Help purchasing a new car

[KK05]

Hoping for some advice.

I’m currently looking at purchasing a new car. Currently own a diesel and DH has a petrol. Only looking to change mine right now. I have

I have been looking at hybrids and EVs but I’m really confused. Speaking to dealers etc is no help as they just want a sale.

My current vehicle on a full tank will take me miles and last for ages. Mainly motorway driving for work and staycations. My DH doesn’t last nearly as long on a full tank. EG I can do 400 plus miles and still have half a tank left his we would need to fill up at least once. A friend with an EV had to charge 3 times for the same journey. Both me and DH have similar size cars/makes/engines etc(sedan/coupe). We have been looking at SUV size so this is also a factor in what to buy.

However for shorter town driving mine eats fuel, DH is ok and the EV is great.

I have no idea about hybrids both self charging and plug in. How do they work? Does the battery power the car? How does the batteries affect luggage space? Would it save me money longer term?

Currently for staycations my car can be full with very little space left. We also do lots of daytrips some with lots of mileage and mainly motorway driving. I have a parent that uses a mobility scooter so this can take up space too when we use my car so need to take this into account too. Yeah we can use theirs when they are coming along but it’s nicer to have a share of taking the cars / driving etc.

I’ll be honest and say the thought of having to stop to charge on route somewhere is not appealing and having to choose accommodation that has charging options wouldn’t be ideal either so don’t think plug in is the answer but open to peoples views.

What would people recommend? Looking for people’s experiences? I understand the EVs being better for the environment etc but I also want something practical and convenient for us.

I don’t need specifics or anything technical just simple answers.

The problem is that there isn’t a simplistic answer. You need to work out what the actual fuel consumption is and therefore the cost per mile. Comparing cars of different fuel types and tank sizes by roughly how many miles they do on a full tank is just nonsense. Work out the cost per mile over a few tanks and then you’ll be in a better position to compare that with an EV. Google the real world consumption of the EVs you’re interested in, likely to be in the range of 2-3 miles per kWh.

Also, the size of your tank makes a difference. In smaller cars the tank is generally smaller, so it's not going to do as many miles, but is still likely to be more economic in miles per gallon.

It doesn't sound like Electric technology is ready for what you want, so simply choose the size and type you want and go from there.