EV range and driving styles

DrEskimo

Martin_the_Unjust said:

So basically what you EV owners appear to be saying is that you can only get the maximum miles out of your vehicle if you drive it in such a way that it would be a fail on a driving test?

Of course achieving the maximum range is a bit of moot point for me in an EV 99% of the time, given I have a 'refueling station' by my front door.

I think in the 3yrs I've had it, I've only driven a journey that's longer than its theoretical maximum 3 times. As my commute to work is 70miles I'm quite happy driving however I would like, then spending the 5secs plugging it in when I get home.

Typhoon2000

My daily commute is around 150miles ( 75 miles one way) and I can’t charge at work. Mainly motorway against traffic so normally around 1hr 15min each way traveling at the speed limit or there abouts. 

So if I am looking get a EV as my next car and charging at home at the end of the day, I need something with an official range of over 300miles to be safe in the winter? I guess I will also have to factor for battery degradation over time,

Petriix

Martin_the_Unjust said:

So basically what you EV owners appear to be saying is that you can only get the maximum miles out of your vehicle if you drive it in such a way that it would be a fail on a driving test?

Yes, but the hypothetical maximum is far in excess of that claimed by the manufacturer. The MG5 has a WLTP range of 214 miles but I regularly exceed that just by driving carefully but normally.

Petriix

Typhoon2000 said:

My daily commute is around 150miles ( 75 miles one way) and I can’t charge at work. Mainly motorway against traffic so normally around 1hr 15min each way traveling at the speed limit or there abouts. 

So if I am looking get a EV as my next car and charging at home at the end of the day, I need something with an official range of over 300miles to be safe in the winter? I guess I will also have to factor for battery degradation over time,

Anything with an official range of over 200 miles should comfortably do your 150 miles in all but the worst conditions. In the extreme cases, just drive a bit slower or stop for a 10 minute rapid charge.

I've never achieved worse than 160 miles in my MG5, but I tend to err on the side of caution early in a long journey, then put my foot down later when it's clear I've got enough range.

You'll only hit issues if you insist on driving at 80mph.

MX5huggy

Typhoon2000 said:

My daily commute is around 150miles ( 75 miles one way) and I can’t charge at work. Mainly motorway against traffic so normally around 1hr 15min each way traveling at the speed limit or there abouts. 

So if I am looking get a EV as my next car and charging at home at the end of the day, I need something with an official range of over 300miles to be safe in the winter? I guess I will also have to factor for battery degradation over time,

With that sort of mileage I can't see that you can afford not to get an EV.

Thrugelmir

MX5huggy said:

Typhoon2000 said:

My daily commute is around 150miles ( 75 miles one way) and I can’t charge at work. Mainly motorway against traffic so normally around 1hr 15min each way traveling at the speed limit or there abouts. 

So if I am looking get a EV as my next car and charging at home at the end of the day, I need something with an official range of over 300miles to be safe in the winter? I guess I will also have to factor for battery degradation over time,

With that sort of mileage I can't see that you can afford not to get an EV.

What's the base cost for such a vehicle?  My basic understanding being the battery is what adds expense to the purchase. 

Typhoon2000

Yes cost is going to be the main problem unless prices come down a lot. My current car cost £3850 2.5 years ago and .I have added around 80k miles since then. Been servicing it my self and it is still going fine. With mainly motor way miles there is far less wear an tear though. Front pads will last me 60k, and front tyres around 40k rear tyres nearly 80k. Get about 49mpg despite not being the economic type of driver. 

Typically I run my cars till they start to throw big bills like clutches/DMF and worn suspension. I will have upto £8000 when it’s time to change ( but would rather pay less).

DrEskimo

Typhoon2000 said:

Yes cost is going to be the main problem unless prices come down a lot. My current car cost £3850 2.5 years ago and .I have added around 80k miles since then. Been servicing it my self and it is still going fine. With mainly motor way miles there is far less wear an tear though. Front pads will last me 60k, and front tyres around 40k rear tyres nearly 80k. Get about 49mpg despite not being the economic type of driver. 

Typically I run my cars till they start to throw big bills like clutches/DMF and worn suspension. I will have upto £8000 when it’s time to change ( but would rather pay less).

When you consider that fuel is going to cost the best part of £10,000 at current prices for the next 80k miles you drive, and an EV could be as low as £1,000, then you can begin to see how big the savings can be, even if you factor in a higher cost EV with the potential for larger absolute depreciation costs (although EV's have so far shown better residuals relative to ICE in recent years).

Of course the higher cost is a barrier to entry though, one I hope will fall in the next few years as more viable used EVs enter the market.

k6chris

DrEskimo said:

Of course the higher cost is a barrier to entry though, one I hope will fall in the next few years as more viable used EVs enter the market.

I think this is really important.  Many of us would like to make our next car an EV, but would never spend £20k on a new ICE car, let alone £30k on a new EV.  Yes cost-of-use savings are there, but upfront costs are still a huge barrier. Even leasing over 3 years is still going to cost around £10k, more than many of us paid for a decent 3 year old ICE car outright.  I think a strong supply of more affordable second hand EVs will be key for many people to dip their toes in the water (and almost certainly never go back).

Herzlos

The same applied to ICE cars when they were new though. Give it another few years (and once the crazy used car pricing is over) and you'll be seeing lots of decent ranged EV's for under £10k.