Category Archives: FAQ

UK gains 106 high-speed EV charging hubs in 2022

Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment

The UK’s electric vehicle (EV) charging network gained 106 high-speed charging hubs in 2022, representing an increase of 80%.

There are now 295 locations in the UK with four or more high-speed charging points.

As of the end of December, data from Zap-Map shows that the number of ultra-rapid charge points grew almost 80% in 2022. These high-speed devices – which cater to drivers travelling long journeys and looking to charge as quickly as possible – increased from 1,290 at the end of 2021 to 2,295.

Zap-map rapid charger growth

Zap-Map Co-founder & COO Melanie Shufflebotham said: “Over the next few years, the UK will need a mix of charging solutions to suit a wide variety of use cases.

“Focusing solely on the number of charging devices masks the different types of charging available, what they’re useful for, and which ones are needed where.”

One of these key areas is the provision of on-street charging infrastructure. Found on residential streets, these devices tend to be either slow or fast chargers and provide an alternative to charging at home.

2022 saw significant growth in this area, with the number of on-street charging devices increasing by 36% – up from 8,842 devices at the end of 2021 to 12,009 devices by the end of December.

What happens if your EV runs out of battery power?

Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment
Q: What happens if your electric car runs out of battery?

A: A modern EV won’t just suddenly stop in the middle of the road if it runs out of charge. While it’s tempting to think than an electric car flat battery is the same as an empty fuel tank in a conventional car, an EV is actually a bit smarter than that.

It will try to protect its occupants and other road users if the unthinkable happens and it’s in danger of depleting its batteries.

Read more about EVs

Even so, many would-be EV owners find themselves asking what happens if my electric car runs out of power.

Different manufacturers have different protocols for what happens when the batteries are empty, but they all have strategies along similar lines. So, let’s look at precisely what happens when a Hyundai Ioniq threatens to run out of volts.

Read more: CarsGuide

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“Electric cars should make up 1 in 4 sales by next year” – 2023 wish list

Buying a new car, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment

As EVs continue to improve at a rapid rate, Richard Ingram believes that buyer demand should grow even faster

​The march of electric cars has begun. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 16.6 per cent of the market in 2022 – up 40.1 per cent on the previous year. This is a landmark moment as BEVs have overtaken diesels in popularity and are now Britain’s second most popular powertrain. Add in PHEVs and more than one in five cars registered was fitted with a plug.

While supply constraints continue to suffocate the new-car market, demand for new electric vehicles shows no sign of slowing. December alone revealed a zero-emission share of almost 32.9 per cent – a record for the year – suggesting that over the next 12 months, accelerating past one in four is virtually guaranteed.

As editor of Auto Express’s sister site DrivingElectric.com, I’m admittedly a little biased. But having been driving EVs day in, day out for the best part of three years now, I’ve seen just how far these cars have come. Their range and charging are improving at an astonishing rate, and while the public infrastructure needs work, the comfort, convenience and environmental benefits are clear.

Read more: AutoExpress

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One in three cars sold in December were electric vehicles, says New AutoMotive

Buying a new car, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) ended the year strong with its highest market share in December as one in three cars where EVs, according to New AutoMotive.

Sales of BEVs for the whole year stayed strong and manage to increase 38% compared to 2021,

 

despite a decrease in sales of cars in the UK market.

During the month of December there were 39,780 BEVs registered which represented 34% of the total of all cars sold, while 27,605 hybrids were sold during the last month of 2022 and improving on November’s sales which stood at 24,748 BEVs registered.

 

Electric cars continue to be the fastest growing segment of the market, with 250,407 BEVs registered in 2022 and bringing its cumulative total to more than 610,000 at the end of December.

In contrast is the continued decline of fossil fuel vehicles with petrol market share dropping below 40% in December for the first time since at least 2010. The decline of sales from petrol cars will continue in 2023 as buyers transition to electric options.

 

Read more: Current+

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‘EVs will kill us all’ – Why are haters so obsessed with electric vehicles?

Electric Cars, FAQ, News, Reviews and Comment, Opinion

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed this, but some people – no, it’s actually a lot of people – seem to really, deeply hate electric vehicles.

I know this because every time I write about one, or even mention the acronym, in a story for the country’s only national paper the comments beneath the online version of my story erupt into a frothing splurge of spleen and outrage.

I have wondered at what makes some humans so venomously vicious about the idea of cars running on electricity – other than the fact that they’re the kind of people who simply hate “change” of any kind, also sometimes colloquially known as “old people” – and that led me to wonder whether there were people who hated the original cars when they first changed the world.

Sure enough, there were plenty, particularly in America, where laws were proposed that involved any car user setting off rockets every mile that they drove and then waiting 10 minutes for the road to clear before proceeding. This was to give unhappy horse owners and pedestrians a chance to get out of the way of the evil, noisy, dust-devilling machines.

In Vermont, they actually passed a law demanding that an motor vehicle must be accompanied by a person walking in front of it at all times, waving a red flag. Even accounting for how slow cars were back then, this seems crushingly pointless and annoying.

Read more: EVCentral

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Mythbusting the world of EVs: can we move forwards without arguing?

Buying/Leasing, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Opinion

Making positive noises about electric cars doesn’t take away from all other cars

MYTH: “We must argue to progress”

If you say anything positive about an electric car, either online or in an actual human conversation, people often get surprisingly agitated, as if you’re ramming electric vehicles down their throats. They say “I couldn’t manage with an electric car”, in a tone that implies, “So all electric cars are fundamentally a bad thing”.

The purpose of this series of articles is to show that a lot of perceived objections to electric cars are actually myths. I believe electric cars are more suitable for more people than many people think. But to be clear I am definitely not saying they’re for everyone. So why the hostility?

Pictured: TRO has designed the first of its kind Electric Vehicle Experience Centre, launching in Milton Keynes in spring

If I turn up in a two-seat car, people don’t harrumph, “I have five kids so two-seaters are a thoroughly bad idea”. Caravan owners don’t get riled up by the simple existence of superminis, it’s just that they buy for themselves something more capable of towing. When I review a petrol car with a 350-mile fuel tank, I don’t get comments saying “My diesel goes 800 miles, so all petrol cars are obviously a conspiracy against ordinary motorists”.

Read more: TopGear

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UK Power Networks fast-tracks EV charging at petrol stations

Away From Home, Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment

UK Power Networks (UKPN) has partnered with independent forecourt operator, Motor Fuel Group (MFG) to fast-track the installation of electric vehicle (EV) chargers in petrol stations.

The new EV chargepoints will be distributed amongst some of MFG’s 900 sites in addition to the eight newly installed ultra-fast 150kW chargepoints at the company’s Catford site in South East London.

Ed Chadwick Til, director at MFG commented: “Our EV hub in Catford provides eight 150kW chargers. Whilst getting EV drivers back on the road quickly, it will be crucial in giving motorists the confidence to switch to zero carbon fuels. Thanks to UK Power Networks’ great work and the Green Recovery programme, MFG is able to build hubs like this quickly and ahead of the curve.”

This project is part of UKPN’s Green Recovery programme, which aims to support the UK’s transition to net zero by investing £66 million in low carbon energy projects.

Inconveniences of Gasoline 1: Gas Station (Image: Clean Technica)
Inconveniences of Gasoline 1: Gas Station (Image: Clean Technica)

“We want to help enable the UK’s transition to Net Zero by reducing the cost of connecting EV chargers for our customers through our Green Recovery scheme,” said Adam Lakey, stakeholder engagement manager at UKPN.

Read more: Current+

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Nissan marks its 250,000th Leaf electric car with festive lights display

Charging, Charging, Electric Cars, Leaf, News, Reviews and Comment, Nissan

Sunderland Plant’s Christmas decorations are powered entirely by vehicle’s vehicle-to-grid technology

Nissan is marking its electric milestone in lights, as it celebrates the 250,000th Leaf electric car rolling off its production line with a dazzling festive display.

The motor manufacturer is using electric vehicle technology as the sole power supply for its Christmas decorations at the entrance of the Washington production site, with a Leaf rigged up to tree lights to power them. Star of the show is a 32-foot high Christmas tree.

Nissan began building the Leaf EV at the Sunderland plant in 2013, and this year started to produce electric versions of the Qashqai and Juke models.

Read more: ‘Totally unacceptable’ MPs fury over Northern Rail’s decision to close Sunderland station over Christmas

Like many of the latest electric cars on the market, the current Leaf has vehicle-to-grid – or V2X – technology, meaning it can become a mobile power supply for household products, which Nissan decided to demonstrate by using the Leaf as a power source for its festive display. The V2X system allows drivers to use electricity stored in their vehicle’s battery to power a variety of appliances, including a fridge-freezer, laptops and kettles, by using a three-pin plug converter that slots into the charging socket.

Read more: ChronicleLive

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IONITY rapid charge points at Leeds Skelton Lake Services (Image: IONITY)

Electric car drivers receive high-speed charging boost from major UK supermarket

Away From Home, Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment

Electric car owners are set to benefit from a huge expansion of EV chargers at supermarkets and shops around the country.

 and BP Pulse have signed an exclusive agreement to bring  to M&S stores across the UK. The agreement will see M&S and BP Pulse, BP’s electric vehicle charging business, work together to install an initial 900 electric vehicle charge points in around 70 of M&S’ national stores in the next two years.

The roll-out will significantly expand BP Pulse’s network, growing the UK’s charging network and adding up to 40,000 kWhs of charging capacity to the UK’s EV infrastructure.


In order to provide the appropriate speed for each need, a combination of ultra-fast (≥150kW) and rapid (≥50kW) charge points will be installed during the roll-out.

Fifteen rapid (50kW) charge points are already live and open to the public at M&S Maidstone Eclipse and Southgate following successful pilot installations.

Over 250 BP Pulse charge points are already available at over 60 BP-operated forecourts which also offer M&S Food.

Akira Kirton, CEO at BP Pulse UK, commented on the new partnership, saying it would help customers and help the companies achieve environmental goals.

Read more: Express

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Record number of public electric vehicle chargers installed in UK in 2022

Away From Home, Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment

More than 8,700 chargers installed, bringing total to 37,000 in a 30% increase

British companies installed a record number of public electric car chargers during 2022 as they raced to dominate a fast-growing and potentially lucrative market.

There were more than 8,700 public chargers installed in the UK during the year to 22 December, bringing the total available to more than 37,000, according to Zap-Map, a data company. That represented a 30% year-on-year increase, slower than the 38% annual growth in sales of battery electric cars during the year to November.

Solar EV Charging Hub on Princes Street, Dundee (Image: eVolt)
Solar EV Charging Hub on Princes Street, Dundee (Image: eVolt)

Boris Johnson’s government announced a target of 300,000 publicly available chargers by 2030, when the sale of new pure petrol or diesel cars will be banned. Year-on-year growth of 30% in the number of chargers installed would be enough to hit the target, although that would mean annual installations more than doubling to 19,000 by 2025 and accelerating from there.

Despite the scale of the challenge, many in the industry regard the 300,000 target as realistic, according to Ben Nelmes, chief executive of New Automotive, a thinktank. Charger companies have more investment coming in than they can put to work, but problems may remain where local authorities are slow to act, he said.

Chris Pateman-Jones, chief executive of Connected Kerb, which plans to install 190,000 on-street chargers by 2030, said he expected a further significant increase in charger numbers during 2023, but “much more needs to be done if the country is to be EV-ready for 2030”.

Read more: TheGuardian

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