Electric Car - which make?

[madameimadam]

Looking for a small - medium EV which isn’t going to cost a fortune. Can install a charger at home.

Be making short journeys (to and from work) so huge range isn’t a problem. We’d use our Kia Sportage for longer journeys.

Really love the Sportage and heard good things about Kia, Skoda, Honda & Hyundai.

Are Nissan Leafs any good? Or are they the equivalent of comfy but mumsy shoes?

Budget not huge (no more than 15-20K ideally) & happy to buy second-hand. Any suggestions or recommendations??
much obliged!

Reddit is actually quite helpful for this sort of question r/electricvehiclesuk

Used is much better value than new - no one has really figured out how to value electric vehicles as mileage is pretty irrelevant so prices are suppressed particularly in comparison to ICE cars.

Leafs are cheap and reliable but they have an outdated charger connection so if you're installing a charger you will need an adaptor as well and if you ever need to charge when you're out you won't see as many options.

I have a Skoda enyaq, it's the best car I've ever had. Huge though. They have a newer smaller model but you won't get one for your budget. You will get an enyaq though but the size might be too much.

I have a Ford Explorer EV (hence my username!) and it’s actually really good! Got a government grant for the charger which brought the price down massively and the Ford Dealership paid the rest for that (highly recommend the Ohme home pro).
On reflection I’d probably have chosen the Extended Range version of the Explorer but it’s still got a good range and is a very comfortable car. The in-car tech is fab also.
Another I would recommend is the Ford Puma EV. I had a petrol Puma a couple of years ago and it’s extremely spacious & comfortable. It also has a huge extra box-shaped space in the boot that is ingenious and the boot is all plastic so it’s great if you’ve got dogs! When I ordered the Explorer, I did initially want the Puma EV but they had Explorers in stock so I just went with that. The Puma is definitely more spacious than the Explorer but the Capri is even bigger, especially in the boot.

I can’t comment on any other EVs but if you go on YouTube and look up Car Wow reviews there’s some good reviews on there.

Great advice. Thankyou!!!

I say small, but am happy to have a bigger car. I’ll take a look at that Reddit page and investigate the Enyaq.

I hadn’t considered a Ford namely as the two I’ve had before both conked out catastrophically after 70K miles but I guess that’s not an issue with an EV.

Have a look at Dacia. DIL has one as their second car and is very happy with it

I’ve got a Skoda Elroq and I love it. It’s smallish but the back seats have so much room. Can fit 6ft DCs in easily

Kia ev3 or ev5 nice looking cars!

I have a Skoda Enyaq 85. It’s massive, but the range is excellent which is what I want from an EV. I can get from my house in South Yorkshire to DS2’s in Norfolk on less than one charge, even in the Winter. If you look at an Enyaq, just bear in mind that the range on a 60 is a lot less.

We have a Skoda Karoq, too, which we thought we’d use for longer journeys when we got the EV but we don’t. It rarely gets used because it’s not economical to do so and the Enyaq is a much nicer drive, so my recommendation is get the car with the longest range possible.

Renault Megane e-tech fits your criteria and is available for about 15k used. Recent model Renault Zoes can be had for about 8k. Some friends have two and are happy.

VW ID-3 (plus Skoda and Seat equivalents) would also work. Bigger than the Zoe and smaller than the Megane. Basically Golf-sized.

We have a leaf and an enyaq.

the leaf has a standard type 2 charger for home charging, same as the enyaq, so no adapters at home. It has a chademo socket for the faster charging in public, but we’ve never ever used that. It’s only ever charged at home. But that’s because we have enyaq for longer journeys. And that’s been all over Europe without a problem. Don’t rule out an EV for longer journeys.

We have an MG4 trophy which I love - don’t go for a lower spec. Entertainment system is a bit glitchy but a lot of fun to drive and super cheap now for a lightly used one.

I have an electric Corsa and I really like it. It’s a decent size for us (2 adults, DS4) for day to day use. Mine’s 5 years old and the range is around 180miles, I charge it around twice a week or so.

I’ve got an Audi Q4. It’s good but I sometimes wonder if a cheaper car would’ve been better value.

I have a 3 year old Kia Niro 3 which is within your budget and has a range of around 280 miles. Still has 4 years of warranty left and has every function and spec I could want. It's not too big, but it fits 5 adults and a couple of suitcases in with ease

Our Renault Zoe has been brilliant as a little run-around

Our EV6 is brilliant (but a LOT bigger than I realised at the test drive). Super roomy in the back.

We’ve just got a cupra born and I love it! Looks super sporty and is nippy. Can’t comment on price though as ours is through my work salary sacrifice scheme.

I’ve just completed a 3 year lease on an MG4 Trophy, and the values of them used has really dropped. It was a good little car to drive, loads of bells and whistles, and very nippy, but the entertainment system was quite glitchy.

I’ve just replaced it with a Volvo EX30 (another lease), and it’s amazing, I love it.

We have a Peugeot e5008, we are pleased with it. It has 7 seats which was a non negotiable for us, and drives really nicely. It handled a nigh on 400m round trip the other day with a couple of short charge stops, and the return journey had a large boat on the roof.

We've got a Corsa too and it's been great.
We're getting a Kia EV3 in a couple of months, it's on order at the moment.

If you want something small have a look at the Renault 5.

I have a 2023 Kia e-Niro and I absolutely love it

DP thinks the BYD Dolphin is one of the best

I too was going to say the little Byd's look really good. Funky little things but solid.

My DGD loves her bright red EV Mini

Love our Hyundai Ioniq EV. Excellent range and quick at DC charging, which we don't do too often but is so convenient.

I have the Peugeot e3008. I chose it because it has an enormous boot and I have 3 teen boys with large cricket bags to drive around.