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Non-Tesla recommendations for 2nd cheaper EV
- Thread starter HenryT
- Start date
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
We needed a second car in a hurry after a write off at the start of this year, the only EV that was readily available then was the Leaf. Good discounts to be had then and now from Nissan particularly on the 40kWh, I think we ended up paying £26K for the model with all the toys.
I was reluctant due to the chademo charging, but frankly its never been and is very rarely likely to public charge. Does over 100 miles per charge so suits our needs. Huge easy dealer network with plenty of experience servicing the car.
I was reluctant due to the chademo charging, but frankly its never been and is very rarely likely to public charge. Does over 100 miles per charge so suits our needs. Huge easy dealer network with plenty of experience servicing the car.
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
I agree that there's a degree of conditioning, something VW have used to market cars like the Golf for years. I'm not convinced that the Tesla rather cheap-sounding closing is related to aluminium panels, though, as aluminium is a heck of a lot less stiff than steel, and tends to dampen the sound. My aunt's old DB4 is aluminium, and the doors on that close with a nice solid sound, and the boot of the Model 3 is steel and that sounds like it belongs on an old Warsaw Pact era Skoda.
I'm sure that the door and boot lid closing sound could be improved a great deal with a bit of attention to deadening the panels a bit. That's pretty much what makes VW Golf doors feel the way they do, I believe - not an expensive thing to sort, really. Might be a bit more involved, with the glass being frameless, as I have a feeling part of the issue is that cantilevered glass and flexing in the glass supports within the door as it's closed.
Hope it's a bit more reliable than the one "battery life" has been documenting -
(An interesting channel by the way, and includes a side by side comparison with a M3 featuring our own Mr H. See here -
Some of us are old enough to remember the VW ads for the Beetle which showed them floating because they were 'sealed'. I remember a friends dad had one which used to make your ears pop when the door was slammed shut. No idea why we didn't suffocate in it.
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
The mixed reviews of the ID.3 seem a bit odd. On the one hand there's the road trip Bjorn Nyland did in one that seemed to indicate that it was pretty good, on the other hand some reviewers have highlighted lots of bugs in the software and the car not behaving as it should. The snags seem untypical for VW, especially given the effort they've put in to create the ID.3. I can only assume that they've been pushed to get it to market before it was really ready.
I'm reading it that way too - Beta testing taking place with the early adopters. I think I saw too that they weren't able to do OTA updates yet either? (or was that Polestar's problem?)
MrBadger
Badger out
I wonder if lack of OTA on some vehicles may have something to do with adherence to the upcoming new standards for it? They may be something that Tesla gets forced into adopting medium term if they want to get certain future type approvals.
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
I suspect that @VanillaAir_UK is probably right, that VW have held off from OTA updates because of the new standard. It seems likely that Tesla probably won't comply, initially, with that standard, and perhaps VW have taken the view that it's best to stick with manual updates until such time as it's clear as to what's needed to enable OTA here.
There's also the fact that VW, like every other manufacturer, was already set up to do updates manually. Like virtually all other manufacturers, they've been doing this with laptops in their dealership network for years now. It does seem to have badly backfired with the ID.3, though, when they realised there were major bugs in the first batch of production cars, and they needed to set up a mass update process in seems to be a big tent before they could be shipped out. Tesla most probably didn't even consider manual updates, as they'd not already got thousands of dealers set up to do it, and OTA was far and away the cheapest and most convenient solution when starting from a clean sheet of paper.
There's also the fact that VW, like every other manufacturer, was already set up to do updates manually. Like virtually all other manufacturers, they've been doing this with laptops in their dealership network for years now. It does seem to have badly backfired with the ID.3, though, when they realised there were major bugs in the first batch of production cars, and they needed to set up a mass update process in seems to be a big tent before they could be shipped out. Tesla most probably didn't even consider manual updates, as they'd not already got thousands of dealers set up to do it, and OTA was far and away the cheapest and most convenient solution when starting from a clean sheet of paper.
Bjorn is always hyped by efficiency, range and charging speed. It colours the overall impression of the cars he drives. I don't have a problem with that, he's always been open about it and he performs a great service. It's just always worthwhile understanding the lens through which he views things.
Well we are back from two further test drives and I think all the votes are now in.
In all probability I think she will be going for the ID.3. Life - The cheapest one (if that's not an oxymoron,) which comes in at a tad under £30k before you pick a different colour than grey.
The reasons for picking the VW over the e208 are these (comment on the MG follows);
Driving the VW it felt taught and well balanced. Felt slightly quicker than the e208. Inside, the car felt pretty light and airy despite there being no sunroof whereas the Peugeot felt a bit 'closed in'. The shape of the steering wheel in the Peugeot seemed a bit of a distraction but I'm sure its something you would get used to.
The technology in the VW seemed intuitive and responsive, so far as we did much with it. That well made and purposeful approach VW seemed to have mastered some years ago. The cliché about the car being an EV designed from the ground up did seem appropriate.
Boot space in the VW looked better than the e208 and the back seats too seemed much more useable. The back doors in the e208 seemed pretty small which in itself wouldn't be a big deal for us but I can image it would be pretty cramped for any passengers. (We have 2 sons both over 6ft who could struggle on the odd occasion we take them anywhere).
Driving position felt better and more 'familiar' - she is coming from many years in Golfs. The e208 seemed a bit low down, apparently.
We were both pretty impressed with the MG but it probably missed the mark for simply being the wrong type of car. Neither of us have had an SUV type car before and whilst we could see the advantages it brings, it felt just a bit too big as a replacement for the current Golf. The fit and finish seemed really good and the equipment level also seemed pretty comprehensive. The driving position was very good and the car did seem like a comfortable and practical place to be. Back seats and rear luggage room were very good too. Some odd reminders of previous cars in there with a Jaguar XF gear selector and a VW steering wheel. (That said, my Tesla MS has Mercedes switches for the windows and wipers/cruise control). The range at c160 miles is the lowest of the three and could possibly be a concern.
I could see the MG being a really good option for lots of reasons, but just not for us this time around. Good price too - just under £22k for a July 2020 car with 3k miles.
We are probably going to be spending a bit more than we intended, but after a little bit of exposure to the options available are happy enough with the outcome.
Thanks all for your views and suggestions.
In all probability I think she will be going for the ID.3. Life - The cheapest one (if that's not an oxymoron,) which comes in at a tad under £30k before you pick a different colour than grey.
The reasons for picking the VW over the e208 are these (comment on the MG follows);
Driving the VW it felt taught and well balanced. Felt slightly quicker than the e208. Inside, the car felt pretty light and airy despite there being no sunroof whereas the Peugeot felt a bit 'closed in'. The shape of the steering wheel in the Peugeot seemed a bit of a distraction but I'm sure its something you would get used to.
The technology in the VW seemed intuitive and responsive, so far as we did much with it. That well made and purposeful approach VW seemed to have mastered some years ago. The cliché about the car being an EV designed from the ground up did seem appropriate.
Boot space in the VW looked better than the e208 and the back seats too seemed much more useable. The back doors in the e208 seemed pretty small which in itself wouldn't be a big deal for us but I can image it would be pretty cramped for any passengers. (We have 2 sons both over 6ft who could struggle on the odd occasion we take them anywhere).
Driving position felt better and more 'familiar' - she is coming from many years in Golfs. The e208 seemed a bit low down, apparently.
We were both pretty impressed with the MG but it probably missed the mark for simply being the wrong type of car. Neither of us have had an SUV type car before and whilst we could see the advantages it brings, it felt just a bit too big as a replacement for the current Golf. The fit and finish seemed really good and the equipment level also seemed pretty comprehensive. The driving position was very good and the car did seem like a comfortable and practical place to be. Back seats and rear luggage room were very good too. Some odd reminders of previous cars in there with a Jaguar XF gear selector and a VW steering wheel. (That said, my Tesla MS has Mercedes switches for the windows and wipers/cruise control). The range at c160 miles is the lowest of the three and could possibly be a concern.
I could see the MG being a really good option for lots of reasons, but just not for us this time around. Good price too - just under £22k for a July 2020 car with 3k miles.
We are probably going to be spending a bit more than we intended, but after a little bit of exposure to the options available are happy enough with the outcome.
Thanks all for your views and suggestions.
Doudeau
Member
I wouldn’t disagree - I’m 6ft and I wouldn’t want to have to sit in the back of my e208.
One odd thing I forgot to mention about the e208 is the estimate for remaining range - it seems to jump down in random increments and keeps that estimate for a few miles. It will, for example, show 156 as I set off then after a mile jump down to 149. It then stays at 149 for a number of miles and then jumps to 143. I wish it would show a % and go down smoothly.
I’m still enjoying it and I’m sure you’ll love the ID3 - mine beats the fully spec’d BMW 535d GT that I sold as it became unbearable to drive after the Tesla.
MrBadger
Badger out
Deposit paid and car ordered.
In the event we went for the Life version in Stonewash Blue Metallic, the only other extra being the alloy wheels instead of the steel wheels the Life version comes with otherwise. Car is in Exeter apparently, so might be a while before we see it. Other than that one, the only other Life variant available in the short term is a Magnesium Grey (dark grey) car with the £1250 heat pump and steel wheels.
Have to commend the dealer by the way, for making it a very painless experience (Inchcape in Chester*) and the fact they offered us nearly £500 more than we buy any car for the px on an 11 year old Golf without even seeing it.
*(The Altrincham branch, where we took the test drive couldn't be bothered to call us back despite leaving two messages to do so. Didn't cover themselves in glory earlier either, by calling us 45 minutes before the test drive to ask us to re-schedule).
Seems like there will be some 'beta testing/earlier adopter's grief' to live with on this particular journey as I've read that CarPlay and one or two other features like OTA updates are pending a 'big update' in Jan.
Should look similar to the car below, I gather.
Interesting topic as we are looking also.
My 2 cents are as below.
Renault Zoe is the current front runner, we did a direct comparison with the ID3 in Milton Keynes yesterday and I hate to say it by the VW felt and looked cheap as chips inside, so much so that the Renault felt like the nicer car. - I was really surprised went in expecting to love it, but no.
We are also on the fence about waiting for the new fiat 500 electric as its right up the Misses street. We looked at the Mini and whilst it was familiar to the one we just got rid of, the range is just too much of a problem for us.
My 2 cents are as below.
Renault Zoe is the current front runner, we did a direct comparison with the ID3 in Milton Keynes yesterday and I hate to say it by the VW felt and looked cheap as chips inside, so much so that the Renault felt like the nicer car. - I was really surprised went in expecting to love it, but no.
We are also on the fence about waiting for the new fiat 500 electric as its right up the Misses street. We looked at the Mini and whilst it was familiar to the one we just got rid of, the range is just too much of a problem for us.
thats interesting. Hadn’t really considered the Peugeot tbh.
good luck with the new motor.
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
My wife's going to be looking for a replacement for her Yaris hybrid before long, and she's struggling to accept that an EV could easily do all the journeys she needs to do. Most of her trips are no more than about 30 to 40 miles in total, if that, but she's disproportionally concerned about being able to drive ~110 miles to see her mother. There are several charging options both on route, and close to where her mother lives, but no off-street parking there, so no way to just charge with a granny lead. I think that something like a Zoe would do all she needs, and as she had a Clio for years, and loved that, it would probably be OK in terms of styling. Just a matter of convincing her that charging isn't really the hurdle she seems to think it is.
