Fuel prices..!

[Hal Jordan]

Good advice re EVs designed from scratch. I’d never heard of Stellantis, or if I had I’d forgotten.
At the least I want a a car that can get me to Snowdonia - approx 180 mile round trip - without it being essential to top up on the way home. I’m not expecting there to be a charger at the far end of Cwm Pennant or somewhere equally remote. So with a bit of slack I’m after at least 250 mile range.

Stellantis is the mega conglomerate of PSA and FCA so takes in loads of brands.

Oddly, going against my own advice against EVs that are ICE conversions, either the Kia e-Niro or the Hyundai Kona Electric would fulfil the range needs, some people have pushed 300 miles out of them in the summer and they'd definitely do your trip on one charge.

[GogLais]

Good advice re EVs designed from scratch. I’d never heard of Stellantis, or if I had I’d forgotten.
At the least I want a a car that can get me to Snowdonia - approx 180 mile round trip - without it being essential to top up on the way home. I’m not expecting there to be a charger at the far end of Cwm Pennant or somewhere equally remote. So with a bit of slack I’m after at least 250 mile range.

Stellantis is the mega conglomerate of PSA and FCA so takes in loads of brands.

Oddly, going against my own advice against EVs that are ICE conversions, either the Kia e-Niro or the Hyundai Kona Electric would fulfil the range needs, some people have pushed 300 miles out of them in the summer and they'd definitely do your trip on one charge.

Ta. Thing is I can get an ICE car that I’m perfectly content with for a bit under £20k. EVs with the right range seem to be £30k plus. I don’t do the mileage to pay it off although energy prices are in a state of flux. To go EV my conscience would have to overrule my pocket.

[Torquemada 1420]

Good advice re EVs designed from scratch. I’d never heard of Stellantis, or if I had I’d forgotten.
At the least I want a a car that can get me to Snowdonia - approx 180 mile round trip - without it being essential to top up on the way home. I’m not expecting there to be a charger at the far end of Cwm Pennant or somewhere equally remote. So with a bit of slack I’m after at least 250 mile range.

Stellantis is the mega conglomerate of PSA and FCA so takes in loads of brands.

Oddly, going against my own advice against EVs that are ICE conversions, either the Kia e-Niro or the Hyundai Kona Electric would fulfil the range needs, some people have pushed 300 miles out of them in the summer and they'd definitely do your trip on one charge.

Ta. Thing is I can get an ICE car that I’m perfectly content with for a bit under £20k. EVs with the right range seem to be £30k plus. I don’t do the mileage to pay it off although energy prices are in a state of flux. To go EV my conscience would have to overrule my pocket.

Yes pay more for greater inconvenience.

[bumblingbaf]

I have just test driven a Peugeot E2008 really nice and futuristic but only 180 miles range and about 37k - electrics army going to really take off until they have come down by 25 - 30%

Has anyone got one has experience of owning one or has recommendations?

My recommendation is not to get a car which is basically an ICE platform with batteries stuffed in it, and is effectively Stellantis' first proper stab at an EV.


GogLais, true enough about older EVs having short ranges, but it's not helped by the Welsh Assembly not putting any chargers in and throwing money at those idiots at Riversimple instead.

Good advice re EVs designed from scratch. I’d never heard of Stellantis, or if I had I’d forgotten.
At the least I want a a car that can get me to Snowdonia - approx 180 mile round trip - without it being essential to top up on the way home. I’m not expecting there to be a charger at the far end of Cwm Pennant or somewhere equally remote. So with a bit of slack I’m after at least 250 mile range.

Own 2 EVs (VW and Audi). VW feels a lot more futuristic and less ICE with a battery and built from ground-up with EV in mind. Done a few 400+ mile journeys and found charging is easy enough when on the motorways, in cities and towns it's a bit more hit and miss but still not bad. Stopping for an hour is not a problem either as chance to stretch legs and get something to eat. I do worry when number of EVs on road increases as I don't think enough infrastructure in place yet.

However, with charger at home and plugging in most nights, with 20-30 mile to work it really is easy and makes so much sense. I also think by next year EV prices will achieve parity with ICE and then we'll see a big explosion in purchasing (providing semi-conductor issue is sorted).

[inactionman]

I've been keeping an eye on cheap used Renault Zoes and anecdotally I've seen prices start to ramp a bit.

There were a load at £6-7k around a year ago, nothing at that price any more.

We need a second car and debating just getting a little petrol and delay the leap to electric for our next-but-one car.

[yermum]

I have had my bmw ev for a week now. Don't think I would go back to a regular motor.

Charging off the solar panels makes my smug aura of piousness off the charts.

[weegie01]

You got room for a batch burner and heat store? If you have, might be able to advise you.

Thanks.

We looked at these before we put the pellet boiler in. But back then we were splitting our time between Edinburgh and here back then and it was not really feasible.

What I am looking at now is boilers that can burn either logs or pellets with automatic switching between them.

I am still trying to work out how some of these claim an accumulater is not needed. I have looked at log boilers that say an accumulator is not needed as the burn rate is varied, but those all seem to have massive water jackets which in effect act as internal accumulators.

The reality is that the best thing would be if I could persuade my wife that, as there are now only two of us in a 6 bed house, we could shut a lot of doors and turn down the heating in most of the house.

[GogLais]

I've been keeping an eye on cheap used Renault Zoes and anecdotally I've seen prices start to ramp a bit.

There were a load at £6-7k around a year ago, nothing at that price any more.

We need a second car and debating just getting a little petrol and delay the leap to electric for our next-but-one car.

I can easily imagine replacing our Corsa runabout with something like that. Do the batteries lose efficiency with age i.e. you get fewer miles per kWh or is it just the capacity that reduces?

[inactionman]

I've been keeping an eye on cheap used Renault Zoes and anecdotally I've seen prices start to ramp a bit.

There were a load at £6-7k around a year ago, nothing at that price any more.

We need a second car and debating just getting a little petrol and delay the leap to electric for our next-but-one car.

I can easily imagine replacing our Corsa runabout with something like that. Do the batteries lose efficiency with age i.e. you get fewer miles per kWh or is it just the capacity that reduces?

They will slowly lose capacity, but Renault offer a battery lease scheme which is what caught my eye - it's based on mileage, from memory around 6k miles a year would be a £50ish a month lease charge, but Renault will replace the battery if it drops to (I think) 80% of design capacity (no idea how it's tested though - suspect you'd get Renault to test it if your range drops on equivalent usage). I think we probably only spend a little more than that a month on fuel, to be honest, but better to just view it as a defrayed purchase cost.

I'd say it's a good idea as I'm not sur I'd bet the house on longevity of early generation EV batteries.

[bok_viking]

I think once the Chinese brands hit Europe on a large scale, prices will get a lot more competitive with ICE cars. A lot of the big Chinese brands are now actively targeting European markets and they have some fantastic EV's right now at a much lower price as their European equivalents, and the ranges of the newest models released this year have increased a lot. A friend of mine in Shenzhen drives a BYD SUV and he absolutely loves it. And he have not had much range issues, though he has a model with a bigger battery option. Also I think the charging network in China is much more developed so easier to get your car charged on trips.

[Hal Jordan]

I've been keeping an eye on cheap used Renault Zoes and anecdotally I've seen prices start to ramp a bit.

There were a load at £6-7k around a year ago, nothing at that price any more.

We need a second car and debating just getting a little petrol and delay the leap to electric for our next-but-one car.

I can easily imagine replacing our Corsa runabout with something like that. Do the batteries lose efficiency with age i.e. you get fewer miles per kWh or is it just the capacity that reduces?

They will slowly lose capacity, but Renault offer a battery lease scheme which is what caught my eye - it's based on mileage, from memory around 6k miles a year would be a £50ish a month lease charge, but Renault will replace the battery if it drops to (I think) 80% of design capacity (no idea how it's tested though - suspect you'd get Renault to test it if your range drops on equivalent usage). I think we probably only spend a little more than that a month on fuel, to be honest, but better to just view it as a defrayed purchase cost.

I'd say it's a good idea as I'm not sur I'd bet the house on longevity of early generation EV batteries.

The only EVs that have shown significant degradation (collectively, there are always exceptions) are the very first run of Nissan LEAFS from a decade ago. Renault dropped the leasing concept because of the longevity of the batteries.

But they do all lose some percentage as they age, but the car's likely to be scrapped before they become unusable for propulsion, and then the batteries can get repurposed for storage or pretty much are fully recyclable.

[C69]

So loads of pics of garages putting fuel up by 5p a litre ffs.

What the actual feck

[SaintK]

Just driven past 3 local petrol stations and there has been very little in the way of a visible price reduction

[inactionman]

Maybe must about to buy a Zoe, if it's not a complete wreck when we see it in the metal - next up is to get charge point fitted.

Are these car-specific? Any idea of how much one costs to fit, and/or for good installers in Edinburgh?

I think the grant scheme is ending soon so will need to get finger out (Eta: bah -the scheme is now closed unless flat or rental. If I'd have known I'd have got charge point fitted already.)

[inactionman]

....

[S/Lt_Phillips]

Maybe must about to buy a Zoe, if it's not a complete wreck when we see it in the metal - next up is to get charge point fitted.

Are these car-specific? Any idea of how much one costs to fit, and/or for good installers in Edinburgh?

I think the grant scheme is ending soon so will need to get finger out (Eta: bah -the scheme is now closed unless flat or rental. If I'd have known I'd have got charge point fitted already.)

Do you definitely need to have a home charging point? I've ordered an e-Niro (arriving in June) and I'm planning on using the local Chargeplace Scotland charge points which are a few minutes walk away from my house. Which are also free to use. If it turns out to be too annoying, I'll get a charger fitted at home.

[JM2K6]

What would Greta say about all this log burning epeen?
:lol

I get a bit irritated by the dishonesty in much of biomass burning.

There is a biomass electrical generator near us. They boast that they are net zero as every tree felled to feed their furnaces is balanced by replanting.

But the trees are 30 to 60 years old. For every tree they fell, the new tree will only compensate for the CO2 released when it is the same age as the one felled I.e. in decades time. Then the cycle starts again so there is always a deficit.

I am 66. The trees I am felling / will fell have a combined age of over 2,000 years. I am going to plant 400 trees so hopefully by the time I die I'll be at least net zero on my firewood.

I worked out that we use the equivalent of 13 to 14 tons (6 to 7 cords) of wood a year between logs, pellets and oil. To generate enough wood every year would take 6 acres assuming at least one is mature.

For one (albeit large Victorian) house.

Yup, it's important to recognise that replanting schemes are horseshit, a PR-friendly way to suggest that the damage being done is in some way neutral. Not only are they borderline useless for a long period of time, but quite often they're essentially creating monocultures or planting trees intended to be chopped down and used commercially.

Vaguely related, a lot of the smaller cryptocurrencies claim something similar, that they're actually carbon neutral and unsurprisingly that all turns out to be bollocks as well.

[inactionman]

Maybe must about to buy a Zoe, if it's not a complete wreck when we see it in the metal - next up is to get charge point fitted.

Are these car-specific? Any idea of how much one costs to fit, and/or for good installers in Edinburgh?

I think the grant scheme is ending soon so will need to get finger out (Eta: bah -the scheme is now closed unless flat or rental. If I'd have known I'd have got charge point fitted already.)

Do you definitely need to have a home charging point? I've ordered an e-Niro (arriving in June) and I'm planning on using the local Chargeplace Scotland charge points which are a few minutes walk away from my house. Which are also free to use. If it turns out to be too annoying, I'll get a charger fitted at home.

Good point - it may be worth holding fire on fitting a home charger, as can charge at both my and my wife's work, especially if grant scheme has finished so no real rush to get one fitted. Are the Chargeplace Scotland chargers totally free to use? I anticipated registering and paying for the power. (You can see how closely I've investigated this!) One slight issue is that Zoe doesn't have huge range, so may end up being scuppered if charge points are occupied.

I believe I can charge by a mains lead if push comes to shove? Expect it to be a trickle charge but the drive is enclosed enough to leave it overnight, although not convinced it's a great plan in bad weather.

[mos_eisely_]

Maybe must about to buy a Zoe, if it's not a complete wreck when we see it in the metal - next up is to get charge point fitted.

Are these car-specific? Any idea of how much one costs to fit, and/or for good installers in Edinburgh?

I think the grant scheme is ending soon so will need to get finger out (Eta: bah -the scheme is now closed unless flat or rental. If I'd have known I'd have got charge point fitted already.)

Do you definitely need to have a home charging point? I've ordered an e-Niro (arriving in June) and I'm planning on using the local Chargeplace Scotland charge points which are a few minutes walk away from my house. Which are also free to use. If it turns out to be too annoying, I'll get a charger fitted at home.

Good point - it may be worth holding fire on fitting a home charger, as can charge at both my and my wife's work, especially if grant scheme has finished so no real rush to get one fitted. Are the Chargeplace Scotland chargers totally free to use? I anticipated registering and paying for the power. (You can see how closely I've investigated this!) One slight issue is that Zoe doesn't have huge range, so may end up being scuppered if charge points are occupied.

I believe I can charge by a mains lead if push comes to shove? Expect it to be a trickle charge but the drive is enclosed enough to leave it overnight, although not convinced it's a great plan in bad weather.

Chargeplace Scotland chargers vary in cost. Some are free but not all. I've heard the free charging is completely ending soon but not had it verified anywhere.

There are also PodPoint chargers at some big Tesco (e.g Colinton) and Sainsbury's (e.g. Longstone) which are fre

[inactionman]

Do you definitely need to have a home charging point? I've ordered an e-Niro (arriving in June) and I'm planning on using the local Chargeplace Scotland charge points which are a few minutes walk away from my house. Which are also free to use. If it turns out to be too annoying, I'll get a charger fitted at home.

Good point - it may be worth holding fire on fitting a home charger, as can charge at both my and my wife's work, especially if grant scheme has finished so no real rush to get one fitted. Are the Chargeplace Scotland chargers totally free to use? I anticipated registering and paying for the power. (You can see how closely I've investigated this!) One slight issue is that Zoe doesn't have huge range, so may end up being scuppered if charge points are occupied.

I believe I can charge by a mains lead if push comes to shove? Expect it to be a trickle charge but the drive is enclosed enough to leave it overnight, although not convinced it's a great plan in bad weather.

Chargeplace Scotland chargers vary in cost. Some are free but not all. I've heard the free charging is completely ending soon but not had it verified anywhere.

There are also PodPoint chargers at some big Tesco (e.g Colinton) and Sainsbury's (e.g. Longstone) which are fre

Ta - that would actually work nicely, as we're shopping every other day so charging the car in the supermarket would be handy. We're in Liberton which appears a chargepoint wasteland (well, just an everything wasteland) but Colinton no distance.

I'm seeing the Zoe this evening, I'll check if it's one of the cars with the fast charge (80% in half hour) as we could just run it off a quick charge at the shops.

It is one of the battery lease jobs, as mentioned above it seems that early fears of dying batteries were exaggerated so perhaps not really needed, but it knocks a few grand off the purchase price at least.

[Hal Jordan]

With the battery lease Zoes, the man maths is working out the savings on the purchase price as against paying the lease for the period you intend to have the car - you can come out ahead.

[inactionman]

With the battery lease Zoes, the man maths is working out the savings on the purchase price as against paying the lease for the period you intend to have the car - you can come out ahead.

Yep, it's going to about 9k for a 28kish mile car on a 16 plate, so they are cheaper than anything comparable, even adding £500-600 a year for battery lease. There are very few non-lease versions of that age, vintage and price, the only other option appears to be a 2014/2015 Leaf which I'm not that sold on.

The plan is to keep it a few years and then to see where new electric car prices have gone. I'll admit I was quite interested in the electric corsa but wanted to wait a few years to get a reasonably priced used model.

One concern is that the Zoe gets so outdated that the price crashes, just a risk we'll have to take - it is the 22kwh model, not the updated 41kwh. Range likely to be less than 100 miles, but it's going to be a nursery run and local shopping car, we've the Land Rover for longer trips. Which will unpick any environmental benefit we may have brought with the Zoe.

[S/Lt_Phillips]

With the battery lease Zoes, the man maths is working out the savings on the purchase price as against paying the lease for the period you intend to have the car - you can come out ahead.

Yep, it's going to about 9k for a 28kish mile car on a 16 plate, so they are cheaper than anything comparable, even adding £500-600 a year for battery lease. There are very few non-lease versions of that age, vintage and price, the only other option appears to be a 2014/2015 Leaf which I'm not that sold on.

The plan is to keep it a few years and then to see where new electric car prices have gone. I'll admit I was quite interested in the electric corsa but wanted to wait a few years to get a reasonably priced used model.

One concern is that the Zoe gets so outdated that the price crashes, just a risk we'll have to take - it is the 22kwh model, not the updated 41kwh. Range likely to be less than 100 miles, but it's going to be a nursery run and local shopping car, we've the Land Rover for longer trips. Which will unpick any environmental benefit we may have brought with the Zoe.

I was going to say to be aware that all the Podpoint charge points in Edinburgh seem to be AC, which means your maximum charge rate will be 7kW (which is limited by the on-board charger, so even a 22kW AC charge point will only charge your car at 7kW). To go faster, you need DC charging (not sure if the Zoe can do that) - some of the Chargeplace Scotland have 50kW DC available.

However, if you're looking at the 22kWh battery, and you're going from 20% to 80%, that'll only take you a couple of hours on AC. If you need to charge 0% to 100%, it'll take about 3 hours - so check that Tesco don't have a time limit on their car park.

A couple of other things to note & plan for:
Try and run it between 20% and 80% full - don't charge it up to 100% unless you absolutely need to for a longer journey.
Don't leave it with a high SOC (state of charge) for any length of time - so if you're going away for a few days, don't be tempted to fully charge it so it's ready for when you get back.
Try and park (and charge it) it in the shade in the height of summer - the batteries don't like getting really hot (yeah, I know, Edinburgh...)
Cold weather will give you less range (batteries work better when warm, plus you'll probably use the heater)

[inactionman]

With the battery lease Zoes, the man maths is working out the savings on the purchase price as against paying the lease for the period you intend to have the car - you can come out ahead.

Yep, it's going to about 9k for a 28kish mile car on a 16 plate, so they are cheaper than anything comparable, even adding £500-600 a year for battery lease. There are very few non-lease versions of that age, vintage and price, the only other option appears to be a 2014/2015 Leaf which I'm not that sold on.

The plan is to keep it a few years and then to see where new electric car prices have gone. I'll admit I was quite interested in the electric corsa but wanted to wait a few years to get a reasonably priced used model.

One concern is that the Zoe gets so outdated that the price crashes, just a risk we'll have to take - it is the 22kwh model, not the updated 41kwh. Range likely to be less than 100 miles, but it's going to be a nursery run and local shopping car, we've the Land Rover for longer trips. Which will unpick any environmental benefit we may have brought with the Zoe.

I was going to say to be aware that all the Podpoint charge points in Edinburgh seem to be AC, which means your maximum charge rate will be 7kW (which is limited by the on-board charger, so even a 22kW AC charge point will only charge your car at 7kW). To go faster, you need DC charging (not sure if the Zoe can do that) - some of the Chargeplace Scotland have 50kW DC available.

However, if you're looking at the 22kWh battery, and you're going from 20% to 80%, that'll only take you a couple of hours on AC. If you need to charge 0% to 100%, it'll take about 3 hours - so check that Tesco don't have a time limit on their car park.

A couple of other things to note & plan for:
Try and run it between 20% and 80% full - don't charge it up to 100% unless you absolutely need to for a longer journey.
Don't leave it with a high SOC (state of charge) for any length of time - so if you're going away for a few days, don't be tempted to fully charge it so it's ready for when you get back.
Try and park (and charge it) it in the shade in the height of summer - the batteries don't like getting really hot (yeah, I know, Edinburgh...)
Cold weather will give you less range (batteries work better when warm, plus you'll probably use the heater)

Ta mate. I've put deposit down and collect the car in a week, matey in dealer told me I can use upto the 43kw (I think that was rating?) charger but not 50 kW fast. The home plig charger is almost 500 quid and takes 30 hours (surprised by that!) so may look at home charge point - the £250 grant is still available.

Can see how it goes when we pick it up, we mifht find an hours charge during each shopping run is enough.

Hmm. Reading the blurb on the energy saving trust website it appears both grants have now ended. That's annoying.

[shaggy]

Audi are funding my Pod Point as an incentive. No use to you but there are some deals still out there post government schemes.

[inactionman]

Audi are funding my Pod Point as an incentive. No use to you but there are some deals still out there post government schemes.

Ours is a 6 year old used approved, no real add-ons with those I'm afraid.

That's not a bad incentive though, they're the thick end of a grand.

[Hal Jordan]

I got my Pod Point for free, Government grant 9ne half, Hyundai picked up the rest when I leased the 28 kWh Ioniq from them. That was a good car.

[inactionman]

I got my Pod Point for free, Government grant 9ne half, Hyundai picked up the rest when I leased the 28 kWh Ioniq from them. That was a good car.

A bit annoyed we missed the boat, had no idea the grant scheme was ending - Scotland had an additional grant they've ended at the same time, the sods. That's £600 lost simply by buying in April rather than March.

[Happyhooker]

I got my Pod Point for free, Government grant 9ne half, Hyundai picked up the rest when I leased the 28 kWh Ioniq from them. That was a good car.

A bit annoyed we missed the boat, had no idea the grant scheme was ending - Scotland had an additional grant they've ended at the same time, the sods. That's £600 lost simply by buying in April rather than March.

appropriate username

[inactionman]

I got my Pod Point for free, Government grant 9ne half, Hyundai picked up the rest when I leased the 28 kWh Ioniq from them. That was a good car.

A bit annoyed we missed the boat, had no idea the grant scheme was ending - Scotland had an additional grant they've ended at the same time, the sods. That's £600 lost simply by buying in April rather than March.

appropriate username

The inability to buy is more to do with the lack of cars for sale.

[TB63]

Just bought my first electric car, bit of a dodgy dealer.


















Came with a 20 mile extension lead..

Hat, coat....

[MungoMan]

Just bought my first electric car, bit of a dodgy dealer.


















Came with a 20 mile extension lead..

Hat, coat....

I should bloody well think so!

[petej]

As we currently run two diesels and don't really do any commuting looking to ditch a one of them for an electric car.
So far I've test driven:
Skoda enyaq
Nissan leaf
Tesla model s (a while back)
BMW i3 (a while back)
Due to test drive a Tesla model 3, Kia ev6, vw id3.
Want to test a 2nd hand Jag ipace (similar price to new ev6).

Wife declared that the Hyundai ioniq 5 was fugly (I quite like it) and that in general SUVs are objectionable which rules out lots of EVs. Anything missing from my list that has 200 mile range with proper EV architecture that I really should test?

[Guy Smiley]

As we currently run two diesels and don't really do any commuting looking to ditch a one of them for an electric car.
So far I've test driven:
Skoda enyaq
Nissan leaf
Tesla model s (a while back)
BMW i3 (a while back)
Due to test drive a Tesla model 3, Kia ev6, vw id3.
Want to test a 2nd hand Jag ipace (similar price to new ev6).

Wife declared that the Hyundai ioniq 5 was fugly (I quite like it) and that in general SUVs are objectionable which rules out lots of EVs. Anything missing from my list that has 200 mile range with proper EV architecture that I really should test?

The Polestar 2 might be worth a look...

https://www.polestar.com/us/polestar-2/

website defaulted to US for me but I'm sure they're in the UK.

I've been watching a Kiwi bloke review EVs on youtube. He's quite entertaining and across the practical values of every car he tests. Most importantly, he measures internal storage capacity with potatoes.

https://www.youtube.com/c/EcotricityNZ/videos

if you're at all inclined to check the vids out, ignore those with the large lady in the preview pane. It's some Canadian affiliate channel and too preppy north American for my tastes, not to mention the distinct lack of serious car reviews.

[Enzedder]

Just bought my first electric car, bit of a dodgy dealer.


Came with a 20 mile extension lead..

Hat, coat....

You'll need them on 25 mile trips.

[yermum]

I am very happy with our bmw IX it's an devisive front end but I quite like it's exterior. It's a dream to drive and with our solar panels we can essentially charge for free.

Not a single regret from switching to an ev so far

[geordie_6]

As we currently run two diesels and don't really do any commuting looking to ditch a one of them for an electric car.
So far I've test driven:
Skoda enyaq
Nissan leaf
Tesla model s (a while back)
BMW i3 (a while back)
Due to test drive a Tesla model 3, Kia ev6, vw id3.
Want to test a 2nd hand Jag ipace (similar price to new ev6).

Wife declared that the Hyundai ioniq 5 was fugly (I quite like it) and that in general SUVs are objectionable which rules out lots of EVs. Anything missing from my list that has 200 mile range with proper EV architecture that I really should test?

Enyaq is lovely, but if you want dependable 200 miles you'd need the 80, not the 60. You could also look at the Coupe version they are bringing out, to work around the SUV issue?

[inactionman]

We picked up the Zoe yesterday, nothing at all remarkable but it's perfectly serviceable, actually quite roomy inside, an easy drive and free charging at Tesco.

Apparently free charging via Edinburgh council will stop at end of May, although many places may retain free charging to get you through door, and it is of course cheaper than diesel.

One slight alarm is the indicated range is only 60-70 miles, but dealer said that will increase with driving - it's been on forecourt for a good few weeks. I bloody hope so, as that's a little too short-ranged, and as it's a leased battery we can get it replaced if it's truly borked. IT's only going to be 100 or so anyway as it's the 22kwh version.

Apparently I can pick up a 3-pin charge lead for just over £100, might do that for overnight charge at home until I bother to get charging port fitted. Will be handy for emergencies anyway.