Wow, what an extended discussion!
I think electric cars are it, but, I have never bought a new car and paying more than £25k for an electric car is simply impossible. So it is secondhand ones for me. Has anyone bought a secondhand EV? Other than from a main dealer, what was the experience like? What do you get for £3k, about what I can afford. For that in the UK you can buy a 10 year old car, possibly 70k miles, and if looked after will do another 10-15 years.
Other thoughts on EV.
On a hybrid, does anyone get problems with the unleaded fuel turning to glue after a time? It is said to be a problem but I haven't really faced it even with petrol generators not being used for months.
If you leave an EV for extended periods of time, does the battery discharge? Like your mobile phone, even with it off it needs charging every few days, not like my lamented Nokia 3310.
We have recently had a spate of bitterly cold, for the UK, weather. How much has the range dropped simply to run the 4-5kW of heating needed?
I am surprised that no one seems to have had problems with 10kg of copper charge cables disappearing over night. That is £40 of any ones money, and a whizz around the housing estate should turn up several cables. Good little earner.
What is the reality of towing, say, a 1 to 1.5 tonne trailer? A caravan is that weight but the air resistance is far larger than a simple platform trailer.
Whilst EVs have regererative braking, meaning the footbrake isn't used as much. What about the hydraulics simply seizing up? In winter with the salt is it possible for the brakes to simply stop working without being noticed?
Sounds liike someone has filled your brain with BS about electric cars.
Let’s set the record straight for you.
Most people are not buying electric cars here in the US, they are leasing them for 3 years. Why? Cars today are like cellphones. Inprovements in technology and battery efficiency makes buying an electric car a bad idea. In 3 years the the technology will have improved and like a 3 year old cell phone who want’s it?
Another reason is safety features. Car safety improves with time. In the US something like 40,000 - 50,000 die each year in automobile accidents. You are more likely to die in an older car than a new one.
Then we have to talk about battery life. The batteries in cars have a guaranteed 10 year life; but they do wear over time. Cost to replace the batteries can be more than the car is worth. So if one buys a 3 year old EV the batteries will have 30% or more wear on them.
Here in the US a lease payment is the same or less than a finance payment so it makes much more sense to lease than to buy. If you really want a EV cas coming off lease are abundant and very affordable.
EV batteries do discharge over time, but no much. We left our EV with 85% charge for 1.5 months while on vacation/holiday, When we returned it had 85% charge.
It doesn’t get cold enough where I am for heat, but a post from someone in Canada where it gets cold said he looses about 10% battery range in the cold. But if you have a hybrid you have a gas engine so realistily you buy a tank of petro a few miles sooner.
Gas in EVs which is the same gas used in ICE is the same. It takes yers for it to go rancid. With the type of driving we do we buy a tank of gas every two to three months. I know of some EV drivers who purchase a tank once or twice a year. Maybe where you are the quality of petro is poor. So every few months drive the car using the engine.
Can you tow a trailer? Yup. But why? Here in the US if one has a trailer or has more passengers we just rent a larger ICE car for the job. I’ts very affordable. If you tow a trailer every day/week an EV is the wrong tool for you.
Maybe you are made of money and don’t mind spending lots of money on cars. I’m the opposite. The amount off money one saves in fuel and maintenance with an EV is a lot compared to an ICE. In one year we have saved thousands of dollars in not having to purchase as much petro. Yes we are buying more electrity, but where we live and pay for electricity we can travel 4 or 5 miles on electricity where we could only travel one mile for the cost of petro. And then add to the savings we don’t have to pay for all of added maintain expenses an ICE costs.
All EVs have two breaking systems. The regenerative and a breaking system like on any other car. You will find with an EC car more of the undercarriage is protected from the elements unlike an ICE. With ICE being more exposed to the elements and the salt one has to spend more money to maintain them.
All depends if you wan to spend more money on an ICE or less on an EV? An EV might not be a good filt for your needs. But for many of us who own EVs the money savings and the performance of an EV we will ever buy an ICE car again.