EV general discussion

[Jono8]

If it works then sure, the price is low and they are ok to drive. I personally know some people who are planning to switch to byd in the hopes of more reliability but byd is also more expensive

Yeh. I mean, there is "no such thing as a free lunch" as they say.

I'll go into it expecting it to not be perfect, but with the consolation of it being massively cheaper than anything comparable.

The Cupra Born VZ (probably its most direct competitor, but still slower in a straight line (longer range though), is £10,000 more list and over £10k more for a year old one. Yes it has a better interior, and adaptive suspension and will likely have less niggles. However its a massive price difference.


I'd like an ev6 awd for a lot of obvious reasons (size, tech, refinement, range, looks etc), but the reality is that for the same money it would be a 3 year old car with 40k miles on the clock.

 

[Yaayuh!]

A friend going through the settings in my Polestar 2 asked me if I use "One Pedal Drive" and if most EV drivers do use it. I don't use it myself though I think there are supposed to be some benefits in doing so.

Do any of you folks use "One Pedal Drive" or whatever it's called in your EV's?

I always use "B" mode and usually performance drive profile.

 

[OspreyO]

Join an MG Facebook group and see how everyday someone complains about how something major is broken on theirs and the dealership can't fix it

Kinda the nature of car groups though.

 

[keyser van someone]

Went to Cornwall over the weekend and my usual Tesla Charger at Lifton on the A30 let me down! Was working for Teslas but failed for all non-Teslas, couldn't get the app to start the charging or pay using card at charger said failed and then the whole charger rebooted it's OS.. and then still failed. I use Tesla chargers 99% of the time as they're usually really good and I've maybe done 80 charges in this car now - of course it's when I go on a trip! First charging problem since owning an EV for 16 months where I have to find another charger.

Used another one near by using Zapmap which cost double 89p/kw total £30. Seemed like on old style Podpoint charger with 2 bays, 1 CCS and one Chademo. You meet friendly EV owners when stuck in that situation so had to join the next up for CCS queue which didn't take long.

But lesson learned; do top charges not one big charge expecting it to work.

Found a good place at Exeter Darts Farm which will be my future go to top up charge. Expensive food but a nice space to walk around. V3 though so have the short cables and have to pick the right bay so the cable reaches.

 

[Steven Rimmington]

Have you received yours yet? The silly part of me wants to throw practicality in the bin and just get one for the silly acceleration. Ive been delving deeper through reviews, and a lot of the negativity about how it goes around corners seems over the top too. A lot of review say it is fine and not too bad in the twisty bits. I can accept it wont be as amazing around a B road as a Civic Type R or something, but as long as its relatively fun and compliant id be happy.

At £25k brand new, it just seems like such a bargain

No not yet !! I'm coming from a 2021 Skoda VRS and honestly the power and all wheel drive make it hilarious to drive. 3.7 to 62 is incredible for a shopping cart !!

My Skoda has serious issues with the entertainment system so I am sure it's better in the MG!

Also a lot of issues were present in the first year orders, for the money it's incredible value.

 

[OspreyO]

Went to Cornwall over the weekend and my usual Tesla Charger at Lifton on the A30 let me down! Was working for Teslas but failed for all non-Teslas, couldn't get the app to start the charging or pay using card at charger said failed and then the whole charger rebooted it's OS.. and then still failed. I use Tesla chargers 99% of the time as they're usually really good and I've maybe done 80 charges in this car now - of course it's when I go on a trip! First charging problem since owning an EV for 16 months where I have to find another charger.

Used another one near by using Zapmap which cost double 89p/kw total £30. Seemed like on old style Podpoint charger with 2 bays, 1 CCS and one Chademo. You meet friendly EV owners when stuck in that situation so had to join the next up for CCS queue which didn't take long.

But lesson learned; do top charges not one big charge expecting it to work.

Found a good place at Exeter Darts Farm which will be my future go to top up charge. Expensive food but a nice space to walk around. V3 though so have the short cables and have to pick the right bay so the cable reaches.

On my rare long trips I've tried to pick a charger site with other sites nearby in case of issues. Indeed the more expensive chargers are more likely to be free (obviously) which if you don't use them often can be useful.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Found a good place at Exeter Darts Farm which will be my future go to top up charge. Expensive food but a nice space to walk around. V3 though so have the short cables and have to pick the right bay so the cable reaches.

Darts Farm is a mix of slow V2 (150kw which is split between 2 stalls) and V3, most of the stalls are V2.

It's an expensive charging location, not the electricity but your bank account tends to take a hit in the farm shop.

The Tesla service centre in Exeter has V3 or V4 chargers (cant remember) which are open to all and much less of a detour tan Darts Farm.

 

[sandys]

Pedal modes don’t really matter with Active cruise in traffic. Just follows the car in front, effortless. I do like the MEB flick to b mode on big downhill slip roads that come to a stop. Can max the regen without needing brakes.

I missed active cruise when I drove my ICE to Belgium last month.

Yup, normal cruise feels so rubbish now, B mode changes the behaviour of active cruise in mine, in B active cruise won't break a speed limit down hill etc, in normal active cruise it will only have standard mode light regen so will accelerate down hills which is nice when you are happy to do that for the momentum after, nice to be able to switch modes on a quick flick. Active cruise is handy in motorway situations, less so in places with lots of turns and roundabouts, things get interesting then

 

[Simon]

Yup, normal cruise feels so rubbish now, B mode changes the behaviour of active cruise in mine, in B active cruise won't break a speed limit down hill etc, in normal active cruise it will only have standard mode light regen so will accelerate down hills which is nice when you are happy to do that for the momentum after, nice to be able to switch modes on a quick flick. Active cruise is handy in motorway situations, less so in places with lots of turns and roundabouts, things get interesting then

Seems weird it limits regen. Mine just holds to speed regardless of regen setting. I can’t understand why that isn’t the case for every car.

 

[ketma]

A friend going through the settings in my Polestar 2 asked me if I use "One Pedal Drive" and if most EV drivers do use it. I don't use it myself though I think there are supposed to be some benefits in doing so.

Do any of you folks use "One Pedal Drive" or whatever it's called in your EV's?

Yes, when I had a Tesla. In the Seal, no, I don't think its 'strong' enough and the Id4, no.

 

[Journey]

Went to Cornwall over the weekend and my usual Tesla Charger at Lifton on the A30 let me down! Was working for Teslas but failed for all non-Teslas, couldn't get the app to start the charging or pay using card at charger said failed and then the whole charger rebooted it's OS.. and then still failed. I use Tesla chargers 99% of the time as they're usually really good and I've maybe done 80 charges in this car now - of course it's when I go on a trip! First charging problem since owning an EV for 16 months where I have to find another charger.

Used another one near by using Zapmap which cost double 89p/kw total £30. Seemed like on old style Podpoint charger with 2 bays, 1 CCS and one Chademo. You meet friendly EV owners when stuck in that situation so had to join the next up for CCS queue which didn't take long.

Sounds like you used the ones at Strawberry Fields, nice area to stop. Those Lifton chargers have had loads of issues recently, seems since they did the V4 upgrades, they were totally offline last time we went past them and we used the Strawberry Fields one instead.

 

[sandys]

Seems weird it limits regen. Mine just holds to speed regardless of regen setting. I can’t understand why that isn’t the case for every car.

I think its a good feature/bug Of course it uses all regen if a car comes into radar distance but when road is clear you might not want the car to brake when you can take advantage if inclines etc, with a bit of speed creep, OK, perhaps a bit naughty I suppose.

 

[jpaul]

Yes it has a better interior, and adaptive suspension and will likely have less niggles. However its a massive price difference.

megane e-tech (or teslas, r5, too) have a massive weight saving ~300kg , so less need for adaptive/smaller wheels, which contributes to less braking/twisty-fun/dynamics, albeit fwd,
unfortunately not yet in the 15K window when I bought.

 

[keyser van someone]

Sounds like you used the ones at Strawberry Fields, nice area to stop. Those Lifton chargers have had loads of issues recently, seems since they did the V4 upgrades, they were totally offline last time we went past them and we used the Strawberry Fields one instead.

That was the one. It was good for a backup but we got their at the busiest time, Sunday early afternoon and some tulip picking going on as well as the strawberries I think, but once we got in on a CCS charger we could relax and have a wonder about more.

Darts Farm is a mix of slow V2 (150kw which is split between 2 stalls) and V3, most of the stalls are V2.

It's an expensive charging location, not the electricity but your bank account tends to take a hit in the farm shop.

The Tesla service centre in Exeter has V3 or V4 chargers (cant remember) which are open to all and much less of a detour tan Darts Farm.

Yeah this was just a 'lets try it' stop, I noticed there is the other non-Tesla site in Exeter and I think I used that other one last year - it may still be in my charge history. I wish it was easier to find V4 for non-Teslas as you have the piece of mind you won't have some weird parking job to get the cable to reach. I hope Tesla upgrade all sites of V4 and non-Teslas soon, at service stations etc.

Luckily I have V4 near me. The main downside of my Kona is the 77kw peak charge rate. That's why I'm eyeing up a future EV with faster charging (200kw), it's really the only sticking point of this car.

Radar cruise control on the motorway is really nice, set it and forget it. Kona can also do some basic lane keep and auto lane change when used with indicators but I'm too scared to try it so far

 

[lordrobs]

Radar cruise control on the motorway is really nice, set it and forget it. Kona can also do some basic lane keep and auto lane change when used with indicators but I'm too scared to try it so far

Until someone pulls into the gap and then the car stabs the brakes triggering the inevitable tailgater behind. Or maybe that's just the two cars I've had with ACC.

It isn't a big deal because I just pause it, let the gap naturally grow and reactivate but I can't say I find setting and forgetting a possibility with the standards of other drivers.

Not sure how many people use Cambridge services but that has been a bit of a PITA since the new Ionity chargers went in. They've been fenced off for months awaiting god knows what and now a third of the car park seems to be a second HGV park. Car park was 90% full, EV's queueing to charge and the services themselves weren't even that busy last night.

I'd stop elsewhere if I wasn't a sucker for a GDK Not somewhere I'd rely on for a charge stop though that's for sure!

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Tesla have a V4 site at Bar Hill just round the corner of you want to give the chaos of Cambridge Services a miss

I charged at Cambridge services once a few years ago and it was chaos then, I can’t imagine what it’s like at peak times now with so many more EVs around.

Same with Peterborough services which I think has been or in the progress of being expanded.

 

[Bear]

Yup, normal cruise feels so rubbish now

Ive driven quite a few cars with active cruise and I never use it as I find it really annoying in that when it decides to speed up after someone gets in the way and then moves out of the way, the car seemingly wants to get back up to speed as fast as it can instead of gently getting back up to speed. I find the experience rather jarring instead of a nice smooth cruise

edit: just to clarify this is on ICE cars, havent driven an EV with adaptive cruise so it may well be much better

 

[Penfold101]

Ive driven quite a few cars with active cruise and I never use it as I find it really annoying in that when it decides to speed up after someone gets in the way and then moves out of the way, the car seemingly wants to get back up to speed as fast as it can instead of gently getting back up to speed. I find the experience rather jarring instead of a nice smooth cruise

edit: just to clarify this is on ICE cars, havent driven an EV with adaptive cruise so it may well be much better

If anything I find my Polestar can be really slow at getting back up to speed under adaptive cruise, especially if it’s slowed down a lot due to the car in front turning off at a junction. I usually find myself using the accelerator myself to speed up in a reasonable time frame otherwise it looks like I’ve got a 1.0 engine…

 

[Simon]

Ive driven quite a few cars with active cruise and I never use it as I find it really annoying in that when it decides to speed up after someone gets in the way and then moves out of the way, the car seemingly wants to get back up to speed as fast as it can instead of gently getting back up to speed. I find the experience rather jarring instead of a nice smooth cruise

edit: just to clarify this is on ICE cars, havent driven an EV with adaptive cruise so it may well be much better

It is. My born drives normal when someone moves over, plus it’s easier as the HUD lets you know what the cruise sees. My M3 just accelerates hard when u click it up 5mph.

 

[MrRockliffe]

Ive driven quite a few cars with active cruise and I never use it as I find it really annoying in that when it decides to speed up after someone gets in the way and then moves out of the way, the car seemingly wants to get back up to speed as fast as it can instead of gently getting back up to speed. I find the experience rather jarring instead of a nice smooth cruise

edit: just to clarify this is on ICE cars, havent driven an EV with adaptive cruise so it may well be much better

Personally have found it a pain whichever car I’ve used it on, inc EVs.


ID.7 and my mums Q4 both have issues with cars on slip roads, particularly bad on the A3 as they’re short and people slow down quickly and suddenly. I find that this causes the car to panic at times and brake hard.


Or, if somebody moves out of the way in front, it can be a bit aggressive accelerating.



I just use the limiter now.