Electric cars.

I am at a loss how you are making any savings unless you got some kind of grant towards the purchase or rental of your EV to bring down the cost. For a private buyer, the actually running costs would have to be huge to offset the extra cost in purchasing or hiring an EV.

For example, for me to take out a new contract lease on the same type of car we have now, a Vauxhall Corsa. A 4 year contract based on 8,000 miles per year with 3 months upfront payment plus admin, comes out at £670.74 initial payment, £299 admin fee followed by 47 monthly payments of £223.58. The grand total over 4 years would be £11,478 which is £239.12 per month for a 1.2 turbo Corsa.

Now for the cheapest EV version of a Corsa on the same contract deal. £1,346.81 initial payment, no admin fee. 47 monthly payments of £448.87. Total £22,443.70 which is £467.57 per month. Going down the EV route, then my monthly payments would be £228.45 more, based on 8000 miles per year which works out at 666 miles per month and based on say 40mpg I would burn about 17 gallons of fuel, say 75 litre at £1.26 at our local garage, say £95 per month for fuel. So my monthly payments going down the route of a petrol Vauxhall would still be £133 per month cheaper.

The only way a new EV can be cheaper to run than a petrol or diesel will be down to the grants on purchasing a new EV. And the only way you can get those in England will the through a business as there is non to the private buyer.

 

I assume you will have been eligible for the €3500 grant towards the purchasing of an EV if you went down that route as a private buyer.

According to, This is Money, running a new EV can be 50% cheaper than a equivalent new petrol/diesel car. But with higher upfront cost's, how long do you need to drive to break even.

They did a comparison based on the cheapest ICE Vauxhall Corsa with the cheapest EV Vauxhall Corsa. So with the EV being roughly £7000 more expensive to buy new, then you have to cover a considerable amount of miles to break even. Based on 10,000 miles per annum they worked out you would need to drive the EV Corsa for 6 years before you would break even.

EVs 50% cheaper to run than a petrol car... but with a higher upfront cost, here's how many years you'll need to drive it to break even | This is Money

However, I am sure if they did the same comparison based on used ICE and EV Vauxhall Corsa's then it would be the other way around. The huge depreciation in the e Corsa and electric cars as a whole, would probably mean your saving as soon as it left the forecourt if not sooner.

 

Yep, as I am in Ireland you get the grant plus you don’t pay VRT (an emissions tax on all new vehicles that can at 10-30% on the cost of a new car). New cars are expensive here. As I said before, I got my EV, because for me it was the cheapest option. I had a diesel Ateca, was paying €400 pm. To replace it was over €400pm. I looked at various Petrol/diesel/PHEV/EV. Most cars I looked at were €400pm+. Cupra were giving a €3k dealer contribution when I was buying (plus other things, 0%, servicing incl tyres and brake pads) as my exact model was being discontinued. At the time it was cheapest option for me. Costs €300 pm before any fuel savings etc, hence I went with it. A year on and it has so far worked well for me. So I am saving about €200+ per month all in, €2,500 a year! This will cover any added depreciation, but I plan to keep it for the foreseeable so depreciation isn’t a worry.
The maths also worked out for us getting my wife’s Inster. Very few new cars on the market in Ireland for €20k, so again, worked out best value for us.
These are the cars we hope to keep until they (or we) fall apart, so don’t anticipated buying another for a long time. We will see where the world is at with cars in 10/20 years and make whatever decision we have to then. I certainly ain’t going to be losing any sleep over it, it’s just a car.

 

You never see any documentaries on TV how the minerals for these batteries are mined. Slave and child labour is used and the conditions are just awful. I read a few books on the situation and it is on your search engine. No wonder Governments cover this up.

 

Mercedes-Benz have announced they are cutting back on their electric car production.

 

Hi,

My 9 year old Skoda Yeti is fully charged up to around 550 miles in around five minutes it being diesel; I don't suffer anxiety range stress neither do I have to install a charger and it's highly unlikely the Yeti will burst into flames killing me or burning my bungalow down.

Depreciation isn't a problem with the Yeti which I think has now stabilized and it's still in top condition with only 37,000 miles so it's nicely run in. Any local garage can service it with readily available cheap parts; it's just been MOT'd and seviced including rear new discs & pads costing a fair £477 with the Yeti collected and returned.

The Yeti can enter ULEZ zones because it's a "CLEAN DIESEL" and it's just been road taxed at £35 for the year; yes a 2.0L diesel with only £35 road tax. My fully comprehensive insurance last year cost just under £600; this year I've just paid £400 for the same cover with the same insurance company; a drop of almost £200 and even without a phone call; renewal done automatically online.

The Yeti doesn't burn through tyres and is running on Michelin cross climate tyres the full set fitted on the driveway about six years ago costing £600.

Summer or winter isn't a problem; in summer the air con is run as required in winter the heating can be fully used without fear of draining the battery; I don't need to freeze to death worrying about reaching the next charger which might not be working or if working will involve being in a queue needing hours.

I don't need to drive a mission control full of unwanted electronics or gizzmos which are waiting to break; my Yeti gets me from and to home in comfort and driving it is a joy always bringing a smile to my face; it even looks like a car with street appeal recognized wherever it is.

You pay your money and make your choice; I want reliable transport; a car which looks after me not me looking after the car other than routine services.

Kind regards, Col.

 

@Retired I take it you aren't keen on going electric.

 

Hi,

Very astute of you @KT53 Thanks; yes I've no intention of buying a money pit; I've never driven an EV so I can only judge from what I see; I've detested batteries for over 60 years; batteries mostly discharged when needed the most. I'm not totally blind to the benefits of some batteries though; I love my Makita battery powered tools like drill; hedge trimmer and leaf blower where it doesn't matter much when the battery discharges; it takes 30 minutes to recharge whilst I busy myself with other work.

I've got lots of heavy duty mains tools 240V which are still used in anger. I like machinery I can pull apart and rebuild with an handful of spanners or 2lb hammer; I know I'm a 77 year old dinosaur but I've bought lots of scrap very old cast iron machines which I've fully rebuilt and generally they are better and last longer than the modern electronic kit; my Howard Bulldog petrol rotavator at about 63 years of age is currently being used to rotavate my wildflower meadows.



Here's another which I restored then sold because it couldn't climb the rear garden but I enjoyed the project.



I'm not a fan of circuit boards and I still don't have a mobile phone and don't want one; I like to use my head and two hands when I'm working not having a full time mobile phone in one hand.

How long will a new EV last and how much will it cost the owner in money and frustration; I worry when an EV parks next to my Yeti in a car park.

I'm not out to upset anyone it's just the way I am and how I look at things; I'm a true Yorkshireman knowing the value of money; I've no intention of buying an EV in fact when we bought the Yeti the UK government were pushing motorists into buying diesel vehicles only later to stab diesel owners in the back; the UK government are now pushing EV's and already are stabbing EV owners in the back; zero road tax is now gone I think for EV's but I've no interest in them at all in fact they all look like clones of each other.

The £Billions spent on green energy could be better used supporting UK citizens many who now rely on food banks and live in unhealthy homes.

Kind regards, Col.

 

Quote by Douglas Adams: “I've come up with a set of rules that describe ...”

 

Thank you @Retired. I'm generally pretty good at picking up on even the slightest hint of the way somebody really feels, despite them trying to hide the fact.

 

Hi,

You're most welcome @KT53

I think car buyers should have a choice of cars they wish to buy after all isn't it still their own money they're spending.

It's a shame Skoda stopped Yeti production because I'd be on my third Yeti by now.

Kind regards, Col.

 

I have no experience of electric vehicles - the only thing I gathered abput them was that they were "heavier" than a petrol/diesel vehicle and therefore caused more wear and tear on roads. It seems a good idea to me that they pay Road Tax - I don't believe they should ever have been exempted in the first place.