[Wilsons]

Hi

I'm about to order an outlander but before I commit I need some advice.

The reason for the purchase is is cut fuel costs. (Have a vw fox 1.2 at the moment) The majority of my journeys are local / around town less than 30 miles a day.

2/3 times a week I have to travel to work. The park and ride is 36 miles away and has a charging point.

So I'm thinking I can almost get to the park and ride purely on electric then back again at the end of the day,

And All my little journeys around town will be electric.

I will only need petrol really for any journeys exceeding 30 miles or where there is not a charging put on the way or at our destination .

Am I right ?

It's currently between the outlander and a nissan quashai 1.5 diesel. I've never owned an electric car before and want to make the right decision as purchasing on a 3 year contract.

Thank you for any advice you can give me

Maxine

 

[jdsx]

Hi
Yes I think basically you are right! A word or two of warning... I am getting about 25 miles on a full charge now, and expect nearer 20 in the winter. Don't forget to factor in the cost of an extra lead (£160 or so - not too bad over three years). Also as EVs increase in number, will you be guaranteed a charging space at the park & ride?
I have done 1100 miles so far and used between one and two gallons (I think), so it's been good for me....

 

[Maddog]

@Wilsons yep, the Outlander will serve your journey profile very well. jdsx is on course to beat my record of just over 1400 miles on one tank.

 

[Brooktop]

You're sort of preaching to the choir in this forum and may not get particularly impartial advice. Why just those 2 cars? What are your other requirements? There are other PHEVs or even some all electric models that may be a better fit for your needs.

 

[John2]

You might want to take up the Nissan offer of a seven day test drive of the Leaf to do some dry runs to get familiar with charging. If my longest trip between charges was 36 miles I might go fully electric but I am very happy with the Outlander which is well suited to my needs.

 

[Chris Everitt]

Hi Maxine
I find the same as @jdsx some days I get 30 miles fully charged others 26 and it really depends on your driving habits. Heavy right foot say goodbye to your range. 148mpg quoted comes from 3 9 mile tests they perform on new vehicles, as this test is done with a full battery you won't get a true reflection on its performance. Mine has just under 4000 miles on average mpg mid 60's so bare this in mind if your travel further than the electric range. Don't forget to put in your sums free road tax and the best parking at any venue that has EV charging stations, some clients find this last point is worth a fortune! Oh and if your near a ecotricity rapid they are still free till next year. You won't get free fuel from shell!

 

[Simon Mac]

You're sort of preaching to the choir in this forum and may not get particularly impartial advice. Why just those 2 cars? What are your other requirements? There are other PHEVs or even some all electric models that may be a better fit for your needs.

I agree with Brooktop, in the selection of cars. Especially going from a city car to an SUV.

I'll be outcast from this forum for even suggesting this, but:

If the whole purpose is to save money, why not buy a regular VW up! If you were happy with the Fox? You can get one for £149 a month with £149 deposit, 3000 miles of free fuel and 1 years free insurance.

You would still get lower fuel bills than you are currently (rated at 62.8 mpg vs 42 for the Fox)

The Outlander PHEV is great if you actually need a large car, 4x4, or to tow things. It's even better if you are getting it as a company car. One thing it isn't is a cheap runaround city car.

 

[Robwiz]

I agree with @Simon Mac. Buying an Outlander PHEV is a large outlay to make a much smaller saving on fuel costs.

Also consider the Seat Mii and Skoda Citigo which are essentially the same car as the up! and built on the same production line. Our second car is a Mii and it is a good city car. Not as enjoyable as an EV but we use it so infrequently that we would be worse off swapping it for an EV.

From the description of your journey profile, an e-Up might be suitable – ex-demonstrators are available at a big saving off new price. I personally wouldn't buy a diesel due to their dirty exhaust emissions.

 

[Kevin Trill]

@Simon Mac and @Robwiz are right its a balance between needs of what you need a car for and how prepared to spend on a car, basically cost of ownership over the 3 years you are talking about. A rough estimate on costs would be to add up the costs for the car purchase, servicing, estimated fuel for the numbers and then its the need.

My own purchase decision was based on we have a dog and often we tow a caravan so the Outlander was the only choice.

 

[Paul_Moxhay]

I agree with the others.

The Outlander is a big car/SUV. Do you need such a car? I see your other choice is the Qashqai... again, larger. Is this a requirement?

It is easy to just imagine that an EV version will always be the best choice financially but it depends very much on how you use your car. I looked at the Outlander and Qashqai and chose the Qashqai as most of my journeys will be over 100 miles and so the better mpg of the Qashqai made it a cheaper option for me and the Qashqai is a much better car IMO.

However, if you want to get an EV anyway then the Outlander is a nice enough car but it did feel a little out-dated by the Qashqai but that is very much personal preference.

Using rough figues of the Outlander having 30EV miles then petrol at 35mpg and the Qashqai having 60mpg (all reasonable real-world figures) It will save you money on journeys up to about 70 miles between charges. Journeys over about 70 miles will be cheaper in the Qashqai. Of course this isn't the whole story because the mpg and battery range varies on time of year, how fast you drive etc and there are other factors of course but this pretty much shows that the Outlander might only cheaper on fuel for shorter journeys.

Considering other cars... Given the journey profile you mentioned I would have thought that a Leaf (all electric) would serve you well and if you wanted a petrol backup then the BMW i3 would also work for you but more expensive to buy.

There are some good petrol cars around now that give 70+ mpg that would cost a fraction of the Outlander so they might be worth considering too.

 

[jdsx]

Well I don't disagree with any of you, but the OP did say 'The majority of my journeys are local / around town less than 30 miles a day.', which to me means an EV is likely to be a better bet than a diesel Qashqai. Obviously there are cheaper ways of driving if you don't need a big-ish car.....

 

[Paul_Moxhay]

Absolutely... that is why I said that an EV (Leaf, i3) might be more suitable and explained my comments

 

[Wilsons]

Thank you for all your replies.

This is the main family car & with growing sons need a bigger car that we can use for weekends away /camping etc

Really would like SUV.

Want something bigger so I feel safer while driving to work.

 

[AndyG]

Sounds like the Outlander fits your profile, the best advise is to take an extended test drive.
The only problem with that is once you have driven EV normally (with most people) there is no going back

 

[gobiman]

Maxine,
Our PHEV (now about 1100 miles) is primarily a school run car in Central London and, I have to say, it is ideal. Easy to drive, surprisingly quick at low speed, great visibility, robust interior and , if you have access to your own powerpoint, it is incredibly efficient. I also like my wife and children in something safe : there is also a problem in London that anyone in a perceived Noddy car (which many eco ones are) will get bullied by white van man...
However the big cost in car ownership is not mpg (or the 10-20 difference) but depreciation so you need to do some sums carefully.
Good luck