Taking the horse to France..

Celticfire

Hi there. I've had my Leaf for a little over a month now and while browsing another thread I've seen that other owners take their car abroad. I was wondering what advice could be given from seasoned travelers to the novice such as myself?

Probable the biggest question I would have is how to go about getting the car charged in each country. I've seen one owner say that the get all the way to Greece so it would be interesting to hear the logistics behind that.
Also cost wise would also be interested, see how far one could go for as little as possible.

Cheers.

BoatMad

Celticfire wrote: »

Hi there. I've had my Leaf for a little over a month now and while browsing another thread I've seen that other owners take their car abroad. I was wondering what advice could be given from seasoned travelers to the novice such as myself?

Probable the biggest question I would have is how to go about getting the car charged in each country. I've seen one owner say that the get all the way to Greece so it would be interesting to hear the logistics behind that.
Also cost wise would also be interested, see how far one could go for as little as possible.

Cheers.

I think it would be a brave person that would attempt this. Personally on holiday , the last thing I want to be worrying about is how to " refuel " the car ?

Celticfire

BoatMad wrote: »

I think it would be a brave person that would attempt this. Personally on holiday , the last thing I want to be worrying about is how to " refuel " the car ?

I agree... but perhaps it's not as difficult as imagined with the right info and planning.

pwurple

I think a granny cable would be a good backup.

Apart from that, there is a big charging network, but getting the right cards to access would need the planning.

KCross

I think some of the long EV drives that have been reported on boards are from i3 drivers with a Rex. Thats nowhere near the same challenge as doing it in a 24kWh Leaf.

Of course an EV drive to France is possible but the chances of it ending in tears is also high without detailed planning which would have to include a plan B for every rapid charger you are relying on. All it takes is one missed motorway exit or a charger out of service and your goosed and looking for a flatbed. As BoatMad said, do you really want that anxiety on your holidays!?

Running out of charge is not the same as running out of petrol where you can just get a can of petrol and away you go again. Organising a flatbed in France wont be fun.

I drove mine from London back to Cork when I imported and that was fine. Straight motorway run with plenty of chargers and all from one network. So it can be done but not for the faint hearted and not sure I'd like it as part of my holiday plans. The extra time spent charging is also going to get very old quickly, particularly if you have kids on board!

Mancomb Seepgood

A chap on the Irish EV Owners Facebook group brought his Leaf to France in the last few months and racked up serious mileage on it. It can be done, but planning would be everything. If I didn't have a huge distance to go from the ferry I'd have no problems doing it, but otherwise it wouldn't be my idea of fun.

KCross

Mancomb Seepgood wrote: »

A chap on the Irish EV Owners Facebook group brought his Leaf to France in the last few months and racked up serious mileage on it. It can be done, but planning would be everything. If I didn't have a huge distance to go from the ferry I'd have no problems doing it, but otherwise it wouldn't be my idea of fun.

Yea, I'd consider Brittany but beyond that I don't think the extra time/effort involved charging/planning would be worth the bother.

We normally travel 4hrs down from the ferry. That would easily be 6-7hrs in a leaf. No thanks!

isnottheword

Mancomb Seepgood wrote: »

A chap on the Irish EV Owners Facebook group brought his Leaf to France in the last few months and racked up serious mileage on it. It can be done, but planning would be everything. If I didn't have a huge distance to go from the ferry I'd have no problems doing it, but otherwise it wouldn't be my idea of fun.

I read his account. Far too much compromise involved. Proved it can be done - but its got to detract from the holiday experience. Perhaps if confined to Brittany, then may be ok as KCross has suggested...

axe2grind

Get to Paris and use motorail to get to south of France.

BoatMad

axe2grind wrote: »

Get to Paris and use motorail to get to south of France.

Aye they still running , I thought that service ended a few years ago

axe2grind

BoatMad wrote: »

Aye they still running , I thought that service ended a few years ago

A limited service now but with a wider adoption of EVs it may be opportunity to restore it to previous service. They used to run from Calais.

BoatMad

axe2grind wrote: »

A limited service now but with a wider adoption of EVs it may be opportunity to restore it to previous service. They used to run from Calais.

119 euros isnt bad, given the toils, but its a separate over night train for the cars , you dont get to travel , that means you will most likely arrive before your car, which isnt great

josip

I'm hoping to get an EV in the next few years, but the one thing that's putting me off is the stress of using it abroad.
This year heading south on the A26 from Calais, I wasn't paying attention and passed the filling station immediately after the Chunnel exit.
I still had 140km range left and wasn't too worried.
But 40kms further on approaching midnight and I started getting range anxiety
Another 30km and I throttled back to 100km/h
Made it to a station with 20km range left.
And that's in a diesel that has something left after the 0 but not sure how much.
All the time I was thinking, I'd be mad to try this in a current model EV.

isnottheword

josip wrote: »

All the time I was thinking, I'd be mad to try this in a current model EV.

There's your answer. Is driving to France the only option? Can you make other holiday arrangements OR can you rent a car instead? Failing that, do you have a 2nd ICE car or can you borrow one for the duration you would be away - swapping over insurance on it?

I wouldn't go so far as to say it's mad to travel to the continent with an EV - but it doesn't sound like fun.

k123456

I find it is cheaper and quicker to fly and hire a car , then using a ferry and car option
A flight to South of France takes 2hrs, to drive from a ferry port takes time

Del2005

KCross wrote: »

Running out of charge is not the same as running out of petrol where you can just get a can of petrol and away you go again. Organising a flatbed in France wont be fun.

That's why you arrange European recovery with the AA, very expensive, or similar companies before you leave.

I've used it for a bike which I dropped and broke the gear selector where they got me to a dealership and had me on the road in 5 minutes, granted it was a long wait for the bike recovery wagon, and a friend was given a train ticket and overnight hotel stay when his bike died and took a while to get fixed.

grogi

pwurple wrote: »

I think a granny cable would be a good backup.

Apart from that, there is a big charging network, but getting the right cards to access would need the planning.

Granny cable + socket adapter

BoatMad

grogi wrote: »

Granny cable + socket adapter

yes and 9 hours at every charge point, whats the "point "

Celticfire

So it's not a feasible idea then? Thought as much before I asked. I'll just have to do it the old fashioned way.

josip

Celticfire wrote: »

So it's not a feasible idea then? Thought as much before I asked. I'll just have to do it the old fashioned way.

Now hold on a minute. Just because some of us think you'd be mad to try it doesn't mean you shouldn't give it a go
I've done the Greece trip a few times, albeit in a diesel.
But I've spent many hours while on European motorways thinking about EVs.

If you have plenty of time on your hands and you like camping, I think you're halfway there. France has loads of good, inexpensive (apart from Cote D'Azur) camp sites. Most pitches come with power, sometimes at no extra charge and you could get your nightly fill from there.
France is a big country however and 10 hours of motorway speeds still wouldn't get you from one side/end to the other. So you'll need to either do lots of small steps or find a way to fast charge to get you a bit further each day.
Do Nissan garages in Europe provide charge points for Leaf owners?

isnottheword

josip wrote: »

Now hold on a minute. Just because some of us think you'd be mad to try it doesn't mean you shouldn't give it a go
I've done the Greece trip a few times, albeit in a diesel.
But I've spent many hours while on European motorways thinking about EVs.

You could spend a hell of a lot more time on the side of European motorways thinking about EV with an EV - either charging constantly or waiting for a flatbed.


It's been proven that it's possible but if you're going on holiday, is that the main purpose of the holiday?

I'd say when we reach 40+kwh, then it would be a hell of a lot less painful. Brittany, sure. Beyond that, I don't think that's wise - not unless you're going to speed weeks in France - and are happy to do relatively short 'shuffles' around the country...

BoatMad

isnottheword wrote: »

You could spend a hell of a lot more time on the side of European motorways thinking about EV with an EV - either charging constantly or waiting for a flatbed.


It's been proven that it's possible but if you're going on holiday, is that the main purpose of the holiday?

I'd say when we reach 40+kwh, then it would be a hell of a lot less painful. Brittany, sure. Beyond that, I don't think that's wise - not unless you're going to speed weeks in France - and are happy to do relatively short 'shuffles' around the country...

+1, we all have to except that current EVs have limits and this is one of them coupled with being in a "strange " land etc . In time it will not be an issue but today its not an advisable option imho

josip

Interesting read
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/may/27/tesla-model-s-electric-car-driving-holiday

KCross

Sounded like an interesting trip and nice car.

Somewhat amusing though to hear someone in a 90kWh car complain about range anxiety!

And they even cocked their noses at the poor Leaf drivers!

Only Teslas can use them, which really makes you feel for Nissan Leaf drivers.

oinkely

Reading that makes me want a model S. i was happy with my leaf up to about 6 minutes ago!

isnottheword

oinkely wrote: »

Reading that makes me want a model S. i was happy with my leaf up to about 6 minutes ago!

We all would like a model S - but how many Leafs can you buy for the price of a model S?

BoatMad

oinkely wrote: »

Reading that makes me want a model S. i was happy with my leaf up to about 6 minutes ago!

no car is worth 100K of your money ( now a yacht , well thats different )

oinkely

BoatMad wrote: »

no car is worth 100K of your money ( now a yacht , well thats different )

I guess it all depends on how much money you have to begin with! And i'm definitely not in the €100k car league.

No harm in dreaming though, some day I might be! Or more likely some day a second (third or fourth) hand one will be in my price range.