Category Archives: Electric Cars

News and reviews of the latest electric cars (full electrics and plug-in hybrids).

Commentary: Why California’s ban on gas-powered cars isn’t all that radical

October 9, 2020Electric Cars, Energy and Climate Change, News, Reviews and Comment, Oil, PollutionRepost

Climate change is already doing a lot of damage – and the prohibition on the sale of new fossil-fuel cars is 15 years away.

Banning dealers from selling anything but zero-emission cars from 2035, as California Gov. Gavin Newsom decreed this week, sounds pretty radical on first hearing.

Electric vehicles are still a relatively niche pursuit. Charging them up isn’t always straightforward – especially if you live in an apartment – and battery-powered cars tend to cost more than gasoline-powered equivalents (although that won’t be the case for much longer). Predictably, the Trump administration attacked Newsom’s executive order, and the fossil fuel industry is also unhappy.

However, in view of the seriousness of the climate emergency – something Californians need only look out the window to observe – Newsom isn’t being very radical at all.

The truly eye-catching thing about California’s announcement is that the state will allow the sale of gasoline and diesel vehicles, whose emissions contribute to wildfires and heat, for another 15 years. Oil-rich Norway, by contrast, wants to ban cars powered by fossil fuels by as soon as 2025. Britain might bring forward its phase-out date from 2035 to 2030.

Speed is of the essence because climate change is already doing enormous damage. And the key question isn’t when we stop selling combustion-engine vehicles, but when the last one is removed from the roads. Think about it: A gasoline vehicle purchased in 2034, a year before California’s ban comes into force, might continue spewing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere for more than a decade after that. Californians will still be able to buy used gas-guzzlers after 2035.

To see why this matters, consider some of the findings of BloombergNEF’s latest Electric Vehicle Outlook. In 2020, about 3 percent of global car sales will be electric models. By 2025, that will hit 10 percent, rising to 28 percent in 2030 and 58 percent in 2040. Despite this incredible growth, these vehicles will amount to only 8 percent of the 1.4 billion cars on the planet’s roads in 2030 and slightly less than a third in 2040.

OPINION Posted September 26INCREASE FONT SIZEResize Font
Commentary: Why California’s ban on gas-powered cars isn’t all that radical
Climate change is already doing a lot of damage – and the prohibition on the sale of new fossil-fuel cars is 15 years away.

BY CHRIS BRYANTBLOOMBERG OPINION
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Banning dealers from selling anything but zero-emission cars from 2035, as California Gov. Gavin Newsom decreed this week, sounds pretty radical on first hearing.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chris Bryant is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering industrial companies.

However, in view of the seriousness of the climate emergency – something Californians need only look out the window to observe – Newsom isn’t being very radical at all.

Oil-rich Norway, by contrast, wants to ban cars powered by fossil fuels by as soon as 2025. Britain might bring forward its phase-out date from 2035 to 2030.

BNEF forecasts that – after dipping this year because of COVID-related mobility restrictions – emissions from road transportation will keep rising until 2033. While they’ll decline after that, these emissions will still be higher in 2040 than they were in 2019.

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New MG 5 EV 2020 review

October 7, 2020Electric Cars, MG, News, Reviews and CommentTrevor Larkum

The new all-electric MG 5 starts from under £25k and boasts a 214-mile range

Verdict
If you want a cheap electric car then the new MG 5 EV deserves serious consideration. It’s not glamorous, even compared with the electric ZS SUV, but the no-frills approach means it combines solid range with vast amounts of space, strong levels of equipment, and even a turn of pace when you need it for a very enticing price tag. If all you are looking for is as many miles of range as possible for as little money as possible, it makes a strong case for itself.

This week, Tesla boss Elon Musk announced that his company would be able to offer an electric car for a price of £25,000 a few years from now. But Chinese-owned MG can sell you one right now in the form of this: the MG 5 EV.

It’s MG’s second electric car, sitting alongside the ZS EV but commanding a smaller price tag. Priced from £24,495, rising to £26,995 for the range-topping Exclusive model we’re driving here, the MG 5 is, in effect, a European-market version of the Roewe Ei5. It represents one of the most affordable ways into emissions-free family motoring on sale in Britain today, undercutting key favourites like the Renault Zoe and Nissan Leaf.

While it offers up a price tag cheaper than those cars, it also brings one key bonus – space. As you can see, the MG 5 EV isn’t a small hatchback, but is instead a decently sized family estate car. Similarly, it doesn’t skimp on range either; a 52.5kWh battery pack means a claimed range of 214 miles under WLTP rules, and a 0-80 per cent recharge will take 50 minutes, thanks to standard 50kW charging support. These are promising figures for the cash.

It also greatly eclipses the 163-mile range of the more expensive ZS EV. More subjectively, it’s not as glamorous or desirable as the brand’s electric SUV. But for buyers prioritising range and value for money, this could well be a new champion.

On a full charge we found the readout claimed 191 miles. However, the switchable drive modes of the MG 5 meant we could eke out more from the cell, with a claimed maximum of 205 miles showing when flicked into Eco mode. This limits the level of performance on offer, but it’s a mode many buyers will default to, given that it still offers more than enough shove to get around.

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First drive: Renault Captur E-Tech

October 6, 2020Captur E-TECH Plug-in, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, RenaultRepost

Renault is about to offer the Captur with its latest petrol-electric powertrain. The tech is fascinating, but business users will be just as interested in the 10% BIK rate.

The Captur is already a phenomenally successful product for Renault and it’s easy to see why. Marrying the funky visual attractions and the elevated driving position of an SUV to the easy driving manners of an agile supermini, you would be forgiven for thinking it couldn’t be any more on-trend. Well, if anything, it’s about to become even more ‘street’ as Renault launches a new plug-in hybrid Captur.

By now, most of us are familiar with plug-in hybrids and most of us understand the concept of using a combination of a petrol engine – diesel examples are increasingly rare – and an electric motor to boost a vehicle’s power output and reduce CO2 emissions. To many business users it’s an attractive solution, thanks to the claim of stellar fuel economy figures plus low CO2 outputs, which equate to reduced benefit-in-kind rates.

The Captur’s 10% BIK rating is essentially calculated on its ability to travel up to 30 miles and up to 84mph on electric propulsion alone. Although 10% may not be quite as appealing as the current 0% of pure electric vehicles, such as Renault’s own Zoe, it’s considerably less punitive than the taxation kicking dished out to diesel car drivers.

The biggest advantage plug-in hybrids have over pure electric vehicles is that they are not constrained by battery range alone, as they will continue to run on petrol power once the battery’s power is depleted.

In the Captur’s case, you charge its battery via a 7kW wall-mounted charger – there is no fast charge option – most likely overnight.

Strict adherence to this regime is key because if you forget to charge up you will cop for a double penalty, as not only will you be hauling around the deadweight of a drained battery pack, you will also be sapping energy from the petrol engine as it attempts to re-energise the battery.

Undoubtedly, the trickiest piece of the Captur’s powertrain is its clutchless automatic gearbox, which uses electric motors to synchronise gearchanges. It’s a smart solution and for the most part works pretty seamlessly. However, it is not without its quirks.

Because the battery power cannot be allowed to drop below a certain level, as it needs to retain sufficient energy to enable the starter motor to work, including its many stop-start procedures, the petrol engine will occasionally take on a mind of its own, and out of the blue send the revs soaring to generate a re-energising flow of electricity.

We experienced this on two separate occasions. Once at a standstill, when it seemed odd to hear the revs cranked well above idle but not particularly alarming, and also at crawling speeds, where the connection to the engine was seemingly lost to some form of artificial intelligence. Less intrusive are the occasional shudders that accompany some shifts and the odd time where the gears seem reluctant to downshift, leaving the engine to labour up steep inclines.

Compared to the high-tech gearbox the 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine is positively old school. Eschewing a turbocharger and relying purely on fuel injection, it is designed with smoothness and quietness in mind, mainly to minimise the aural and vibration transitions between electric and petrol modes. To this end, it is highly effective, only ever sounding strained when worked excessively hard.

Like most Renaults these days the Captur focuses more on comfort than dynamics. Although there is some audible whine from the electric motor, wind, road and suspension noise are generally well suppressed, while both the steering and the brakes demonstrate a consistent, connected feel.

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MG expands electric car range as dealers’ sales rocket

October 5, 2020Electric Cars, MG, SalesRepost

MG dealers are about to get their second pure battery electric vehicle to retail, plus a plug-in hybrid, as the brand expects its new car sales in 2020 to exceed 20,000 units.

Its MG ZS SUV B-segment electric car, launched mid-2019 and now the fourth biggest selling electric car in the UK, will be joined in November by the MG5 EV estate car and in October by the MG HS plug-in hybrid

“Electric is now, and MG is electric,” said Daniel Gregorious, head of sales and marketing at MG Motor UK.

To date, 27% of MG’s new car sales this year have been plug-ins, and in 2021 he expects 51% to be plug-in models.

“The key to our success will be bringing affordable, high tech and electric cars to market, all wearing that iconic MG badge.”

Sold in China under the Roewe brand, and powered by a 115kW motor coupled to 52.2kWh batteries, the MG5 EV is capable of 214 miles maximum range (WLTP) and will be priced from £24,495 (after the £3,000 Plug-In Car Grant) in Excite trim and, as it gives users a 0% Benefit-in-Kind tax rate currently, or 1% in 2021-22 tax year, MG expects half of the electric estate car’s sales to be in the fleet and business market segments.

A higher specification Exclusive model costs from £26,995 and adds artificial leather upholstery, heated front seats and door mirrors, keyless entry and start, sat-nav and automatic wipers.

Charging with a Type 2 charger at home will take around 8.5 hours, said MG, and fast-chargers will provide 80% of charge within 50 minutes.

MG is promoting the aerodynamics, lower centre of gravity and driving dynamics of the C-segment electric estate car in comparison to a trendier electric SUV, in a bid to counter the UK’s decline in mainstream estate car sales.

“With MG5 EV we’re turned over a new leaf with Europe’s first SW (sportwagon aka estate) EV. With a big boot, a big range and a small price tag, we really believe that MG5 EV is a real breakthrough in terms of value-for-money, practical EVs in the UK.”

With batteries integrated within the chassis, boot space is not compromised. Without dropping the rear seats the boot capacity is 578 litres, about 24% larger than the Nissan Leaf electric car.

Gregorious also highlighted that the much smaller Renault Zoe is the only pure EV that’s cheaper than the MG5 EV.

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Council switches entire pool car fleet to Renault Zoe EVs

October 4, 2020Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, ZOERepost

South Lanarkshire Council has taken delivery of 141 Renault Zoe electric superminis, ensuring that more than a quarter (28%) of its small fleet will be fully electric.

The purchase – which represents the biggest-ever Scottish order for Renault’s electric vehicles – will see 104 vehicles used to switch the council’s entire pool car fleet away from the former diesel vehicles.

The remaining 37 Renault Zoes will be deployed across a range of council services including Roads, Housing and Technical and South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture, supported by their official 245-mile range.

While the deal will cut both emissions and running costs for the council, the hope is that the chance to trial EVs in the real world will also spur employees to switch their own personal vehicles to electric ones.

The council’s vehicles are being funded by a grant of more than £1m from Transport Scotland’s Switched on Fleets Programme and will be charged by existing council charging points, backed by the addition of more chargers in the near future.

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THE CARS WITH ONE EYE ON SUSTAINABILITY

October 3, 2020BMW, Electric Cars, Ford, Hyundai, i3, IONIQ Electric, News, Reviews and Comment, Renault, ZOERepost

Recycling. It’s a word which most people know and understand. In a world faced with imminent climate change, recycling is a way for us to limit our own impact on the earth through reducing waste and turning what we’d usually throw away into something new.

Manufacturers are just as aware of this too. In fact, plenty of car makers are integrating recycled materials into their vehicles. Let’s take a look at some of the best.

BMW I3
BMW’s striking i3 is green from the off, as its fully electric powertrain has far less of an impact on the environment than an equivalent petrol or diesel-powered car. However, it goes further with an interior which majors on sustainability.

Much of the interior is made from kenaf, which is a lightweight, quick-growing material taken from the mallow plant. The dashboard is crafted from eucalyptus, while the seats are woven from sustainable wool. Check out i3 models for sale here.

POLESTAR 2
Polestar’s new 2 is a car which has been brought in to take the fight to Tesla in the electric car stakes. However, it hasn’t lost track of the end goal – to reduce environmental impact – which is why you’ll find eco-friendly techniques and materials used throughout its construction.

It uses natural fibre composites to reduce the car’s overall use of plastic while at the same time driving down weight. In addition, the seats themselves are made from recycled plastic bottles, the upholstery is entirely vegan-friendly and the carpets are made from old fishing nets too. Don’t worry – they’ve been cleaned first.

HYUNDAI IONIQ ELECTRIC
Hyundai’s Ioniq was somewhat of a trendsetter from the off, as it was one of the first cars to be offered with three powertrains – regular hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric. However, it’s just as cutting edge in other areas too.

Hyundai used recycled plastic mixed with powdered wood and volcanic stone to lower the weight of the interior plastics by an incredible 20 per cent.

The Age of Electric Cars Is Dawning Ahead of Schedule

October 2, 2020Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, SalesRepost

Battery prices are dropping faster than expected. Analysts are moving up projections of when an electric vehicle won’t need government incentives to be cheaper than a gasoline model.

FRANKFURT — An electric Volkswagen ID.3 for the same price as a Golf. A Tesla Model 3 that costs as much as a BMW 3 Series. A Renault Zoe electric subcompact whose monthly lease payment might equal a nice dinner for two in Paris.

As car sales collapsed in Europe because of the pandemic, one category grew rapidly: electric vehicles. One reason is that purchase prices in Europe are coming tantalizingly close to the prices for cars with gasoline or diesel engines.

At the moment this near parity is possible only with government subsidies that, depending on the country, can cut more than $10,000 from the final price. Carmakers are offering deals on electric cars to meet stricter European Union regulations on carbon dioxide emissions. In Germany, an electric Renault Zoe can be leased for 139 euros a month, or $164.

Electric vehicles are not yet as popular in the United States, largely because government incentives are less generous. Battery-powered cars account for about 2 percent of new car sales in America, while in Europe the market share is approaching 5 percent. Including hybrids, the share rises to nearly 9 percent in Europe, according to Matthias Schmidt, an independent analyst in Berlin.

As electric cars become more mainstream, the automobile industry is rapidly approaching the tipping point when, even without subsidies, it will be as cheap, and maybe cheaper, to own a plug-in vehicle than one that burns fossil fuels. The carmaker that reaches price parity first may be positioned to dominate the segment.

A few years ago, industry experts expected 2025 would be the turning point. But technology is advancing faster than expected, and could be poised for a quantum leap. Elon Musk is expected to announce a breakthrough at Tesla’s “Battery Day” event on Tuesday that would allow electric cars to travel significantly farther without adding weight.

The balance of power in the auto industry may depend on which carmaker, electronics company or start-up succeeds in squeezing the most power per pound into a battery, what’s known as energy density. A battery with high energy density is inherently cheaper because it requires fewer raw materials and less weight to deliver the same range.

“We’re seeing energy density increase faster than ever before,” said Milan Thakore, a senior research analyst at Wood Mackenzie, an energy consultant which recently pushed its prediction of the tipping point ahead by a year, to 2024.

Some industry experts are even more bullish. Hui Zhang, managing director in Germany of NIO, a Chinese electric carmaker with global ambitions, said he thought parity could be achieved in 2023.

Venkat Viswanathan, an associate professor at Carnegie Mellon University who closely follows the industry, is more cautious. But he said: “We are already on a very accelerated timeline. If you asked anyone in 2010 whether we would have price parity by 2025, they would have said that was impossible.”

This transition will probably arrive at different times for different segments of the market. High-end electric vehicles are pretty close to parity already. The Tesla Model 3 and the gas-powered BMW 3 Series both sell for about $41,000 in the United States.

A Tesla may even be cheaper to own than a BMW because it never needs oil changes or new spark plugs and electricity is cheaper, per mile, than gasoline. Which car a customer chooses is more a matter of preference, particularly whether an owner is willing to trade the convenience of gas stations for charging points that take more time. (On the other hand, owners can also charge their Teslas at home.)

Consumers tend to focus on sticker prices, and it will take longer before unsubsidized electric cars cost as little to drive off a dealer’s lot as an economy car.

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UK plans to bring forward ban on fossil fuel vehicles to 2030

September 30, 2020Electric Cars, Energy and Climate Change, News, Reviews and Comment, SalesRepost

Announcement expected in autumn to help trigger green economic recovery from Covid-19

The UK is poised to bring forward its ban on new fossil fuel vehicles from 2040 to 2030 to help speed up the rollout of electric vehicles across British roads.

Boris Johnson is expected to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles this autumn with the announcement, one of a string of new clean energy policies to help trigger a green economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

The government had hoped to set out the plans as early as this week, according to sources in the energy and transport industries, but the announcement will be delayed until later this year as it focuses on tackling the rising number of coronavirus cases.

The government has previously consulted on plans to bring forward the deadline on sales of new polluting vehicles from 2040 to 2035. It is now expected to take a more ambitious stance following assurances that the UK’s infrastructure will be ready to cope with the shift to electric cars.

The decision to end the sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030 would put the UK ahead of France, which has a 2040 ban in the pipeline, and in line with Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands. Norway will bring in a ban in 2025.

The plan, which is backed by the government’s official advisers at the Committee on Climate Change, is likely to emerge alongside the national plans to become a carbon-neutral economy by the middle of the century.

Kwasi Kwarteng MP, the minister for clean energy, confirmed last week that the long-awaited energy white paper, which will underpin the government’s legally binding target to create a net-zero carbon economy by 2050, would be published this autumn after several delays.

It is tentatively scheduled for November and is expected to follow the advice set out by the Committee on Climate Change, including support for the UK’s nascent clean hydrogen industry to help cut carbon emissions from homes and heavy industry.

It may also include support for small, modular nuclear reactors, which have found favour with the prime minister’s chief aide, Dominic Cummings, according to industry sources.

Matthew Pennycook, the shadow climate change minister, repeated Labour’s pre-election call for a 2030 ban on petrol car sales last week, saying it was “an ambitious but achievable date” which would “give a new lease of life to the UK car industry, whilst combating climate breakdown and cleaning up the air that dangerously pollutes so many of our towns and cities”.

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Electric vehicle acronym guide: Know your BEVs from FCEVs from PHEVs from ULEVs

September 29, 2020330e PHEV, 530e PHEV, 740e, Electric Cars, i3, i3 120Ah, i3 94Ah, Leaf, Leaf 30kWh, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

When it comes to more sustainable driving, there is a whole host of options now and it can be confusing knowing what’s what. In the olden days you pretty much had the choice of diesel or petrol, but with the ever-evolving market of low-emission vehicles, there’s more choice than ever.

When it comes to “EVs,” you can choose from BEVs, PHEVs, HEVs, or FCEVS, all of which are classed as ULEVs. But what do all these acronyms actually mean?

If you need some quick pointers on what all these acronyms stand for and what they refer to specifically, look no further.

BEV
Let’s start with the most common type of EV, and the type of vehicle we usually refer to when we’re talking about EVs: the battery electric vehicle, or BEV.

As the name suggests, a BEV is an electric vehicle that uses batteries to store and deploy power which powers electric motors to drive the wheels. It’s also common to see words like “pure electric,” or “all-electric” when you read about battery electric vehicles.

Popular BEVs include cars like the Nissan Leaf, the whole range of Teslas, the Polestar 2, the BMW i3, Hyundai Kona Electric, Kia Soul EV, VW’s ID.3 and e-Golf, the Jaguar i-Pace — you get the idea.

PHEV and HEV
Plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) are perhaps the most confusing of the partially-electric vehicle world. There’s one key difference, though: plug-in hybrids can be charged up like a battery electric vehicle by plugging-in to an EV charge point, regular hybrids cannot.

It gives you the flexibility to drive and use your PHEV like it was a BEV and not rely on the combustion engine, for very short journeys at least. They typically have very small batteries and are only capable of driving between 30 and 50 miles on all-electric mode.

Popular PHEVs include the Mitsubishi Outlander, Hyundai Ioniq, MINI Countryman PHEV, and the Volvo XC60 T8.

Regular hybrid vehicles (HEVs), like the original Toyota Prius, can’t be plugged in and the only way to charge their batteries is from regenerative braking or by using the engine like a generator.

Some companies have even referred to these vehicles as “self-charging hybrids,” as if not having to plug them in is a benefit. That phrase has been branded as misleading, and Toyota and Lexus ads in EV loving Norway using the tag line have been banned for being misleading. In reality, to charge them, you need to fuel them with gasoline.

FCEV
FCEV stands for, Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle. These are a small offshoot of EVs that use hydrogen fuel cells to create an electrical charge that’s used to power motors that drive the wheels.

Most FCEVs use a small battery or super capacitor to act as a buffer between the fuel cell and the motors to ensure power delivery is consistent and reliable.

Some tout fuel cell vehicles as a better option than batteries for the future of sustainable transport. They can be filled up in the same way as a combustion engine vehicle, hydrogen is the most abundant element in the world, and their only waste product is water vapor.

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Switching to an EV is the environmentally positive change you can make today

September 28, 2020Electric Cars, Energy and Climate Change, News, Reviews and CommentRepost

The Sustainable Now: Making the switch to an electric vehicle (EV) is the environmentally positive change you can make today, writes Poppy Welch, head of Go Ultra Low.

As the UK emerges from lockdown, we have all had time to reflect on our lifestyle choices.

From shopping locally to being increasingly mindful of household waste or limiting household energy consumption, there is no question that many of us across the country have introduced behaviours into our routines that have had an environmental upside.

As the Government, businesses and people across the nation look to build on this foundation and put sustainability at the heart of the UK’s recovery from the pandemic, there’s no question that transport has been a prominent theme of this discussion.

It’s not surprising – given the striking scenes of empty airports and motorways over these past months. According to Cabinet Office data, the first weeks of lockdown saw road travel fall by some 73% to levels last seen in 1955. Cities and urban environments have particularly felt a benefit, recording noticeable improvements in air quality.

So, as the Government consults on bringing forward the end to the sale of new petrol and diesel cars to 2035 or earlier, the lockdown has only served to encourage acceleration to a more sustainable future.

But this isn’t a change that you need to wait fifteen years to consider. Whether you’re a one-car family or a business with a thousand-strong fleet, electric vehicles (EVs) offer an opportunity to deliver environmental benefits for our communities today, as well as a whole host of other advantages.

Greener transport
As fully electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids when driven in electric mode all have zero tailpipe emissions, this makes them greener, cleaner and better for the environment than petrol or diesel cars – helping to deliver a significant air quality benefit across towns and cities.

In addition, with more and more of the UK’s electricity coming from renewable sources – lockdown saw the UK running coal-free for the longest period recorded, of 67 days – which makes EVs even more environmentally friendly.

To support the renewables transition, drivers smart charge their EVs at home using a time of use tariff. Smart charging can help reduce the impact of EVs on the electricity system, whilst simultaneously creating benefits for consumers and maximising the use of clean, renewable electricity.

On the money
But being environmentally minded isn’t the only factor when it comes to vehicle choice, with financials, of course, being a key consideration. Thankfully, from initial purchase to maintenance, there are numerous savings that you can make over the lifetime of EV ownership.

Fully electric vehicles can cost from as little as 1p per mile to run, compared to 8-17p per mile for petrol and diesel cars. This means you can travel 200 miles for just £2 in a fully electric vehicle.

EVs have lower maintenance and service costs which offer great day-to-day savings too. With fewer moving parts in the vehicle, there is less wear and tear, less stress on the motor and fewer parts susceptible to damage – resulting in fewer trips to the garage.

And you don’t have to wait until you’re on the road to start saving. The Government’s Plug-in Car Grant offers up to £3,000 off the price of an eligible zero-emission electric car, and there is up to £8,000 available off the price of a new electric van using the Plug-in Van Grant. If you’re not looking to buy brand new, EVs also are a growing second-hand market which makes electric cars an even more affordable option.

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