All posts by Trevor Larkum

The Milton Keynes Electric Vehicle Experience Centre (EVEC) has Launched

July 26, 2017Blog, BMW, BP Chargemaster, Charging, Electric Cars, EVEC, Golf GTE, i3 94Ah, Leaf, Milton Keynes, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Outlander PHEV, VolkswagenTrevor Larkum

Last weekend saw the long awaited opening of the Electric Vehicle Experience Centre (EVEC) in Milton Keynes. It officially opened to the public on Saturday 22nd July. It is funded through a government scheme awarded to the local council and is managed by Chargemaster, the company that has installed the majority of charge points around Milton Keynes.

The Preview Event at the Electric Vehicle Experience Centre (Image: T. Larkum)

The EVEC is essentially a car showroom for electric cars but is located in a shop space on Crown Walk in the main centre:mk shopping centre (it’s close to the middle and next to Boots). It doesn’t resemble an out-of-town dealership so much as the boutique style shops developed by Tesla, Apple and most mobile ‘phone companies.

EVEC Purpose

The aim of the Centre is to both showcase existing electric models and be an information point for EV ownership in general. Visitors will be able to talk with staff about all elements of owning and running an EV, with test drives available too. It has been established to increase the number of EVs sold in the area. Milton Keynes’ target is for 23% of all new cars registered locally to be electric by 2021.

We are grateful to Chargemaster for inviting us to the Preview Event on Friday Night (Jo’s thoughts: A Little Bit of Zen). Most of the other guests appeared to be existing EV owners. The showroom housed examples of the Nissan Leaf, BMW i3, Volkswagen Golf GTE and Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. There were drinks and snacks, and then introductory speeches by David Martell, Chief Executive of Chargemaster, and Ted Foster, the new EVEC Manager. After the talks we had an opportunity to talk to Ted and the other staff.

EVEC Test Drives

As well as providing help and guidance on electric cars and EV driving, the EVEC is also making cars available for test drives. These can be short accompanied drives, however there is also the option of week-long extended test drives. For these there will be a charge (we understand about £70) largely to cover the inevitable cost of insurance. That’s seems fair to us – £10 per day to drive a new car, particularly considering the fuel costs will be negligible.

The Preview Event at the Electric Vehicle Experience Centre (Image: J. Pegram-Mills)

The enthusiasm of the EVEC ‘gurus’ is clear and we certainly appreciate the enthusiasm and resources that have gone into building and staffing the first dedicated electric vehicle showroom in the UK (and probably in the world). We wish it every success and will be supporting it by passing local customers to it for test drives.

If you live near Milton Keynes and are interested in taking a test drive in any one of a large range of new electric cars (including the Renault ZOE, Nissan Leaf, BMW i3, Golf GTE, and others) just get in touch with us on 01908-904020, or by email at sales@ fuelincluded.com.

Electric Vehicle Experience Centre (EVEC) Preview Event

We are grateful to Chargemaster for inviting us to their Preview Event ahead of the opening of the new Electric Vehicle Experience Centre (EVEC). The event took place on Friday evening 21 July 2017 ahead of the official public opening on Saturday 22 July. The EVEC is located on Crown Walk in the main Central Milton Keynes shopping centre.

The event ran from 6-8pm and included welcome speeches from David Martell, Chief Executive of Chargemaster, and Ted Foster, EVEC Manager.

For more details see our EVEC news page.

Premier Used BMW i3 Available Today for £499pm

July 21, 2017Blog, BMW, Electric Cars, i3, i3 94AhTrevor Larkum

As many people are starting to learn, the downside of increasing interest in and sales of electric cars is that the manufacturers are struggling to keep up. In particular both the BMW i3 and Hyundai IONIQ Electric have increasing lead times, heading towards 5 months from order to delivery.

Used BMW i3 94Ah with Range Extender (Image: T. Larkum)

One side effect of this is a shortage of used i3’s, particular the longer range i3 94Ah which was only launched a year ago. We are very fortunate, therefore, to be able to offer a used i3 REx that just came into stock this week and, after preparation, became available to sell today.

It has a very high specification – it’s a top-end i3 with all the bells and whistles. It is available from now to the first person to complete the paperwork.

Used BMW i3: Specification

The complete specification is here:

BMW i3 94Ah with Range Extender (REx)
Mineral Grey Metallic with Highlight BMW i Blue (£530)
Aragats Grey Neutronic Cloth
i3 Sport Package (£1700): alloy wheels, LED headlights, Harman Kardon Hi-Fi, Sun Protection Glass
Media Package – Professional (£960): Navigation system Professional and Online Entertainment
Park Assist Package (£790): Park Assist, Park Distance Control (PDC) front and rear, Reversing Assist camera
20″ BMW I Double-spoke Style Alloy Wheels (£520 on top of Sport Package)
Comfort Access (£330): Open front vehicle doors and tailgate without having to use the car key
DC Rapid Charge Preparation
Electric Glass Sunroof (£780)

The current prices and specs for the options are included just to give an indication of how well featured this vehicle is.

In my personal view (as an owner of an i3) this could represent an electric car to keep for life. It has the longer range battery (120+ miles), it has the Range Extender (a small petrol engine in the boot to keep the battery charged on longer journeys – adding another 100 miles or so per fill up), it has a great look inside and out (sport package, alloy wheels, sunroof), and it has the larger screen satnav and nearly all the other gadgets you can think of.

Used BMW i3: Price

This is a car that would have cost an impressive £37,350 when bought new last year. It has only done a little over 4000 miles so it’s virtually new (I do that in ten weeks). It is now available on 4 year PCP for £1200 deposit plus £499 per month, and that includes servicing until 20 May 2019 or 36000 miles. That’s for a high 15000 miles per year PCP – of course we can do it for a lower mileage at a lower price if that would suit better.

Do get in touch if you want to know more: trevor.larkum@ fuelincluded.com, mobile 07920 790600.

EV Experience Centre Nearly Ready

July 20, 2017Blog, BMW, Electric Cars, EVEC, i8, Kia, Milton Keynes, Optima PHEVTrevor Larkum

The Milton Keynes Electric Vehicle Experience Centre (EVEC) is due to open this Saturday, 22nd July. Being curious (ok, nosey) I scouted it out on Tuesday after my visit to the new Tesla showroom.

The new EV Experience Centre under wraps (Image: T. Larkum)

It has a fairly good location near the middle of the main shopping centre; it’s on Crown Walk, next to the big Boots store. It looks smaller than I expected, at least on the outside. Currently there isn’t much to see – the windows are blanked out and there was someone on the door in front of a sign saying ‘Invited Guests Only’.

EVEC's BMW i8 plugin hybrid (Image: T. Larkum) — EVEC’s BMW i8 plugin hybrid (Image: T. Larkum)`

Two plugin cars were on display at the intersection of Crown Walk and Silbury Arcade – a BMW i8 and a Kia Optima PHEV.

EVEC's Kia Optima plugin hybrid (Image: T. Larkum) — EVEC’s Kia Optima plugin hybrid (Image: T. Larkum)

We have been invited to the official EVEC launch so I’ll report back after that.

Electricity makes strange bedfellows

July 19, 2017Ampera, Blog, C350e PHEV, Electric Cars, Mercedes, Milton Keynes, Renault, Vauxhall, ZOETrevor Larkum

Milton Keynes is the best place for EV spotting. It has so many electric cars that you get to see all sorts.

Here’s an odd mix charging up at lunchtime today. At the left is a Vauxhall Ampera, essentially a rebadged GM Volt, and no longer made. In the middle is the ubiquitous Renault ZOE.

On the right is a Mercedes C350e, the first electric Mercedes I’ve seen in the flesh.

They are all welcome to feast in MK.

Tesla Showroom Opens in Central Milton Keynes

July 18, 2017Blog, Electric Cars, Energy and Climate Change, Energy Storage, Milton Keynes, Model S, Model X, TeslaTrevor Larkum

Milton Keynes is probably the leading city in the UK for its support for electric vehicles (EVs). Today I went into the main shopping centre to have a look at the progress on the forthcoming EV Experience Centre.

The new Tesla showroom in the Intu shopping centre (Image: T. Larkum)

On the way I checked out the new Tesla showroom (in the Intu centre) which I hadn’t visited before.

Red Tesla Model S in the new MK showroom (Image: T. Larkum)

I was impressed to see that in the fairly small space they had fitted in a red and a white Model S, and further in a black Model X.

Also there was a display of the Powerwall home battery energy storage system, a technology that we are very keen to promote.

Tesla Powerwall display (Image: T. Larkum)

MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) – Part 2: Driving and Charging

July 14, 2017Blog, Cooper Countryman PHEV, Electric Cars, MINITrevor Larkum

Part 1 is here: MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) – First Impressions

In terms of driving I was pleasantly surprised. Of course, I have been driving electric for 4 years so am rather spoiled and hate the thought of having to go back to a piston engine.

However, fair play to MINI, the transition from electric to combustion is barely noticeable when travelling at speed such as on the motorway. The noise and vibration are kept to a minimum.

The driver’s displays and controls are nicely done – similar to those in the i3, except that the satnav/media screen is a touchscreen. You can choose to operate it with the usual MINI/BMW joystick control or just by pressing on the screen. The state of charge is indicated by a big illuminated ring around the screen area.

Charging was straightforward – it has a Type 2 socket (same as the ZOE and i3) so I was able to plug it in while parked on my drive. The charge socket is on the front nearside wing (the petrol cap is on the rear offside wing). As it starts to charge a ring around the socket flashes amber, once it’s fully charged this goes to a constant blue.

The MINI PHEV has a switch to set the drive mode – this allows you to keep it electric, keep it petrol (to save the battery for later) or let the car decide the most economic balance (much like a hybrid). I was keen to test the electric range so coming in to work this morning I put the MINI into the all electric mode.

I was pleasantly surprised to find, by keeping my speed to no more than about 60mph, that I was able to do the whole journey on electric. That’s a distance of about 23 miles so better than I had expected. Of course, you would likely not get so far if you have a heavy foot and drive fast, or in cold weather. A real-world range of 17-20 miles is probably a better expectation.

Nonetheless if you have a commute of up to about 20 miles I’m sure you could adjust your driving style appropriately so that you never need to use any petrol. Certainly I managed to drive from Northampton to Milton Keynes on 50p of electricity rather than £5 of petrol. And with charging at work your commute range could be doubled.

Naturally as a premier car the MINI Countryman PHEV has some nice features. I liked the independent climate controls for driver and passenger. My children liked the so-called ‘puddle light‘ that comes on at night by the driver’s door – and looks rather reminiscent of Batman’s famous Batsignal!

Overall I was impressed with the MINI Countryman PHEV. While it’s electric range may be poor compared to an all electric car it is still far ahead of a conventional combustion car or a hybrid. It could work really well for someone with a commute of up to 20 miles who could do most of their driving on electricity, but then revert to petrol for holidays and other long trips.

Prices are here, and a form to get a quote: Prices for the Mini Countryman Plug-In Electric Hybrid

If instead you’d like us to calculate the Total Cost of Ownership of a MINI PHEV compared to a fossil car or another electric car then go here: Total Cost of Ownership

For some quick videos see: MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV) electric car videos

Our thanks go to Wollaston BMW for the loan of the car.

MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) – First Impressions

July 14, 2017Blog, Cooper Countryman PHEV, Electric Cars, MINITrevor Larkum

We currently have a plugin MINI Countryman on loan (technically it’s an “F60 MINI Cooper S E ALL4 PHEV Countryman AUTO” but that’s too much of a mouthful) and I was lucky enough to get the first go with it last night. What’s special about this MINI is that it has a conventional petrol engine driving the front wheels and an electric motor and battery driving the rear wheels.

This means it can drive entirely on electricity for up to about 20 miles and then go over to petrol for longer journeys (300 miles or so). Also, it can act as a hybrid like a Prius to get good economy. Finally, the drive layout means it can be used in four wheel drive mode – very useful in rain and snow.

I drove it home, had use of it for the evening, and drove it back to the office today.

The first thing that struck me when I was it was the size – this is not a small car! Having grown up with the original Mini (my Dad had a series of them) I was surprised just how big the new MINI Countryman is.

It is intended, of course, for families with children so its size shouldn’t be a surprise. The upside is that it has a lot of interior space and feels very roomy.

In fact, I took a number of passengers in the back and they all remarked on how much space there was, and in particular its high ceiling.

It also has a pretty big boot.

Part 2 is here: MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) – Part 2: Driving and Charging

MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV) electric car videos

We are lucky to have been lent one of the new MINI Countryman plug-in hybrids for a couple of days.

This morning I took the opportunity to do some quick videos around the car to give a taste of what it’s like.

Prices are here, and a form to get a quote: Prices for the Mini Countryman Plug-In Electric Hybrid

If instead you’d like us to calculate the Total Cost of Ownership of a MINI PHEV compared to a fossil car or another electric car then go here: Total Cost of Ownership

Rapid Charging with an Ecotricity Charge Point – Part 2

July 4, 2017Blog, Charging, Charging, Ecotricity, Electric Cars, FAQTrevor Larkum

Rapid Charging on the Motorway – Completing the Charge

Ecotricity rapid charger with LCD display (Image: T. Larkum) — Ecotricity rapid charger with LCD status display (Image: T. Larkum)

I previously described the process for initialising a charge at an Ecotricity rapid charger, as found at most motorway services. Here I’ll cover the process for monitoring and ending the charge session.

Step-by-Step Guide

12. While the car is charging you will want to monitor it regularly to confirm it is continuing successfully and to see when it has completed. The charge status, the time taken, the amount of electricity used and usually (depending on the car) also the charge level will be shown on the charge point screen.

Rapid charger status screen during charging (Image: T. Larkum)

13. There will also be visual indications on the car, for example the Nissan Leaf has blue lights on the dashboard, the Renault ZOE shows an icon on the driver’s screen, the BMW i3 has an indicator light around the charge socket, etc. However the most convenient monitoring method is via smarthphone, using an app provided by the car manufacturer. You can use this remotely, for example while eating in a services restaurant. Each app functions differently, but they all provide a display of the current charge level. The BMW one can generally be updated on demand (though sometimes requires the app to be killed to achieve this). The Renault one, rather inconveniently, will only update every 30 minutes.

BMW 'i Remote' app display during charging (Image: T. Larkum) — BMW ‘i Remote’ app display during charging (Image: T. Larkum)

14. When you wish to end the charge session you do so first in the Ecotricity app, then follow its instructions.

Ecotricity app display after ending session (Image: T. Larkum)

15. You remove the charge cable from the car and hang it back up on the charge point. Then you notify the Ecotricity app. The app will display the cost of the session (zero if you’re an Ecotricity customer) and the session identification number. You will also usually receive this information soon after by email to your registered address.

Ecotricity app display at end of session (Image: T. Larkum)

16. The session is ended and the rapid charger display will return to its welcome screen.