[Misc] Electric car/hybrid car or other?

[Live by the sea]

Given the choice between an electric car or a bus I choose bus . Also I would choose a slow boat to China . ( no offence to anyone from the Communist state )

 

[Pint of Ale and a Burger]

I still think hydrogen power units are the way forward and I'm waiting to see what happens with them rather than commit to electric.

I don't drive at the moment as I am happy walking or getting the bus but I am considering getting a car because of a change in circumstances.

a hydrogen one would be excellent for me in both in terms of ease of use and being kinder for the environment.

An electric car is useless to me as I don't have a driveway to charge up the battery and parking round here is a free for all that spans two or three roads.


I wonder if we will see a percentage of car owners move to electric which will see a reduction in fuel sales at traditional forecourts,which will then enable forecourts to transition into selling hydrogen which will then make hydrogen cars more attractive to consumers who can't go electric and may even attract those that went electric but found it problematic.

If I do get a car over the next few months then it will be a petrol one.

 

[Driver8]

Considering a hybrid. At least for the next couple of years I do a 300 mile round trip from West Country to the midlands once or twice a week and the occasional 400 miles to London and back. No time or place for recharging an electric car without extending to a night stopover so electric still not under consideration.

I’ve done three 600 miles round trips to the Amex in my Tesla and had to charge for about 35 mins each way (at Oxford services). There are super chargers at Membury services on the M4.

 

[Rowdey]

I still think hydrogen power units are the way forward and I'm waiting to see what happens with them rather than commit to electric.

I don't drive at the moment as I am happy walking or getting the bus but I am considering getting a car because of a change in circumstances.

a hydrogen one would be excellent for me in both in terms of ease of use and being kinder for the environment.

An electric car is useless to me as I don't have a driveway to charge up the battery and parking round here is a free for all that spans two or three roads.


I wonder if we will see a percentage of car owners move to electric which will see a reduction in fuel sales at traditional forecourts,which will then enable forecourts to transition into selling hydrogen which will then make hydrogen cars more attractive to consumers who can't go electric and may even attract those that went electric but found it problematic.

If I do get a car over the next few months then it will be a petrol one.

Hydrogen is very interesting going forward - I looked into getting hydrogen van, but there were only two charge points on London, on the East and West edges of the M25.. Not much good in Brixton borders..

Considering a hybrid. At least for the next couple of years I do a 300 mile round trip from West Country to the midlands once or twice a week and the occasional 400 miles to London and back. No time or place for recharging an electric car without extending to a night stopover so electric still not under consideration.

Watch it with Hybrids - The dont qualify for free Congestion Charge after Oct 2021 up here in London..

 

[Pint of Ale and a Burger]

Hydrogen is very interesting going forward - I looked into getting hydrogen van, but there were only two charge points on London, on the East and West edges of the M25.. Not much good in Brixton borders..



Watch it with Hybrids - The dont qualify for free Congestion Charge after Oct 2021 up here in London..

Yes,I do think that heavy load vehicles will make the switch to hydrogen from diesel which will force the implementation of charging infrastructure.
Companies with hydrogen heavy load vehicles that also have smaller lorries and vans will also then want the whole fleet standardised with hydrogen which will mean even more expansion of charging infrastructure.
I think the growth of hydrogen charging point Infrastructure driven by the needs of industry will eventually mean the ownership of a hydrogen car a lot easier and make a lot more sense than electric.
Hydrogen is definitely one to keep an eye on.

 

[essbee1]

Funnily enough my second car is also 20 years old and the amber engine light came on yesterday and stayed on. I started the car and the engine started then died, leaving the amber engine light on. It started on the second go and drives fine. But clearly I have an issue to deal with too as I don't want a big expense. Only done 51,000 miles.

That's very odd...mine has done 50, 200 miles.

 

[Super Steve Earle]

Hi Mouldy,

Engine electrics symbol flashing amber warning....going in next week for a check. Car is 20
years old mind.

Funnily enough my second car is also 20 years old and the amber engine light came on yesterday and stayed on. I started the car and the engine started then died, leaving the amber engine light on. It started on the second go and drives fine. But clearly I have an issue to deal with too as I don't want a big expense. Only done 51,000 miles.

That's very odd...mine has done 50, 200 miles.

I don't want to deflect the thread, but as you essbee1 are the OP I guess I'm ok for a post. It's frustrating that mechanics don't offer a free diagnostic to get the business. I'm tempted to splash £23 on Amazon for a device to do it myself as garages seem to charge £30 to £60 for the service. Fingers crossed yours isn't too much of a problem. The BHA number plate on mine is probably worth more than the car! Don't forget to post the outcome.

 

[Super Steve Earle]

That's very odd...mine has done 50, 200 miles.

I don't want to deflect the thread, but as you essbee1 are the OP I guess I'm ok for a post. It's frustrating that mechanics don't offer a free diagnostic to get the business. I'm tempted to splash £23 on Amazon for a device to do it myself as garages seem to charge £30 to £60 for the service. Fingers crossed yours isn't too much of a problem. The BHA number plate on mine is probably worth more than the car! Don't forget to post the outcome.

Finally took mine in on Monday this week with much trepidation. After a diagnostic, I was told the codes showed either a dodgy wire or the ignition on one of the cylinders, but as the car was driving fine he suggested resetting the warning light and see if it goes again. Fingers crossed. A main dealer and a smaller local garage quoted me £70 Labour and £70 for the Test, so £140 odd in all. My usual garage charged me a Tenner for a 15 minute test and obviously I'll go back if it needs more work. How did you get on essbee1?

 

[OSRGull]

I work for a vehicle leasing company if you want any assistance.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Gabbafella]

How about a one of a kind Porsche 912. Yours for only £110,000 and worth every penny in my opinion. Beautiful.

 

[upthealbion1970]

I don't want to deflect the thread, but as you essbee1 are the OP I guess I'm ok for a post. It's frustrating that mechanics don't offer a free diagnostic to get the business. I'm tempted to splash £23 on Amazon for a device to do it myself as garages seem to charge £30 to £60 for the service. Fingers crossed yours isn't too much of a problem. The BHA number plate on mine is probably worth more than the car! Don't forget to post the outcome.

Cheap code readers don’t always read enough of stored codes to give you any real information and if they do that’s only part of a diagnosis. It’s a bit like pointing you to the right aisle in the supermarket.

Garages don’t do free diagnostic checks because they often have to have several different bits of kit to cover as many different makes of car as possible running into £000s as well as annual subscriptions to keep the software upto date.

The fee for a diagnostic check also gives you many years of experience to diagnose the fault causing a code to be stored.

If for example a code relates to a lambda sensor on your £23 code reader the normal reaction would be to get a lambda sensor and replace it when the fault is most likely an exhaust leak causing the problem to start with when there’s nothing wrong with the lambda sensor at all.

The tough part is finding a garage you can trust to diagnose it right first time.

 

[Randy McNob]

I test drove a Hyundai Kona and Kia E-Nero, the latter is the better imo.

I think the Hybrids will be defunct in a few years, they'll be the blackberries of the car world

 

[Juan Albion]

Wait a short while and buy an electric flying car.

 

[Goldstone1976]

I've got a Tesla Model 3 (so full EV). I can' t recommend it highly enough.

It's like driving an iPad.

Which version?

I’m seriously considering the long range. They claim 360 miles for that, which I don’t believe. 300 in the summer, 270 in winter??

 

[Butch Willykins]

Which version?

I’m seriously considering the long range. They claim 360 miles for that, which I don’t believe. 300 in the summer, 270 in winter??

Yes - the Long Range AWD. Only had the car a couple of months - but those summers figures are about right. I expect it to drop to around 270-ish in the winter.

 

[Goldstone1976]

Yes - the Long Range AWD. Only had the car a couple of months - but those summers figures are about right. I expect it to drop to around 270-ish in the winter.

Thanks. The dealer says that any other Tesla owner should have a referral link/code that if I use when placing an order we both get 1000 miles worth of free supercharger usage. Would you be happy to share your code/url/whatever? If so, I’ll pm you my email address. Thx

 

[Lincoln Imp]

I know that this is slightly off-topic but the one thing that I think would transform electric transport would be a system that would allow downloaded electricity to be charged to the owner of the charger rather than the owner of the socket.

Setting up commercial charging stations would be far easier (stores, restaurants and football stadiums with car parks could install free-to-use charging points as a service to customers) and there would be no embarrassing discussions with friends and relatives when you plugged your Tesla in their socket overnight.

Perhaps someone's already thought of it. I don't know.

 

[Driver8]

Thanks. The dealer says that any other Tesla owner should have a referral link/code that if I use when placing an order we both get 1000 miles worth of free supercharger usage. Would you be happy to share your code/url/whatever? If so, I’ll pm you my email address. Thx

If the other poster doesn’t have a referral code I’m happy to oblige!

 

[Butch Willykins]

Thanks. The dealer says that any other Tesla owner should have a referral link/code that if I use when placing an order we both get 1000 miles worth of free supercharger usage. Would you be happy to share your code/url/whatever? If so, I’ll pm you my email address. Thx

Absolutely! PM away!

 

[Audax]

I’m seriously considering the long range. They claim 360 miles for that, which I don’t believe. 300 in the summer, 270 in winter??

Don't know how accurate Tesla are with their claimed ranges, but my Zoe in real world conditions is comparing favourably against the Renault claim. They claim 238 miles for my model, I did a trip on Tuesday this week - A22 from Uckfield, J6 M25 round to J16, M/A40 into Baker Street area. Then home again, this time GPS took us south through London to the M3 before joining the M25 to J6, and down the A22 to home. Given the time of day I went, the M25 stretch both ways was at 70mph - so a real drain on range. Nevertheless, for the whole day I averaged 4.9m/kwh, with a 50kwh battery that works out to 245 miles range.

Left home with 100% battery, got back with 31%. And that was with a) air con on, b) radio on, c) Eco mode off on the M roads, and d) 2 mobile phones on charge.

Was also amusing seeing the range change as we drove up the A22 on the outward journey. Prior to that, all my recent driving had been local (school run, occasional trip to Lewes for groceries) and only averaging around 4.4 to 4.5m/kwh. Heading up the A22, it was closer to 5.5m/kwh and the estimated remaining range was higher when we got to the M25 than when we left home. Didn't last long once we got onto the M25 and climbed the J7 to J8 hill