Random EV thoughts.....

Yeah, EV for me all day long...

We still have our diesel BMW, and almost had to take it down the country last weekend due to an issue with the EV, and I was honestly dreading it.. but luckily the EV issue was sorted and I was able to take that instead.. Stopped on the way down for a toilet break, and a 7 minute charge (to ensure I had enough to get back to that same charger later that day), and proceeded to my destination where I found an available charger next to the restaurant we were visiting, so topped up enough to get us all the way home later that night... mind you I was bursting for a tinkle by the time I got home... so a stop would have been fully warranted.

I've done 300-400km drives in the BMW in a day and felt wrecked/drained afterwards (I dunno, maybe because it's an M-Sport? and on run flats), and I've done 600-700km drives in a day in the EV and felt I could have easily done another few hundred km afterwards if I wanted...

The (running) cost benefit of driving an EV is great, but it's not the main or even close to the main reason we bought an EV... We just knew that at some stage we wanted to get one for environmental reasons... We were actually on the verge of importing either an A6 or e220 from the U.K. before we decided to just jump straight to an EV (as the Model 3 had just arrived, and to date was the only EV out that could adequately replace our 3 series).

Funny story: We went out to Tesla Sandyford and sat in a Model 3, and ordered one a week later having at that point never driven an EV (or even been a passenger in an EV)... The 1st time either or us ever drove an EV was when we test drove a Model 3 about 2 weeks before collecting ours...

Higher initial cost: yeah, didn't really bother us.. we paid something like €49k for the car (March 2020), but by paying off the mortgage early we saved roughly €49k in interest, so I see the car as cost neutral in a funky maths kinda way...

Bonus: when we got Solar PV in Oct 21 (before it all went mad!), and the ability to fill up the car from the sun is just fcuking amazing... From April 1st - July 5th, 100% of the electricity that went into the car was solar excess.

I need to fill up the BMW before the weekend, and it'll be a pain in the hole to do it (move EV out of driveway, drive cold BMW up to garage (so wear jacket), fill up, pay (probably about €70-€80), drive home, wash hands, put BMW back in driveway, put EV back in drive).

EV all day long.

Did the summer drive last year in an EV instead of the 2.0TDi. Enjoyed the trip a bit more than the diesel. Worked out 25% cheaper but that wasn't a factor in your question. We covered the same distances on driving days as we would have in the diesel. The car was a nicer, quieter place to be. One downside was that charging stops often were co-located off-route with mid-high range hotels rather than motorway services stops. Not ideal if you're looking to eat and get back on the road within half an hour. Destination charging at hotels tended to be hit or miss, they were often occupied when we arrived or (some) not working and hotels don't give a. I think I'd still choose the EV for a long trip over an equivalent autobahn-cruiser. But it would be a closer decision than for pottering about locally.

yeeees but of course. Green and kero mix. My shed was full of the stuff.

If I was a rich man question: Yes, although I would probably take my private jet. Last summer we drove to Finland, Estonia, Austria and all the places in between from Cherbourg and not a single time was it an issue that we had to charge once a day during the day around where lunch/dinner/shopping/sightseeing was done. We did over 8000 km on this trip.

The only inconvinience in general were locations where there were no SuperChargers like in Vilnius, but there was a 50 kW CCS unit just next to the hotel that was available, and we had to download an app to activate it. More hassle and we actually had to be mindful that the charger had to be vacated in timely fashion afterwards. Traveling with a dog any stops are good and the fact that you don't need to actively fuel but just plug in and do something else makes the EV driving on a long trip a joy.

In Summer 2022 we were in Cornwall, Feb 2022 in Scotland, Summer 2021 in Finland/Black Forest/France and the Tesla usage experience is just fab and much better than driving the smelly fuelled alternatives. Looking back longer we even took our LEAFs abroad, although they needed lots of planning. With Tesla it's just "Drive to Helsinki" with zero planning needed.

The EV performance is just so seamless and effortless, very difficult to get exited with any of the alternatives. A friend bought a low mileage S class Merc and it just feels so stodgy and slow and laggy and vibrates a lot. The new hybrid versions would be better I'm sure but still...

>I've done 300-400km drives in the BMW in a day and felt wrecked/drained afterwards

indeed possibly down to that particular cars configuration where you have a sports suspension plus a more tuned engine, and its a diesel so easily imaginable that for longer spins it could be a trudge. Ive a friend who had a Merc AMG spec car as a company car (presume a petrol as who chooses a diesel if youre not paying) and he hated it for actual proper long drives. It was nice in cities to make farty noises and impress the people you are annoying with its racket but on motorways too twitchy and suspension too harsh.

in comparison, I do long spins in the petrol 125ps focus and find it grand . I’ll actually be doing 850 km tomorrow, and 500 -ish the next day for the Christmas drive home and not dreading it in the slightest. It’s quiet even at high speeds, relatively economical, seats comfy, stereo really good, interior is spot on and even has these novel things called buttons which do things straight away when you press them.

Maybe when people give out about “noisy dirty ICE”s they really should replace the term “ice” with diesel.

IMO diesel is at it best cruising on the motorway at 130kph with the stereo on to drown out the sound of the engine, sorry kids in the back. Engine noise is not even noticeable at those speeds. I regularly do 350km stints without stopping and get out at far end surprisingly unruffled.

Im sure a decent EV is somewhat quieter and I look fwd to having an EV that has a decent range to test this out over a long unbroken journey but I honestly dont get the getting out of an ICE car wrecked thing. Its good that we're not all made from the exact same cast I suppose.

I have a 2 series, I visited the petrol station today, took me 2 or 3 minutes, no queuing, driving past it anyway, last time I stopped was 6 weeks ago much the same experience, only problem I had was trying to remember where the fuel flap was as I was nearing the station, 215 euro of petrol since June, going for 320 km drive tomorrow, I probably be ok till February, same problem again with the fuel flap.

First time I ever sat inside an EV, let alone a Tesla, was the day I went to collect my Model 3 during covid restrictions. Driving it away from Sandyford through the deserted city was one of the most surreal days of my life.

I have an EV now but when I had petrol, I never got out of the car to fill it, the attendant filled it and I paid for it all within a few mins.

i know them well

you are great craic 😁

And if there's no arrow, its the side the the hose is coming out of the pump symbol.

Why was I never told this by anybody before now? Countless last day returns of rental cars trying to spot the fuel cap in the side mirrors as I drive along.

I've been to one charging station where the App doesn't work. There's an attendant who comes over and taps his RFID card to start your charge. The quaint thing is that he then asks, "how much do you want" ? 😀 When you get to that percentage SoC, he reappears from his portacabin, taps the RFID again to stop the charge and you head over to pay by credit card or cash.

Admittedly, this charging station is co-located with a CNG station, so the attendant is there anyway for the CNG customers. But it's cute how they've persisted with the old world service model for their shiny new solar farm and chargers.