Battery Electric Vehicle News / Enjoying the Transportation Revolution

Exiled_Tyke

michaels said:

Exiled_Tyke said:

thevilla said:

Exiled_Tyke said:

Martyn1981 said:

thevilla said:

I ofter wonder how soon people buying PHEVs, assuming they actually plug in, regret not going full EV.  Trying to fit a journey into limited battery capacity and paying to service a redundant ICE.

I ponder the same, but flipping it, I can see a positive benefit from PHEV's, and that's because I not so secretively think of them as 'Trojan BEV's'.

For some people, BEV's may not yet work, but a PHEV will give people a positive experience (hopefully!) of driving in electric only mode. But more importantly, I hope that folk who wrongly (but genuinely) think that a BEV won't work for them, will change their mind after experiencing a PHEV, and move on to a BEV.

So that PHEV may teach, and build confidence, allowing for a partial then full move away from an ICE. But .... crucially, that PHEV will now go on to someone else SH, and another and another, helping to educate more and more people about BEV's. So the new PHEV sale may displace one new BEV sale, but ultimately help to transition many from ICE to BEV. [As viewed through my green tinted glasses.  ]

So, an evolutionary dead end, but perhaps a useful stepping stone for some, for now?

Absolutely right. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have gone full BEV if I hadn't had a PHEV first.  And that one did pretty well with my mix of long and short drives (including a trip to France) averaging 85mpg for the petrol use. 

Was there a "wish I'd bought a BEV" moment or just natural progression?

 😁

Sorry for the delay in responding. I've just spent two days driving to the Dordogne (with pre-planned but trouble free charging stops).      I don't think it was either of these really.  I'd quite fancied a BEV as soon as ranges became practical but didn't have the courage to go for it. I guess at the time charging infrastructure was still a bit of a worry.    The PHEV made me much more aware of all things BEV and gave me the confidence to go all the way. 

That said, and in response to other comments here, the PHEV performed really well. On long journeys it got similar mpg to my previous diesel  (which I think is great as the PHEV was a brick of a mini SUV and petrol) .  And as I've mentioned here already, overall with lots of daily commutes averaged over 80mpg.   

How does charging work in France?  I sort of fear you either have to pay motorway service rates on the motorway or spend time coming off and have to pay extra on the peages for breaking the journey?

It works pretty well,   When I use service stations it tends to be about 50p/kWh which isn't absurd.  Coming off the autoroutes isn't too much of an issue as they tend to charge fairly by the Km.  However for some journeys  I'll mix autoroute and N roads.  This time I did St Malo, Nantes, Niort,  Perigeux.   Just one section of Autoroute. (I could have used the autoroute for the last section but it would only have saved around 15 mins).    I used Tesla charges at each stop at about 25p.   On my previous trip EDF chargers at McDonalds were convenient and they were were even cheaper.    So, as I would in the UK. I plan the route (using Electroverse and Tesla) and don't have much problem. 

silverwhistle

Yes, on some routes you can maintain a pretty good pace on N roads and the distances may even be shorter.

Sometimes though there aren't really practical alternatives, e.g: from Macon up into the mountains via the Autoroute Blanche. 

I find planning with a large scale map helps, before getting in to the detail. On small screens and phones you don't get a good feel for the situation.

Martyn1981

Not good news for PHEV's.

The real life emissions v's claimed, are actually getting worse. The article mentions that the results are based on monitored vehicles - I assume this is a reference to the requirement for new vehicles to now have fuel monitoring for manufacturers to report.

We know that PHEV results can be excellent, as per ET's findings, so I can only assume the figures are getting worse because either,
1. they always were worse, or
2. PHEV's are now becoming more mainstream, and a smaller %age of owners are 'ET's', instead, just normal peope doing normal driving, and perhaps with very little interest in fuel economy nor electric potential. For these people, perhaps a HEV would be better, lighter and less complicated.

Plug-in Hybrids Now Emit 5 Times, on Average, What Official Tests Claim — EU Data

The real-world data was gathered from fuel monitors on 127,000 plug-in hybrid vehicles registered in 2023. It differs hugely from the tests where vehicles are driven in a way that is considered to be normal. The EU has set ‘utility factors’ to correct the CO2 rating. The utility factors set for 2025 and 2027 gradually tighten the gap, meaning carmakers would have to reduce their sales of PHEVs or increase their battery electric car sales in order to comply with EU CO2 targets.

Martyn1981

Ahhh, I see why the figures are getting worse, rising from 3.5x estimated, through 4x to 5x. It's because the fuel consumption has gone up a bit, despite the PHEV's, on average, having longer electric only ranges.

So the claimed/assumed emissions have been lowered, but instead, have actually gotten worse. A double whammy.

T&E Closing the growing PHEV loophole

September 10, 2025

2 Real-world emissions are multiple times higher than WLTP emissions Real-world emissions from PHEVs are rising, widening the gap between WLTP values and actual performance. The gap between official WLTP values and real-world performance has widened considerably: for vehicles registered in 2021, real-world emissions were about 3.5 times higher than WLTP figures, by 2023 already nearly five times higher based on data available in the OBFCM dataset. Real-world emissions of PHEVs registered in 2023 are on average 5% higher than for vehicles registered in 2021 despite a 25% increase in average electric range between 2021 and 2023. At the same time, the increased range has resulted in a 26% reduction in WLTP emissions. The persistent underestimation of PHEV emissions directly benefits manufacturers by helping them meet CO2 targets more easily

michaels

I suspect JLR add the PHEV bit to their car without charging much extra for emissions rules reasons rather than because it is what buyers are looking for or using - or perhaps there is also a phev company car tax break....

https://www.reddit.com/r/CarTalkUK/comments/1hz64t1/phev_company_car_for_a_lower_bik_rate_but_not/

I’ll soon be choosing a company car, working in field service, so lots of long miles.

I have limited access to charging points, cannot get one at home/ nearby. However it makes sense to have a PHEV for the much lower BIK rate I’d pay. Circa 8% vs 25-35%

Are there any drawbacks to not charging a PHEV regularly, I would clearly have a much lower mpg than if I was charging it but it would not be a far of a standard petrol/ diesel car which is the alternative.

Is anyone in the same position/ experience with this/ able to share any insights or feedback not irregularly charging a PHEV..?

QrizB

JKenH said:
Jaecoo have sold more cars this year (11,681) than Citroen, Lexus or Porsche without me ever noticing one on the road .... I find this really odd as I have seen a lot of 2025 plate Teslas on the road this year but not that many BYD, and barely any Omoda and no Jaecoos. 
I acknowledge that we notice the cars we recognise more than ones we don’t but nevertheless I do wonder how many of the Jaecoos and the Omodas are actually making it onto the road and who is buying them (and why)?

I found myself behind a Jaecoo 7 today, in stationary traffic, and was reminded of this thread.

They're not particularly distinctive from the rear, although the branding is quite bold.

Martyn1981

Great little BEV / BEV story from the BBC.

It's about a prototype BEV tractor, really a small hand steered trenching tool, that allows for deeper planting of crops like maize, for better roots and larger plants. The short article (4min) also points to small micro-grid PV install with batteries for charging the unit up.

Farmers doubling their crop yields with solar-powered tractor - BBC Africa

In Malawi around 80% of the population is involved in farming but the country often finds it hard to feed itself.

 An innovative farming method called Deep Bed Farming is now transforming lives in the country. With the help of a solar-powered tractor, farmers are digging deeper into the soil and improving water and air penetration.

This has more than doubled their yields - moving them closer to food security.

Climate change has contributed to famines and cyclones in recent years. But a new method has been helping farmers to dramatically improve their yields.

Myra Anubi from the BBC World Service - People Fixing the World programme reports from Northern Malawi.

Coastalwatch

Thanks for that Mart, good to see clean energy making it's mark in Africa. If we can get enough PV in there to enable people to enjoy the benefits of it before the FF industry does then it will help them side step that expense.

The online crowdfunder Energise Africa have had several campaigns running in recent years to do just that and while we should all be aware that our money is at risk I've yet to have one fail out of a dozen or so. They are usually short term loans from a few months to approx three years.

I came across them via the Ethex website, www.ethex.org.uk/.

Martyn1981

Bit of BEV bus news for the UK.

48 Electric Bus Chargers To Be Installed In Devon, United Kingdom

Stagecoach South West recently announced a major partnership with e-fleet solutions provider VEV to accelerate bus electrification across Devon, UK. Forty-eight new EV chargers will be installed in Devon; 27 are 150 kW and there will be an additional 21 chargers.

The chargers are being installed to support Stagecoach South West’s transition to an electric bus fleet across North Devon and Torbay. These three strategic depot locations will form the backbone of their electric bus operations, replacing diesel buses with cleaner, electric alternatives. The infrastructure is essential for charging the 110 electric buses that are set to enter operation in 2026.

Construction has already started at the Torquay depot, with the charging infrastructure being installed across all three sites. The charging infrastructure will be completed in phases to support the gradual rollout of electric buses across the region with a view to having the full fleet of buses online in 2026.

We expect to achieve significant operational cost savings compared to diesel vehicles due to lower fuel costs and reduced maintenance requirements. Electric buses also eliminate local air pollution and reduce carbon emissions, contributing to environmental goals and potentially avoiding future carbon taxation costs. 

Stagecoach has calculated that by switching from diesel to electric, they will achieve a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide equal to taking an estimated 2,000 diesel cars off the road over the lifetime of the buses.

Martyn1981

Very, very big BEV news ..... so to speak.

Fortescue orders up to 400 giant electric dump trucks from XCMG

As part of an update to its decarbonisation strategy, Australian mining group Fortescue has announced that it plans to order between 300 and 400 zero-emission 240-tonne dump trucks from Chinese heavy machinery manufacturer XCMG. These will be used alongside Liebherr's electric dump trucks.