EV general discussion

[jpaul]

But we've gone the route of bigger batteries more weight in ever larger vehicles

smaller batteries, lighter cars would be fine if fast/cheaper/numerous public chargers were available, you could then still have fun, on those country roads like with a 1400kg e46 say.


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taxis (not uber) - in progressive Cambridge we have dedicated 50Kw charge point for taxi drivers - apparently 57p/wh

 

[Jonnycoupe]

I can have fun on country roads in my 2.2t IPACE. What fun are you lacking when you drive them?

 

[Penfold101]

taxis (not uber) - in progressive Cambridge we have dedicated 50Kw charge point for taxi drivers - apparently 57p/wh

So that’s £45,000 to charge my car from empty to full.

Nice.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Comparing a brand new EV's weight to an ancient 3 Series is a somewhat interesting comparison when a 2024 petrol 3 Series with all its modern comforts and crash protection can only dream of being 1400kg.

 

[danlightbulb]

What EV is it you have?

Mg5

P.S. cant you also charge at home? Just charge it to 80% every day and don't worry about it.

Yes I've been plugging it in every couple days. It's not a problem it's just different to having a tank full of petrol and knowing it will get me 350 miles.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

Mg5

I wanted the MG5 but Mrs wanted the MG4, I'm still very happy.
I'm amazed you want more power, the MG4 is like a rocket or do you want the power after 70mph?

 

[ICDP]

Comparing a brand new EV's weight to an ancient 3 Series is a somewhat interesting comparison when a 2024 petrol 3 Series with all its modern comforts and crash protection can only dream of being 1400kg.

1600kg for the basic spec 2024 3 series. About 200kg lighter than a Model 3. Generally speaking like for like an EV will be about 200kg - 300kg heavier than a contemporary ICE. Though it is usual of course to compare a light early model ICE to a modern 2.3 ton EV SUV and call it fair.

 

[danlightbulb]

I wanted the MG5 but Mrs wanted the MG4, I'm still very happy.
I'm amazed you want more power, the MG4 is like a rocket or do you want the power after 70mph?

The mg5 is lower power than the mg4 I think, around 150bhp. It's quick enough but obviously more is better and it seems in an EV getting more power is relatively simple for manufacturers. Also I'd have preferred rear wheel drive.

 

[jpaul]

1600kg for the basic spec 2024 3 series. About 200kg lighter than a Model 3. Generally speaking like for like an EV will be about 200kg - 300kg heavier than a contemporary ICE. Though it is usual of course to compare a light early model ICE to a modern 2.3 ton EV SUV and call it fair.

yes tesla and megane atypically have low weights for ev's so keeping <2T can be done
equally how much of the ice increase, since e46, is genuinely safety related, versus just physically larger & (supposed) creature comforts automatic transmission/xdrive/electric seats/big-wheels, miscellaneous electronics;
I'd be suspicious that chinese ev brands byd/nio skimp on the use of expensive high strength steels that could reduce their weight.

 

[Jonnycoupe]

SC17 occupant side intrusion doesnt need any "supposed" inference for the point you are trying to make. Its physics being physics and stopping too much cabin intrusion during side impacts.
Light EV = smaller battery. Not rocket science really.

New Hyundai INSTER lauch at Warwick last night looks interesting - starts at £23,495 for the 42kWh version.

 

[pastymuncher]

I wanted the MG5 but Mrs wanted the MG4, I'm still very happy.
I'm amazed you want more power, the MG4 is like a rocket or do you want the power after 70mph?

I can't see how anyone needs more power for our roads. Even my Leaf is surprisingly fast and it's far from the fastest EV available. If I pull out to do a overtake and floor it it's doing 85mph before I even realise it because it's so smooth and effortless and that's in Eco mode.

 

[ICDP]

yes tesla and megane atypically have low weights for ev's so keeping <2T can be done
equally how much of the ice increase, since e46, is genuinely safety related, versus just physically larger & (supposed) creature comforts automatic transmission/xdrive/electric seats/big-wheels, miscellaneous electronics;
I'd be suspicious that chinese ev brands byd/nio skimp on the use of expensive high strength steels that could reduce their weight.

It doesn’t matter how much of the weight increase is down to size. The salient (and only) point I was making, is that like for like an EV is generally 200kg to 300kg heavier than an ICE variant.

Astra ICE is about 1,440kg (with fuel)
Astra BEV is about 1730kg
290kg heavier for EV

Volvo XC40 diesel: 1,780kg (with fuel)
Volvo XC40 BEV: 2,030kg
250kg heavier for EV

BMW 4 series ICE: 1810kg (with fuel)
BMW i4 35 EV: 2065kg
BMW i4 m40 EV: 2125kg
255kg - 315kg heavier for the EV. (The m40 has a bigger battery).

250-300kg difference. You could look at some EVs with larger batteries and AWD to skew the results but you are on to some debatable cherry picking.

So when someone tries to proclaim that EVs are a lot heavier and therefore “not as fun on a B road”, well I question their bias quite frankly.

 

[bigmike20vt]

I can't see how anyone needs more power for our roads. Even my Leaf is surprisingly fast and it's far from the fastest EV available. If I pull out to do a overtake and floor it it's doing 85mph before I even realise it because it's so smooth and effortless and that's in Eco mode.

i agree.... i have an ipace as my car and dont get me wrong, it is a quick car off the line by any metric..................... but my wife has an i3, and it isnt even the slightly faster one, and it has the REX which adds weight so slows it down.

on paper the i3 performance is nothing to write home about, but 0-30 which is mostly where you want a bit of extra pep, is fantastic and actually driving it around in built up areas, has more than enough up to 70 to overtake slow moving vehicles and it feels really zippy, dare i say it, more fun to drive than my ipace (in built up areas).

I am just going on "feels" rather than paper figures.

 

[Simon]

5 inch wide wheels do that for you

 

[bigmike20vt]

I'd be suspicious that chinese ev brands byd/nio skimp on the use of expensive high strength steels that could reduce their weight.

do you have anything to back that up? i only ask because, admittedly i am no expert but i thought the ncap safety test was pretty punishing and the same for all cars, even the chinese ones.

a quick google shows the MG4 at 1685kg and a 5* ncap rating.

 

[bigmike20vt]

5 inch wide wheels do that for you

lol yeah it does have pram wheels....... (which reminds me i do need to get the rears replaced before winter, i dont fancy my wife and kid in it on winter roads with the current approaching the limit tyres).

 

[danlightbulb]

Doesn't warrant its own thread really this.

How do I get youtube music to work with Android Auto on my car? When I select the app, it opens, but there is nothing in the playlist and it won't let me search.

I added something to my playlist on the phone itself, and it didn't show up in the car.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

New Hyundai INSTER lauch at Warwick last night looks interesting - starts at £23,495 for the 42kWh version.

Stupid name (IMO) but defo one to watch, especially with the dealer discounts that will no doubt be available in the coming months once the launch honeymoon is over.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

I can't see how anyone needs more power for our roads. Even my Leaf is surprisingly fast and it's far from the fastest EV available. If I pull out to do a overtake and floor it it's doing 85mph before I even realise it because it's so smooth and effortless and that's in Eco mode.

Last night around 10.30pm my mate wanted a quick demo so I said we'll go up the A50 and after Longport roundabout it's 70 all the way to the motorway, you can see Overlockers on the right.
I said I'd better be careful because of average speed cameras but we have got a great run until the next one.
We get to the 70mph carriageway, nothing behind me so I pulled up on the first lane, he shouted go and timed me with his watch and as soon as I hit 60mph he said 6 seconds and within a second I was on 70.
I then said I'm going to pretend there's a lorry on my left dawdling so I'm going to hit the pedal and within what seemed like 2 seconds I was doing 90 and immediately slowed down
It was a speed and quickness I've never personally witnessed before and he was sold because he's always had high performance cars and he said the MG4 totally blew away any of his cars in that initial speed test however he has had cars that could outrun the Police and I think this only does 99mph but it's not something I'll be doing again anyway <Boy Racer Mode Off>

 

[ICDP]

Had something similar. A friend asked me what I was looking at after my I-Pace lease ends in May. I told him I quite liked the Megane E-Tech as a small runabout for my needs. He laughed and reminded me of my stance on “give up on life cars”. I told him that at just over 7 seconds to 60 it was more than lively compared to your typical ICE 1.5 litre diesel Qashqai or Ford Focus 1.0 eco boost.

I proved it by taking him for above spin in our C40 single motor with “only” 7.4 seconds 0-60. He was suitably impressed with the way that performance was delivered, even for FWD.

I know it’s not lightning quick but it’s enough to give a wee bit of a thrill now and again when needed and will not leave you floundering during a typical overtake on UK roads.