Monthly Archives: August 2023

Used EV sales soared by 81.8% YOY in Q2 2023, says SMMT

August 31, 2023Buying a new car, Charging, Cost of ownership, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, NissanRepost

Used electric vehicle (EV) sales soared in Q2 2023 by 81.8% year-on-year (YOY), research by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has revealed.

This means that used EV sales accounted for a record 1.7% market share and is up by 1% YOY. In total, 30,645 EVs changed hands in Q2 2023.

SMMT also stated that the rising proportion of EVs meant that market share for conventionally powered cars marginally fell to 94.3% from 95.7% last year, even though volumes of petrol and diesel cars saw growth of 2.5% and 2.8% respectively.

Mike Hawes, chief executive of SMMT, said: “It’s great to see a recharged new car sector supporting demand for used cars and, in particular, helping more people to get behind the wheel of an electric vehicle.

“Meeting the undoubted appetite for pre-owned EVs will depend on sustaining a buoyant new car market and on the provision of accessible, reliable charging infrastructure powered by affordable, green energy. This, in turn, will allow more people to drive zero at a price point suited to them, helping accelerate delivery of our environmental goals.”

These statistics for second-hand EV sales come as Octopus EV, part of Octopus Energy Group, recently committed to offer a second-hand salary sacrifice scheme for EVs in a bid to spur growth.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

Blow for Putin and MBS as oil demand set to slow

August 30, 2023Economy, Electric Cars, Electric Motorhomes, Electric Taxis, Electric Vans, News, Reviews and Comment, Oil, OpinionRepost

Growth forecasts for global oil demand next year have been downgraded as the post-pandemic recovery stalls just as electric vehicle (EV) use surges.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday that demand will rise by only one million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024, which is 150,000 bpd less than previously forecast.

This will be a blow to both Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is using oil and gas revenues to fund his war in Ukraine, and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whose oil profits are driving the country’s economic diversification.

The IEA said: “With the post-pandemic rebound running out of steam, and as lacklustre economic conditions, tighter efficiency standards, and new electric vehicles weigh on use, growth is forecast to slow to 1m bpd in 2024.”

The Paris-based energy watchdog has forecast that 14 million electric vehicles will be sold by the end of 2023, a 35pc surge compared to 2022.

By 2030, it expects EV use will be displacing five million barrels of oil per day.

But for now, world oil demand is still hitting record highs following China’s post-pandemic reopening and a rebound in global air travel.

In June, demand hit an all-time peak of 103m bpd. The IEA said August demand could surpass this level.

The IEA said global oil demand will jump by 2.2m bpd to hit 102.2m bpd in 2022, with China driving more than 70pc of this growth.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

Second-hand electric vehicle sales soar to record levels

August 29, 2023Buying/Leasing, Charging, Electric Cars, Kia, News, Reviews and CommentRepost

Boosting the second-hand market is crucial to increasing the reach and affordability of electric vehicles, however, the sales accounted for 1.7% of the total used car market.

Sales of second-hand electric vehicles (EV) rose by more than 80% in the three months to June, indicating increasing demand for more affordable zero and low-emission cars.

More than 30,500 of the battery-powered vehicles changed hands in the second quarter this year, an 81.8% rise on the same period last year.

Those sales accounted for just 1.7% of the total second-hand market, which while a record for the sector, demonstrates the scale of the adjustment required in the UK’s vehicle fleet before a ban on new internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles in 2030.

Low-emission plug-in and hybrid vehicles are also growing in popularity in the used market, with sales up 11% and 30% respectively, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

The market share of petrol and diesel vehicles fell as a result of the growth in electric car sales, but still accounted for almost 95% of 1.8m used vehicles sold in the quarter.

Boosting the second-hand market is crucial to increasing the reach and affordability of electric vehicles, which are still significantly more expensive to buy than ICE models.

Second-hand EV prices have been dropping in the last year however, with data company Cap hpi estimating a 35% fall in 12 months.

The EV market has expanded rapidly in recent years, with more than 260,000 new electric cars registered last year, up from 15,000 in 2018.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

Can I save money with an electric car?

August 28, 2023BP Chargemaster, Charging, Charging, Cost of ownership, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Nissan, Shell, TeslaRepost

Electric vehicles are increasing in popularity but with the price of energy high, is it still cheaper to run an electric car than it is a petrol or diesel one? Here we weigh up the cost of going green.

By 2030, the sale of new petrol and diesel cars is to be banned in the UK. Despite EVs making up more than half of all new cars sold, concerns remain around cost, range and whether the infrastructure is ready to achieve this target.

From April 2025 EVs will no longer be free from paying road tax. The removal of government grants, a higher list price than petrol and diesel, and the rising cost of refueling has left many wondering if making the switch to electric is financially worth it?

This article covers:

Related content: How to save money by going green

Are electric cars cheaper to buy than petrol cars?

Whether an electric car is more economical for you in the long run than an conventional fuel car, you need to consider a number of factors, which include:

the upfront list price
how much you intend to use the car
where you intend to charge it
insurance
maintenance costs

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

Electric Vehicles Are Better For People & The Planet

August 25, 2023Electric Cars, Electric Motorhomes, Electric Taxis, Electric Vans, Energy and Climate Change, FAQ, News, Reviews and Comment, SalesRepost

There’s quite a lot of misinformation and disinformation — deliberate misinformation — about electric vehicles online. One of the key bits of disinformation is the false notion that EVs aren’t that green because there are carbon emissions generated by mining for the materials in their batteries and manufacturing them. The false claim is that an EV owner would have to drive about 49,000 miles to offset the carbon emissions from manufacturing the battery and vehicle. The claim was based on a study that eventually was debunked.

The true figure was about 16,000 miles, after which an EV would be ‘greener’ than a gas- or diesel-powered vehicle. The word greener is in quotes because gas and diesel-powered vehicles are not at all green. They have been dirty ever since they were invented, and at no point could ever be considered green.

There’s also something disingenuous — read ‘fake’ — about the concern over an EV battery’s carbon emissions from materials mining and manufacturing, because the people who express it had no regard whatsoever for vehicle mining emissions before EVs came on the scene. That is, for decades before electric vehicles began to appear they never said a word about internal combustion engine or diesel-powered vehicle mining emissions, including their own. Additionally, fossil fuel mining is far worse.

“Every year, about 15 billion tons of fossil fuels are mined and extracted. That’s about 535 times more mining than a clean energy economy would require in 2040.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

One electric vehicle sold every minute in July as UK car sales rise

August 24, 2023Buying/Leasing, Electric Cars, Electric Vans, Fleet, News, Reviews and CommentRepost

Some 143,921 new vehicles were registered in July, up 28.3% on a year ago
Electric vehicles (BEVs) registrations jumped by almost 88% to 23,010
Demand for fleet and business vehicles was biggest driver of sales

UK car sales have now risen for 12 months in a row, despite the ongoing consumer squeeze, with demand for electric vehicles gathering pace, industry figures show.

Some 143,921 new vehicles were registered last month, up 28.3 per cent on a year ago, marking the best July since 2020, when sales spiked after three months of lockdown.

However, the overall market remains below pre-pandemic levels, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said.

Battery electric vehicle (BEV) registrations jumped by a whopping 87.9 per cent to 23,010, meaning one new electric car was sold every minute in July.

New BEVs took a 16 per cent market share in July, compared to 10.9 per cent a year ago, with the SMMT anticipating the figure will rise to nearly 23 per cent across the whole of 2024.

Plug-in hybrid registrations also saw a significant uplift for the second month in a row, rising 79.1 per cent to 11,702, while some 16,321 hybrid vehicles were registered in July, an increase of almost 19 per cent compared to a year ago.

Electrified vehicles, including hybrids, plug-in hybrids and BEVs, accounted for 35.4 per cent of the market in total.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

5 things I learned after driving an electric car for a week

August 23, 2023Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Opinion, VolvoRepost

The Volvo C40 is the Swedish car brand’s second fully electric vehicle… and it’s a-ma-zing.

There’s no hiding from it, Earth is in a perilous position, its natural resources and fragile ecological balance at risk of being forever destroyed due to humanity’s ongoing toxicity.

Collectively, we all have a responsibility to change how we live – both to give our planet a chance to catch its breath, and for future generations of people, fauna and flora to experience the beauty and magic of the world.

Small things – such as taking your own reusable cup to the coffee shop, buying dried foods and refillable detergent at BYO container shops, opting for second hand where possible – all add up, but there are areas where substantial change is needed.

One of these areas is transport, with electric vehicles (EV) one day expected to become the norm over gas-guzzling petrol counterparts. Volvo was the first established car maker to commit to all-out electrification and aims to sell only pure electric cars by 2030.

To give me a chance to see what EV’s are all about – and to see for myself that they are just as efficient as traditional petrol and diesel powered cars – they generously let me borrow a C40 Recharge for a whole week.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

One electric vehicle sold every 60 seconds in July after price cuts

August 22, 2023Away From Home, Buying a new car, Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

One electric vehicle was sold every 60 seconds in July after carmakers cut prices to attract cash-strapped drivers, industry data shows.

Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) revealed an 88pc year-on-year increase in the sale of battery-powered vehicles last month, as deliveries hit 23,000.

This comes after manufacturers, such as Elon Musk’s Tesla, reduced prices.

The SMMT welcomed the increase in electric car sales but said “consumers must be given every possible incentive to buy”, as it called on the Government to scale up infrastructure.

It also warned that its outlook for overall sales next year had been downgraded by 0.7pc as households struggled with the increased cost of living.

There has been growing concern about the lack of charging capabilities for battery-powered cars across the UK, particularly for drivers embarking on long-distance journeys.

Last year just one new public charger was built for every 53 electric cars sold.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “Government must pull every lever to make buying, running and, especially, charging an EV affordable and practical for every driver in every part of the country.”

Figures released by the SMMT in February showed 368,617 plug-in cars were registered in Britain last year, while just 6,949 standard chargers were installed.

This shortfall has fuelled the debate over Rishi Sunak’s plan to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

I ran a Kia EV6 electric car for a week and found it can be rewarding and cheap – but it requires thought

August 21, 2023Electric Cars, EV6, Kia, News, Reviews and Comment, OpinionRepost

Owning an EV is different and requires a bit of a reset in your thinking – but it really can pay off

Back in January I took a Volvo C40 electric car on a long journey to see how easy it would be and what it would cost. The reaction was much bigger than I expected.

There was plenty of feedback, mostly constructive, which to be honest is quite unusual these days. I even had a few praising emails about it which, in a job where people only generally take the time to get in touch to shout at you about something they don’t like, is incredibly rare, believe me.

There was also some criticism in terms of car choice – I was driving a fairly high-end, powerful, luxury SUV after all – and my own naïveté when it came to the best way to charge it when doing a long motorway drive. So, in short, I learned a lot, both during the experience and afterwards. No doubt that’s probably a feeling that new EV owners have too, because it’s not the same as just buying a new petrol or diesel car.

A few of those who got in touch told me “you should try it in this car, or that car”. So I was certainly keen to do it again.

Kia helped make that happen and arranged for an EV6 for me for a week.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form:

Electric car running costs: are EVs cheaper to run?

August 18, 2023Charging, Cost of ownership, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, OpinionRepost

Electric cars are more expensive to buy than their petrol counterparts, but are they actually cheaper to run? We explain all

One of the biggest appeals of electric cars – other than the inherent environmental benefits – are significantly reduced running costs. Over the last decade, there have been several reports stating EVs are ‘completely free to run’, and others saying that charging them ‘costs half the price of petrol’ – but is this really true?

Ultimately, whether the total cost of ownership (TCO) is lower for an electric car than its petrol or diesel equivalent comes down to a multitude of factors. Here, we’ll crunch the numbers and find out how expensive – or inexpensive – owning an electric car can be.

We’ve decided to use the Vauxhall Astra Electric and its petrol-powered sibling as an example, but all of what we’re about to go through applies for almost every EV on the market. Read on to see how much you could potentially save.

How much do electric cars cost?

It’d be a crime when talking about EVs to ignore the fact that they tend to cost a lot more than their petrol equivalents. Take the Vauxhall Astra Electric, for example which, starting at £39,795, costs roughly £10,000 more than a comparable petrol model.

It’s Time to Go Green!

If you would like to know more about Solar Panels and the PowerBanx range of home battery systems, and get a free instant quote, please complete our online form: