EV general discussion

[b0rn2sk8]

It’s fairly easy to have a dig at Toyota, I certainly have in the past. But they are not that much of a dinosaur and the big issue they have is backing the wrong horse.

They’ve spent an eye watering amount of money on automotive fuel cells and spending an equally eye watering amount of money subsidising the operational costs of the Mirai experiment which has come to very little in terms of a viable product they can scale at a reasonable cost.

 

[Buffman]

Used my first tesla supercharger at Ferrybridge . Was fine on the 24th but bit busy on 27th! Guess it's one of the busiest driving days of the year. 41p/kw is good too

 

[Journey]

Used my first tesla supercharger at Ferrybridge . Was fine on the 24th but bit busy on 27th! Guess it's one of the busiest driving days of the year. 41p/kw is good too

How busy were the Gridserve vs Tesla?

 

[Buffman]

How busy were the Gridserve vs Tesla?

Tesla more busy. I waited 5/10 mins but only a bit more challenging with a dog and a toddler!

Gridserve is 85p so makes sense as I have a tesla! The difference pays for the ridiculously expensive lunch

 

[Journey]

Tesla more busy. I waited 5/10 mins but only a bit more challenging with a dog and a toddler!

I remember when they only had a couple of 50kW chargers there, and they opened the Tesla in ~April '22 then Gridserve went live with 12 the next June, and another 12 this year, it's a pretty good hub now where as before it wasn't really useful for anything but a shot in the dark chance of charging it is a real shame that GS is a total rip off.

 

[sovietspybob]

Just as an update on this, all was fine on the drive up and down. I stopped halway-ish at Dundee both times and my charging speeds were excellent, so it seems like it's largely down to the car not being warm enough when I get to a charger locally (which I expected) and not warming up sufficiently as it charges (which I didn't).

The range and efficiency on the both trips was fine too; I'd been a bit anxious about it as a few people had been moaning on the various R5 owner groups that they were getting pitiful range even from a full charge in colder weather so I did wonder if I might need to stop for a second top-up at any point, but it was never a problem for me.

Is it a Renault 5 you've got? What is the efficiency you're getting out of it and what charging speeds when it was up to temp?

It doesn't tick a huge number of the boxes for me technically but somehow i *really* want one

 

[Diddums]

Is it a Renault 5 you've got? What is the efficiency you're getting out of it and what charging speeds when it was up to temp?

It doesn't tick a huge number of the boxes for me technically but somehow i *really* want one

Same. They're the first car in a long time which has genuine personality, and apart from the expensive stuff, is also the first EV I would buy to enjoy, not just as a basic means of transport.

 

[TheVoice]

Is it a Renault 5 you've got? What is the efficiency you're getting out of it and what charging speeds when it was up to temp?

It doesn't tick a huge number of the boxes for me technically but somehow i *really* want one

Yep it is, the 52kW Iconic version. On the two 180 mile trips I did last week it was about 3.2 miles/kWh, mostly NSL dual carriageways with the cruise set to the speed limit but a bit of 50-60 A roads too.

Here's my charging curve from the stop I made on the drive up, it peaked at 88kW:


I left home with about 90%, got to Dundee (87 miles) with 33%, charged for 26 mins as above to 86% and got to my destination (101 miles) with about 15% remaining. On the journey back I left with a full charge, got to the same charger in Dundee with about 31%, charged for 39 mins to 96% and got home with 41% remaining. I could have probably left 10-15 mins earlier and still made it back easily but chose to stay longer so I wouldn't need to charge for a few days once I was back home.

I also really wanted one, hence getting one! it's absolutely not the logical choice of car for me as I can't charge at home so I'm not getting the benefit of ultra cheap charging, but I don't do huge miles so I have no need to charge it even weekly and fortunately I've got some decent and affordable charging options near me so it's either a quick (or not so quick, when the battery is cold) stop at a charger nearby or I can leave it plugged in when shopping etc. It's fun to drive, fun to sit in, and Renault nailed every aspect of the design. The longer I've had it the more I've noticed some quirks and areas where corners were cut to keep the car affordable but I still love it and don't regret getting it. The only thing I wish mine had which they've now added is he HK Audio system, but the standard speakers are fine and there appear to be a few options for aftermarket upgrades available so that might be something I look into later.

 

[sovietspybob]

Snip

That's really interesting thanks for that.

The efficiency isn't brilliant but it's not terrible either, i think i was only getting about 3.8-4.0 m/kwh on NSL dual carriage way over xmas when it was about 5c in my Ioniq, that charging speed puts mine to shame though, last time i tried it never got over 35kw as it was cold so i'd be amazed at 80 odd.

My head says i should be getting just a bigger, newer version of my current Ioniq but my heart wants a 5 so badly

 

[msmalls74]

That's really interesting thanks for that.

The efficiency isn't brilliant but it's not terrible either, i think i was only getting about 3.8-4.0 m/kwh on NSL dual carriage way over xmas when it was about 5c in my Ioniq, that charging speed puts mine to shame though, last time i tried it never got over 35kw as it was cold so i'd be amazed at 80 odd.

My head says i should be getting just a bigger, newer version of my current Ioniq but my heart wants a 5 so badly

Well if you like your ioniq and you want a bigger version, and like the number 5, then the car you really want is an ioniq 5

 

[Simon]

That's really interesting thanks for that.

The efficiency isn't brilliant but it's not terrible either, i think i was only getting about 3.8-4.0 m/kwh on NSL dual carriage way over xmas when it was about 5c in my Ioniq, that charging speed puts mine to shame though, last time i tried it never got over 35kw as it was cold so i'd be amazed at 80 odd.

My head says i should be getting just a bigger, newer version of my current Ioniq but my heart wants a 5 so badly

Does efficiency matter when you compare home charging to public ?

 

[Simon]

Yep it is, the 52kW Iconic version. On the two 180 mile trips I did last week it was about 3.2 miles/kWh, mostly NSL dual carriageways with the cruise set to the speed limit but a bit of 50-60 A roads too.

Here's my charging curve from the stop I made on the drive up, it peaked at 88kW:


I left home with about 90%, got to Dundee (87 miles) with 33%, charged for 26 mins as above to 86% and got to my destination (101 miles) with about 15% remaining. On the journey back I left with a full charge, got to the same charger in Dundee with about 31%, charged for 39 mins to 96% and got home with 41% remaining. I could have probably left 10-15 mins earlier and still made it back easily but chose to stay longer so I wouldn't need to charge for a few days once I was back home.

I also really wanted one, hence getting one! it's absolutely not the logical choice of car for me as I can't charge at home so I'm not getting the benefit of ultra cheap charging, but I don't do huge miles so I have no need to charge it even weekly and fortunately I've got some decent and affordable charging options near me so it's either a quick (or not so quick, when the battery is cold) stop at a charger nearby or I can leave it plugged in when shopping etc. It's fun to drive, fun to sit in, and Renault nailed every aspect of the design. The longer I've had it the more I've noticed some quirks and areas where corners were cut to keep the car affordable but I still love it and don't regret getting it. The only thing I wish mine had which they've now added is he HK Audio system, but the standard speakers are fine and there appear to be a few options for aftermarket upgrades available so that might be something I look into later.

Isn’t it rather expensive to rely on public ? I had a R5 on order then I saw one, looked inside and cancelled it. Tiny thing. Small battery and terrible charging speed. It’s only just come out and seems a generation behind (and it’s built like cheese). Glad I stuck to the MEB offer tbh.

 

[Maccy]

The R5 appeal is certainly there in terms of looks and I’d like to go and have a look around one and maybe test drive, but looking at the above range statistics would put me off. In fact range anxiety in general has put me off, despite the ever growing network of chargers around the country; maybe I’ll give it some consideration in 2026 again!

 

[Simon]

The R5 appeal is certainly there in terms of looks and I’d like to go and have a look around one and maybe test drive, but looking at the above range statistics would put me off. In fact range anxiety in general has put me off, despite the ever growing network of chargers around the country; maybe I’ll give it some consideration in 2026 again!

Yep that’s why I cancelled mine. Seemed a good idea then reality kicked in. The battery combine with charge speed wouldn’t work for my use. I also did an airport run early 2025 with loads of bags and realised the born had so much more room for real world situations. So cancelled it the day I got home

Think I just got carried away with a new model thing then came to my senses

 

[Rroff]

Same. They're the first car in a long time which has genuine personality, and apart from the expensive stuff, is also the first EV I would buy to enjoy, not just as a basic means of transport.

Something I've mentioned before photos/video don't do the R5 justice even compared to how it is in the flesh, a bit refreshing from the trend of really odd looking cars lately. Though can't say I'd rush to owning one personally, at least not as my main vehicle, but that is just personal taste.

 

[ci_newman]

Locking this until a mod can find time to clean it up

 

[Josh]

Any more bickering and thread bans will be handed out, permanent ones.

 

[ICDP]

At one point I was considering various SS lease options marquee brand EVs, but ultimately I opted for a used 2023 Born 77kWh back in May. A big step down in perceived quality, the infotainment is poor but functional, build quality is at best “fair”. But ultimately it drives really well, has ample practicality, decent efficiency and looks good in my opinion.

I thought I would miss my usual I-Pace/E-Tron luxury more than I actually do. It’s nice getting out of SS the leasing cycle.

 

[chanjy]

At one point I was considering various SS lease options marquee brand EVs, but ultimately I opted for a used 2023 Born 77kWh back in May. A big step down in perceived quality, the infotainment is poor but functional, build quality is at best “fair”. But ultimately it drives really well, has ample practicality, decent efficiency and looks good in my opinion.

I thought I would miss my usual I-Pace/E-Tron luxury more than I actually do. It’s nice getting out of SS the leasing cycle.

SS on a brand new car is just so expensive, unless yo're using up money to get under a threshold I really don't think it's worth it (having said that I don't have access to some of those NHS deals that do sometimes seem like a steal)

 

[ICDP]

SS on a brand new car is just so expensive, unless yo're using up money to get under a threshold I really don't think it's worth it (having said that I don't have access to some of those NHS deals that do sometimes seem like a steal)

Yeah for me it was about staying just under the threshold.