Does anyone here own an EV yet?
We have just taken the plunge and bought our first!
A 2020 Hyundai Kona 64kWh Premium SE in metallic red for just 11995 Pounds.
This was the top of the range model when it came out with the longer range battery and all the optional extras. The 64kWh battery range is about 278 miles, which is better than nearly every other can in this size, in our price range, with most only having 45-50kWh batteries and a 180-200 mile range. We wanted a bit more in case we wanted to travel a bit further, but also so it doesn't need charging as often. It's also got the more powerful electric motor with a 0-60 in 7.5 seconds, which is more than enough.
My wife only does about 20 miles most days so it would only need charging once a week. And we have worked out a full charge will cost less than 7 pounds on a home charger (which we now need to buy and get installed).
It is the older shape Kona so not quite as smart looking at the newer one. The front isn't as pretty. But I gave it a test drive and it's really nice to drive and very comfortable. I was also surprised by the level of equipment for a car that is really a lower end EV. As the top of the range model it has full leather with heated and ventilated seats (in the rear too), wireless phone charging, a really good speaker system, heads up display, radar cruise control and auto radar adjusting regen braking, and other things most cars now have such as 360 degree reversing camera and parking sensors, a larger infotainment screen etc. It seemed to have every possible equipment I could think of.
So we are very happy with what is quite a bargain priced purchase. The Kona also gets some very good reviews for reliability and the car itself. The main dealer we bought it from also did a battery health check. The car has 45k miles on the clock and it's still showing 100% battery health. Reviews also show the range it shows is very accurate and you should get what it states, which is unusual.
We just have to wait now to pick it up next week.
I'm now a bit jealous as I still have my older Peugeot 508SW diesel. The car I really want though is the BYD Seal or the KIA EV6. But I was really impressed by the Hyundai.
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We picked the car up yesterday. My wife had to collect it as I was at work and she was a bit nervous as hadn't even driven an automatic (even though I've owned 3!). Her 12 year old Volvo is fairly basic compared to the new car. This is even the first car she has had with Bluetooth!
I took it out for a quick drive when I got home and it's nice, but not really my sort of car. We will use it when we go anywhere though to save a lot of cost compared to petrol. It's in very good condition for 5 years old and exactly what she needs.
We should be getting a wall charger installed in the next 2 weeks that will charge at 7kWh so take about 9 hours to fully charge the 64kWh battery from 0 to 100%. And with a fixed rate OVO EV charging package costing ?27 per month on our energy bills that should be all it costs. That also includes an extra 100 mile public charging credit each month. At the moment she was spending at least 200 pounds per month on diesel so this will save quite a bit.
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Exactly. This EV was never about the ultimate driving experience. It was triggered by the huge current increase in fuel prices and her Volvo breaking down at the same time and starting to have a few tell tail sounds that more work will be needed on it soon. It's mainly for her 6 mile daily commute to work and taking Tom to Swimming 5 times a week. For that it's perfect.
I did notice the new Audi A6 E-Tron on the road yesterday and that looks really nice in the Avant Estate version. And with a 470 mile range that's more like it. But then it does cost 65k Pounds. There are very nice EVs starting to appear but for me too expensive. Secondhand market in about 3 years time should be good.
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We drove the EV to my parents in the New Forest over the weekend. We had about 93% charge when we left and about 45% when we got back home. That's about 47 miles each way, plus we made about a 10 mile detour on route and visited a seaside village on the way back for an Ice Cream so in total about 120 miles. So we are happy with that.
The home charger won't be installed for a couple of weeks so we tried the emergency 3 pin plug charger you plug into a plug socket in the house. This charged at about 2.4kWh and the car had over 90% charge in the morning, so that was more than good enough for my wife using it this week for work. This is more expensive to charge compared to a proper 7kW charger as that will be linked to our electric supplier on a special EV tariff that will cost about 7p per kWh on a monthly plan. I know EVs are not for everyone and I'm still a bit on the fence for longer journeys, but for daily use it seems more than good enough and far cheaper.
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