Thinking of buying an EV but no home charger
Discussion
Good evening all.
Currently I have a E350d, purchased August 2019, it had around 9500 miles, currently at 47k, has been absolutely faultless, (no adblue or nox issues to date, (do use shell Vpower, not sure it that helps), as my previous W211 was a V6, wanted another V6, mainly due to the refinement, even though my average yearly mileage is 5k - 6k, and apart from the AMG, Mercedes don t do V6 or IL6 in petrol in a EClass, therefore opted for the diesel.
Now considering what should my next car be in a couple of years.
A few options below:
The new GLC 400 electric (400 miles range)
A new E Class electric should also be unveiled in September I am led to believe, so that will also be a contender.
W214 E400e PHEV (around 65 miles range) but the combustion engine is a 2ltr, not sure I could live with that, reviews on You Tube say when combustion engine is running, it feels strained. Would this engine be a step down from the V6
BMW X5 50e PHEV, inline 6 ( 45-55 miles range)
Now as I live in a Victorian terraced house in London, and therefore don t have a drive way, but right out side my house there is a bay for electric charging through a lamppost, and another 2 bays 100 yards away.
I have read that owning an electric car without home/work charging will not be cheap, and should be avoided, as it would possibly cost similar to petrol/diesel or even more depending on what charger is used, and therefore won t be making any savings. There may also be inconvenience in charging, if the bays on my street are being used or not working. Are these valid points. If they are, why then would people in my situation get an EV.
The other 2 options are:
W214 E450d IL6, the question with this is should I be considering a diesel in 2027/2028, or would that be suicidal, as the nox and adblue issues will still be in the background. Is buying a 6 cylinder diesel or petrol for that matter in a few years an absolute no no.
X5 40i IL6, would a petrol 6 cylinder be more refined than the diesel. Would this for me be the best solution. (Preferred option would be a merc) but may have to look at the BM.
Most of my driving is in London, but I also do a monthly drive to Cambridge which is an hour each way, and have also done European road trips in each of the last 3 years.
Would like to stress, I am not anti EV, I am 58 years old, and don t mind change, have never driven a EV yet, but if the government is pushing for EV, and ending ICE eventually how do the likes of me, and millions of others without home charging make EV ownership beneficial financially.
Apologies for the long post, but would really appreciate people s views on the above cars, and no home charging conundrum.
Currently I have a E350d, purchased August 2019, it had around 9500 miles, currently at 47k, has been absolutely faultless, (no adblue or nox issues to date, (do use shell Vpower, not sure it that helps), as my previous W211 was a V6, wanted another V6, mainly due to the refinement, even though my average yearly mileage is 5k - 6k, and apart from the AMG, Mercedes don t do V6 or IL6 in petrol in a EClass, therefore opted for the diesel.
Now considering what should my next car be in a couple of years.
A few options below:
The new GLC 400 electric (400 miles range)
A new E Class electric should also be unveiled in September I am led to believe, so that will also be a contender.
W214 E400e PHEV (around 65 miles range) but the combustion engine is a 2ltr, not sure I could live with that, reviews on You Tube say when combustion engine is running, it feels strained. Would this engine be a step down from the V6
BMW X5 50e PHEV, inline 6 ( 45-55 miles range)
Now as I live in a Victorian terraced house in London, and therefore don t have a drive way, but right out side my house there is a bay for electric charging through a lamppost, and another 2 bays 100 yards away.
I have read that owning an electric car without home/work charging will not be cheap, and should be avoided, as it would possibly cost similar to petrol/diesel or even more depending on what charger is used, and therefore won t be making any savings. There may also be inconvenience in charging, if the bays on my street are being used or not working. Are these valid points. If they are, why then would people in my situation get an EV.
The other 2 options are:
W214 E450d IL6, the question with this is should I be considering a diesel in 2027/2028, or would that be suicidal, as the nox and adblue issues will still be in the background. Is buying a 6 cylinder diesel or petrol for that matter in a few years an absolute no no.
X5 40i IL6, would a petrol 6 cylinder be more refined than the diesel. Would this for me be the best solution. (Preferred option would be a merc) but may have to look at the BM.
Most of my driving is in London, but I also do a monthly drive to Cambridge which is an hour each way, and have also done European road trips in each of the last 3 years.
Would like to stress, I am not anti EV, I am 58 years old, and don t mind change, have never driven a EV yet, but if the government is pushing for EV, and ending ICE eventually how do the likes of me, and millions of others without home charging make EV ownership beneficial financially.
Apologies for the long post, but would really appreciate people s views on the above cars, and no home charging conundrum.
Edited by Benz17 on Saturday 15th August 19:49
I can only comment on the European road trip part: most of our 90,000 km (55,000 miles) have been on long road trips across Europe (wheels have touched 21 countries, Spain and Portugal still to visit). Wouldn't go back to ICE - comfort of a massive naturally aspirated V8, economy of a small diesel car (or a moped, if you drive in Northern Europe). Outside Bosnia, I have waited for a charger maybe an hour (total over 3.5 years). The coffee breaks got shorter (admittedly a bit more frequent) because a diesel doesn't hassle you to get going after 15-20 minutes.
We do very few local miles, so lack of home charging is not an issue in terms of convenience - all the local travel is covered by charging at shopping centres or during gym visits (that should be more frequent for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with charging the car).
I don't keep detailed track of costs, but a few data points:
We do very few local miles, so lack of home charging is not an issue in terms of convenience - all the local travel is covered by charging at shopping centres or during gym visits (that should be more frequent for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with charging the car).
I don't keep detailed track of costs, but a few data points:
- With our current subscription (from the car manufacturer), we pay around 60% of the price a typical UK public charging costs. Works out to about 120mpg equivalent for city driving in ideal conditions (no AC or heating needed)
- Things like insurance and annual road tax are the highest costs after depreciation and are almost impossible to predict where we live. Insurance is pretty cheap (I'm almost the same age as you, no claims) - I think most of the EVs have better traction control systems than ICE cars, and I expect this should prevent the premiums from going up too much.
- Repair costs have been zero (previous ones would have needed new brakes - or two sets - a long time ago). We're still on our original sets of tyres (previous cars would be on their third set by now).
If you've got the itch for something new, and the money to do it, then noone on ph is likely to hold you back 
First thing you need to do is drive a really good example of an EV to see how you like it. BMW iX or new iX3, Merc glc400, or similar. At least a couple of hours. Get your head round different levels of regen, see if the transition from regen to friction braking is smooth, get used to the complete lack of lag, of having to anticipate behaviour of engine and gearbox.
If you do end up getting a glc400 or any of the other new premium EVs coming through with circa 400 mile real world range, then charging isn't going to really be an issue of convenience, merely cost. And at your mileage, even if you end up paying 60-80p/kWh, fuel costs are going to be a small element of overall ownership costs compared to depreciation.
You might find there's a Tesla charging station near you, in which case with a monthly £10 sub you'll be paying 45p/kWh max, much less than that if early morning or late evening.
First thing you need to do is drive a really good example of an EV to see how you like it. BMW iX or new iX3, Merc glc400, or similar. At least a couple of hours. Get your head round different levels of regen, see if the transition from regen to friction braking is smooth, get used to the complete lack of lag, of having to anticipate behaviour of engine and gearbox.
If you do end up getting a glc400 or any of the other new premium EVs coming through with circa 400 mile real world range, then charging isn't going to really be an issue of convenience, merely cost. And at your mileage, even if you end up paying 60-80p/kWh, fuel costs are going to be a small element of overall ownership costs compared to depreciation.
You might find there's a Tesla charging station near you, in which case with a monthly £10 sub you'll be paying 45p/kWh max, much less than that if early morning or late evening.
"Most of my driving is in London, but I also do a monthly drive to Cambridge which is an hour each way, and have also done European road trips in each of the last 3 years."
It sounds to me based on this description that you'll only need to charge the car twice a month, and one of those times can be part of your Cambridge trip.
EVs love urban driving. I got 4mi/kWh no sweat out of my very average efficiency Enyaq when driving round north London doing house viewings this month...
If you said you had to do back to back 250 mile days, I'd say EV isn't for you, but with routine mileage this low I reckon you'll figure out a convenient monthly routine pretty quick.
It sounds to me based on this description that you'll only need to charge the car twice a month, and one of those times can be part of your Cambridge trip.
EVs love urban driving. I got 4mi/kWh no sweat out of my very average efficiency Enyaq when driving round north London doing house viewings this month...
If you said you had to do back to back 250 mile days, I'd say EV isn't for you, but with routine mileage this low I reckon you'll figure out a convenient monthly routine pretty quick.
PetrolHeadInRecovery said:
I can only comment on the European road trip part: most of our 90,000 km (55,000 miles) have been on long road trips across Europe (wheels have touched 21 countries, Spain and Portugal still to visit). Wouldn't go back to ICE - comfort of a massive naturally aspirated V8, economy of a small diesel car (or a moped, if you drive in Northern Europe). Outside Bosnia, I have waited for a charger maybe an hour (total over 3.5 years). The coffee breaks got shorter (admittedly a bit more frequent) because a diesel doesn't hassle you to get going after 15-20 minutes.
We do very few local miles, so lack of home charging is not an issue in terms of convenience - all the local travel is covered by charging at shopping centres or during gym visits (that should be more frequent for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with charging the car).
I don't keep detailed track of costs, but a few data points:
Thanks for the above info, I have not been as far as you on the road trips, done Amsterdam and Belgium on one trip, done a few cities in Germany, including sindlefingen Mercedes production plant, and the Black Forest, and Switzerland twice.We do very few local miles, so lack of home charging is not an issue in terms of convenience - all the local travel is covered by charging at shopping centres or during gym visits (that should be more frequent for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with charging the car).
I don't keep detailed track of costs, but a few data points:
- With our current subscription (from the car manufacturer), we pay around 60% of the price a typical UK public charging costs. Works out to about 120mpg equivalent for city driving in ideal conditions (no AC or heating needed)
- Things like insurance and annual road tax are the highest costs after depreciation and are almost impossible to predict where we live. Insurance is pretty cheap (I'm almost the same age as you, no claims) - I think most of the EVs have better traction control systems than ICE cars, and I expect this should prevent the premiums from going up too much.
- Repair costs have been zero (previous ones would have needed new brakes - or two sets - a long time ago). We're still on our original sets of tyres (previous cars would be on their third set by now).
Yes doing my research, and the conclusion is that I wouldn’t miss the V6, if I went over to a decent EV, ( if I went to the 4 cylinder petrol more then likely I will) the GLC is getting good reviews on YT, it also has 2 gears.
I have 20+ years NCB, but live in inner London, so insurance maybe a touch higher, but that won’t me the major consideration, comfort and range will be, would like to stick with the Merc, GLC or the new E CLass electric would be the first 2 choices.
occasionalranter said:
If you've got the itch for something new, and the money to do it, then noone on ph is likely to hold you back
First thing you need to do is drive a really good example of an EV to see how you like it. BMW iX or new iX3, Merc glc400, or similar. At least a couple of hours. Get your head round different levels of regen, see if the transition from regen to friction braking is smooth, get used to the complete lack of lag, of having to anticipate behaviour of engine and gearbox.
If you do end up getting a glc400 or any of the other new premium EVs coming through with circa 400 mile real world range, then charging isn't going to really be an issue of convenience, merely cost. And at your mileage, even if you end up paying 60-80p/kWh, fuel costs are going to be a small element of overall ownership costs compared to depreciation.
You might find there's a Tesla charging station near you, in which case with a monthly £10 sub you'll be paying 45p/kWh max, much less than that if early morning or late evening.
Thanks for the above, those are very good points, as I have never driven EV, and therefore test driving a few models will be paramount, and therefore regen breaking is my one apprehension, as the breaking feel is not like an ICE, that is what I have gathered whilst doing my initial research, and watching YT reviews.First thing you need to do is drive a really good example of an EV to see how you like it. BMW iX or new iX3, Merc glc400, or similar. At least a couple of hours. Get your head round different levels of regen, see if the transition from regen to friction braking is smooth, get used to the complete lack of lag, of having to anticipate behaviour of engine and gearbox.
If you do end up getting a glc400 or any of the other new premium EVs coming through with circa 400 mile real world range, then charging isn't going to really be an issue of convenience, merely cost. And at your mileage, even if you end up paying 60-80p/kWh, fuel costs are going to be a small element of overall ownership costs compared to depreciation.
You might find there's a Tesla charging station near you, in which case with a monthly £10 sub you'll be paying 45p/kWh max, much less than that if early morning or late evening.
Yes thinking about it, with my mileage, and pottering around London, I may only be charging once a month, at the moment I fill the diesel tank once a month costing £100.
Home charger installations can easily run to £1k. If public charging is on average 40p/kWh more than home charging on a normal tariff, then you need to hit 10k miles before you've got back the cost of the charger.
(The point isn't even that home chargers are expensive, it's that the charging costs on 6k annual mileage are so much smaller than depreciation that they are never going to be the key factor in deciding whether you should go ice or EV.)
(The point isn't even that home chargers are expensive, it's that the charging costs on 6k annual mileage are so much smaller than depreciation that they are never going to be the key factor in deciding whether you should go ice or EV.)
occasionalranter said:
"Most of my driving is in London, but I also do a monthly drive to Cambridge which is an hour each way, and have also done European road trips in each of the last 3 years."
It sounds to me based on this description that you'll only need to charge the car twice a month, and one of those times can be part of your Cambridge trip.
EVs love urban driving. I got 4mi/kWh no sweat out of my very average efficiency Enyaq when driving round north London doing house viewings this month...
If you said you had to do back to back 250 mile days, I'd say EV isn't for you, but with routine mileage this low I reckon you'll figure out a convenient monthly routine pretty quick.
Yes that wouldn’t be a problem, and travelling to Cambridge door to door is 48 miles.It sounds to me based on this description that you'll only need to charge the car twice a month, and one of those times can be part of your Cambridge trip.
EVs love urban driving. I got 4mi/kWh no sweat out of my very average efficiency Enyaq when driving round north London doing house viewings this month...
If you said you had to do back to back 250 mile days, I'd say EV isn't for you, but with routine mileage this low I reckon you'll figure out a convenient monthly routine pretty quick.
Time is very much on your side as well, I think. There are going to be wave after wave of refined, efficient, premium feeling EVs coming through in the next few years. It surely won't be long before Mercedes and BMW are discounting these latest hottest models as hard as they are having to discount what used to be the latest and hottest.
That is also my hope and thinking, my current merc and also my previous one, I purchased used at 2 years old, and at a reasonable price, am hoping to do the same when I change to the next one, the GLC will be 2 years old, and the E Class electric will also be the same.
Have been very happy, and both have been reliable, and very comfortable, therefore would like to go with Mercedes again, but have also been watching the IX3, but prefer the Merc interior, but am very open minded, also frequent on the German forum, so reading all the positives and negatives on the Mercs and BMW, have also been watching the Audi q6 etron, but there seem to be some issues with these, software related mostly.
Have been very happy, and both have been reliable, and very comfortable, therefore would like to go with Mercedes again, but have also been watching the IX3, but prefer the Merc interior, but am very open minded, also frequent on the German forum, so reading all the positives and negatives on the Mercs and BMW, have also been watching the Audi q6 etron, but there seem to be some issues with these, software related mostly.
Have a look at the larger older BMW iX as well (no sniggering at the back). You can already get year old facelifted 45 versions for about £50k upwards. They're a bit odd looking and a bit bulky on smaller roads, but with a really clean unflashy interior, just enough conventional buttons and switches and sooooooo refined. At least as quiet as an S-class. A BMW for traditional Merc fans maybe...
Hi thanks for that info, will do, as I said I am open minded, and I still have time, as i will be changing in two years most probably coinciding with my 60th.
I take the overground train to work maximum 20 minutes door to door, driving to and back is 45minutes each way.
But there are Tesco and such like near where I work, and a option for me is to take the car when I need to charge, and that could solve my charging issue, and won’t be that much of an inconvenience.
My first 2 cars were the bmw 3 series, that was 40 years ago😀, at that time Mercedes was out of my reach, and mercs were perceived to be for the older folks.😳
I take the overground train to work maximum 20 minutes door to door, driving to and back is 45minutes each way.
But there are Tesco and such like near where I work, and a option for me is to take the car when I need to charge, and that could solve my charging issue, and won’t be that much of an inconvenience.
My first 2 cars were the bmw 3 series, that was 40 years ago😀, at that time Mercedes was out of my reach, and mercs were perceived to be for the older folks.😳
• Battery Capacity (kWh): Total size of your vehicle’s pack (e.g., 94 kWh).
• Energy Added: Battery size multiplied by the percentage increase (as a decimal). For example, going from 20% to 80% on a 94 kWh battery adds 60% (0.6), meaning 94 × 0.6 = 56.4 kWh .
The GLC has a 94kwh battery pack.
If the above calculations are correct then cost would be the following
56.4kwh x 0.60p = £33.84
56.4kwh x 0.80p = £45.12
Obviously topping to 100% would increase the cost a touch, but as I am currently filling the tank with premium shell diesel and costing just over £100, and lasting around 5 weeks, think the above charging costs at public chargers is not bad at all compared to diesel.
Is my calculation above correct.
• Energy Added: Battery size multiplied by the percentage increase (as a decimal). For example, going from 20% to 80% on a 94 kWh battery adds 60% (0.6), meaning 94 × 0.6 = 56.4 kWh .
The GLC has a 94kwh battery pack.
If the above calculations are correct then cost would be the following
56.4kwh x 0.60p = £33.84
56.4kwh x 0.80p = £45.12
Obviously topping to 100% would increase the cost a touch, but as I am currently filling the tank with premium shell diesel and costing just over £100, and lasting around 5 weeks, think the above charging costs at public chargers is not bad at all compared to diesel.
Is my calculation above correct.
occasionalranter said:
Have a look at the larger older BMW iX as well (no sniggering at the back). You can already get year old facelifted 45 versions for about £50k upwards. They're a bit odd looking and a bit bulky on smaller roads, but with a really clean unflashy interior, just enough conventional buttons and switches and sooooooo refined. At least as quiet as an S-class. A BMW for traditional Merc fans maybe...
Must say car prices have really gone through the roof.My current E350d 2017 plate, purchased in 2019, 1 owner with 9k miles, from Mercedes dealership in Bridgend cost was 29k, and now for similar German brands 2 years old looking at 50k😳, i assume this is due to the new list prices for these cars.
Benz17 said:
Battery Capacity (kWh): Total size of your vehicle s pack (e.g., 94 kWh).
Energy Added: Battery size multiplied by the percentage increase (as a decimal). For example, going from 20% to 80% on a 94 kWh battery adds 60% (0.6), meaning 94 × 0.6 = 56.4 kWh .
The GLC has a 94kwh battery pack.
If the above calculations are correct then cost would be the following
56.4kwh x 0.60p = £33.84
56.4kwh x 0.80p = £45.12
Obviously topping to 100% would increase the cost a touch, but as I am currently filling the tank with premium shell diesel and costing just over £100, and lasting around 5 weeks, think the above charging costs at public chargers is not bad at all compared to diesel.
Is my calculation above correct.
Don't forget the intangible benefit of not having to decant stinky fuel into your car once or twice a month; I don't miss that at all and I've not impulse-bought any winegums for months. Energy Added: Battery size multiplied by the percentage increase (as a decimal). For example, going from 20% to 80% on a 94 kWh battery adds 60% (0.6), meaning 94 × 0.6 = 56.4 kWh .
The GLC has a 94kwh battery pack.
If the above calculations are correct then cost would be the following
56.4kwh x 0.60p = £33.84
56.4kwh x 0.80p = £45.12
Obviously topping to 100% would increase the cost a touch, but as I am currently filling the tank with premium shell diesel and costing just over £100, and lasting around 5 weeks, think the above charging costs at public chargers is not bad at all compared to diesel.
Is my calculation above correct.
Benz17 said:
Battery Capacity (kWh): Total size of your vehicle s pack (e.g., 94 kWh).
Energy Added: Battery size multiplied by the percentage increase (as a decimal). For example, going from 20% to 80% on a 94 kWh battery adds 60% (0.6), meaning 94 × 0.6 = 56.4 kWh .
The GLC has a 94kwh battery pack.
If the above calculations are correct then cost would be the following
56.4kwh x 0.60p = £33.84
56.4kwh x 0.80p = £45.12
Obviously topping to 100% would increase the cost a touch, but as I am currently filling the tank with premium shell diesel and costing just over £100, and lasting around 5 weeks, think the above charging costs at public chargers is not bad at all compared to diesel.
Is my calculation above correct.
Just calculate a rough cost per mile compared with your current car. What's your long term average mpg in the E class?Energy Added: Battery size multiplied by the percentage increase (as a decimal). For example, going from 20% to 80% on a 94 kWh battery adds 60% (0.6), meaning 94 × 0.6 = 56.4 kWh .
The GLC has a 94kwh battery pack.
If the above calculations are correct then cost would be the following
56.4kwh x 0.60p = £33.84
56.4kwh x 0.80p = £45.12
Obviously topping to 100% would increase the cost a touch, but as I am currently filling the tank with premium shell diesel and costing just over £100, and lasting around 5 weeks, think the above charging costs at public chargers is not bad at all compared to diesel.
Is my calculation above correct.
Gassing Station | EV and Alternative Fuels | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff