Electric cars still a bit shite

Renault are starting to really push their Zoe electric car. It's an amusing price, but massively subsidised by European governments (ie by you, me and every other taxpayer).

Renault advertise it as 130 mile range but in the small print is detail that the real world range is closer to 60 miles. But the interesting detail is that you have to rent the battery. That will cost the driver £80 a month for 7500 miles a year.

So that's 13p/mile just for the battery. And my wife's boring old petrol car costs.... 13p/mile in petrol.

I'm struggling to see what makes the electric car a good idea.

Reply to
Steve Firth
Loading thread data ...

So the battery charging costs are on top?

Reply to
Fredxx

Yes, but probably not going to be a lot. Car tax is zero so there's a small saving there.

Inability to visit the ageing parents without an overnight rest stop would kill it for me.

Reply to
Steve Firth

Remarkably (although I'm sure things will soon change), it only costs £10 /year membership to use the London EV on-street/public charging network - w ith no additional charge for electricity:

formatting link

Even so, the main problem seems to be that EV's are most use if you live in the inner city - where you're least likely to be able to park in your own driveway to charge-up.

(I wonder if anyone's collecting up car-full's of free electricity, taking it home, and dumping it into their feed-in tariff?).

As your pricing example points out, EV's are *nearly* there, and the Renaul t pricing deal will be enough to bring-in more early adopters.

I've also heard plans for retrofit conversions to existing street lighting for add-on charging points. I suspect roll-out of public charge points will soon become the choke-point for inner-city adoption.

Reply to
dom

Not with a pissy 130 mile range they aren't; I get a 600 mile range with a dizzle C4.

Reply to
Tim Streater

" snipped-for-privacy@gglz.com" :

Nearly there? I don't think so.

Reply to
Mike Barnes

It isn't all about price and specification for early adopters of new technology (or for that matter for a large proportion of car-buyers generally).

I suspect Renault will get sufficient volume of sales now, with their "rent a battery" deal, to get governments to support a wider roll-out of subsidy deals, public charging infrastructure etc.

The beneficiaries are likely to be well-heeled 2nd car owners that have a well-defined niche for that vehicle (in fact rather like the car scrappage scheme of a few years ago).

Reply to
dom

Around here, a choice of four empty parking spaces in every local authority run car park, no matter how busy the rest of the parking is.

Colin Bignell

Reply to
Nightjar

Not all cars come with a rental battery. Those of us with PV panels, charge them up from the PV with free electricity in Summer. My car does equivalent of 187mpg. Or five miles/Kwh.

formatting link

Reply to
harryagain

I doubt many people actually need a 600 mile range. Few would drive that distance without stopping - especially in the UK.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

I bought the long range tank for my car specifically to give me a better range than that for when I go touring in Europe. I won't do it non-stop, but I also don't have to buy fuel at motorway prices.

Colin Bignell

Reply to
Nightjar

without stopping no, but I reglarly drive to Central Scotland ina day - that's around 430 miles. If I had to recharge a battery at my stops, the journey would not get done in a day thus involving an overnight stay. If I went on to Inverness - which I have done once, then the 600 mile range is relevant.

Reply to
charles

In article , Steve Firth scribeth thus

They still haven't cracked the Electric car problem as yet. Either its got to collect current on the move and use a battery as a simple store when off grid, or the prime mover energy source has to be on the car like perhaps Petrol or Diseasel;'!.....

Reply to
tony sayer

South coast to The North West and back will see a driver getting close to Six hundred miles. Easy to do in a diesel Mondeo and a fairly typical drive for an engineer or sales rep. They wouldn't want to have to wait overnight for a "fill".

Reply to
Steve Firth

It means I fill up about once a month.

Reply to
Tim Streater

Also on those sorts of drives fuel stops are a significant drag consuming as much as a half hour every few hundred miles. With a long range tank it's possible to get much further with less stress. And of course there's "fill up in Luxembourg" syndrome. A fill there with a large tank can save "quite a bit" of money.

Reply to
Steve Firth

There are some charging points in the NCP in town, nothing preventing ordinary cars from parking in them though ...

Reply to
Andy Burns

My diesel guzzler only costs 19p/mile in diesel.

Well say a 30 kWHr battery and M-F wage slave and a trip out at the weekend 6 charges a week: 6 x 30 = 180 kWHrs @ 10p = £18/week, app rox £75/month. Hum around 26p/mile.... Even charging every other day is about the same as my diesel guzzler. B-)

With a 60 mile real world range the inablty to do the weekly shop would kill it for me.

Reply to
Dave Liquorice

Where do you stop for the night? Not on a motorway, surely? So buy your fuel there?

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

I do Aberdeen from London. Some 540 miles using M40 M6. My car will - just about do it on one tank. However, since I stop for a meal on the way it's no big deal to fill up.

Oh indeed. I doubt any pure electric car will ever have the range of a petrol one - if relying on some form of storage of electricity.

Wonder how many filling stations you pass on your route? ;-)

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.