, lease, PCP etc. but there are loads of great deals on new, nearly new and used Zoe ZE50 models. There are new deals as the model is no longer manufacture, so worth looking at those if the deals suit your circumstances.

Later Zoe’s might still have creaky tailgate, so test drive cars and check if it’s been fixed as per TB.
Some recent Zoe’s came with a 5 year warranty, rather than 3 years, so worth looking out for those also.
If it’s via a Renault dealership get them to do a full traction battery check and give you the results.

 

There's not too much that's specific to Zoes. Open the bonnet and check the headlight mounts as those are the first things to break if it's had a bump. Check what tyres are fitted and what are required for the wheel size, e.g. the usual 16" ones specify load rating 91 (XL). I have seen 87s fitted as it comes up in a lot of vehicle databases, some say this is absolutely fine, others say it must be equal to or better than what came with it (91). I've never found a completely definitive answer so I prefer to err on the side of caution and check they're all 91 (and usually have to tell the tyre fitter when they replace one and their computer says 87).

Check battery SoH yes, it might be indicating lower than you'd expect but if you're armed with CanZE then check the firmware section for LBC (Lithium Battery Controller), the latest version is "Soft: 556". If SoH is lowish but the LBC version is old this indicates it needs the BMS (Battery Management System) update which will reset the SoH indicator to 98% and allow it to recalculate over time using an updated algorithm. User reports over the years, with one vocal exception, suggest this is effective. On my older Zoe with the same bug I had 70%(!) pre update, and then about 5 years after the update when I traded it in it was still showing 95%, dipping towards 90% sometimes in winter (warmer months seem to make for a healthier battery). You can get the BMS update done at any Renault EV dealer under warranty BUT your wording has to be quite specific. If you just go in just asking for a BMS update without context, Renault will refuse the claim and it'll be chargeable as they don't update what isn't broken. You have to specify that the range seems persistently lower than expected and try to nudge them into that particular solution (search "ZE50 BMS ACTIS"). Zoe specialists like DSG in Morecambe will know exactly what you're talking about, what to do and exactly how to word it so they get paid warranty money - but dealers may vary.

Other than that it's just generic stuff. Check the daytime running lights and headlights are working, overall condition etc. Drive and listen out for any unusual noises.

Mileage concerns are something I think EV drivers are still figuring out. In my case I can say a somewhat high-ish mileage for its age meant more general signs of use (scratches and scrapes in boot where things been loaded and unloaded, more trim rattles than other examples as things have loosened up over time, a little bit more motor whine due to slightly more worn brushes) but I'm more confident that if any underlying issues were present from the factory they'd have been encountered and fixed by now so I'm happy enough. I also don't have to worry about keeping it pristine as that ship has already sailed

 

Thanks for that, what OBD reader do you have, just want to make sure I get one that fits around the interior plastic trim as it looks a little tight. Thanks again.

 

CCS charging port would be the first thing I would look for

 

I thought the zoe 2020 had ccs?

 

None of the Play models for a start. Iconic models are complicated

 

That's a very good point and no, some of the early poverty trims made CCS an option (for some absolute mind bogglingly stupid reason)

 

My 2020 GT Line doesn't have CCS. It was still a £1k option up to about mid-2021. I've covered about 80k miles in mine and can still count the number of times I've public charged on one hand. For anyone that regularly does more than 200 miles per day, EVs are a terrible choice. Public charging is just way too expensive and unreliable.

 

I had a ZE40 R110 which was great until Gridserve got rid of all the 44Kw AC sockets that would reliably give me 22Kw at the MSA's. The crappy replacement posts would only give out 11Kw if you were lucky and some only did 5Kw. I reached the conclusion that I needed a CCS car when I was using one of the few Rapid chargers with a 22 Kw AC plug at Warwick Services when a fat eTron plugged into the CCS shared on the charger and my charge rate plummeted to 1Kw as the greedy fat eTron sucked all the charge away!

To be fair to Gridserve they did update the firmware to stop this happening in the future, but after having a loaner ZE50 for a month while they replaced the ARB bushes on our Zoe (long lead time item) which could CCS charge I decided I preferred my ZE40 and made plans to change cars. Long story short I got a Megane with CCS

People will tell you they can live without CCS if you don't travel far, but when you do a handful of 600 mile round trip journeys like I do, not having CCS just makes life more difficult than it needs to be.

The irony was when I was getting the ZE40 back in 2019, I could have got a more expensive Ioniq or i3 with CCS but at the time the Ecotricity CCS chargers were very unreliable so went with the Zoe, which had battery cooling, Leaf did not.

 

I don't know if I'll need to public charge more than a handful of times either but it's the sanity during those times. Admittedly if you sat me down with the cost difference for CCS (still seems to be around a grand second hand) and asked me "is it worth that amount of money for trips you might have enough digits to count" I might struggle. But for one, it'd make each of those trips far less stressful. And also, when you decide you're getting a newer car anyway as it's in your personal budget, and it's a difference between 9-10k.. yeah I'll take the future convenience.

 

Thanks all. It's something I wasn't aware of and have asked the dealer if the car has ccs. Anyone know if its possible to retro fit ccs?

 

Technically yes but the cost is likely to far outweigh trading one in for one with CCS already fitted once you factor the labour in as well

 

I moved from a Leaf to a Zoe ZE50 and I regret it a lot, there are a lot of annoyances.

Off the top of my head: car sickness in the back, navi/stereo difficult to operate, terrible rear visibility, very stiff suspension, creaky doors, cant turn on heating via the app.

Renault servicing very expensive and they force you to change stuff regularly (12v, brake fluid etc) and charge a lot for it (£280 for 12v), this service record is publicly visible to next customer when you sell your car so if you skip or DIY it then buyer has leverage.

The kids used to refuse to get in our old ICE and would always want to go in the Leaf. Now with the Zoe it is the opposite and they wont get in it unless its a very short journey.

 

I never got the 12V or brake fluid replaced, just asked them to test instead, saves a lot of money. I thought the suspension was quite soft and floaty, which might explain the motion sickness in the back. App always worked for me, but I do know there is an issue with older Zoes (ZE20) where they have switched off the 3G network that the car relies on, although the older Zoes could turn on the pre-heating remotely from the keyfob, the new ones cannot.

 

The stiff as a board suspension and the creaks are negatives yeah. You feel every little surface imperfection, in the front anyway. I figured probably most EVs needed firm suspension due to battery weight or something.

The tyres in the back are only 33psi in the ZE50 (36 all round in the old one) so I don't know if that has anything to do with sickness.

 

Does anyone have any advice or tips on what to look out for please.

A price tag under £1,000. It's as much as I would pay for one.

I recommend you avoid lots of potential heartache and go buy a proper EV. A nice Ioniq would be perfect.

 

This one any good for you?