One of the stops is probably "free" as the driver would be entitled to a lunch break and tea breaks. If they're salaried, it just makes their working day longer - like extended travel time did for me when I was younger, putting a full day's work in between with no paid overtime.
The never ending debate😁
Assuming I got it right then Harrogate to Cirencester and back is about 406 miles according to my sat nav. My diesel could do that on 5 gallons, which is what, about £40.
Not everyone would be able to charge at home for less than 8p/kWh. Regular rates are about 3 times more.
Loss to companies is not just salary divided by hours. Internal rates are usually much higher than the employee gets.
One hopes that should any incentives be dreamt up it won't be the usual penalties on those that can't switch.
Assuming I got it right then Harrogate to Cirencester and back is about 406 miles according to my sat nav. My diesel could do that on 5 gallons, which is what, about £40.
Not everyone would be able to charge at home for less than 8p/kWh. Regular rates are about 3 times more.
Loss to companies is not just salary divided by hours. Internal rates are usually much higher than the employee gets.
One hopes that should any incentives be dreamt up it won't be the usual penalties on those that can't switch.
Buckman hit the nail on the head. The delays lead to working inefficiency.
When I worked time was critical. Never late for meetings, cram in as much as possible. Charging time delays alone would have caused me personal time issues and I suspect unnecessary stress .
For a local runabout , always home charging the EV may work for us. Sadly both cars are used regularly mostly long journeys and towing.
It’s time the U.K. enjoyed cheaper electricity cost🤬
When I worked time was critical. Never late for meetings, cram in as much as possible. Charging time delays alone would have caused me personal time issues and I suspect unnecessary stress .
For a local runabout , always home charging the EV may work for us. Sadly both cars are used regularly mostly long journeys and towing.
It’s time the U.K. enjoyed cheaper electricity cost🤬
It does seem the charging infrastructure is still far from optimal, Musk understood how it's no good introducing an electric car if there was no way of recharging it on a journey, hence his implementation of the super chargers., and that is one of the reasons that Tesla have stolen a march on most other car manufacturers.
But I also think back when EV's could only manage was maybe 150 mile range, the development of batteries and the cars efficiencies have pushed that up to about 300 miles or more, and that's not just the super luxury models.
We must not lose sight of the fact the EV industry is still in its infancy, and as we all know children don't always do what's best first time. but we can now see the beginnings of realistically priced family EV's with decent range and reasonable charging speeds becoming available.
I do echo others calls for HMG to get their act together regarding the charging network, its far from adequate as it stands, Simply not enough charging points, (Both fast chargers and overnight longer term points) with simple card payments accepted, rather than the need for aps. The maintenance of them must be improved to assure availability (especially on motorways), flatter and lower cost per kWh tariffs.
There is still a massive worldwide investment taking place to improve battery technology, and we have seen some big improvements even in just the last 5 years, with tantalising hints of other significant improvements still to be made.
Acceptance of EV's will radically improve, when you can achieve a 10 to 80% recharge in 5 mins, just long enough to visit the toilets and to prevent chargers being tied up for 30 to 45min,
EV's will not stop climate change on their own, they are part of an overall strategy to reduce reliance on burning fossil fuels. I cannot see us totally removing fossil based products but we need to reduce their unnecessary exploiutation and where they are the only realistic souce, we must do what we can to use them more efficiently, and to minimise the impact of any waste or by products.
Back to the essence of the thread, it shows over time EV's have improved but are still not yet perfect, but they are a viable alternative for personal transport in the UK. However present day EV drivers have to adopt a differnt approach to traveling long distances compared to ICE vehicles, and that involves planning journeys to include the time for recharging. And to actively plan the route to access the necessary chargers both on route and at the destination.
The process still isn't as simple as using fossil fuels, and perhaps it never will be, We may have to recalibrate our expectations, and rather trying to compare the constraints of EV usage against that of Fossil fuel, rather think of them as just different.
But I also think back when EV's could only manage was maybe 150 mile range, the development of batteries and the cars efficiencies have pushed that up to about 300 miles or more, and that's not just the super luxury models.
We must not lose sight of the fact the EV industry is still in its infancy, and as we all know children don't always do what's best first time. but we can now see the beginnings of realistically priced family EV's with decent range and reasonable charging speeds becoming available.
I do echo others calls for HMG to get their act together regarding the charging network, its far from adequate as it stands, Simply not enough charging points, (Both fast chargers and overnight longer term points) with simple card payments accepted, rather than the need for aps. The maintenance of them must be improved to assure availability (especially on motorways), flatter and lower cost per kWh tariffs.
There is still a massive worldwide investment taking place to improve battery technology, and we have seen some big improvements even in just the last 5 years, with tantalising hints of other significant improvements still to be made.
Acceptance of EV's will radically improve, when you can achieve a 10 to 80% recharge in 5 mins, just long enough to visit the toilets and to prevent chargers being tied up for 30 to 45min,
EV's will not stop climate change on their own, they are part of an overall strategy to reduce reliance on burning fossil fuels. I cannot see us totally removing fossil based products but we need to reduce their unnecessary exploiutation and where they are the only realistic souce, we must do what we can to use them more efficiently, and to minimise the impact of any waste or by products.
Back to the essence of the thread, it shows over time EV's have improved but are still not yet perfect, but they are a viable alternative for personal transport in the UK. However present day EV drivers have to adopt a differnt approach to traveling long distances compared to ICE vehicles, and that involves planning journeys to include the time for recharging. And to actively plan the route to access the necessary chargers both on route and at the destination.
The process still isn't as simple as using fossil fuels, and perhaps it never will be, We may have to recalibrate our expectations, and rather trying to compare the constraints of EV usage against that of Fossil fuel, rather think of them as just different.
What car do you have that returns 81mpg?
Are you paying £1.76/ litre for diesel as I can buy it for £1.37/ litre?
Different parts of the UK Different prices!!
Mel
Moderator
So far we have charged our Corsa electric at home overnight at a cost of 3p per mile. A 4 and a half hour charge costs £2.39. The pod point helpfully works it out for you.
We have charged it once on a public fast charger. The ( roughly) same amount of charging ( about 30% to full) cost £16.50! We only did this because we had an issue
with the Pod Point tripping although this was quickly remedied by a call out by one of their engineers.
I am new to this EV lark and so far it is working brilliantly for us. The range is more than enough for our daily needs. However, my analysis of it so far is that it only really works for us because we can charge at home overnight and have enough daily range.
Mel
We have charged it once on a public fast charger. The ( roughly) same amount of charging ( about 30% to full) cost £16.50! We only did this because we had an issue
with the Pod Point tripping although this was quickly remedied by a call out by one of their engineers.
I am new to this EV lark and so far it is working brilliantly for us. The range is more than enough for our daily needs. However, my analysis of it so far is that it only really works for us because we can charge at home overnight and have enough daily range.
Mel
I have a 2018 Qashqai 1.5dCi. On good runs through Highlands and Motorways I regularly get over 80mpg.
Last time I bought diesel it was 1.42.
It’s now very clear using commercial superchargers is very very expensive.
One thing I didn’t mention was charging to a full 100%. Son says on a supercharger it takes approx twice as long again to go from 80% to 100%. Plus Volvo don't recommend charging to 100%?? I didn’t quite follow that bit.
My E bike says not to fully charge so ai guess there is some reason?
BTW it has one pedal driving . Roger explained this a while back. It can be switched out which is what sone does!
One thing I didn’t mention was charging to a full 100%. Son says on a supercharger it takes approx twice as long again to go from 80% to 100%. Plus Volvo don't recommend charging to 100%?? I didn’t quite follow that bit.
My E bike says not to fully charge so ai guess there is some reason?
BTW it has one pedal driving . Roger explained this a while back. It can be switched out which is what sone does!
Not widely realised that farm animals have otter additives in their food. Can’t get too wound up about this latest one providing the necessary trials and clearances are met. More fussed about microplastics in the food chain.It seems that cows passing wind is more important than adding more chargers to the network so cows are now having an additive added to their feed. Don't buy milk from Aria! LOL!
I admit I am envious if you can fuel up an ICE car, get to the loo, pay for the fuel in five minutes.
I’ve never managed that timescale. WRT comments regarding charging times of around 20 minutes no one seems to consider that fuelling an ICE takes a finite time. Particularly big tow cars with large tanks. Also no one has seen to comment on the fact that in fuel stations it’s not uncommon to find some nozzles blanked off, or a tanker expected so a lane or two is bollarded off, or someone in front of you is slow leaving as they are shopping or there’s a queue to pay. With EVs the majority of charging is mostly done at home or work, so you gain those minutes and the car is nice and warm and de-iced for an early morning departure. Caravanners needs are different to many normal motorists. But it’s not all pain and no gain moving to EV.
Dusty’s son hasn’t said how much fuelling money he’s saved by going EV only the trip south is reported.
Mel
Moderator
As the battery heads to fully charged; the system considerably slows down the speed of charge; this apparently is healthier for the battery. Also the recommended cycle is 20% to 80%. Again for maintaining battery health . Don’t ask me the physics but there is a good you tube video which I will find and link.
Edit. May be a bit basic for most of you more technical folks but I found it really helpful as I knew nothing
Further Edit. Apologies Not suggesting anyone is a Dummy! 😲
It's rare that I have to get fuel mid-journey, even when towing - so comfort breaks are just that - go to the toilet and get back in the car.
The case for EVs used for short local journeys and recharged at home is over-whelming - but that's only a small % of annual mileage for many drivers - for the big mileages it's about even on cost with ICs doing better on convenience and EVs doing better on emissions.
I’m on my first plug-in hybrid (Audi A6) and I love it. I charge it overnight at home (12.5 pence per kWh) and I get 40 miles on a full charge in EV only mode. There’s a bewildering number of settings and modes that regulate battery consumption/hold battery level/charge the battery depending on how you drive and what you want. It’s got plenty of “go” when needed, a 2000kgs towing weight, looks great and is incredibly comfortable.
Those are my positives, the only negative is that any form of public charging is eye watering expensive (65 pence per kWh seems to be the cheapest) so it’s unlikely I’ll ever charge it up away from home.
Those are my positives, the only negative is that any form of public charging is eye watering expensive (65 pence per kWh seems to be the cheapest) so it’s unlikely I’ll ever charge it up away from home.
I thought your face burnt off at speeds over 30mph😉
A regular journey for us will be Skye to Carlisle. Mostly Highlands with speeds varying on single lane roads of 40, 50, 60
I'll match the limit if possible. The last bit is motorway from Stirling to Carlisle. If it's not busy, i.e lots of lorries, I'll stick at about 65. If lots of lorries then it means more over taking and I find I'm doing more like 70. Of course true speed is a little less.
From Carlisle to Cambridgeshire is virtually all motorway so again speed could be 65 to 70.
In both cases we'll be on the +80mpg range although the more time spent at 70 will drop mpg down to the high 70s mpg.
Best ever was 90mpg from Tyndrum to Fort William, that is through Glen Coe... that's because we got stuck behind a motorhome that was doing about 40 and wouldn't pull in.
We always fill up before journey and even if the tank is empty and I need to fill up with neatly 80 litres, it does not take long so with payment probably less than 10 minutes before I am on the road again. We have made a point of never using motorway services to refuel due to the high cost of fuel at this service stations. Only use them for the loo or to grab a sandwich and coffee.
That is the type of EV that would work well for me, and I suspect many other motorists. The vast majority of my outings are less than 40 miles (commuting to work, shopping and family visits) but I
Does your battery still charge via regenerative braking when driving on petrol/diesel? I'm thinking that after a few hours driving on petrol you could arrive at your destination with a fully charged battery?
See Sam’s post.This is son’s 2nd EV and just an example of EV cost and problems experienced. This experience in terms of cost , time and live experience far more than an ICE
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