2 car garage ICE & BEV or 1 PHEV only

[AR_pf0708]

Guess what, my fellow garage dwellers! My neighbours have finally seen the light and given the green light to install some basic charging infrastructure and charging management for car wallboxes in our shared underground garage.

And hold onto your seats because now I'm seriously considering getting a plug-in hybrid or a battery electric vehicle of my own. I will sell my vintage 911 in the coming months due to a lack of time for maintenance, lack of time to drive (& enjoy it) and changing interests. Priorities can shift and it may be better to sell it to someone who will truly appreciate and enjoy it.

Possibility 1:
Buy a Tesla Model 3 LR (used), use it for the daily stuff and keep the old A6 Allroad for longer journeys and / or if a big trunk is needed.

• Pros: Two cars available all the time, both practical and excellent for daily use. Tesla is the way to go if going BEV for me. Dog mode is awesome. The tech it comes with is quite to my liking. I like how it looks (compared to Y / X). Overall depreciation (in about 3 years) will be lower than in Possibility 2.

• Cons: Tesla Model 3 is not very well in terms of ground clearance for our daily adventures to the countryside / forests. Tesla is not well-known for ride comfort. Running costs higher than in Possibility 2. Both cars are similar / pretty good but not really exciting in the ways a sportscar / roadster would be.

Possibility 2:
Buy a BMW X5 45e PHEV and create pretty complete 1-car-garage. Sell the Audi.

• Pros: Less space needed, X5 would be off the bucket-list, super comfortable ride. Offroad capable, tons of space. Would have space if the itch for a sportscar comes up again.

• Cons: Depreciation, taller and less dynamic than both cars above, could feel boring with just one car. Probably more expensive to buy and run, due to higher costs of maintenance.

My driving profile usually consists of 90% (multiple) short sub-15 miles journeys per day, so in general about 150-200 miles / week. 10% longer drives, 90% short drives. So it would fit the PHEV profile as well. Daily mild offroad / washed-out & muddy field tracks. AWD is a must, dog friendliness as well..

Edited by AR_pf0708 on Tuesday 4th April 02:28

[nd0000]

Have to say, your option 1 doesn't seem to make sense to me. Tesla 3 is a saloon so the dog would have to ride on the seats. I'd say if you're keeping the A6 for longer journeys then a better match for your usage would be a small hatchback EV like a i3 or MG4. Wanting 4x4 reduces choice to be fair.

Edited by nd0000 on Tuesday 4th April 06:49

[AR_pf0708]

nd0000 said:

Tesla 3 is a saloon so the dog would have to ride on the seats.

Edited by nd0000 on Tuesday 4th April 06:49

Indeed, nothing wrong about this - we use a shock-absorbing elastic leash extension equipped with a car seat belt buckle to make sure she is not flying all over the place in harsh manouvers and obviously some pet liner - interestingly provided by Tesla customized for the Model 3: Product: Model 3 Pet Liner

[cerb4.5lee]

In your position I wouldn't do anything and I'd stick with what you already have. I wasn't all that impressed with the X5 45e when I drove one(it felt very heavy and not all that quick), plus the idea of a Tesla to me shouts that you've given up on life completely(it will be as boring as hell overall).

[LankyFreak]

AR_pf0708 said:

Possibility 1:
Buy a Tesla Model 3 LR (used), use it for the daily stuff and keep the old A6 Allroad for longer journeys and / or if a big trunk is needed.

• Pros: Two cars available all the time, both practical and excellent for daily use. Tesla is the way to go if going BEV for me. Dog mode is awesome. The tech it comes with is quite to my liking. I like how it looks (compared to Y / X). Overall depreciation (in about 3 years) will be lower than in Possibility 2.

• Cons: Tesla Model 3 is not very well in terms of ground clearance for our daily adventures to the countryside / forests. Tesla is not well-known for ride comfort. Running costs higher than in Possibility 2. Both cars are similar / pretty good but not really exciting in the ways a sportscar / roadster would be. Have to buy a car from the Elongated Muskrat

Edited by AR_pf0708 on Tuesday 4th April 02:28

[fflump]

We have similar journey profile to you. No dog but 3 teenagers. The Cayenne PHEV does it all very well indeed so the X5 would be my suggestion. Having previously had a 330d plus Maserati 4200 I don’t find one car too dull as the Cayenne is a totally different experience in ICE vs Battery power delivery.
It also means I can browse PH classifieds at leisure planning my next toy purchase.

[raspy]

What a strange post. Your daily trips are short drives in muddy fields/off road, yet you are saying the con of the X5 would be it's less dynamic than the Tesla Model 3.

How dynamic are you driving in muddy fields? Are you racing along like it's a rally or something? From everything you've written, a SUV with air suspension (electrified or not) sounds most suitable for your driving needs.

[AR_pf0708]

raspy said:

What a strange post. Your daily trips are short drives in muddy fields/off road, yet you are saying the con of the X5 would be it's less dynamic than the Tesla Model 3.

How dynamic are you driving in muddy fields? Are you racing along like it's a rally or something? From everything you've written, a SUV with air suspension (electrified or not) sounds most suitable for your driving needs.

Good point made! These 90% consist of 60% small Swiss country roads (comparable to the ones in the UK), where you would need to overtake a tractor or other weird and slow obstacles (MB B-Class, old A-Classes, Merivas, Golf Plus), so power to overtake & vehicle width is a point to consider as well as 40% on a small highway that has been flagged as a no overtaking zone after some horrible accidents recently.

[raspy]

AR_pf0708 said:

Good point made! These 90% consist of 60% small Swiss country roads (comparable to the ones in the UK), where you would need to overtake a tractor or other weird and slow obstacles (MB B-Class, old A-Classes, Merivas, Golf Plus), so power to overtake & vehicle width is a point to consider as well as 40% on a small highway that has been flagged as a no overtaking zone after some horrible accidents recently.

Got it. If width is an issue on small country roads, then the X5 (or any big fat SUV) doesn't sound practical. Maybe a Model Y (it's still rapid for overtaking, isn't as wide as a big fat SUV, and has lots of space inside including the boot) or some other kind of electrified medium sized crossover/SUV?

[georgeyboy12345]

How about this alternative strategy

Tesla Model S 75D as your daily and for ferrying your dog about (hatchback, AWD)
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302023...


Then something a bit more fun to drive while hopefully being less hassle than a vintage 911

Honda S2000
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202210050...


Lotus Elise 135R
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304035...


Toyota MR2
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303105...


Mazda MX-5
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304025...


Porsche Boxster S
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302184...

[Fastlane]

cerb4.5lee said:

plus the idea of a Tesla to me shouts that you've given up on life completely(it will be as boring as hell overall).

Says someone who drives a large diesel SUV...

[kiethton]

We have a X5 45e, all the car you'll ever need.

We get ~30 miles from a charge over winter and just over 40 miles in summer - we used 1 tank of petrol in 3.5k miles, the rest was on electric so is perfect for the day-day (although the boot isn't the biggest for the type of car!)

[cerb4.5lee]

Fastlane said:

cerb4.5lee said:

plus the idea of a Tesla to me shouts that you've given up on life completely(it will be as boring as hell overall).

Says someone who drives a large diesel SUV...

A very fair point!

It definitely helps if you also have other more interesting cars to offset the boring ones though I reckon. I certainly wouldn't want the diesel SUV as my only car that is for sure, in the same way that I wouldn't want a Tesla as my only car either. Life is too short to only drive boring cars I think.

[AyBee]

cerb4.5lee said:

In your position I wouldn't do anything and I'd stick with what you already have. I wasn't all that impressed with the X5 45e when I drove one(it felt very heavy and not all that quick), plus the idea of a Tesla to me shouts that you've given up on life completely(it will be as boring as hell overall).

Isn't the purpose of a daily the majority of the time to be boring? Park it where you like, cheap to run, blend in, ferry the family around in, do the school run, etc. I got fed up of the 25mpg around town in my current car so have just ordered a Tesla Y. I'll then add a fun weekend car (probably a 997) in due course.

[cerb4.5lee]

AyBee said:

Isn't the purpose of a daily the majority of the time to be boring? Park it where you like, cheap to run, blend in, ferry the family around in, do the school run, etc. I got fed up of the 25mpg around town in my current car so have just ordered a Tesla Y. I'll then add a fun weekend car (probably a 997) in due course.

I'd imagine that does suit a lot of people for just getting from A to B for sure. However I'd much rather have a bit of fun getting from A to B in a more interesting car though.

[AyBee]

cerb4.5lee said:

AyBee said:

Isn't the purpose of a daily the majority of the time to be boring? Park it where you like, cheap to run, blend in, ferry the family around in, do the school run, etc. I got fed up of the 25mpg around town in my current car so have just ordered a Tesla Y. I'll then add a fun weekend car (probably a 997) in due course.

I'd imagine that does suit a lot of people for just getting from A to B for sure. However I'd much rather have a bit of fun getting from A to B in a more interesting car though.

As would I, but when A to B is a handful of miles to the local school or a city commute, I think fun cars tend to lose their appeal. I used to hate sitting in London traffic in my Lotus.

[cerb4.5lee]

AyBee said:

cerb4.5lee said:

AyBee said:

Isn't the purpose of a daily the majority of the time to be boring? Park it where you like, cheap to run, blend in, ferry the family around in, do the school run, etc. I got fed up of the 25mpg around town in my current car so have just ordered a Tesla Y. I'll then add a fun weekend car (probably a 997) in due course.

I'd imagine that does suit a lot of people for just getting from A to B for sure. However I'd much rather have a bit of fun getting from A to B in a more interesting car though.

As would I, but when A to B is a handful of miles to the local school or a city commute, I think fun cars tend to lose their appeal. I used to hate sitting in London traffic in my Lotus.

Definitely agree with you on that. I remember when I used to use the Cerbera on my commute occasionally, and that was a bit of a pig in stop/start traffic as well.

[AR_pf0708]

AyBee said:

Isn't the purpose of a daily the majority of the time to be boring? Park it where you like, cheap to run, blend in, ferry the family around in, do the school run, etc. I got fed up of the 25mpg around town in my current car so have just ordered a Tesla Y. I'll then add a fun weekend car (probably a 997) in due course.

I agree with that point to a 100%. Used to daily my long beach blue manual M2 for a while. My clients loved it, my petrol attendant as well, my accountant not so much, but the most annoying thing was that every 318i with Remus exhaust tried to dragrace me on a highway / at a traffic light - already fed up with this, my dog joined our family and finished it off:

[neil-c]

If you have home charging available would a used Audi etron be of any interest? AWD, adjustable ride height, good dog carrying capability, very comfortable interior. I say used as the UK market has made the early models pretty appealing financially. The downside is low range/efficiency but depending on your needs and charging costs they could make sense. Leaves a chunk more change for a weekend car than an X5. Basic servicing costs are pretty cheap also on full EV opposed to hybrid

[AR_pf0708]

neil-c said:

If you have home charging available would a used Audi etron be of any interest? AWD, adjustable ride height, good dog carrying capability, very comfortable interior. I say used as the UK market has made the early models pretty appealing financially. The downside is low range/efficiency but depending on your needs and charging costs they could make sense. Leaves a chunk more change for a weekend car than an X5. Basic servicing costs are pretty cheap also on full EV opposed to hybrid

Yes, indeed that's the car I would most "want". Unfortunately, I think that the E-Tron Gen1 will depreciate hell of a lot over the next 3 years and probably more than a Model 3 (due to updates over the air on the Tesla and other stuff) so I'm worried that I will lose more money, even if it's just depreciating on the same level as the Model 3, but due to the higher buy-in.

Hate the looks of the Model Y, as I prefer the "practical" shapes of an SUV compared to their "Coupé" brothers..