Electric car choices
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Do they sell these in Germany?
@Jolly said in Electric car choices:
Do they sell these in Germany?
I believe this was even for a long time the best-selling electric car here.
I'll check it out. My impression - which may be wrong - is that this is a pretty old and maybe outdated mode.
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As you said, the quality-control issues with Teslas are problematic. There are tons of videos pointing out poor fit & finish, inconsistent paint, things just breaking, etc. It reminds me of General Motors and Ford in the 1960s. Cars have gotten so reliable and good that I would never gamble on something that is so erratic.
The other thing I don't like about Teslas is the awkward controls. TO have to navigate through multiple screens to heat the seats, adjust the temperature in the car, etc is cumbersome and counter-intuitive. Give me a knob and a button and I'm good.
The integration with your phone is another concept with which many things can go wrong. My keyless entry for my A4 is fine, but if the car sits for 3 days, I need to push the button. The car goes "to sleep" to prevent battery drain if not activated for a specific time. Integrate with your phone? No thanks.
Sometimes simpler is better.
The reviews of the Hyundai I've seen are quite good. I'd put that near the top of the list.
Are there others you're considering?
@George-K said in Electric car choices:
The other thing I don't like about Teslas is the awkward controls. TO have to navigate through multiple screens to heat the seats, adjust the temperature in the car, etc is cumbersome and counter-intuitive. Give me a knob and a button and I'm good.
Yes, I agree completely. A car is not a smart phone. Using a touch screen while driving is dangerous, whereas you can have the function and position of buttons in muscle memory.
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@mark The Mercedes EQA seems to be a decent vehicle that is way closer to what I'm looking for.
@Klaus said in Electric car choices:
@mark The Mercedes EQA seems to be a decent vehicle that is way closer to what I'm looking for.
The European version of the front-drive, 188-hp EQA250 that we drove was slowed by its hefty curb weight. While it felt responsive at city speeds, it was considerably more sluggish above 60 mph. Mercedes estimates it'll accelerate from zero to 62 mph in an unimpressive 8.9 seconds, and its top speed is electronically limited to 99 mph. The more powerful EQA should help offset its mass, but we can't say whether it'll change its ride and handling. As it stands, we were unimpressed with the Mercedes's listless body control, intrusive stability-control system, and numb brake-pedal feel.
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@Larry said in Electric car choices:
Link to video
The Bolt was sold over here only until 2018 or so (rebadged as Opel Amera-E).
From what I understand, there was a problem with charging in European homes - the Bolt was optimized for American electricity standards and they didn't adapt it to European ones, so charging was very slow. That's maybe why it was discontinued here.
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What about one of those cars that runs for about 40 miles (65km) on electric and then switches to a gas engine?
Off my head, I don't know specific names, but they are out there.
If you are only going to do short trip around town, you may never get out of electric mode.
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What about one of those cars that runs for about 40 miles (65km) on electric and then switches to a gas engine?
Off my head, I don't know specific names, but they are out there.
If you are only going to do short trip around town, you may never get out of electric mode.
@taiwan_girl said in Electric car choices:
What about one of those cars that runs for about 40 miles (65km) on electric and then switches to a gas engine?
Off my head, I don't know specific names, but they are out there.
If you are only going to do short trip around town, you may never get out of electric mode.
You mean "hybrid plugin". I know about those. The engineer genes in me rebel against the redundancy of the concept.
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OK, I test-drove an electric Hyundai Kona today. It would be the cheapest option, and I could get the car this year, which would be an advantage that is worth 3000 Euro, since there is a subsidy that runs out at the end of the year.
It drives like a pretty normal car. A decent amount of buttons. But the interior feels rather cheap overall. It's also on the border of being too small. It feels like an old design, not like a car that was designed for electricity only.
I also looked at a Ioniq 5. Very futuristic compared to the Kona. Better quality. Very big. It's really more like a full family car. Interesting.
I've also taken a look at an ID.3 today. A different quality level than the Kona. I liked it. Test-drive is next week. Waiting time is about a year.
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OK, I test-drove an electric Hyundai Kona today. It would be the cheapest option, and I could get the car this year, which would be an advantage that is worth 3000 Euro, since there is a subsidy that runs out at the end of the year.
It drives like a pretty normal car. A decent amount of buttons. But the interior feels rather cheap overall. It's also on the border of being too small. It feels like an old design, not like a car that was designed for electricity only.
I also looked at a Ioniq 5. Very futuristic compared to the Kona. Better quality. Very big. It's really more like a full family car. Interesting.
I've also taken a look at an ID.3 today. A different quality level than the Kona. I liked it. Test-drive is next week. Waiting time is about a year.
@Klaus D3 has a gasoline-powered Kona. She's in her late 30s, single, etc. Perfect car for her.
But, as you say, it is small. And some of the materials do feel a bit on the cheap side.
I wouldn't buy it.
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@Klaus D3 has a gasoline-powered Kona. She's in her late 30s, single, etc. Perfect car for her.
But, as you say, it is small. And some of the materials do feel a bit on the cheap side.
I wouldn't buy it.
@George-K said in Electric car choices:
@Klaus D3 has a gasoline-powered Kona. She's in her late 30s, single, etc. Perfect car for her.
But, as you say, it is small. And some of the materials do feel a bit on the cheap side.
I wouldn't buy it.
Surprisingly, the Audi Q4 seems to be one of the most reasonably priced cars in that segment.
It is only marginally more expensive than the ID.3, which is significantly smaller.
I've taken a look at the ID.4, too - which is supposed to be similar to the Q4 (they are made in the same factory).
That said, from what I read, the Q4 is not quite up to the usual Audi quality standards. It's not bad; it's good - but not excellent.
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Is the incentive also available for plug-in hybrids?
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@Jolly said in Electric car choices:
Is the incentive also available for plug-in hybrids?
It's less.
In total, there's about 9500 Euro subsidy for fully electric cars that are registered in 2022.
I believe for plug-in hybrids it's about half of that.
In 2023, it's going to be around 3000 Euros less.
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Speaking of "plug-in hybrids..."
For someone like me, without access to electricity where I park, does such a vehicle make sense?
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Speaking of "plug-in hybrids..."
For someone like me, without access to electricity where I park, does such a vehicle make sense?
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One salesweasel tried to talk me into a leasing contract.
In my life, I've so far always paid cars cash and have also intended that for this car.
The rationale she gave would be a protection against the car loosing value more quickly than the leasing rates.
I'm not sure whether that's BS or not.
Another thing that might be in favor of leasing is inflation - if inflation continues or gets even worse, it might be good to delay payments.
Thoughts?
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One salesweasel tried to talk me into a leasing contract.
In my life, I've so far always paid cars cash and have also intended that for this car.
The rationale she gave would be a protection against the car loosing value more quickly than the leasing rates.
I'm not sure whether that's BS or not.
Another thing that might be in favor of leasing is inflation - if inflation continues or gets even worse, it might be good to delay payments.
Thoughts?
