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spudfan



Member Since: 10 Sep 2007
Location: Co Donegal
Posts: 4665

Ireland 
Running on Empty? A Report on a Long Distance BEV Trip
This is the experience of driving a BEV vehicle on a long journey.
Seems going from A-B will be a thing of the past. You might need to go via C, D, and E as well!
https://davidsprott.blog/2021/12/03/runnin...-bev-trip/ 1982 88" 2.25 diesel
1992 110 200tdi csw -Zikali
2008 110 2.4 tdci csw-Zulu
2011 110 2.4 tdci csw-Masai
Post #932409 4th Dec 2021 2:16pm
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discomog



Member Since: 09 May 2015
Location: Notts/Lincs Border
Posts: 2527

United Kingdom 2015 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 XS CSW Santorini Black
It's a long (very long) article and very detailed. I don't think my hypertension would be able to cope with all the delays and frustrations of finding charging points, opening accounts for different suppliers, having failed charges, worrying if I was going to run out of charge on a smart motorway and having to switch the heater off to increase my range. It frustrates me when I have to wait five minutes for a petrol or diesel pump - I'd never cope with sitting around for an hour waiting for the thing to charge up

I'm so glad that when I ordered my new car earlier this year that it was powered by a 2 litre twin turbo charged petrol engine. Defender 90XS SW
Mini Countryman Cooper S
Morgan Plus 8
Post #932437 4th Dec 2021 5:37pm
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spudfan



Member Since: 10 Sep 2007
Location: Co Donegal
Posts: 4665

Ireland 
I find it a trifle ironic that going "green" with your BEV entails making extra trips to fuel up, thereby using more fuel than you would if you could just go on your scheduled journey.
Years ago the mantra was-don't make unnecessary trips and don't carry unnecessary weight in your car. Well going out of your way to fill up and cart batteries around seems to go well against the grain of that mantra. Do the "green" brigade not see the irony in this? 1982 88" 2.25 diesel
1992 110 200tdi csw -Zikali
2008 110 2.4 tdci csw-Zulu
2011 110 2.4 tdci csw-Masai
Post #932438 4th Dec 2021 5:46pm
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miker



Member Since: 13 Sep 2015
Location: Surrey
Posts: 1763

United Kingdom 1999 Defender 110 Td5 CSW Rioja Red
Not read the article, but several friends of mine now run EVs. All of them say the pros far outweigh the cons, and the cons really boil down to having to do a little bit of forward planning on the longest journeys.
Post #932443 4th Dec 2021 7:16pm
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SteveG



Member Since: 29 Nov 2011
Location: Norfolk
Posts: 660

2005 Defender 90 Td5 CSW Belize Green
Re: Running on Empty? A Report on a Long Distance BEV Trip
spudfan wrote:
This is the experience of driving a BEV vehicle on a long journey.
Seems going from A-B will be a thing of the past. You might need to go via C, D, and E as well!
https://davidsprott.blog/2021/12/03/runnin...-bev-trip/


Rolling Eyes

Or go and watch a YouTube video where they drive from Edinburgh to Brighton in a Tesla with one stop. There’s plenty of EV’s on the market now that consistently do 300m+ in summer and 200m+ in winter.

Driving at UK average speeds, practically everyone needs a break after driving 200 miles so charging while you get a coffee, comfort break or something to eat is not that much of a hardship.
Post #932444 4th Dec 2021 7:34pm
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markb110



Member Since: 22 May 2010
Location: Guildford
Posts: 2639

England 2002 Defender 90 Td5 HT Epsom Green
I am still awaiting the review that starts with ' we are on a two week family holiday with partner, two kids, boot loaded, roof box loaded and two bicycles on the tow bar mount.......'

That's a review that i want to see......
Post #932445 4th Dec 2021 7:43pm
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spudfan



Member Since: 10 Sep 2007
Location: Co Donegal
Posts: 4665

Ireland 
miker wrote:
Not read the article, but several friends of mine now run EVs. All of them say the pros far outweigh the cons, and the cons really boil down to having to do a little bit of forward planning on the longest journeys.

The pros include...subsidised fuel costs, lower road tax at the expense of other road users. Wonder how long it will be before electric cars have to pay their fair share like every one else. 1982 88" 2.25 diesel
1992 110 200tdi csw -Zikali
2008 110 2.4 tdci csw-Zulu
2011 110 2.4 tdci csw-Masai
Post #932457 4th Dec 2021 11:56pm
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miker



Member Since: 13 Sep 2015
Location: Surrey
Posts: 1763

United Kingdom 1999 Defender 110 Td5 CSW Rioja Red
"Subsidised fuel costs"

They use electricity. They pay the same rate for electricity as everyone else....

"Road Tax" Doesn't exist in england. It's vehicle excise duty, which is based on tailpipe CO2 emissions, of which electric vehicles have none.

I'm sure as the revenue stream of petrol and diesel powered vehicles reduces the government will find ways to plug the funding hole, but just like the mass transition to diesel years ago, blame the government, not the people.
Post #932461 5th Dec 2021 12:57am
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spudfan



Member Since: 10 Sep 2007
Location: Co Donegal
Posts: 4665

Ireland 
"Subsidised fuel costs"

They use electricity. They pay the same rate for electricity as everyone else....
....................................................................................................................
Fuel for home heating is cheaper than fuel to run your car. So by the same rule the electricity used in your house should be cheaper than the electricity used to top up your car. When enough people go electric no doubt there will be an increase in costs to counter balance the decrease in excise received from current non electric car owners. 1982 88" 2.25 diesel
1992 110 200tdi csw -Zikali
2008 110 2.4 tdci csw-Zulu
2011 110 2.4 tdci csw-Masai
Post #932462 5th Dec 2021 1:55am
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Philm



Member Since: 19 Jun 2020
Location: Manchester
Posts: 170

United Kingdom 
Post #932463 5th Dec 2021 7:54am
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spudfan



Member Since: 10 Sep 2007
Location: Co Donegal
Posts: 4665

Ireland 
Another article. The title says it all
"Poor range and high prices stopped me buying an electric car"
https://www.msn.com/en-ie/money/news/poor-...d=msedgntp 1982 88" 2.25 diesel
1992 110 200tdi csw -Zikali
2008 110 2.4 tdci csw-Zulu
2011 110 2.4 tdci csw-Masai
Post #932518 5th Dec 2021 5:01pm
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LandRoverAnorak



Member Since: 17 Jul 2011
Location: Surrey
Posts: 11324

United Kingdom 
Interesting article. Obviously specific to the situation in Ireland but many of the points made remain valid for lots of places. The only thing I'd take issue with is this bit towards the end:

Quote:
I don’t want to buy another diesel car, I want to buy an electric car. Hybrids seem like a cop-out when, on long journeys, you’re mostly using petrol anyway.


It seems to miss the point in two fundamental ways: firstly, rather than being a cop-out, a hybrid would seem the ideal solution to the circumstances that the author describes, i.e. rather than bleating about a situation that can't be changed overnight, look for a practical solution. Having experienced a hybrid recently, I was pleasantly surprised at how easy to use in electric mode for local journeys. Secondly, and I think a lot of commentators miss this point - electric cars are, first and foremost, a solution to urban air quality issues of which ICE cars contribute significantly when sitting around in traffic. This clearly doesn't apply to the longer cross country journeys that the author aspires to. Darren

110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak

"You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia
Post #932581 6th Dec 2021 6:28am
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nicam



Member Since: 14 Dec 2007
Location: deepest Lancashire
Posts: 156

2015 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 USW Aintree Green
As someone lucky (??) enough to have the use of 2 landrovers (4 litre V8 & 2,2TDCI), a small (1.2 litre) old petrol Hatchback and a BEV (150Kw motor), each has its pros and cons, and non of them is a perfect solution for all scenarios.
Supermarket shop - petrol hatchback - small & nippy round town & I don`t care if it gets trolleyed
Taking passengers & dogs out / poor weather/- 2.2 defender 110 - like the Tardis!
Fun day out - V8 SWB
Commuting / Long journey - BEV - very expensive to purchase (so mine is on a lease) but it is SO cheap to run - 280 mile fill up at £8.00 on my work charger!!! And charging while travelling just needs a little forward planning - an app called ZapMap (plenty of others are available) tell you where you can charge, if the charger is working, if it is being used and the cost.

I am no eco warrior with 2 V8`s, diesels & other petrol cars and motorbikes but, AT THE MOMENT, the tax situation both on fuel and the Benefit in kind is something to take advantage of. When the tax situation changes (probably by road pricing, I think) the whole thing will need to be reassessed. Don`t drive faster than your angel can fly!
Post #932597 6th Dec 2021 10:20am
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Tim in Scotland



Member Since: 23 May 2007
Location: The Land that time forgot
Posts: 3753

 
^ Same here, 1x TDi300 90, 1 x D240 FE L663 110 and a Mini EV. Owned the Mini 10 days and despite its very low electric range it’s not cost me anything at all to charge it in 280 miles of motoring. I use the “splash and dash” charging generally where you top up rather than go from say 10-80% charge - I use local park and rides that have chargers at them (they are free to use and have free parking and a free courtesy bus too) so the car charges while I’m shopping and to avoid overstay charges ( if your car stays on a charger after it is fully charged) I avoid rapid chargers. My ev will only charge at a max rate of 50kW as it’s battery is only 32kW capacity so it’s pointless hogging a hyper charger or very rapid charger as it would only take minutes to charge (if the software in the BMS would allow it to go faster than 50kW). In theory if I were to charge from 10-90% it would take me 38 minutes at 50kW chargers
My neighbours have a Hyundai Ioniq5 that can charge at up to 250kw/h but there are very few chargers that capacity locally but in theory they can add 300 miles range to the car in 48 minutes on a rapid charger - ie while they are shopping. I only use the Mini as a luxury electric shopping trolley, it’s a city car but even though I live out in the sticks 16 miles from the nearest decent supermarket it suits my needs perfectly - if I want to go further from from home then I have one or other of the Defenders to choose from. Many owners don’t even bother with public chargers, the amount of top up they can get while they are sleeping is enough to cover their daily consumption. A friend of mine drives Glasgow to Surrey every 6 weeks in an IPace. He drives as far as the Holiday Inn Express at Haydock Park for an overnight break, plugs in his IPace overnight on a charger that is free use to residents and has more than enough charge to arrive in Surrey the next day not to have range anxiety.
The Mini EV is compromised on range and space but it’s huge fun to drive and a tiny battery and a good charge speed does mean short charger stops!

As suggested you tend to plan your journeys better in an EV and there are some excellent planning apps available now like the previously mentioned Zap-Map but also “A Better Route Planner” where you key your cars battery charging characteristics and the lower and upper charging limits you want into the settings and tell it where your destination is and it will work out where you need to stop and how long to charge for. Look up Bjorn Nyborg’s Youtube channel to see how it’s done. Pangea Green D250 90 HSE with Air Suspension, Off-road Pack, Towing Pack, Black Contrast roof , rear recovery eyes, Front bash plate, Classic flaps all round, extended wheel arch kit and a few bits from PowerfulUK Expel Clear Gloss PPF to come
2020 D240 1st Edition in Pangea Green with Acorn interior. Now gone - old faithful, no mechanical issues whatsoever ever but the leaks and rattles all over the place won’t be missed!
Post #932606 6th Dec 2021 11:58am
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nicam



Member Since: 14 Dec 2007
Location: deepest Lancashire
Posts: 156

2015 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 USW Aintree Green
The "Splash & Dash" that Tim refers to seems to be the hardest thing for some people to grasp. Basically electricity is available all over the place and so, unlike a conventional vehicle (run it down on fuel until the light is on then fill it up) it is easy to keep it topped up, whenever it isn`t in use.
Read a statistic the other day - the average car is used for 300 hours per year - so less than an hour a day...…. leaving 23 hours to charge it.
It just needs a bit of forward planning. Don`t drive faster than your angel can fly!
Post #932624 6th Dec 2021 2:22pm
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