Pro's and con's for buying an electric vehicle
Comments
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That's where the hold their value "better" is more salesperson talk than what it will actually be as I posted on another thread, if I was going to purchase a used EV,I think the first thing I would require is a new battery pack,especially if it was at 3yrs old at the end of the lease period
Ps just as an aside we have behind us as a tow car a Mitsubishi Hibrid,have not yet spoken to driver
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Personally if I was proposing to use it like you are next winter, I would not be satisfied with that. The salesman has told you the truth, it does come with fast and slow, but does it come with the new super fast 22kW version, or the older slower (also fast charge type)
Apart from affecting its resale value, it could mean the difference between 20 mins for a quick top up, or over an hour.
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22 KW is a lot of power. Nearly 92 amperes it is. Across three phases it is still over 30 ampers per phase. Even if a domestic premise has a three phase supply, would the wiring be able to support the load? "Dedicated spur for charging" could mean having to dig up the road and make a new tap into the distribution cable, and that is if the power supply company will allow it!
Of course, one could turn off all the electrics in the house to reduce the load on the wiring - but not so easy to run domestic fridges on gas as it is in a caravan.
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I originally found it mentioned in an online motoring mag, which I can't relocate. It stated they were being fitted in 2018 models.
The Smart.com site also mentions it see LINK 1 hour charging. It actually says it's an option, although the mag artical did not mention that. Either way it would be a very useful,option.
Yes it is 3 phase and it implies that many of the public charging stations have this facility.
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Could not find any info on charger outputs on the ecotricity site. Well not without going further into it than I wanted. However the zap map sites says there are four charger types. See the photo below.
I assume the one the Smart with the high capacity charge could make use of is the fast at 7 - 22kW. However there is a rapid above this at 43 - 50kW. The mind boggles at that sort of charging capacity.😖
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I think it might be just when the dealer is open. I might have to go elsewhere if it's late at night or on a Sunday. If no charging is available at such times, I might have to use the diesel powered Shogun to get back to Gatwick in the winter.
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That's not what the salesman told me. He said it was guaranteed for 8 years. He didn't say anything about 52,000 miles.
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The home address in Worthing is only 6 miles from Lancing, EasyT, so if the battery is low when I finish my shift and no charging available or only slow charge, I can simply drive the Smart to the house address and swap over to the diesel Shogun for the journey back to Gatwick. Then next day, during dealer opening times, I can swap over again to take the Smart to the dealer for charging.
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Surely, going elsewhere will mean you'll have to pay for using a different charging point? It won't be "free", will it?
Using the Shogun will also add to your overall outgoings too?
Maybe you would have been better off going for a hybrid instead of a fully electric, although it's too late now, I presume?
Perhaps you should ask your dealer about when the charging points would be available to you?
I appreciate that all this is a way off yet but you might want to check with the dealer as to when they are open, just so you know beforehand?
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In order to address pollution levels, the greatest need for EV is in areas of high density occupancy. Supplying charging points to multi-occupancy premises is going to be challenging, to say the least. Never mind uneven pavements, tripping over all those extension leads trailing all over the place will be tricky.
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Yes, they may charge at some charging points but the cost will be a lot less than buying petrol especially as this will only happen occasionally. Most of the charging will be done either at the dealership or through our own outfit.
Yes, it will still cost me money to buy diesel for the Shogun but again it will be a reduced amount of usage only on those occasions where there is no other option. Getting back from work to the Worthing club site should not require any additional battery charge.
I don't think Smart do hybrids, so it will have to be all electric.
Yes, I'll check with the dealer about charging times available when I get delivery of it. One month has gone since the order was placed so only two to five months to go now.
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Good idea, better to be aware of any charging issues beforehand. Some might say that you should have asked before buying one!
There are other makes besides Smart cars, I suppose?
I don't know if you did a lot of research before making your choice?
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The '52,000 miles' is from the Mercedes website for the Smart EV. It is actually given as 62,500 miles. Did I mistype?
'Battery warranty.
Up to 8 years or 62,500 miles. Please refer to the service booklet for precise conditions (battery certificate)'0 -
Even 62,500 miles is only going 10 miles a day and coming back over the eight years. It seems a very small assumption compared to real usage, even for a denizen of the inner city, but fits in well with the figures for operational range per charge
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Well our second car probably does around 2,000 miles a year over the last 5 years. (no idea why our mileage was twice that for the few years prior). Last year was around 1,500 miles for the second car.
Definitely not EV material as the additional premium on purchase cost would buy enough fuel for my lifetime.
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It depends where you live.
If you live in a large city, it is common sense to use an EV------To continue to use a vehicle which runs on fossil fuels is selfish, head in the sand, and contributes to deaths and illnesses among others. Whereas if you live in the countryside, fossil fueled vehicles do not cause any problems, and due to rural journey distances, are much more user friendly
K
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It depends in part on where you live. A terraced property without parking might not be ideal unless able to charge conveniently elsewhere such as at work etc.
Beyond that is your annual mileage as with our second car or your daily mileage.
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That's another reason why I prefer not to buy or rent property. With the caravan, all I have to do is park next to the van and plug into it. So the Smart Electric is ideal for my circumstances!
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We are high mileage with our EV and living out in the sticks makes no difference, but then our car has a big battery and can cope. I would only consider a small powered EV for town use, which is their intended purpose, short journeys only.
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Even an EV with a greater range, isn't likely to be suitable for a family, who may also want it to go on holiday. Which for us to Scotland and Cornwall is over 300 miles. Or perhaps to visit family members at the other end of the country.
OK for those who can afford to run two cars, but not if it is your only vehicle. Until these charging points get a little more prolific, on a run to Scotland you could find yourself waiting in line for a charge.
I am sure the time will come, when the above concerns are no longer relevant but it is likely to be quite a few years in the future.
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When I was working an EV with a range of say 180 miles and room to carry levels, theodolites, staff, maybe some roll up road signs might have suited with a second car for towing except I suppose OH would not want to drive the larger car.
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