Now that the greens did well in recent elections Leo and his cronies are coming out with their ‘plans’ for cars in future. A mate has an electric car for commuting in and out of work. Has a fast charging spot at home and at work so ideal. However if he is going anywhere long distance he still has his older diesel and it’s not Viable to go to the likes of Donegal or Cork. You are hoping that a fast charging point will be available on the way. Also once electric cars become mainstream the government is going to lose some amount of revenue. Good article here https://m.independent.ie/life/motor...ning-an-electric-car-in-ireland-38232685.html
Its depends. The new Kona is long distance. Around 500-600km. In 2/3 years the market will be flooded with Electric cars. VW just launched 5 new electric cars in the Paris Motor show.
The new Renault Zoe that's being released in September will be 1 of the best cars on the road for around 25k. I have my EV the last 18 months wont be going back to petrol anytime soon. You can get a government grant of €600 to get a home charger
Even been caught out running out of juice. Did hear today about a self charging car. Now that would be next level
No never ran out of range. I went to newcastle to buy it and had to get back to holyhead and was down to the last 5km and just made it to a service station on the A55 at Bangor.
I love the idea of the electric car and the performance is quite impressive, long term maintenance costs with no gears or clutch will reduce to next to zero as long as the car is looked after. At the moment they're still awaiting the breakout moment when it stops being considered a bit of a hassle when someone finds a way to get the range over the 500k mark at a reasonable price. Charge times and battery power will probably develop at a ferocious pace over the next few years with the amount of money being pumped in from all sides now that it's becoming a big share of the market. My problem at the moment is precisely that though, early adopters now and going to be the ones that push the industry on but you're getting hit with a huge premium at the moment for that. I think we're close to a tipping point right now and the next 5 years should see a huge change in the infrastructure available for electric cars and their overall performance.
I got a new car this year and electric wasn't on my radar at all for the reasons mentioned already. When I'm next buying I'd hope it's swung the other way. At the minute the only few people I know with electric cars are (bar Beano...) the wanker type. One lad in the estate with his giant electric charger out the front is defo a wanker
Agree with a lot of what are saying here. I'm spending nearly €320 a month on diesel, commuting from Carlow to Dublin - looked at changing earlier this year & could get a fully electric Golf for the same price I am currently paying on fuel, not taking into consideration cheaper tax, cheaper insurance & a few hundred euros to BMW service every fucking 12 months. There is a free fast charge on the edge of town, but I don't think the infrastructure is going to support free charges forever - too much of a leap for me at the moment. One thing as well that an electric does is change your driving style, the drag at 100km is a different animal to 120km and can greatly reduce your range - all of a sudden getting in front at the lights doesn't really matter.
You could get the grant to pay to install a point at your house. Think it only costs you €400. Most people charge their cars overnight.
Jaysus that’s a hell of a deal. First thing I do when I go home is plug the phone in the charger. Is it really any less convenient to plug in the car if you are home for the evening? Personally speaking I think the argument is always swayed to suit the individuals narrative. If I just bought a 2019 diesel I’m going to explain to you why electric cars are shit.
If you live in a house with a charge point right outside your front door then it is reasonably handy. If you live in an apartment it gets tricky, potentially impossible, if you live in a house with only on street parking it might be a huge issue. My phone charges in 25 minutes and lasts for nearly 2 days, if they can get a car that charges in that kind of time then I'd agree with you the narrative will shift very quickly.
Depends on your apartment Ed - most local authorities are now adding conditions to new planning permission to rough in conduit in basements for electric car plug-ins, contractors generally speaking won't take the capital costs of installing the charge point, but at least the option of putting in your own in there in the future is there. Obviously for an existing apartment same rules don't apply. Street parking is a tough one.
Once the car is out of warenty, sod that, go to a decent well regarded non-BMW garage mate, there's a few of them around with good BMW trained lads working in them, and they are about half the price of the main dealers. Have a look at one of the BMW forums for further info
Getting back to Electric Cars, I like the idea but for reasons already mentioned, I think I'd go for a hybrid next to ensure I could get fuel relatively easy over longer journeys etc. Some of the attractions to electric cars are great, but then there's the really annoying things like some fuker parking in one of the free charging points for the entire day while at work and preventing anyone else from getting to use it etc.
You wont have choice by 2030, as it stands no petrol or diesel cars will be sold in ireland past that point. I would recommend keeping an eye on that particularly if your trying to move on your car around that time, it will be considerably devalued.
In reality it's a personal choice depending on your home location/type, commute type and disposable income. Right now it's ROI works for some, others it doesn't make sense. As the infrastructure and range increase the decision to switch will be easier for most. I had a 06 clio, paid for owed me nothing, when I ran the numbers, free charge in work, reduced tolls, reduced insurance, reduced road tax, reduced maintenance it was a no brainer.
It will be for many mate, I think it's a smart move for anyone city based with a reasonable commute! I bought a Passat in the UK last August as I needed a bigger car with a babba on the way and I reckon when I trade that in I'll look to go electric. Imagine a city centre without petrol or diesel cars, it would make an unimaginable difference in air quality. In the last two years the cars have come on leaps and bounds and I expect the next 5 years to bring about exponential change in the performance of the cars and the infrastructure available. I like to think of myself as conscientious so I would like to drive a car as environmentally sound as I can but I'm still just a few years off biting yet!
It will be mandatory for new electric cars to be fitted with a noise device to alert other road users of the cars presence. "The AVAS (acoustic vehicle alert system) must be activated when a vehicle is reversing or travelling below 12mph, but the driver will have the power to deactivate it if judged necessary." Is that a typo? What's the point of allowing drivers to turn it off when travelling above 12mph? If I'm a pedestrian or cyclist, I want to be know a car is there when it's doing 60 or 40 or even 25. THAT'S when you don't want to get hit by a fucking car. I'll take my chances when it's reversing or doing 5pmh.