EV Acceleration + Idiot - Experience = Dangerous?

[clk320x]

Still way more efficient pollution wise (as in pollution created per mile driven) to use electricity from that power station (2.5 miles away!) than it is to run the car on petrol......and I would never buy an EV.....but that not because I'm anti them. I would never buy a dog....but I like dogs.

Haha Glad to hear you understand the efficiency advantages!

 

[markjay]

Sorry but that statement isn't true. I can take a picture out of my home office window right now, in which you would see the six cooling towers and main stack of Ratcliffe power station. Ratcliffe is 2.5 miles as the crow flies from my house. It's a similar distance from Nottingham and a lot of out of town housing - so not really 'far away' from anywhere.

Agreed, but that's still better than the white van with the rattling Diesel engine parked 2.5 ft away from me just outside my window in central London and sending toxic fumes right into my ground floor flat.

 

[Deleted member 126251]

That wasn't the point, 2.5 miles is hardly 'far away' from anywhere - if the wind is the in wrong direction then all the emissions pass over one of the many populated areas in that radius.

In a city, it does not matter which way the wind blows you are getting polluted constantly.

However I once lived (in the 70s) less than a mile from a coal fired power station and it was not nice. When it was calm we had soot everywhere and when the wind blew toward us, who knows what we were breathing.

 

[markjay]

Which is the best oil

Shell V-Power

 

[Deleted member 126251]

Shell V-Power

I prefer Esso 100 RON.

 

[markjay]

I fill-up religiously with Shell V-Power. And yet the dealer refused a warranty repair because of that. Bloody crooks. I am never buying a Tesla again.

 

[E55BOF]

You do realise you can charge them at home overnight right… and most will do 300 miles on that…

None to my knowledge, cruising at 85 mph on the motorway. Once the battery range problem is solved, there's only the cost to sort out, and then an EV will meet my needs. My wants, however, are another matter...

I'm not a hater; I'm just a don't-wanter. Despite my experience, the CLS and the SLK both have sufficient acceleration to make me dangerous when I'm being an idiot...

 

[markjay]

None to my knowledge, cruising at 85 mph on the motorway. Once the battery range problem is solved, there's only the cost to sort out, and then an EV will meet my needs. My wants, however, are another matter...

I'm not a hater; I'm just a don't-wanter. Despite my experience, the CLS and the SLK both have sufficient acceleration to make me dangerous when I'm being an idiot...

The range at current is far from ideal for those who need their cars for regular motorway cruising. But it's only a matter of time:

EV World Record: Mercedes Benz Vision EQXX Travels 1,000 Km On A Single Charge

It shows what is possible when state-of-the-art lightweight materials, a slippery body design, advanced battery technology, an F1-inspired electric motor setup, and aerodynamic tires are combined into the one vehicle.

www.forbes.com

With regards cost, at current there's polarisation in the market, with private buyers finding EVs unaffordable, while those who can get one on a business lease find them ridiculously cheap (I am in the latter camp).

And, you need to add three factors to the cost: very cheap 'fuel' (electricity), no VED, and hardly any servicing and maintenance costs. So running costs are far lower than ICE cars.

But the obvious Catch 22 here is that the low running costs only offset the high initial buying price (for private owners) if you're doing a lot of miles annually.... but EVs are not ideal for regular motorway cruising....

 

[Deleted member 126251]

The range at current is far from ideal for those who need their cars for regular motorway cruising. But it's only a matter of time:

EV World Record: Mercedes Benz Vision EQXX Travels 1,000 Km On A Single Charge

It shows what is possible when state-of-the-art lightweight materials, a slippery body design, advanced battery technology, an F1-inspired electric motor setup, and aerodynamic tires are combined into the one vehicle.

www.forbes.com

With regards cost, at current there's polarisation in the market, with private buyers finding EVs unaffordable, while those who can get one on a business lease find them ridiculously cheap (I am in the latter camp).

And, you need to add three factors to the cost: very cheap 'fuel' (electricity), no VED, and hardly any servicing and maintenance costs. So running costs are far lower than ICE cars.

But the obvious Catch 22 here is that the low running costs only offset the high initial buying price (for private owners) if you're doing a lot of miles annually.... but EVs are not ideal for regular motorway cruising....

My son is on a company car scheme & is taking delivery of a Taycan (EV) in November. Apparently, with the tax breaks etc, it is costing him about the same as his current ride (3 year old E53).

However when he does his monthly visit to their subsidiaries (spread around the country) he will have to use the wife’s Q8 (ICE) because ....................wait for it.....................the Taycan does not have the range he needs.

 

[Petrol Pete]

As above ^^^^ Admittedly some years ago , but I worked at a customer in Belgium who all 'Green' and Eco driven . They had 2 sign written EV Nissan Leafs plugged in outside main reception. I hardly saw them move , much later on I discovered that they were bought to collect business partners from the airport/rail station etc but they soon discovered that in the cold weather they could not get there and back on one charge .

I was told that on many occasions a Diesel car was sent out to follow them to the airport in case of breakdown !

OK this was in the early days of EV and Leaf was never really intended for long runs so someone dropped the ball when ordering them. But kind of shows that EV will not be for everyone.

 

[markjay]

My son is on a company car scheme & is taking delivery of a Taycan (EV) in November. Apparently, with the tax breaks etc, it is costing him about the same as his current ride (3 year old E53).

However when he does his monthly visit to their subsidiaries (spread around the country) he will have to use the wife’s Q8 (ICE) because ....................wait for it.....................the Taycan does not have the range he needs.

He could plan his journey, take a break and use fast chargers along the route, but it is obviously the less-convenient option.

That been said, the company will be paying for his fuel presumably (via mileage allowance), and so the only difference for him between the two options is having to sacrificy convenience if using the EV.

But if it was a private journey, the difference in the cost of petrol/diesel vs electricity might have swayed him to use the EV.

Personally, I have both an EV and a petrol car at current, and given petrol prices, I would definitely make the effort and use the EV for the longer journeys.

 

[Deleted member 126251]

He could plan his journey, take a break and use fast chargers along the route, but it is obviously the less-convenient option.

That been said, the company will be paying for his fuel presumably (via mileage allowance), and so the only difference for him between the two options is having to sacrificy convenience if using the EV.

But if it was a private journey, the difference in the cost of petrol/diesel vs electricity might have swayed him to use the EV.

Personally, I have both an EV and a petrol car at current, and given petrol prices, I would definitely make the effort and use the EV for the longer journeys.

It is the irony of it. Buy an EV but need to use an ICE to do long trips. He is a busy senior execurive and doesn’t really have time to hang aroung charging stations. I think he is going to get some subsidiaries to install charging stations.

Cost differential (diesel vs electricity) means nothing to him. Their home electricty bill is about £10k a year. I’m not exaggerating.

 

[ALFAitalia]

As much as I will NEVER buy an EV.....range would hardly ever be an issue for me. I have a three car drive (just) so changing at home is no issue. Most half decent EVs have a 300 mile plus range now and the 700 to1000 mile battery is not far away.....but even 300 miles is fine for me. I recon I drive further than that, in one day, no more than two or three times a year....usually for business so don't take my car anyway. I take breaks in Cornwall quite often but Newquay is only about 260 miles from my house. And I don't drive across Europe by car much (LeMans excepted....but that's not far)....that's what planes are for! I don't even hire cars when I'm on holiday......most days I doubt there would be many hours that I'd pass the breath test!
Let's just say I did have to drive 500 miles in one day.....on a good traffic day that 5 to 6 hours drive. If your don't have to stop once in that time you have a better bladder than me! By the time you have used the loo....perhaps pick up a drink and stretch your legs you will be charged. I usually stop for half an hour break when I drive that far even in a petrol car. My old Audi A8 used to tell me to take a break every two hours of driving!

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

As much as I will NEVER buy an EV.....range would hardly ever be an issue for me. I have a three car drive (just) so changing at home is no issue. Most half decent EVs have a 300 mile plus range now and the 700 to1000 mile battery is not far away.....but even 300 miles is fine for me. I recon I drive further than that, in one day, no more than two or three times a year....usually for business so don't take my car anyway. I take breaks in Cornwall quite often but Newquay is only about 260 miles from my house. And I don't drive across Europe by car much (LeMans excepted....but that's not far)....that's what planes are for! I don't even hire cars when I'm on holiday......most days I doubt there would be many hours that I'd pass the breath test!
Let's just say I did have to drive 500 miles in one day.....on a good traffic day that 5 to 6 hours drive. If your don't have to stop once in that time you have a better bladder than me! By the time you have used the loo....perhaps pick up a drink and stretch your legs you will be charged. I usually stop for half an hour break when I drive that far even in a petrol car. My old Audi A8 used to tell me to take a break every two hours of driving!

I think that’s the reality for the vast majority but some don’t like to admit it.

Our future will be about using the right form of transport for the journey (“Mobility”), and not owning a vehicle capable of any journey. Our current approach makes less sense in a world with - greater and great strain on resources.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I’ll just leave the poll results in this thread here…

Average mileage in 2021? | MBClub Polls

I just had a car serviced and noticed that I had done almost exactly 3,000 miles in that car in 2021, which is much less than I used to do pre-2020, but more than I expected. It got me thinking about what our weekly average mileage per car was in 2021, and it has surprised me. I thought it...

forums.mbclub.co.uk

In 2021, just 9% of MBClub members who completed the poll would need to charge a latest generation EV with a 300 mile range (so city cars excepted) more than once a week.

 

[Deleted member 126251]

............
Let's just say I did have to drive 500 miles in one day.....on a good traffic day that 5 to 6 hours drive. If your don't have to stop once in that time you have a better bladder than me! By the time you have used the loo....perhaps pick up a drink and stretch your legs you will be charged. ...........

Presuming that there is a charging point available..............

 

[Deleted member 126251]

I’ll just leave the poll results in this thread here…

Average mileage in 2021? | MBClub Polls

I just had a car serviced and noticed that I had done almost exactly 3,000 miles in that car in 2021, which is much less than I used to do pre-2020, but more than I expected. It got me thinking about what our weekly average mileage per car was in 2021, and it has surprised me. I thought it...

forums.mbclub.co.uk

In 2021, just 9% of MBClub members who completed the poll would need to charge a latest generation EV with a 300 mile range (so city cars excepted) more than once a week.

Agree however, the last thing I want to do on a long journey is worry about range and HAVE to stop to charge my car and hang aroung with the unwashed masses in some nasty motorway services. At least with ICE, I can detour into a town or village to fill up and get a quality meal or snack at sensible prices.

Once price and convienience for an EV matches that of an ICE, I’ll seriously consider an EV. I don’t think I do 300 miles a month if I’m not on a road trip.

 

[SmartAmg]

Their home electricty bill is about £10k a year. I’m not exaggerating.

How come?

 

[Dippo]

On one recent Bank Holiday I drove up the M40 from London to Birmingham, and traffic was queuing to get into each service station (OK, that's only Oxford and Warwick, because the other two have entrances just off the motorway). Nearly all of those queues will have been people simply wanting to park and use the services - imagine how long the tailbacks would have been if they were queuing for charging points.

 

[markjay]

On one recent Bank Holiday I drove up the M40 from London to Birmingham, and traffic was queuing to get into each service station (OK, that's only Oxford and Warwick, because the other two have entrances just off the motorway). Nearly all of those queues will have been people simply wanting to park and use the services - imagine how long the tailbacks would have been if they were queuing for charging points.

The charging network can be made 'smart' (in the same way that the Tesla network already is), i.e. the car will navigate you toward a free charger, in the same way that Waze routes you via quiet roads using real-time live data. With a 'smart' charging network, queuing and waiting times will actually be reduced to a minimum. However, I accept that this solution is still years away.