NewMotion discuss the 3 things to consider when buying an electric vehicle.
Even though electric driving is becoming more popular, there are still a lot of people who do not know where to start with their transition to clean electric driving.
With the familiarity of driving a traditional diesel/petrol car for years, making the switch to an EV (electric vehicle) can be a hurdle sometimes. But there is really no need to worry, as we have gathered three main points you should take into consideration when thinking about going electric.
The type of EV
It is great to see an increasing amount of car manufacturers investing in electric mobility, providing car drivers the possibility to make an easy switch to electric driving. Nowadays there are already over 65 electric models on the market from full electric to hybrid, with even more coming out soon.
The first thing to consider when thinking about buying an EV is the car itself, plus its specifications. Basically, there are 4 different types of electric cars:
• Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV): this type is completely electric.
• Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV): this type has both an electric motor and a gasoline motor.
• Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV): this type also has both an electric motor and a gasoline motor, but cannot be electrically recharged at a charging point.
• Extended-Range Electric Vehicle (E-REV): this type also has both an electric motor and a gasoline motor, but normally only uses the electric motor.
The amount of electric kilometres each type of EV can drive, differs based on the battery size and can be influenced by several factors. For example, driving uphill for a long period of time with the air conditioning on will drain the battery faster than when driving at a modest speed on the highway.
Keep the average distance you drive per day into account in order to find out how many kilometres you need to be able to drive. The average daily commute is around 25 kilometres making every full EV and many PHEV models perfect for driving the daily distance as clean as possible.
Charging your EV
Besides the type and range of your favorite electric vehicle, another factor that should not be overlooked is charging.
The community of EV drivers has commented that this new way of fueling does take some time getting used to, but it is a fairly easy transition. There are 3 locations where you can top-up your EV: at home, at the office, and on the road.
How much time it takes your particular electric vehicle to charge fully, depends - amongst other external factors - mainly on the power of the charging point and the size of the car battery. The bigger the battery and the lower the power of the charging point, the longer it will take your EV to fully recharge.
To make sure to always leave your home with a full battery, our advice is to install a charging point at your home.
In the case you need your top-up your electric vehicle during your travels, you can always make use of public charging stations.
Alongside the motorway, you can also find fast chargers, which allow you to charge your EV up to 80% within 30 minutes. That provides you with the opportunity to get yourself a cup of coffee to sit back and relax for a little while.
By using the NewMotion charge card and app you can already access over 64,000 charging points in 25 countries.
Total Cost of Ownership
Currently, the initial purchasing costs for an EV are higher than for a traditional petrol/diesel car, but don’t let this throw you off. With the several subsidies available, plus tax reductions, lower fuel, insurance, and maintenance costs, driving an EV will eventually save you money in the long-run.
Let’s take the Honda Civic (petrol) and the Nissan Leaf (100% electric) as our guinea pigs. To drive a gas-guzzling Honda Civic 100 kilometres, you need to fuel it with 7.5 litres of petrol. This will cost you around €12.
If we compare this with a trusty Nissan Leaf, which needs 15 kWh to drive 100 kilometres, you need to pay around €3. That’s four times cheaper!
Besides that, there are plenty of subsidies and tax reductions in various countries making it even easier for everyone to switch to electric mobility. So, what are you waiting for?