Non-Tesla recommendations for 2nd cheaper EV

[AndyS3]

We have 40kWatt Nissan Leaf. Its 2.1/2 years old with nearly 50k miles. It does 170 miles in summer 110 miles in winter. We use every day with a least 100 miles a day. It has all the bells and whistles including auto steering. Its our go to car for local runs. school, dog ferrying, shopping.

Since new, Its not needed anything in all the time we've owned it, but a new set of tyres is on the horizon soon

 

[Fly.guy]

Interesting thread. We have been having a similar conversation....

what do people think about the Honda E ?

A neighbourhood fellow long time Model S owner recently got themselves a Honda E as a second / town car.

I must say, that from a design point of view I’m very tempted.... its a great looking car and has lots of cool tech. Short range and small boot are pretty much irrelevant as the Model S is more than enough of both when needed. But being small, nippy and a tiny turning circle are appealing.

Bit pricy mind.

 

[nxsynjs]

We are in the same position as looking for a 2nd EV. We really liked the honda-e but felt it was overpriced for what you got. So far we have tried
Kona - Drove well but far too many buttons. Seemed like a blackberry compared to a smart phone
E-Niro. Top of the list. But long waiting list
Nissan Leaf. Was put off by the salesman and seemed a generation or 2 behind the rest
ID3 1st edition. Liked it a lot, but it felt just like an electric golf to drive. Again the price premium over the number of miles we would do in it makes the value questionable for us

Still to test
MG ZS-EV - In our 2nd car price range, but questions over the name and capability.
Peugeot E208
Corsa-E
Zoe

We'll probably end up buying a small, cheap ish ICE car to tide us over until more options become available

 

[mrobins64495]

Interesting thread. We have been having a similar conversation....

what do people think about the Honda E ?

A neighbourhood fellow long time Model S owner recently got themselves a Honda E as a second / town car.

I must say, that from a design point of view I’m very tempted.... its a great looking car and has lots of cool tech. Short range and small boot are pretty much irrelevant as the Model S is more than enough of both when needed. But being small, nippy and a tiny turning circle are appealing.

Bit pricy mind.

Came across one in the flesh today. Externally looks cool as anything. Range for me would be an issue though.

We’re waiting on the new electric fiat 500 as it seems the best compromise.

 

[RedMod3]

Mrs Redmod3 is also going to get a BEV soon, but we need something small. Currently we have a Toyota IQ, and an electric-only Toyota less than 3m long would be ideal. Considering a Smart Car, but they need to increase the range to 100+ miles first.

 

[AndyS3]

I would check EPA and EV-database.uk. These will the most accurate range numbers. Ignore WLTP total fiction

 

[Haddock]

on a car about half the price it has cruise control that comes on at the speed you're going, a speed limiter

It kills me how easy this would be for Tesla to fix, but they don't because they have the FSD religion.

 

[AndyS3]

It seems that most sub£30k market, some have decent range with poor acceleration, others have moderate range( subjective) but decent(not Tesla acceleration) acceleration.

I put our Leaf into the latter category. But we find 100 miles a day is more than achievable. Decent boot and good 5 seats.

The Honda E is funky looking but is a true town/city commuter

 

[HenryT]

It seems that most sub£30k market, some have decent range with poor acceleration, others have moderate range( subjective) but decent(not Tesla acceleration) acceleration.

I put our Leaf into the latter category. But we find 100 miles a day is more than achievable. Decent boot and good 5 seats.

The Honda E is funky looking but is a true town/city commuter

The entry level ID.3 is just under £30k. 0-60 @ 7.2 secs and a claimed range of 261 miles.

 

[AndyS3]

Didn't go through all models. I like the look but the interior buttons seem very flaky

 

[Thebaron1974]

Has anyone looed at the DS3 e-tense? My partner and I took one out the other month and it was a really nice drive. having test driven Tesla, Hyundai, Jag and Leaf I would put it right up there with regards drive comfort etc...

 

[mnobleuk]

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.

I think you're overthinking it. Its well documented that VW got in a terrible mess with their software, one advantage Tesla has is that it writes all the software and builds all the hardware (no OEM) whereas VW had to integrate a myriad of systems. Anyway - their development overran to the extent that they built the cars before the software was ready and had to "store" them for months. I believe that this meant that OTA updates were prioritised below some other features and simply hasn't been implemented yet,

 

[mnobleuk]

It kills me how easy this would be for Tesla to fix, but they don't because they have the FSD religion.

There are rumours this is in the update currently rolling out.

 

[hgmichna]

There are rumours this is in the update currently rolling out.

I have 2020.44, and it has a setting to keep the current driving speed when activating autopilot. Works well, but after getting used to the old ways of the speed limit, I had to unlearn my earlier workarounds. Now you have to learn new ways just in case you do want to drive at the speed limit.

One of the methods right now is to activate autopilot, then hold down the gear stalk for a second to set the speed to the limit. There are several others.

 

[Haddock]

I have 2020.44, and it has a setting to keep the current driving speed when activating autopilot. Works well, but after getting used to the old ways of the speed limit, I had to unlearn my earlier workarounds. Now you have to learn new ways just in case you do want to drive at the speed limit.

One of the methods right now is to activate autopilot, then hold down the gear stalk for a second to set the speed to the limit. There are several others.

Old-style cruise control is a minimum speed, so if you press the accelerator it goes faster, but if you release it, it goes no slower. I guess this is what you have.

But how about the max-speed mode that almost all new (since 2012) cars in Europe have, where you can release the accelerator to go slower, but if you press it down it doesn't go above the cruise control speed? This is the mode I prefer. (You can still floor the accelerator if you really want to go faster.)

 

[roadcred]

It really surprises me that only one person has mentioned the eniro in this thread and that nobody mentions the Kia esoul EV. The first advantage is that they both have 280 mile range which totally removes range anxiety......the only reason I drive a Tesla.
I have test driven both the eniro 4 and the Soul EV. If you can stand the Souls quirky outside appearance it is a real fun drive and much more comfortable both seating and suspension than the Model 3. It has a sensible level of manual controls and my wife will drive it. The autopilot is better than the Tesla, much more like the autopilot in my Volvo. The regen which is adjustable on the move from paddles is probably its best feature and ensures that the real range equals the WLPT range!
The eniro 4 is a genuine alternative to a tesla - the only thing missing is the Supercharger network.
Both vehicles are as readily available as Tesla.
Personally would not consider any EV other than Tesla or Kia /Hyundai - they are the only real players in the m arket.

 

[Neilio]

It really surprises me that only one person has mentioned the eniro in this thread and that nobody mentions the Kia esoul EV. The first advantage is that they both have 280 mile range which totally removes range anxiety......the only reason I drive a Tesla.
I have test driven both the eniro 4 and the Soul EV. If you can stand the Souls quirky outside appearance it is a real fun drive and much more comfortable both seating and suspension than the Model 3. It has a sensible level of manual controls and my wife will drive it. The autopilot is better than the Tesla, much more like the autopilot in my Volvo. The regen which is adjustable on the move from paddles is probably its best feature and ensures that the real range equals the WLPT range!
The eniro 4 is a genuine alternative to a tesla - the only thing missing is the Supercharger network.
Both vehicles are as readily available as Tesla.
Personally would not consider any EV other than Tesla or Kia /Hyundai - they are the only real players in the m arket.

What sets the soul apart from the eniro if you don't mind me asking? The eniro was on my short short list before I got the tesla so I'm curious.

Mind you, it's a very hideous thing so don't think I could consider it

 

[Neilio]

Also I think I'm confused by the thread. I thought we were looking for a second, city car to complement the Tesla? If you need 300 mile range then surely you are replacing the Tesla?

 

[HenryT]

Also I think I'm confused by the thread. I thought we were looking for a second, city car to complement the Tesla? If you need 300 mile range then surely you are replacing the Tesla?

That's pretty accurate. I started this thread to solicit opinions/advice in connection with a replacement for my wife's Golf.

The eNero was ruled out because of cost - originally I was looking to keep to around <£25k. Inevitably, the budget crept up and we have settled on a VW ID.3.

 

[hgmichna]

… we have settled on a VW ID.3.

I hope you will write a good comparison of the two vehicles here after experiencing both of them.