As your calculations show, it won't pay for itself outright. However it will be 5 years newer (or whatever it is) and lower miles. If you would normally keep a 75k mile car for another couple of years and shrug your shoulders about inevitable servicing and MoT bills around 100k miles (brakes, suspension, wheel bearing and if you're unlucky a clutch) then do so, but if you were thinking of a change then a good deal on an electric car is probably a good plan.
Should I buy an EV - real world advice needed.
- Thread starter beammeup
- Start date
andyoz
pfm Member
It's not just used EV sales that are struggling. Quote from an article I was reading:
"VW produced 97,000 battery-electric vehicles between January and May of this year but only sold 73,000 of them"
"Supply Issues" appear to be sorted now LOL...
Richard Lines
pfm Member
It's not quite that cut and dried as per a graph I posted elsewhere.
The cost of EV's does need to come down so the sooner some of the Chinese vehicles get over here the better and give the legacy manufacturers a 'kicking'........
Regards
Richard
Another factor in charger choice is what supply you have to the point where you want the charger. My garage only has 5A which is pretty useless. My welder certainly has the breaker saying "nahhh, told you before, no chance!" and my neighbour who has a Tesla can only get 13A to his charge point unless he wants to spend north of £1k to run a new cable under the drive.
The bottom is dropping out of the EV market, our local MG dealer told a mate that they had 30 odd cars on order and hadn’t sold one. As advised check the used car costs on one of the buying sites, I suspect it will be a lot lower than the price you are being quoted but you need to add on 10-15% to allow for dealer gross profit.
If you do get a home charger and I wouldn’t bother buying a EV without one, make sure you get the longer tether. Might not be an issue with the Corsa but the charging points are different on most EV’s.
If you do get a home charger and I wouldn’t bother buying a EV without one, make sure you get the longer tether. Might not be an issue with the Corsa but the charging points are different on most EV’s.
andyoz
pfm Member
Is anyone old enough to remember a time Long, long Ago before Covid (2019 actually) when manufacturers issue wasn't making the cars...it was finding someone to bloody buy them.
...and back then, cars were cheap and so was the money used to 'rent' them.
We're swinging sharply to a supply side glut now.
Ponty
pfm Member
Yes. I bought (yes, actually bought) 2 new vehicles in 2019. Great deals and big discounts on both. Prices (and money) way cheaper than now. Current pricing does not compute and will correct.
dan m
pfm Member
To the OPs original question: Do it if you can afford to. Take advantage of the oversupply. Ignore the penny pinchers here. From the first day you will be producing less CO2 and pollution. Present and future generations will know that at least a few understand it’s not all about the numbers “penciling out”.
Coda II
getting there slowly
I don’t disagree, but I am also in favour of keeping cars going for as long as reasonably possible to get maximum use out of the emissions produced during their initial manufacture. I have done 130,000 miles in my current car but am just thinking of adding an EV for the day to day short stuff while retaining the petrol for longer journeys and larger loads. (Never considered owning two vehicles till now.)
So you think it's more eco-frinedly to support the manufacture of new vehicles than it is to keep an existing one?
gingermrkettle
Deep vein trombonist
There is still a tipping point between new EV CO2 and existing ICE, depending on energy generation stats it was about 4 years to offset from the last figures I saw although microgeneration and mileage will obviously affect that.
dan m
pfm Member
Yes. See many of the numbers quoted by others when considering the lifetime of the vehicle. Thought we’d killed that myth.
It will save lives in the short and long term.
Whaleblue
Southbound
As already mentioned up thread, buying a used EV makes zero difference to CO2 and pollution. Both the EV and the ICE car it might replace exist and will be used by someone.
The purchase supports the ongoing supply further along the chain. If everyone kept what they've got, it would cause a ripple back to the manufacturer, so I'd say you're still contributing, one way or another.
Whaleblue
Southbound
That’s a fair point.
Whaleblue
Southbound
Or is it?!
The ICE that is sold on also has a ripple effect through the ICE supply chain doesn’t it?
beammeup
pfm Member
I didn't plan on having an upgrade as such for the second car ... I was just thinking about taking advantage of the deal perhaps before the IQ starts to fail and present me with higher maintenance costs due to age and high(ish) mileage. The Corsa incredibly only has 5500 mile on the odometer - so is just about a new car - and this car cost £29,000 when brand new!
When it's time to replace the IQ - it will be with a similar run around car anyway - nothing flash - so I am seeing this as a possible opportunity for change while I see this offer locally.
beammeup
pfm Member
My home charger cost £360, 7KW with a tethered type 1 connector.
There are other options that you can explore, for example :
The two items above cost about £250.
The adaptor end has selectable current, so you can lower the limit if you need to.
You can get the 32A socket fitted by any qualified electrician.
If the run is short then 6mm t&e, otherwise 10mm t&e to the CU.
This is very useful information !! Thanks.