Simplysimon Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 Just now, ProDave said: Just another automatic car. that was my take, however, i can drive in comfort for 5-600 miles without a break and arrive just as refreshed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 37 minutes ago, AliG said: Everyone has a different thought process, but this seems a bit odd. Why would you base your decision on two trips/four charging stops a year. That is literally four hours a year. I suspect that you would soon get used to it. Everyone is different, I worked in London for 19 years and have never once driven there, too stressful for my liking. You are missing my point. With an ICE car I know it will do any journey I want, short or long (with quick refuel stops every 350 miles) with or without passengers and luggage, and with or without some form of trailer on the hook. Now I make a big thing of the towing. Perhaps If I changed our lifestyle, sold the caravan and chose a different form of holiday, then I might, just might be able to accept the other limitations of an EV. But why should I have to limit what I can do with a car? IF that is really the end game, I would like to hear a politician stand up and say "sorry you are all going to have to change to an EV AND with that you are going to have to accept some major reduction in your expectations of what a vehicle can do" So I am going to be a stick in the mud and keep an ICE as long as I can. It may well be that ICE does not do many miles but it will be essential. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 15 minutes ago, ProDave said: So I am going to be a stick in the mud and keep an ICE as long as I can. +1 👍, might be a old classic diesel, no road tax, no MOT, make my own fuel from cooking oil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onoff Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 6 minutes ago, joe90 said: +1 👍, might be a old classic diesel, no road tax, no MOT, make my own fuel from cooking oil. Maybe not Ukrainian sunflower oil... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 4 hours ago, Kelvin said: It’s not been my experience at all. And you ought to stop regardless of the car. We arrive at the end of long journeys feeling much less tired that we ever did driving any other car. It’s hard to explain but I am sure it’s a combination of a few quickish stops (the I5 charges very quickly) and the ease of driving an EV. Don't get me wrong I do stop, but I can stop at a farm shop or similar where there are no charging points, or fuel points and get a decent meal also. 1 hour ago, AliG said: Everyone has a different thought process, but this seems a bit odd. Why would you base your decision on two trips/four charging stops a year. That is literally four hours a year. I suspect that you would soon get used to it. Literally 4 charging stops, assuming where you want to stop is working, then you are looking for a charge point, obviously no range anxiety going on. Then you need a fast charger, otherwise you are stuck there for a couple of hours. Why bother. When they sort the battery tech out and the charging infrastructure I will be first in line, but not till then. Current situation, no forward planning required. Jump in car, fill up at first filling station, 10 mins, drive as far as I want, stop for a coffee and bite to eat, go again, repeat, if I want. Automatic everything in the car, 500+ mile range at any speed I feel like going at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onoff Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 EVs don't go VRUM, VRUM, VRUM and make your willy feel funny... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelvin Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 I knew my comment would elicit such a response. 😂 It’s not like driving an ICE car or even an automatic. It’s something you come to realise after spending some time driving one. There are a few reasons. The acceleration is seamless and silky smooth as it’s not changing gears and instant with a huge amount of torque (mine has 605Nm) and more or less constant so makes overtaking etc a breeze. They are very quiet with just tyre noise mainly. You can hear the light whine of the motor but only under hard acceleration. Plus there’s the braking regeneration when you lift off the throttle. It’s quite configurable in mine so you can drive without braking or put it into one pedal mode where it will brake to a stop although I only ever use that in town. Mine has all the self-drive stuff but I rarely use it. The smart cruise control is pretty good on the motorway although obviously ICE cars have that too. The one feature I do use occasionally that I thought was just a gimmick but is surprisingly useful is the remote driving. I can move it back and forth from outside the car just using the keyfob. I occasionally use a friend’s garage in Edinburgh but it’s too narrow to open the door to get out once in it. However, I can park in front of the garage, get out and reverse it in remotely. It’s also surprisingly nimble and fast for such a heavy car. The batteries are in the floor so the CoG is low so it hides its mass well. It has a lot of other nice features such as being able to have it automatically heat the car for you in the morning. I know this is an option on some higher end cars but it’s not a common feature. Add in the ability to charge it at home and also utilise PV if you have it. The one area that an EV can’t compete with a big diesel is towing. Mine can tow a caravan but it hammers the range. The charging station design also doesn’t lend itself to towing either as they aren’t drive through like a forecourt meaning you’d have to unhitch etc which is a big pia. I’ve owned a great many cars from nearly every brand. The EV is the best all round car I’ve ever owned and I do feel fresher at the end of a long journey of several hours compared to any other car I’ve owned. My other half says the same and I’ve heard other folk say the same thing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilT Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 Does anyone have the Octopus outgoing fixed 7.5p SEG with their PVs and if so is the import variable rate available at the current 28 - 29p ish or does it have to be linked to a previously set fixed import rate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 8 hours ago, Onoff said: EVs don't go VRUM, VRUM, VRUM and make your willy feel funny... You as well. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miek Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 9 hours ago, Kelvin said: The charging station design also doesn’t lend itself to towing either as they aren’t drive through like a forecourt meaning you’d have to unhitch etc which is a big pia. I hadn't thought about this, but your right. That will need to be changed to enable trailer charging if more folk are to be persuaded. I saw a model 3 towing a twin axle touring caravan last week in the south wales valleys. I wonder what their range was? Not a lot I imagine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelvin Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 It probably reduces range by 50% or more towing a caravan. My EV can tow 1600kgs and has a towing mode to cope with sway, how it applies power and regen and switches off most of ‘smart’ driver aids. However we never bothered with getting the tow hitch fitted. We have a big unbraked trailer that the Jimny can tow as long as we don’t max the weight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger440 Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 10 hours ago, joe90 said: +1 👍, might be a old classic diesel, no road tax, no MOT, make my own fuel from cooking oil. Whilst not MOT exempt, my maestro diesel van (perkins FTW) might be seeing more action. does over 60MPG. Or will do again just as soon as i get the injection pump swapped out for my shiny new one. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 22 minutes ago, Roger440 said: does over 60MPG. Or will do again just as soon as i get the injection pump swapped out for my shiny new one. I found the air filter had the biggest influence on fuel economy. 10k miles and it drops 10‰ at least. Regular oil changes as well. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelvin Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 11 hours ago, Onoff said: EVs don't go VRUM, VRUM, VRUM and make your willy feel funny... Yes there’s nothing quite like the clatter of a diesel engine. 😂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 53 minutes ago, Kelvin said: Yes there’s nothing quite like the clatter of a diesel engine. 😂 2 strokes always sound as if something is broken and flapping about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger440 Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 1 hour ago, Kelvin said: Yes there’s nothing quite like the clatter of a diesel engine. 😂 Especially a Perkins Prima unit on single stage injectors Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrerahill Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 3 hours ago, Miek said: I hadn't thought about this, but your right. That will need to be changed to enable trailer charging if more folk are to be persuaded. I saw a model 3 towing a twin axle touring caravan last week in the south wales valleys. I wonder what their range was? Not a lot I imagine Maybe the caravan had a 10kVA diesel genset in the back! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdinand Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 15 hours ago, ProDave said: You are missing my point. With an ICE car I know it will do any journey I want, short or long (with quick refuel stops every 350 miles) with or without passengers and luggage, and with or without some form of trailer on the hook. Now I make a big thing of the towing. Perhaps If I changed our lifestyle, sold the caravan and chose a different form of holiday, then I might, just might be able to accept the other limitations of an EV. But why should I have to limit what I can do with a car? IF that is really the end game, I would like to hear a politician stand up and say "sorry you are all going to have to change to an EV AND with that you are going to have to accept some major reduction in your expectations of what a vehicle can do" So I am going to be a stick in the mud and keep an ICE as long as I can. It may well be that ICE does not do many miles but it will be essential. You clearly ned a Winnebago. That would be fun in the remote northern parts of Caledonia 🙂 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronski Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 I have a 4kw system installed in 2015, which has pretty much paid for itself, although if you take FITS out of the equation it will have a long time to go, although with current prices it'll be a lot sooner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pocster Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliG Posted September 2, 2022 Share Posted September 2, 2022 Decided, although it will take a while to pay for itself, to order an Eddi and Harvi. Doing a small bit to reduce carbon intensity/gas demand. I have been experimenting with using the immersion to heat hot water during the night on Octopus and then only running the boiler for hot water once a day. I reckon this saves between 5 and 10kWh a day. The plant room is considerably cooler, backing up my theory that's on top of the efficiency of the boiler a material amount of heat is lost in the pipework between the boiler and tank. Thus when people compare the efficiency of the immersion to using the gas boiler, there are other benefits including not losing heat in the pipework and not using electricity to run the boiler and pumps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
severnside Posted September 2, 2022 Share Posted September 2, 2022 I have found Eddi to be redundant after installing the battery. It's better to use battery to store excess in trickle mode. I now heat hot water using timer during mid day, if solar is not sufficient then it draws from battery. I could use similar argument for Zappi as well but it's similar price to any other car charger and cars generally need lot more energy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliG Posted September 2, 2022 Share Posted September 2, 2022 We only export around 25% of the electricity we generate so for us a battery would never pay for itself, we also use around 50kWh a day and I am managing to get around 60% of that at the cheap Octopus rate. Octopus Go/Intelligent has a considerable effect on the ROI for many energy saving devices. I am paying for the Eddi with the saving of using cheap overnight electricity to replace currently expensive gas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted September 2, 2022 Share Posted September 2, 2022 1 minute ago, AliG said: cheap Octopus rate What are you (and everyone else) going to do when this 'too good to be true deal ends? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted September 2, 2022 Share Posted September 2, 2022 10 minutes ago, AliG said: We only export around 25% of the electricity we generate so for us a battery would never pay for itself, we also use around 50kWh a day and I am managing to get around 60% of that at the cheap Octopus rate. How do you manage to use 50kWh a day of electricity with a gas boiler. And export 25% of electricity generated. We're averaged around 9kWh of electricity and 2kWh of gas over the last month, we are home 24/7. With 3.1kW PV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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