[Rob Owen]

Hi Guys,

Like many others it seems, I found this forum after having my interest piqued by the Outlander PHEV ads. I have always liked the EV concept but was not impressed by range anxiety issues. The Outlander ticked all my boxes when comparing it to my current Passat Alltrack diesel: towing capacity for the caravan, room for 2 Dalmatians in the boot, EV capacity for school run, dog walk and most regular local jaunts.

The 3 hour test drive impressed me with the car but I have held off on placing an order just yet as the car I have now is only 15 months old, so it is a bit extravagant changing just at the moment. The heart says "go for it" but the head is saying "the fuel & VED savings don't compensate for the cost to change".

I'll keep reviewing the situation too as well as keenly watching EV & hybrid developments from other manufacturers...plus finding my way around here in the meantime.

 

[Paul]

Hi @Rob Owen and welcome to Speak EV.

It really does seem the Outlander PHEV publicity push is fuelling a lot of wider EV interest. It's great.

Shame the other PHEVS / EREVs don't seem to have pushed so hard on the marketing front... or maybe they just somehow "missed a trick" in their messaging so far.

 

[Dean Hamer]

I just like the way the outlander PHEV advert just puts the facts straight in your face and you can't ignore them.

The LEAF advert should have done the same with something along the lines of "£2 for a full tank that you can travel 100 miles" rather than stupid electric waves coming from the car.

New Nissan LEAF 2013 | TV Advert:

What exactly is that advert telling people? Nothing only that there are 65000 owners .

 

[Eunicholas]

Lol what crap

 

[jontracey]

What a stupid advert, while it's saying zero emissions on the screen, the car is show emitting something, what the hell is that supposed to be ?

 

[Rob Owen]

A quick update...having been involved with Segways for a number of years I have always had a yearning for an EV or a appropriate hybrid (which is why the Outlander caught my eye). Having recently sold my business and accompanying van my wife & I are now down to only 1 car which tows the caravan, does the school & dog walk runs & everything in between. Most of the time it is used on journeys too short to be efficient.

I can now justify a second car for those shorter, multiple local trips, so intend to go pure EV. I tried an i3 some time ago, but it didn't quite tick all the boxes for me. Last last night my other half found some interesting pre-owned Leafs at prices in our range.

Drove one locally today for a first impression and it was positive. Off further afield tomorrow for a specific car (Teknik - EDIT oops, Tekna) once over, but may come away having agreed to buy...quite excited.

 

[Jason Wallace]

Great news Rob. Welcome to the group. If you can stretch to a gen 2 with a heat pump then that is "better" as the range is improved

 

[Talon]

I just like the way the outlander PHEV advert just puts the facts straight in your face and you can't ignore them.

The LEAF advert should have done the same with something along the lines of "£2 for a full tank that you can travel 100 miles" rather than stupid electric waves coming from the car.

New Nissan LEAF 2013 | TV Advert:

What exactly is that advert telling people? Nothing only that there are 65000 owners .

I remember seeing this advert a good while ago before my great enlightenment. At the time I took the 100% electric moniker to mean nothing other than a marketing gimmick indicating it being 'quite fun to drive'. At the time I had no idea that EVs had achieved feasibility.

Watching it again now, there is nothing that really explains the true nature of the car clearly to ignorant folks such as my previous self.

 

[Rob Owen]

Great news Rob. Welcome to the group. If you can stretch to a gen 2 with a heat pump then that is "better" as the range is improved

Hi Jason,

Thanks for the reassurance. I've done a bit of reading up on the evolution of the Leaf and realised that. I am going to see a 2013 "Gen 2" ex-demo "Tekna" (getting more used to the model designations now ) Larger boot & leather (for 2 Dalmatians and their migrating white needle-like hair) plus the enhancements to improve comfortable winter driving without being as detrimental to range performance. Even so, 60+ miles is far more than adequate for my local daily needs - although I suspect I'll try to use it more & more as the benefits become apparent. It will help my "green credentials" having a 4Kw solar panel set-up for the last couple of years too.

 

[Jason Wallace]

Good to hear. Mine is a Gen 2 Tekna and do way more than 60 miles per day in it. Great car

 

[Robwiz]

Hi Jason,

Thanks for the reassurance. I've done a bit of reading up on the evolution of the Leaf and realised that. I am going to see a 2013 "Gen 2" ex-demo "Tekna" (getting more used to the model designations now ) Larger boot & leather (for 2 Dalmatians and their migrating white needle-like hair) plus the enhancements to improve comfortable winter driving without being as detrimental to range performance. Even so, 60+ miles is far more than adequate for my local daily needs - although I suspect I'll try to use it more & more as the benefits become apparent. It will help my "green credentials" having a 4Kw solar panel set-up for the last couple of years too.

In my view what you're thinking of doing is logical – planning to buy an EV that will cover 95% of your needs that will decimate your fuel bill, whilst keeping the Passat for towing and long distance duties. As the Passat's annual mileage will drop you can look forward to keeping it longer – the biggest cost in motoring is depreciation.

 

[Jason Wallace]

In my view what you're thinking of doing is logical – planning to buy an EV that will cover 95% of your needs that will decimate your fuel bill, whilst keeping the Passat for towing and long distance duties. As the Passat's annual mileage will drop you can look forward to keeping it longer – the biggest cost in motoring is depreciation.

Absolutely spot on!

Buy the car that covers 95% of your needs. Keep the Passat for peace of mind and for lugging.

As your confidence in the EV grows you will use the Passat less and will save a bundle.

In time you may find that it is more economical to sell the Passat and rent an ICE when you need one.

 

[Jason Wallace]

I'm not sure how your finances are structured but you do know that if you lease a new LEAF you get two weeks per annum of ICE usage don't you?

As a rough guide expect to pay £21k or so for a TEKNA - whatever that converts into on a lease.

 

[Rob Owen]

Cheers guys. You've echoed our own thoughts on the practicalities and logistics. I was vaguely aware of the 2 week loan car option, but not that it was linked to a lease package. In reality we will use the Passat Alltrack several times a year for towing the caravan alone plus the occasions when we need the use of 2 cars, for convenience, but the mileage & fuel costs for that car will drop dramatically. In the winter school run & dog walking trips returns mid-20's mpg, low-to-mid 30's in the warmer weather, however short journeys do diesel particulate filters no good at all, so dropping those trips from its pattern of use make sense too.

The car we're looking at today is 1 a year old Tekna ex-demo. The price seems good and significantly below the £21k suggested above (it's an outright purchase, not a flex battery lease) although we'll probably head down the PCP route to finance it.

 

[Rob Owen]

WooHoo! Seen, driven & deposit paid. May 2013 Leaf Tekna in white to be collected next Tuesday. Quite pleased with the price for a 1 year old top of the range model - £15,350, incl. outright battery ownership, not Flex leasing option. Gone for a 3 year PCP deal too so, all in all, a happy bunny as the monthly payments are about 2/3rds of my existing monthly fuel bill.

I'll move across to the specific threads for the car in future rather than updating this introduction thread. Thanks to everyone for their contributions to date too.

 

[Dean Hamer]

Congrats and that is an excellent price you have paid.