What made you decide to buy an EV?
Discussion
Afternoon all,
I'm thinking about my next daily driver and considering all options for the powertrain petrol, diesel, mild hybrid, full hybrid, PHEV, and EV.
I'm curious as to what the key driver was for those of you that have made the switch from ICE to EV.
- Was it to be green ?
- Was it driven by the potentially lower running costs (cheap electricity if you can charge at home, no clutches, no exhaust, no timing belt, etc)?
- Was it due to the potential quietness and refinement of an EV?
- Was it down to ease of use (i.e. automatic, no fuel stops assuming you can charge at home and do shortish journeys, one pedal driving)?
Equally for those of you that have, so far, decided that the move the EV is not right decision, what is putting you off?
- Is it because of range anxiety?
- Concerns of the public charging infrastructure?
- Lack of excitement / engagement / engine & exhaust noise?
- Purchase cost?
Interested to hear your thoughts.
I'm thinking about my next daily driver and considering all options for the powertrain petrol, diesel, mild hybrid, full hybrid, PHEV, and EV.
I'm curious as to what the key driver was for those of you that have made the switch from ICE to EV.
- Was it to be green ?
- Was it driven by the potentially lower running costs (cheap electricity if you can charge at home, no clutches, no exhaust, no timing belt, etc)?
- Was it due to the potential quietness and refinement of an EV?
- Was it down to ease of use (i.e. automatic, no fuel stops assuming you can charge at home and do shortish journeys, one pedal driving)?
Equally for those of you that have, so far, decided that the move the EV is not right decision, what is putting you off?
- Is it because of range anxiety?
- Concerns of the public charging infrastructure?
- Lack of excitement / engagement / engine & exhaust noise?
- Purchase cost?
Interested to hear your thoughts.
Edited by Ecosseven on Wednesday 18th February 15:38
I started in an Ampera PHEV, which uses the electric motor for propulsion (mostly) even on petrol.
I was doing a 70 mile a day commute, often sat in traffic, and there was free charging at the office, so at 5p/kWh at home and free at work, it was dirt cheap to run. I live near areas where local air pollution is a major issue, so driving a diesel in 2017 seemed like a bad idea.
After that going full BEV in 2023 just made sense. Faster, more convenient and cheaper to run than anything comparable in the small family crossover market.
Since then, my partner has also gone full BEV. It's not a great car or a great EV, but it's a great family car for what we need and she appreciates the plugin nature, not having to attend the petrol station and the ease of driving it.
I was doing a 70 mile a day commute, often sat in traffic, and there was free charging at the office, so at 5p/kWh at home and free at work, it was dirt cheap to run. I live near areas where local air pollution is a major issue, so driving a diesel in 2017 seemed like a bad idea.
After that going full BEV in 2023 just made sense. Faster, more convenient and cheaper to run than anything comparable in the small family crossover market.
Since then, my partner has also gone full BEV. It's not a great car or a great EV, but it's a great family car for what we need and she appreciates the plugin nature, not having to attend the petrol station and the ease of driving it.
Edited by Evanivitch on Wednesday 18th February 14:19
Running costs.
In the context of having a set budget to buy a nearly new car for reasons of wanting maximum reliability and warranty cover, and given my use case, the running costs of a home charged EV were so far below everything else that it was a no brainer.
Zero local emissions was a nice bonus and did help push me over - being asthmatic and having an asthmatic child I do care about urban air quality.
I jumped 9 years ago for context. I still own one.
In the context of having a set budget to buy a nearly new car for reasons of wanting maximum reliability and warranty cover, and given my use case, the running costs of a home charged EV were so far below everything else that it was a no brainer.
Zero local emissions was a nice bonus and did help push me over - being asthmatic and having an asthmatic child I do care about urban air quality.
I jumped 9 years ago for context. I still own one.
I've just got an EV. I just felt I could get a 'nicer' (and newer) car for my budget than an over-priced ICE with a weedy and complicated engine that most seem to have these days.
(new shape 2.3 Focus STs were in budget, and that was the only ICE that had caught my eye)
Only downside is having to find 30mins a week to charge up rather than a 5min stop at a petrol station, if I was more successful in life I'd have a driveway and that wouldn't be an issue.
(new shape 2.3 Focus STs were in budget, and that was the only ICE that had caught my eye)
Only downside is having to find 30mins a week to charge up rather than a 5min stop at a petrol station, if I was more successful in life I'd have a driveway and that wouldn't be an issue.
Had an EV as my daily driver for 3 years now. Initially due to cheap finance and the running costs.
Now however, I just prefer the way they drive to an ICE car (purely for commuting purposes). Quiet, smooth, responsive and fast are all benefits to me. Even if running costs were the same as ICE, I'd still have an EV as a commuting car.
Commuting car and weekend toys have different purposes.
Now however, I just prefer the way they drive to an ICE car (purely for commuting purposes). Quiet, smooth, responsive and fast are all benefits to me. Even if running costs were the same as ICE, I'd still have an EV as a commuting car.
Commuting car and weekend toys have different purposes.
Ecosseven said:
I m curious as to what the key driver was for those of you that have made the switch from ICE to EV.
- Was it to be green ?
- Was it driven by the potentially lower running costs (cheap electricity if you can charge at home, no clutches, no exhaust, no timing belt, etc)?
- Was it due to the potential quietness and refinement of an EV?
- Was it down to ease of use (i.e. automatic, no fuel stops assuming you can charge at home and do shortish journeys, one pedal driving)?
None of the above, it was the £15 per month tax cost for a £60k fast car to do the daily slog to an office and back.- Was it to be green ?
- Was it driven by the potentially lower running costs (cheap electricity if you can charge at home, no clutches, no exhaust, no timing belt, etc)?
- Was it due to the potential quietness and refinement of an EV?
- Was it down to ease of use (i.e. automatic, no fuel stops assuming you can charge at home and do shortish journeys, one pedal driving)?
I realised we can't go on using fossil fuels the way we are. The smoothness, silence, comfort, home charging convenience, and cost savings are all bonus.
When I had my A7 Bi-TDi, I went and test drove a Tesla Model S. When I got back into the Audi, it just felt archaic, rattly and noisy. I was convinced that electric was just better.
I've had to give up lovely, big petrol engines, but I reckon it's a price worth paying.
When I had my A7 Bi-TDi, I went and test drove a Tesla Model S. When I got back into the Audi, it just felt archaic, rattly and noisy. I was convinced that electric was just better.
I've had to give up lovely, big petrol engines, but I reckon it's a price worth paying.
I did not do it to be green. I did it because...
In the US state of NJ, where I live, we have an infinite sales tax on cars.. Every time one is bought 6.625% tax has to be paid. When I bought my car there was no tax on EVs. That saved me over $5k.
NJ, being the tax suck they are, decided to phase that out. In addition, they also brought in a $250/yr EV tax to offset the revenue they would get out of selling petrol.
I have been surprised by my EV though. I bought it as an experiment and kept my petrol car. I assumed I would be driving both. In reality I have driven the EV almost exclusively for 18 months. Only in the last 3 weeks have I been using my ICE car as it has better ground clearance for snow.
My EV is a low down saloon and my ICE is an SUV. They are both from the same brand and both on 21' wheels with air suspension. The EV has a much superior ride quality including over pot holes. The SUV is the sporty variant so it is possible that is why.
I do not have range anxiety. In my ownership I have used the public charging network 4 times. All within the first couple of months of owning it as part of my experimenting. My car' navigation builds a route that includes charging. Those that do not have that can use an App. When I stop, I can charge 200 miles in about 20 minutes. Out of the 4 charging stops I have done, I have over stayed my welcome by a few minutes twice because my car was fully charged (280 miles) way quicker than I expected.
All the horror stories of charging in the US come from several years ago. Many youtubers that did record those videos have gone back and reported how much the infrastructure has improved. Additionally, we have the Tesla network open to us.
Different EVs will give you different results. When it comes to ICE, people are very aware a Ferrari is different to a range rover and judge them on different standards. For EVs, people group them all together and judge them on similar criteria. My EV is a Porsche Taycan Turbo S, if yours is a Renault 5....you will have a different experience.
In the US state of NJ, where I live, we have an infinite sales tax on cars.. Every time one is bought 6.625% tax has to be paid. When I bought my car there was no tax on EVs. That saved me over $5k.
NJ, being the tax suck they are, decided to phase that out. In addition, they also brought in a $250/yr EV tax to offset the revenue they would get out of selling petrol.
I have been surprised by my EV though. I bought it as an experiment and kept my petrol car. I assumed I would be driving both. In reality I have driven the EV almost exclusively for 18 months. Only in the last 3 weeks have I been using my ICE car as it has better ground clearance for snow.
My EV is a low down saloon and my ICE is an SUV. They are both from the same brand and both on 21' wheels with air suspension. The EV has a much superior ride quality including over pot holes. The SUV is the sporty variant so it is possible that is why.
I do not have range anxiety. In my ownership I have used the public charging network 4 times. All within the first couple of months of owning it as part of my experimenting. My car' navigation builds a route that includes charging. Those that do not have that can use an App. When I stop, I can charge 200 miles in about 20 minutes. Out of the 4 charging stops I have done, I have over stayed my welcome by a few minutes twice because my car was fully charged (280 miles) way quicker than I expected.
All the horror stories of charging in the US come from several years ago. Many youtubers that did record those videos have gone back and reported how much the infrastructure has improved. Additionally, we have the Tesla network open to us.
Different EVs will give you different results. When it comes to ICE, people are very aware a Ferrari is different to a range rover and judge them on different standards. For EVs, people group them all together and judge them on similar criteria. My EV is a Porsche Taycan Turbo S, if yours is a Renault 5....you will have a different experience.
the cueball said:
None of the above, it was the £15 per month tax cost for a £60k fast car to do the daily slog to an office and back.
Same for me. And with the VAT saving leasing through my Ltd Co, along with a year's free insurance, free charge point, no servicing costs, free fuel, I was paying less per month for a £58k tesla than my mate was for a mid spec 4 year old focus on pcp. I will be getting another EV one day, wont be through Ltd though unfortunately.
The new 2026 mg xpower looks brilliant, solving the main complaints of crap media system, shoddy interior and dangerous driver systems.
We'd moved to a newish house and there was a car charger and solar panels already installed, we'd just sold one of our cars and were thinking of going electric and wanted to go down the PCP route to avoid any residual risks / exposure.
We managed to order one of the cheap Honda e:Ny1 PCP deals paying £180 per month for 2 years. I mistakenly though I'd use the electricity generated by the solar panels to charge and run the car FOC, although it works out more cost effective to sell any excess electricity back to the grid and charge overnight on Octopus Go...
Would we have got one without our current set up and the PCP deal, probably not, the lure of free road tax has also gone along with Rachel's pence per mile incoming. We'd consider extending our PCP on the same terms but Honda are currently saying no to any extensions.
Its been a good first cheap try with an electric car but we're not fully bought into it yet...
We managed to order one of the cheap Honda e:Ny1 PCP deals paying £180 per month for 2 years. I mistakenly though I'd use the electricity generated by the solar panels to charge and run the car FOC, although it works out more cost effective to sell any excess electricity back to the grid and charge overnight on Octopus Go...
Would we have got one without our current set up and the PCP deal, probably not, the lure of free road tax has also gone along with Rachel's pence per mile incoming. We'd consider extending our PCP on the same terms but Honda are currently saying no to any extensions.
Its been a good first cheap try with an electric car but we're not fully bought into it yet...
I think for us, in order of priority, I think it was:
Running costs
Convenience
Micro-environmental factors
Macro-environmental factors
Talking to my wife (who actually owns the EV) about it now, roughly a year and a half later, the only thing she seems to miss is the manual gearbox of her old car but since she's driven the ICE Merc hire car I have at the moment, she at least prefers the EV single-speed gearbox to the dual clutch rubbish in the Merc.
Other than that, it's really hard to find a down-side for her use. Even the (very few) long trips we've done have been completely painless. I still wouldn't even consider one if we couldn't easily charge at home, though.
Running costs
Convenience
Micro-environmental factors
Macro-environmental factors
Talking to my wife (who actually owns the EV) about it now, roughly a year and a half later, the only thing she seems to miss is the manual gearbox of her old car but since she's driven the ICE Merc hire car I have at the moment, she at least prefers the EV single-speed gearbox to the dual clutch rubbish in the Merc.
Other than that, it's really hard to find a down-side for her use. Even the (very few) long trips we've done have been completely painless. I still wouldn't even consider one if we couldn't easily charge at home, though.
Edited by kambites on Wednesday 18th February 15:28
We had a CX-5 which was proving to be a bit cramped in the rear for modern child seats (ferrying grandchildren around).
Walked into our local Kia dealer expecting to look at the Sportage, but my wife was drawn to the EV3 and impressed by the amount of room inside and its airy interior. She didn't know it was an EV and we'd never discussed it.
A test drive was all it took - quiet, quick (compared to the CX5 anyway) and comfortable.
So it was a combination of the driving experience and the packaging made possible by it being a pure EV platform.
We hadn't even looked into home charging at that point - I'd researched public charging in some depth and felt it was workable for our needs, so it wasn't about saving money. It wasn't about the environment either, it's simply the best choice for us.
Since then we've had a charger installed and bought a Hyundai Inster as a second car (being narrow it fits comfortably in the space we've got available) and we're unlikely to go back to ICE.
Walked into our local Kia dealer expecting to look at the Sportage, but my wife was drawn to the EV3 and impressed by the amount of room inside and its airy interior. She didn't know it was an EV and we'd never discussed it.
A test drive was all it took - quiet, quick (compared to the CX5 anyway) and comfortable.
So it was a combination of the driving experience and the packaging made possible by it being a pure EV platform.
We hadn't even looked into home charging at that point - I'd researched public charging in some depth and felt it was workable for our needs, so it wasn't about saving money. It wasn't about the environment either, it's simply the best choice for us.
Since then we've had a charger installed and bought a Hyundai Inster as a second car (being narrow it fits comfortably in the space we've got available) and we're unlikely to go back to ICE.
Thanks for all the replies.
I had forgotten about the BIK tax benefits! I'm a PAYE employee and although I get a car allowance it just gets paid as extra salary so no company car option.
I'm undecided at the moment. On the plus side I have off street parking and can charge at home. There is lots of choice of good EV's these days and battery and motor reliability seems very good.
Downsides are no option of a manual gearbox - I've only ever owned manuals and like the involvement in driving a manual car. Weight is another downside with something like a long range Skoda Elroq coming in at over 2 tonnes. I will admit that range anxiety is definitely a factor as I do relatively frequent trips to the north of Scotland and fast chargers aren't that common in some locations. Something like a Renault 4 e-tech would be ideal but the winter range is a concern.
Probably need to get some test drives booked and see how I like the drive. A friends leases an MG4 and does the job that he bought it for - cheap commuter if not the most enjoyable of cars.
I had forgotten about the BIK tax benefits! I'm a PAYE employee and although I get a car allowance it just gets paid as extra salary so no company car option.
I'm undecided at the moment. On the plus side I have off street parking and can charge at home. There is lots of choice of good EV's these days and battery and motor reliability seems very good.
Downsides are no option of a manual gearbox - I've only ever owned manuals and like the involvement in driving a manual car. Weight is another downside with something like a long range Skoda Elroq coming in at over 2 tonnes. I will admit that range anxiety is definitely a factor as I do relatively frequent trips to the north of Scotland and fast chargers aren't that common in some locations. Something like a Renault 4 e-tech would be ideal but the winter range is a concern.
Probably need to get some test drives booked and see how I like the drive. A friends leases an MG4 and does the job that he bought it for - cheap commuter if not the most enjoyable of cars.
Edited by Ecosseven on Wednesday 18th February 16:01
I'll give my reasons for not making the switch yet
We have 3 cars in the household 1 fun car(Mustang) and 2 dailies.(Outback/Vcross) We could easily change one if not both of the dailies.
Most of our trips are short, 3 times a year I head to Cornwall from Scotland but drive through the night and stop a few times so that would be doable in an EV. Able to home charge for most of our mileage, not having to visit fuel stations has an appeal.
Yet I still can't make the move. I've come to the conclusion its fear of the new/unknown. I've been driving ICE since I was 17, had my fair share of breakdowns and big bills but it's familiar. I'm used to the disadvantages and more comfortable with it.
I know that's not rational but I'm trying to be honest.
I suspect I will reach a personal tipping point
We have 3 cars in the household 1 fun car(Mustang) and 2 dailies.(Outback/Vcross) We could easily change one if not both of the dailies.
Most of our trips are short, 3 times a year I head to Cornwall from Scotland but drive through the night and stop a few times so that would be doable in an EV. Able to home charge for most of our mileage, not having to visit fuel stations has an appeal.
Yet I still can't make the move. I've come to the conclusion its fear of the new/unknown. I've been driving ICE since I was 17, had my fair share of breakdowns and big bills but it's familiar. I'm used to the disadvantages and more comfortable with it.
I know that's not rational but I'm trying to be honest.
I suspect I will reach a personal tipping point
Answer now is company car tax breaks
Before that I always wanted one because they just made Sense, driving around in rattley diesels, waiting for it to warm up, awful power delivery, waiting for kick downs on the motorway before speeding up, going to the fuel station all just always seemed stiupid to me. A EV removes all of those (unless you charge it publicly) and they just work better as a car and I like things that just “work”
I have just had my first EV company car and I love it, if I had a time without a company car I would certainly buy my own.
Before that I always wanted one because they just made Sense, driving around in rattley diesels, waiting for it to warm up, awful power delivery, waiting for kick downs on the motorway before speeding up, going to the fuel station all just always seemed stiupid to me. A EV removes all of those (unless you charge it publicly) and they just work better as a car and I like things that just “work”
I have just had my first EV company car and I love it, if I had a time without a company car I would certainly buy my own.
Ecosseven said:
A friends leases an MG4 and does the job that he bought it for - cheap commuter if not the most enjoyable of cars.
What are you comparing it to? IMO for a hum-drum, budget family hatch the normal RWD MG4 has a remarkable chassis. I must admit I've always been a bit bemused as to why... it's not like the target demographic care. The MG4 certainly has its faults, but one thing I've never really been able to find any complaint with is how it drives. It's leagues better than the Octavia VRS it replaced, in our case. The lack of a manual gearbox is certainly an issue; a manual box mated to a high-revving, naturally aspirated petrol engine is a thing of beauty to drive on a country road... but add the torque of a turbocharger and that satisfaction diminishes for me, and add things like CDVs and deliberate DBW throttle lag and it all becomes a bit meh. The single-speed box in an EV may have none of the upsides of a really nice manual, but at least it has none of the down-sides of an average multi-speed automatic box (which I'm feeling horribly at the moment with the Merc hire car I have while my Lotus is being fixed).
It has to be said, that Merc (a 2025 CLA saloon thingamie) has made me appreciate just how good the MG is, as shopping cars go. If both cars are available, there's no way I'd ever take the Mercedes.
Edited by kambites on Wednesday 18th February 16:36
the cueball said:
Ecosseven said:
Thanks for all the replies.
I had forgotten about the BIK tax benefits! I'm a PAYE employee and although I get a car allowance it just gets paid as extra salary so no company car option.
Ask your company about a salary sacrifice car scheme.I had forgotten about the BIK tax benefits! I'm a PAYE employee and although I get a car allowance it just gets paid as extra salary so no company car option.
Cheap running and ownership costs through salary sacrifice - worked out that I could sell what I had at the time, bank the money and run an EV for basically the same cost with the added benefit that if something went wrong, it would be someone else's problem. Think I'd find it difficult to go back to fuel for the family car now - as a tool for getting the family from A-B cheaply and comfortably, it just works.
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