Electric cars questions

[MrsAmaretto]

How long does an electric car keep its charge for? Thinking of getting one for dh but it will spend 3-4weeks at the heliport car park so we’re not sure if it will still be charged when he gets back. Heliport doesn’t have an electric car charging point.

Also can anyone recommend a company to lease an electric car through? We don’t want to buy one as the technology is meant to keep improving.

Anyone?

Dh has a bmw i3 and the charging’s a real hassle, takes the best part of a morning

Most electric cars will keep their charge for a good long while if left unused. But four weeks is a long time to leave any machinery unused in the open air.

Popular models include the Nissan Leaf, the Renault Zoe, the Hyundai Ioniq (electric version), the BMW i3 and all Teslas.

If you are worried, get a Plug-In Hybrid (also referred to as a PHEV). This has an electric motor and a battery and can be charged from the mains, but also has a backup small petrol engine to charge the battery if needed (sometimes referred to as a Range Extender).

Popular PHEVs include the Toyota Prius PHEV, the BMW i3 Range Extended version and the Mitsubishi Outlander.

VW, Mercedes and Ford also all sell electric cars but as they are loss-making they are done in tiny volumes to please the Government and so it’s very difficult to buy them in the U.K.

The best place to ask is www.speakev.com, which seems to be the go-to forum for electric cars for the UK.

Most electric cars will hold charge for several weeks or even months if not used. The exception appears to be Teslas, which have what is called the 'zombie drain' -- it seems that even when apparently shut down Teslas keep doing things, particularly heating or cooling the battery pack, which run the battery down over time.

A lot depends on how much charge you want in the car at the end ie how far is the journey home from the heliport. Bear in mind that pretty well all electric cars can charge from a normal 3 pin socket, even though that may be quite slow dedicated charge points are good but not vital. Even if there is no charger at the heliport, there may be public chargers close by -- look at www.zap-map.com. Is your DH an offshore oil/gas worker flying out of Aberdeen? If so, there are several public chargers in the vicinity which can recharge in under an hour.

I'm not sure about leasing as I buy secondhand and outright but most of the manufacturers have their in-house PCP/lease schemes, and there are independent leasing companies as well. People on speakev may be better placed to help on that too.

Thanks, we’ll try the forum! He flies from Scatsta so the nearest charging point is about 4 Miles, then he has a 40 Mile drive home. An electric car would meet his needs when he’s home, it’s just funny nd something that would suit his commute! Thanks again

www.eco-cars.net operate from Orkney (and Leicestershire) and appear also to cover Shetland so they may be worth contacting.

it definitely won't lose any charge in 4 weeks.

Try the Nissan Leaf - you can lease from Nissan. At the moment though the new model is just out so leases are a bit pricey - they will come down soon though... there are often deals as dealers each have a quota and not all of them know how to sell EV's so at the end of the 1/4 when the bonuses are due you can negotiate hard!

Good tip about the end of the quarter .....