When are you going fully electric?

[Matthew.M]

Agree with the above. I loved my i3s at first but couldn't wait to get shot of it in the end. Make sure you're certain before committing, it's too quirky for its own good! Nothing wrong with the drivetrain but the practicality, vulnerability to cross winds and harsh ride (tyres + carbon fibre chassis) got very frustrating.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

https://chargefairy.com/

Interesting concept for whose without drives but seems to negate the cheap fuel advantage of running an EV. I can’t really see how it could get any cheaper due to the cost of the people they need.

I could see it working better as an ad-hoc on demand service if you need it in a pinch (like all the public chargers are taken and you are low on charge).

 

[McPhee]

Intriguing idea, but yeah that's expensive. £24.99 for up to 50kWh, so 50p+ per kWh.

 

[Uncle_Gravy]

Anyone owned the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV? Interested to know their claims of 130mpg is remotely possible, Apparantly you can travel 30miles or so on the electric motor obviously depending on how eco you drive it.

Any experiences?

 

[Bug One]

I'd borrow an i3 for a week before you commit. They aren't as good as some folks make out, not saying they are terrible but they are expensive for what's on offer.

I've been trying to find one locally to take a look, but they all seem to have been bought up by ElectricCar dealers miles away from me. I wonder if this is how they're able to maintain their value - by controlling the supply.

 

[Bug One]

Anyone owned the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV? Interested to know their claims of 130mpg is remotely possible, Apparantly you can travel 30miles or so on the electric motor obviously depending on how eco you drive it.

Any experiences?

If you drive 35 miles, then you'll achieve the equivalent of 130mpg.

It's always taken me as a car which was designed to cheat certain loopholes, rather than actually achieve any meaningful economy savings.

 

[Jez]

I've been trying to find one locally to take a look, but they all seem to have been bought up by ElectricCar dealers miles away from me. I wonder if this is how they're able to maintain their value - by controlling the supply.

This is a use case for Turo if ever i have seen one

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Those 30 miles will be NEDC/WLTP which are ‘optimistic’ with the former being ‘very optimistic’. Expect around 20-22 in the real world.

With any PHEV if you do lots of short journeys (which is very topical use) and keep the thing charged then yet you will get very good mpg out of it. If you pound up and down the motorway on long journeys every day you’ll be better off with a diesel. Even though it supports DC rapid charging, it isn’t worth it due to the cost/speed. Just charge it on cheap AC.

The outlander phev is a good car and very popular. People that use them and keep them charged seem to like them. When the battery runs down they work just like a normal ‘self charging’ hybrid.

As the above person said there is a small minority that bought them (and other phev like the 330e) to dodge company car tax and don’t ever charge them which makes them pointless.

You need to look at your use case to make an informed decision, the costs and any other factors and decide if it’s a good move or not.

 

[Russinating]

https://chargefairy.com/

Interesting concept for whose without drives but seems to negate the cheap fuel advantage of running an EV. I can’t really see how it could get any cheaper due to the cost of the people they need.

I could see it working better as an ad-hoc on demand service if you need it in a pinch (like all the public chargers are taken and you are low on charge).

Where does the charging van park...?

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Where does the charging van park...?

In the street

In all seriousness it says on their site they have both a 15m cable or will double park if needed. I guess there isn’t going to be a lot of traffic around in a residential street in the middle of the night.

 

[Journey]

I've been trying to find one locally to take a look, but they all seem to have been bought up by ElectricCar dealers miles away from me. I wonder if this is how they're able to maintain their value - by controlling the supply.

Give the EV Experience Centre a call/look up.

It's worth the drive/train trip to Milton Keynes to borrow for for £75 for a week.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

@Bug One I think it’s more the case that there was not that many sold in the UK and the demand is just high compared to supply.

It’s not surprising is dealers snap them up when they see them if they can make a profit on it.

 

[jpaul]

I could see it working better as an ad-hoc on demand service if you need it in a pinch (like all the public chargers are taken and you are low on charge).

not sure about their business model .. what 1500kg load maybe 150KW's worth of batteries, 22KW charge rate ? (better than rac)
clients 50kw a week for £25 ... so could be with you for 2hours a week ... 6 clients a day, 42 a week £1000 turnover ...
will that pay wages and a van ... even if they work 24hours a day. ... van needs to recharge too.

They have something set up at Marble Arch (London) at the moment, I had a quick look at the weekend but my wife wouldn’t let me go in. The car looked nice from the outside, much better than the pictures. Specs look decent and the price is about right. What’s not to like?

remark on reddit that its inside cabin ambiance/space/visibility are good, and, you spend most of your time inside
.. perhaps we are too hung up on outside looks


to wit -

The main thing hanging over my decision though is the lack of a heated steering wheel.

I think seat comfort is more important

 

[McPhee]

not sure about their business model .. what 1500kg load maybe 150KW's worth of batteries, 22KW charge rate ? (better than rac)
clients 50kw a week for £25 ... so could be with you for 2hours a week ... 6 clients a day, 42 a week £1000 turnover ...
will that pay wages and a van ... even if they work 24hours a day. ... van needs to recharge too.

Not sure on the specifics, but the ad on the Fully Charged podcast seemed to suggest the charge rate is quite high.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

The charge is delivered using DC so I’d guess up to 150kw ccs or 50kw Chad.

 

[Russinating]

In the street

In all seriousness it says on their site they have both a 15m cable or will double park if needed. I guess there isn’t going to be a lot of traffic around in a residential street in the middle of the night.

But if you can't charge at time then chances are parking is difficult. Chances of there being a space immediately in front or behind would be rare and they can't double park all the time. My street is one way so they couldn't anyway.

If they were on dragon's den I'd be oot!

 

[b0rn2sk8]

I’d be out too but mainly on the business model rather than the whole double parking thing. It’s just too expensive so the economics don’t work.

 

[Neil777]

I 'think' I'm about to take the next step and move from my Leaf to an i3. The main thing hanging over my decision though is the lack of a heated steering wheel. One of my favourite features of the Leaf.

I thought I might miss the heated steering wheel going from the Leaf to the Model 3 but the Tesla app is so much more reliable compared to Nissan's that the car's always warm when I get in it.

 

[jamoor]

I thought I might miss the heated steering wheel going from the Leaf to the Model 3 but the Tesla app is so much more reliable compared to Nissan's that the car's always warm when I get in it.

I've never really understood heated steering wheels, why would the steering wheel be cold if you have an eletric car with an app, you just heat the whole car up before getting in.

 

[Jonnycoupe]

Thermal mass of a metal wheel takes ages to heat with just cabin air!, the leather insulates when trying to air warm, but on the counter it’s a good heatsink when gripping and driving the car sucking heat out of your hands.

I prefer heated wheels over seats by far, seats are simply foam with a layer of material that soon warms up and you have trousers on anyway!

In simple terms you can’t have had one to have that view.