To buy an electric car?

[Jobjobjob]

I can't see a reason why I wouldn't?

What have I missed, what are the downsides?

Very fast, nippy, great acceleration

Everything’s relative I guess, but really a Leaf is none of those things.

The new Leaf has a whistle at slow speeds so that pedestrians are alerted to your presence.
They are incredibly nippy and turn on a sixpence.
I've been informed they cost about £4 of electricity to charge at home.
I'm getting one!

Do all of you who charge at home have off-street parking? I have seen leads charging cars trailing across pavements, held down by one of those long pieces of plastic covering, but that looks very vulnerable. I’d love an electric car but no guaranteed at-home parking.

We have a garage and charge ours at night.

When we are doing long journeys we go to a supercharge point and can have a full charge when we have a coffee

I really want one. But we are a one car family so couldn't really get one unless we needed to be a two car family because of its range.

However we are going to swap our one car for a hybrid soon.

We’ve got a driveway.

If you don’t then an electric car might not be the way to go, at least until infrastructure improves.

The public charging network isn’t great to be honest. There’s a company that turns lampposts into chargers, which is a great idea in theory. Your workplace might have a charger, but personally one of the things I like about my electric car is walking out in morning to a fully-fuelled car.

I've got a Renault Zoe, which is fine and has definitely converted me to electric vehicles, but PP are right about the battery not lasting. My PCP is up soon and I'll probably go for one of the new Nissan Leafs purely for the range.

I don't charge at home, I usually charge at work with the EMV bays.

We've decided to go electric too. Tesla.

Tesla bringing out cheaper electric car next year.

Tesla are amazing. But so expensive. Even the “cheap” one is pretty pricey.

Really want one! I’d love a Model X.

Yes, I have off street parking. I wouldn't entertain the idea of an EV without it but then I live rurally so there are very few public chargers about.

Re the pedestrian warning noise at low speed, it comes on by default in the Leaf. It can be deactivated but you would have to do it each time you use the car - you can't store the setting. It's a whistling noise and only makes the noise when the car is moving at below about 19 miles per hour. You can't hear it from inside the car with the windows shut. I was at a zebra crossing the other day when a Mitsubishi PHEV approached and I could hear it. If your car is stationery and you're about to move, it doesn't make the noise which is when I think most accidents happen. If you've just got into your car, people aren't expecting it you to move off until they've heard the noise of the ignition being switched on which obviously doesn't happen in an EV.

I'm surprised it's legal to have silent cars. They can be lethal to those with sight or hearing problems.

People cope with bikes. Not much engine noise with them.

I covet an electric car. We nearly got one a couple of years ago. I had a test drive and loved it. I have two friends who have them but they both have them as their second cars to drive to work where they both have charge points at work.

Although my daily drive is very short and I rarely go far from home my family all live very far away and I worry about being able to get to them. Also driving to the airport seems a faff with few charge points.

Also it seems that the charge points are run by a number of different companies and that can cause a problem.

However my current petrol car is only 1 year old. I’m planning on running it until the electric infrastructure is there.

When consider buying an electric car, its worth bearing mind that with many cars you have to lease the batteries separate to the car, as this is the only affordable way of getting replacement batteries.
This can easily cost £100 a month or more with mileage capped at 500miles or so before excess charges. So drive to little your throwing cash away, drive to much you might as run an internal combustion engine.
You have to compare like with like. Fossil based fuels are only around 30p per litre, the rest is tax. The government can and will raise taxes on electric vehicles once they increase in market share and revenues from petrol decrease.
Lastly, you have to ask if your comfortable with the poorest in society, who can't afford pricey lease deals, subsidising your electric car just so you can virtue signal your green credentials while you charge your car from coal power stations and China strip mines the environment for your batteries precious metals.

@Notlabeled

“virtue signal your green credentials while you charge your car from coal power stations and China strip mines the environment for your batteries precious metals.”

Rightyo.

“Virtue signalling” is a term used by unpleasant people who are unable to understand that other people are decent. So they assume that decency is a front as they are incapable of it themselves.

Secondly, lithium mining is messy. And there’s a big carbon cost to making an electric car. But that initial cost is nothing compared to the lifetime carbon cost of a fossil car.

I am unaware of any wars being fought for lithium. Oil, on the other hand...

Yes your right, i am incapable of being decent because I can't afford an electric car, while my high taxes subsidise my wealthy neighbours to motor around for free all the time smelling their own farts at how green they are while they drive to the airport for their 4th holiday abroad this year.
I know very few electric car owners who are not insufferably smug.
I continue to drive my ancient 3 litre V6 diesel Mercedes out of sheer spite now.

Congrats on successfully missing each and every one of my points. Quite a skill.

Silent cars make no difference. My petrol car isn't that quiet and people still wander in front of it . I don't think that many of the population are deaf, but many are phone staring or have their ears plugged. Assume that no one is paying attention.

Four holidays abroad Notlabeled?

I mean I got my 2013, 2nd gen second-hand Leaf, battery included with all 12 bars in tact, for less than the cost of four holidays abroad.

I personally got it so I could smell my own farts, so I think it was worth it.

while you charge your car from coal power stations

I’m with a green energy supplier anyway but as I understand it you get a discount when you buy a leaf if you change energy supplier to a certain green energy supplier who also run many of the charge points.

It is interesting how those who are most critical of electric cars are those who know nothing about them.

Anyone I know who has one would never go back to fossil car.

You didn't make any valid points. There are no "oil wars" any where. In fact, oil is still so cheap they have to agree to limit production. Oil can be extracted, transported, processed, transported again, stored and then sold for 30p a litre, cheaper than bottled water, who is gonna fight a war over that?
Long term carbon foot print if electric has yet to measured. Not all electric charging is carbon free, and an electric car may get through many sets of batteries in its life time, as the electric drive train should last much linger than equivalent ICE vehicles.
Do you support low income house holds paying higher taxes to subsidise the wealthy buying electric cars.
I am not against electric cars. In fact, I loon forward to the day you can buy a large estate car with decent range while towing a heavy trailer.
I am against smug wealthy families being paid to buy a electric car(normally a second car parked on the drive next to the company car Audi), with the taxes taken from lower income households, who will never see the benefit of such subsidies. Same as solar panel subsidies.

I'm intrigued by the green energy supplier mentioned. Is that the UK? Onshore wind is heavily subsidised and far from green, solar is good but there is an obvious night problem while we don't have decent batteries.

It’s not the wealthy who buy most electric cars, except those insanely expensive Tesla’s.

We’re a relatively skint family. Our used Leaf, bought on finance, has worked out really cheap. Our other car is a crappy, crappy zafira. So dispose of the misinformed class-War angle. It’s nonsense.

Plenty of studies have been done on the environmental benefits of electric cars, if you chose to inform yourself. Take home message is that, even on the least “green” grid, they have a lower carbon cost than a fossil car. Up here in Scotland our grid is pretty green, so they’ll be better again.

But to answer your question about subsidising these cars: yes. Absolutely. These cars are the future, and we absolutely have to expedite that future in any way we can.

My energy supplier is 100% green electricity and 10% green gas.
Use this link and you will get £50 towards your first bill. bulb.co.uk/refer/kate6795

There's a surprise.... That's bulb who just put up the prices, have no fixed tariff and won't answer the question about how they can be 100% green.

I don't know any other EV drivers IRL although I've encountered several online including on here. So I can only speak for myself:

My Leaf was bought 2nd hand last year. I had wanted an EV for a long time and my previous 13 year old petrol car was no longer economical to keep on the road so I waited until there were sufficient used Leafs available to find one nearby and in our price range.
Other car is a 7 year old diesel Renault Scenic (owned, not company) - hardly a flash car, and not one to be smug about either.
We haven't been abroad on holiday for 6 years and even then that was a family visit.

So I don't fit the apparent EV stereotype described by a PP.