Leaf/EV as a daily for 73 miles each way commute - mental?!!
Discussion
Hi EV Collective. 
The daily 2003 Citroen Picasso hack is on it's way out. 144k on the clock and it's (literally) falling apart. Immediate thought process was a newer diesel but find myself drawn to an EV...
Hybrids seem to be out of the window as the cars in my price range (it's more the monthly lease/PCP as the driver £200 - £300pcm) as any fuel savings are offset by the petrol element of the car. Though I am more than happy to be proved wrong on this point. I was eyeing up Ampera's until I found out Vauxhall had discontinued them.
My daily commute is Weston-super-Mare to Swindon. 73 miles each way and all bar 10 miles in total are motorway. We have charge points at my offices that I can book daily, a local Waitrose with two points and there's a services charge point mid way in each direction of the commute.
I'd really appreciate any (owner's) views/experiences on whether this is just a stretch too far for the current EV tech/range. Ideally I'd like to see a range of c200 miles per charge meaning that I'd only need to charge overnight but I guess that's still a few years away yet. Sadly I don't have Tesla depth pockets.
Everybody (even a few dealers) have said "get another diesel" but I'd love to be able to hammer down my monthly fuel bill and use it to offset the cost of a newer car.
Thoughts?
Thanks in advance. Tuan
The daily 2003 Citroen Picasso hack is on it's way out. 144k on the clock and it's (literally) falling apart. Immediate thought process was a newer diesel but find myself drawn to an EV...
Hybrids seem to be out of the window as the cars in my price range (it's more the monthly lease/PCP as the driver £200 - £300pcm) as any fuel savings are offset by the petrol element of the car. Though I am more than happy to be proved wrong on this point. I was eyeing up Ampera's until I found out Vauxhall had discontinued them.
My daily commute is Weston-super-Mare to Swindon. 73 miles each way and all bar 10 miles in total are motorway. We have charge points at my offices that I can book daily, a local Waitrose with two points and there's a services charge point mid way in each direction of the commute.
I'd really appreciate any (owner's) views/experiences on whether this is just a stretch too far for the current EV tech/range. Ideally I'd like to see a range of c200 miles per charge meaning that I'd only need to charge overnight but I guess that's still a few years away yet. Sadly I don't have Tesla depth pockets.
Everybody (even a few dealers) have said "get another diesel" but I'd love to be able to hammer down my monthly fuel bill and use it to offset the cost of a newer car.
Thoughts?
Thanks in advance. Tuan
Edited by GI Jnr on Sunday 26th July 19:21
70miles + on the M ways in winter with rain/ice will not be fun in a Leaf. Wait till Nissan introduce a bigger battery (Sep this year). Even than your be relying on been able to charge at work - should be OK, but what happens if someone else at the office also plugs in?
I would wait for the first crop of used Tesla's to fall within you budget.
I would wait for the first crop of used Tesla's to fall within you budget.
Hi there,
Have a read through this: -
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
It charts my 7 days test drive earlier this year.
Top and bottom of it. No you won't be able to do a 73 mile each way commute in a Leaf. Not without huge range anxiety anyway.
If you wanted to stop and charge en route then its do-able but adds time onto your day which might not be something you are happy doing long term.
Regards
Tim
Have a read through this: -
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
It charts my 7 days test drive earlier this year.
Top and bottom of it. No you won't be able to do a 73 mile each way commute in a Leaf. Not without huge range anxiety anyway.
If you wanted to stop and charge en route then its do-able but adds time onto your day which might not be something you are happy doing long term.
Regards
Tim
I did 60 miles each way in December during my 7 day test drive.
Showed about 18-20 miles remaining when I got to work.
So you are just on the edge of the limit IMO.
Any roadworks/diversions etc.. and you will need a quick charge to get you to your destination.
Its a pity really because they are very capable cars for commuting. So relaxing to drive and very refined.
Showed about 18-20 miles remaining when I got to work.
So you are just on the edge of the limit IMO.
Any roadworks/diversions etc.. and you will need a quick charge to get you to your destination.
Its a pity really because they are very capable cars for commuting. So relaxing to drive and very refined.
It's easily doable but in the coldest winter months you will really need to moderate your speed down to 55 to 60 .
I commute 2 days a week 72 miles each way in mine. Like you all but 10 miles is motorway. Did it through the winter and at night with no issues.
Whilst it sounds slow, on the M25 I am often pleased to be going 55. More often than not it is slower than that.
I commute 2 days a week 72 miles each way in mine. Like you all but 10 miles is motorway. Did it through the winter and at night with no issues.
Whilst it sounds slow, on the M25 I am often pleased to be going 55. More often than not it is slower than that.
Hi all,
Thanks for your comments. Update for you.
We've decide to flip it on it's head - We have a Citroen Grand Picasso for when the family is all together (weekends and late evenings). It's got 40k on the clock with 9 months main dealer warranty so I'm going to use that for the daily. It's gives better economy than the current wreck and so that'll save something.
Then Mrs Tuan is going to have the EV as a local daily. 3 of the 4 kids are at school and so doesn't need a 7 seater during the week. Even with local runs the diesel bill is c£200 a month and so that saving will fund either a Leaf or Zoe. If I brave it for the commute every now and again that'll save me c£15 a day!
So next week I have both a Zoe and a Leaf for extended test drives from Wednesday to the following Tuesday so will be able to test both over a work commute, weekend with the kids as well as some Mrs Tuan usage.
Leaf is currently the favourite providing I can get to sub £200pcm all in for a 2 year lease/10k.
Happy days! Will let you know how I get on.
Tuan
Thanks for your comments. Update for you.
We've decide to flip it on it's head - We have a Citroen Grand Picasso for when the family is all together (weekends and late evenings). It's got 40k on the clock with 9 months main dealer warranty so I'm going to use that for the daily. It's gives better economy than the current wreck and so that'll save something.
Then Mrs Tuan is going to have the EV as a local daily. 3 of the 4 kids are at school and so doesn't need a 7 seater during the week. Even with local runs the diesel bill is c£200 a month and so that saving will fund either a Leaf or Zoe. If I brave it for the commute every now and again that'll save me c£15 a day!
So next week I have both a Zoe and a Leaf for extended test drives from Wednesday to the following Tuesday so will be able to test both over a work commute, weekend with the kids as well as some Mrs Tuan usage.
Leaf is currently the favourite providing I can get to sub £200pcm all in for a 2 year lease/10k.
Happy days! Will let you know how I get on.
Tuan
Hi
The leaf is a fab commuter car.
I generally drive my Leaf as fast as the road conditions permit - none of that hand-wringing environmentalist nonsense - and it will easily do 60 miles on a charge. Granted there's not much left in the tank after that but once you get to know your car's range based on how and where you drive it you should be fine. I thoroughly recommend that you use your extended test drive to properly explore just how far / fast you can drive it on a charge.
I'm sure you'll be impressed (I was: I ordered one as soon as the test drive was over!)
Good luck.
Neil
The leaf is a fab commuter car.
I generally drive my Leaf as fast as the road conditions permit - none of that hand-wringing environmentalist nonsense - and it will easily do 60 miles on a charge. Granted there's not much left in the tank after that but once you get to know your car's range based on how and where you drive it you should be fine. I thoroughly recommend that you use your extended test drive to properly explore just how far / fast you can drive it on a charge.
I'm sure you'll be impressed (I was: I ordered one as soon as the test drive was over!)
Good luck.
Neil
Hi
The leaf is a fab commuter car.
I generally drive my Leaf as fast as the road conditions permit - none of that hand-wringing environmentalist nonsense - and it will easily do 60 miles on a charge. Granted there's not much left in the tank after that but once you get to know your car's range based on how and where you drive it you should be fine. I thoroughly recommend that you use your extended test drive to properly explore just how far / fast you can drive it on a charge.
I'm sure you'll be impressed (I was: I ordered one as soon as the test drive was over!)
Good luck.
Neil
The leaf is a fab commuter car.
I generally drive my Leaf as fast as the road conditions permit - none of that hand-wringing environmentalist nonsense - and it will easily do 60 miles on a charge. Granted there's not much left in the tank after that but once you get to know your car's range based on how and where you drive it you should be fine. I thoroughly recommend that you use your extended test drive to properly explore just how far / fast you can drive it on a charge.
I'm sure you'll be impressed (I was: I ordered one as soon as the test drive was over!)
Good luck.
Neil
I think you've absolutely nailed it and I cannot for the life of my understand why more people with your driving habits (two cars, one used for regular short journeys) don't buy one.
We've covered 11k miles in 11 months in ours and the fuel savings alone are only slightly less the £180/month that my car costs. I'm on a 12k miles/year deal. Factor in the pleasure of driving a brand new car, and the sheer pleasure of using a Leaf and it really is the proverbial "no brainer".
Good luck with the car, but I warn you, once you've driven one for a while you'll really start to find conventional ICE cars rather 'old school'.
We've covered 11k miles in 11 months in ours and the fuel savings alone are only slightly less the £180/month that my car costs. I'm on a 12k miles/year deal. Factor in the pleasure of driving a brand new car, and the sheer pleasure of using a Leaf and it really is the proverbial "no brainer".
Good luck with the car, but I warn you, once you've driven one for a while you'll really start to find conventional ICE cars rather 'old school'.
budfox said:
I think you've absolutely nailed it and I cannot for the life of my understand why more people with your driving habits (two cars, one used for regular short journeys) don't buy one.
We've covered 11k miles in 11 months in ours and the fuel savings alone are only slightly less the £180/month that my car costs. I'm on a 12k miles/year deal. Factor in the pleasure of driving a brand new car, and the sheer pleasure of using a Leaf and it really is the proverbial "no brainer".
Good luck with the car, but I warn you, once you've driven one for a while you'll really start to find conventional ICE cars rather 'old school'.
We've covered 11k miles in 11 months in ours and the fuel savings alone are only slightly less the £180/month that my car costs. I'm on a 12k miles/year deal. Factor in the pleasure of driving a brand new car, and the sheer pleasure of using a Leaf and it really is the proverbial "no brainer".
Good luck with the car, but I warn you, once you've driven one for a while you'll really start to find conventional ICE cars rather 'old school'.
The more a research, the more it makes sense. TBH it's now just working out whether it's a Leaf or a Zoe. Default is the Leaf due to being bigger and but need to get the monthly cost as low as possible and definitely sub £200pcm. Looking for a 12k 24 month lease deal to future proof against tech developments.Having said that the Renault salesman called me yesterday to "formally recommend against attempting the commute in the Zoe" I think his boss told him to so there'd be no come back if I got stranded!
Collecting the Zoe tomorrow and Leaf Friday so it's going to be a fun weekend!
Thanks again all.
Tuan
GI Jnr said:
The more a research, the more it makes sense. TBH it's now just working out whether it's a Leaf or a Zoe. Default is the Leaf due to being bigger and but need to get the monthly cost as low as possible and definitely sub £200pcm. Looking for a 12k 24 month lease deal to future proof against tech developments.Having said that the Renault salesman called me yesterday to "formally recommend against attempting the commute in the Zoe" I think his boss told him to so there'd be no come back if I got stranded!
Collecting the Zoe tomorrow and Leaf Friday so it's going to be a fun weekend!
Thanks again all.
Tuan
I just come back from a stag weekend in the peak district, 68 miles there (quite a few hills towards the end) and 88 miles back home (dropped a few people off on the way home). Both times got to my destination with 10-15 miles of range left - hills are your friend/enemy depending on if your going up or down
. So in the summer providing not too big hills your commute will be fine. In winter if you slow down to drafting lorries your be fine as well. For commuting the Leaf is almost perfect, quite, relaxed (range issues aside), comfortable, and really cheap. What else could you ask for in a commuter car?? autofocus said:
Hi there,
Have a read through this: -
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
It charts my 7 days test drive earlier this year.
Top and bottom of it. No you won't be able to do a 73 mile each way commute in a Leaf. Not without huge range anxiety anyway.
If you wanted to stop and charge en route then its do-able but adds time onto your day which might not be something you are happy doing long term.
Regards
Tim
I found your blog really helpul, looking at it again I notice your 'ecnomoy' was never better than 3.7 miles per kWh. I'm currently averaging 4.7 miles per kWh, so based on a ture 20 kWh usable the max range you would have got on your runs would be 74 miles, whilst I'm getting 94 miles - 20 miles might be all the buffer the OP needs in winter. Have a read through this: -
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
It charts my 7 days test drive earlier this year.
Top and bottom of it. No you won't be able to do a 73 mile each way commute in a Leaf. Not without huge range anxiety anyway.
If you wanted to stop and charge en route then its do-able but adds time onto your day which might not be something you are happy doing long term.
Regards
Tim
Hi all,
Update on my antics for those that are interested. Collected both a Zoe and Leaf (Tekna) yesterday for the weekend and covered about 50 miles in each.
Zoe's a fun little car but you do get what you pay for when compared to the Leaf. Leaf's the frontrunner by a margin at the moment but both are brilliant entries into the EV world IMO. So we're convinced it's one of the two.
Re deals. I've been offered a Zoe (no paint, bigger wheels) for £180pcm all in and a Acenta for £200pcm. <£500 down. There's more movement I sense which is good. Both deals on 24 months/12,00 miles. If that differential stays true, then it'll be the Leaf.
Tomorrow I will be attempting the daily commute in the Leaf. I stand corrected in that it's actually 61 miles and not 73 and so I'm even more confident that it'll be ok...(!) Wish me luck!
Cliche I know but after a day messing around in these cares getting back into the 6 year old diesel, I felt a little dirty...
Tuan
Update on my antics for those that are interested. Collected both a Zoe and Leaf (Tekna) yesterday for the weekend and covered about 50 miles in each.
Zoe's a fun little car but you do get what you pay for when compared to the Leaf. Leaf's the frontrunner by a margin at the moment but both are brilliant entries into the EV world IMO. So we're convinced it's one of the two.
Re deals. I've been offered a Zoe (no paint, bigger wheels) for £180pcm all in and a Acenta for £200pcm. <£500 down. There's more movement I sense which is good. Both deals on 24 months/12,00 miles. If that differential stays true, then it'll be the Leaf.
Tomorrow I will be attempting the daily commute in the Leaf. I stand corrected in that it's actually 61 miles and not 73 and so I'm even more confident that it'll be ok...(!) Wish me luck!
Cliche I know but after a day messing around in these cares getting back into the 6 year old diesel, I felt a little dirty...
Tuan
My wife commutes 28 miles each way from Welwyn to Epping each day in our Zoe. She usually has 40 miles left, but not done it in the winter when I know it will be far less. And the 40 miles will be less in real life. She passes Potters Bar rapid if she ever needed a charge.
Thats A1/M25 and coming back on A/B roads. 6k in 7 months, fuel savings more or less cover the PCP and no bills apart from the insurance. Heater crap, air con excellent. Its fairly swift, but scrabbles to get off the line.
Not driven a Leaf so can't comment, but the EV experience of a Zoe is great.
Thats A1/M25 and coming back on A/B roads. 6k in 7 months, fuel savings more or less cover the PCP and no bills apart from the insurance. Heater crap, air con excellent. Its fairly swift, but scrabbles to get off the line.
Not driven a Leaf so can't comment, but the EV experience of a Zoe is great.
Hi all, I'll post properly when I can but currently sat at a rapid charger en route to handing back the Zoe.
What a brilliant few days with both cars!
I've seen a real world 104 miles out of both Zoe and Leaf so as a family car and/or daily hack, then it'll work for us. Granted no heating/air con or lights were used.
Two totally different cars at different price points.
We're getting one of these, just now need to secure the best deal possible. Currently have the dealers at £180pcm (Zoe Dynamite) and £200pcm (Leaf Acenta). 24 months 12k pa with minimal deposit. I'm thinking the Leaf pips it... The though of buying both crossed my mind!
the household diesel savings would pay for themselves!
Tuan
What a brilliant few days with both cars!
I've seen a real world 104 miles out of both Zoe and Leaf so as a family car and/or daily hack, then it'll work for us. Granted no heating/air con or lights were used.
Two totally different cars at different price points.
We're getting one of these, just now need to secure the best deal possible. Currently have the dealers at £180pcm (Zoe Dynamite) and £200pcm (Leaf Acenta). 24 months 12k pa with minimal deposit. I'm thinking the Leaf pips it... The though of buying both crossed my mind!
the household diesel savings would pay for themselves! Tuan
I took our Leaf off on an (unplanned) day out in Sheffield yesterday from Teesside. Was only going as far as Ferrybridge (66) miles to collect my son but a traffic enforced change of plan saw me have to dodge round the worst traffic I've ever seen (just pretend there is no A1...), pick him up from Rotherham then off to food and a film in Sheffield.
I banged up my right knee a few weeks back and my manual car is literally a pain, so car swapped with my wife into her Leaf. Rapid charges at Ferrybridge Meadowhall and Wetherby with no issues and no range anxiety or even much thinking about it. Once you have one you know how far it will go, how to extend that (slow down!) and where the chargers are. 200 stress free pain free and as importantly cash free miles. And if the worst happens and you do get stuck in traffic, an EV is the best way to do it.
Your Weston to Swindon commute, with backup options of charge at the office or on the M4? Never mind that the Leaf is ludicrously relaxing with comfy seats, never mind the will I make it question because you will and if you don't you can just plug in briefly, what should sell it is that the car will be paid for by all that diseasel you're no longer burning.
I banged up my right knee a few weeks back and my manual car is literally a pain, so car swapped with my wife into her Leaf. Rapid charges at Ferrybridge Meadowhall and Wetherby with no issues and no range anxiety or even much thinking about it. Once you have one you know how far it will go, how to extend that (slow down!) and where the chargers are. 200 stress free pain free and as importantly cash free miles. And if the worst happens and you do get stuck in traffic, an EV is the best way to do it.
Your Weston to Swindon commute, with backup options of charge at the office or on the M4? Never mind that the Leaf is ludicrously relaxing with comfy seats, never mind the will I make it question because you will and if you don't you can just plug in briefly, what should sell it is that the car will be paid for by all that diseasel you're no longer burning.
We're regularly doing Wellington in Somerset to Bristol now. Must admit I drive pretty slowly but when we reach Sedgemoor services there's about 80 miles of range left at 75% charge. I whack it on one of the two rapid chargers to take me to 85%/90 miles-ish which is then easily enough to get me there and back.
Should there be a problem with both of those chargers then I have two at Gordano to use and if they're not working either still plenty of charge to reach both Sedgemoor southbound and Bridgwater southbound on my return.
These Ecotricity chargers are now VERY reliable. Haven't know any of the 11 I use to be out of action in the past 3-4 months and I've never yet had to wait. Only at Exeter services have I seen another Leaf charging. (I'd still like to see real time info on their map though).
The other thing I love is that Sedgemoor northbound gets very busy at weekends during this time of the year. ICE users have to go to overflow car parks, but us EV types get to use one of four spaces directly outside the main building. Hell, they even painted black over the wheelchair icons when they put the EV graphics on the road... (Plenty of disabled spaces left though).
Should there be a problem with both of those chargers then I have two at Gordano to use and if they're not working either still plenty of charge to reach both Sedgemoor southbound and Bridgwater southbound on my return.
These Ecotricity chargers are now VERY reliable. Haven't know any of the 11 I use to be out of action in the past 3-4 months and I've never yet had to wait. Only at Exeter services have I seen another Leaf charging. (I'd still like to see real time info on their map though).
The other thing I love is that Sedgemoor northbound gets very busy at weekends during this time of the year. ICE users have to go to overflow car parks, but us EV types get to use one of four spaces directly outside the main building. Hell, they even painted black over the wheelchair icons when they put the EV graphics on the road... (Plenty of disabled spaces left though).
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