My First EV, converting to an electric car, an Irish users experience, by John L’Estrange

My First EV, by John L’Estrange

In the Beginning …

35 years ago, I watched my father take delivery of a Round Baler. On the face of it, that has very little to do with electric cars, but hear me out…. My dad was an early adopter. He could see the benefits of a new technology, how it was more suitable to the way he worked and despite the derision of those that “knew better”, stuck with it. Neighbours openly laughed at him when they heard. However, round balers became the new standard while the old square balers rapidly became a staple of agricultural vintage shows. This had a big impression on me as a young lad and has always stuck with me: there’s always a better way to do something.

With that in mind, last Monday I drove my brand new electric car out of a garage showroom. This was the culmination of a few years of research into the subject and the definition of putting my money where my mouth is. So, is it a better way of doing things?

Converting to an electric car, an Irish users experience, by John L’Estrange

Virtue Signaling Hippie

Except for a short period in 2000 when I was the proud owner of one of the ugliest cars in the world: 1989 Opel Corsa saloon, I have driven diesels all my life. From thrashing around the backroads in my parents Vectra, to more sedate pottering in my own Pajero, it’s been dinosaur bones all the way. In 2014 I was getting a bit worried about the monetary footprint and carbon bootprint my Landcruiser was leaving. I took delivery of a lovely Volkswagen Passat Estate that had been imported from the UK. Leather interior, heated seats and all the mod cons, including a lovely 2 litre diesel engine. One of the big plus points for me was the fact that it had a really low Co2 output. I was using less fuel and pumping out less carbon thanks to the efficient engine and magical Diesel Particulate Filter or DPF for short.

Then came diesel-gate and all that changed. Volkswagen were found to have installed a cheat device that detected when the engine was being tested for emissions and adjust it to show a lower value than would be realistic in real world conditions. My Passat had one of these engines. And the magical DPF? That’s a filter that gathers particulates until such time as it can squirt some fuel down the pipe and burn it off. This usually happens on motorways so it’s an egalitarian way of polluting everywhere, not just in cities. Progress? Maybe not.

Decisions, Decisions

I was somewhat disillusioned with diesel. It was costly both financially and environmentally and I needed a change. Enter, alternatively fueled vehicles. First up, hybrids. I opened the internet, looked at the specs, watched the videos, followed the tweets and eventually decided against. The way I looked at it, I was still fueling the fire and technically it’s the most complex solution. While hybrids have proven to be very reliable, I figure there are twice as many things to go wrong. With that option discarded, I focused on full Battery Electric or BEV.

To make things clear, I am not a rich man. Tesla, Audi E-Tron and Mercedes EQC are well out of my price range. So I had to concentrate on the more average end of the market.

Firstly, there is the daddy of them all, the ubiquitous Nissan Leaf. Now, while taste and fashion has never been associated with me, I do not like the look of the old model. The 24 kwh battery in the original also didn’t seem to be enough to get by on for the type of driving I do. I saw the new model pull into the Nissan showroom and went down for a test drive. It’s a lovely car with a much better range but the price is prohibitive. Also, and I feel terrible saying this, but it felt like an appliance to drive.
Next up is the Hyundai Ioniq. Again, a fine car I’m sure. However, I drive Hyundai’s in work and I don’t want to be reminded of it whenever I sit into my own car. Fussy?

Yes I am. I could overlook my weird employment related prejudices for huge range though. Enter the Kona. Now we’re talking. Small SUV body and a 64kWh battery giving it a good spell between plug ins make it a winner. The price however, made me a runner up. I’d have to wait until it hit the second hand market. The Kia e-niro has the same gubbins underneath and a bigger boot, so that would also be a contender in 2020 when there’s a few pre-loved ones I could realistically afford.

And that’s where I left it. I was keeping my finger on the pulse of progress with a plan in mind, until one fateful day when the power of radio advertising made itself apparent: 0% finance on all new Renaults.

Tax Credit vs. Street Credit

I was always aware of the Renault Zoe and never really considered it. My wife runs a Doggie Day Care and on my days off, the Passat was sometimes pressed into use in ferrying 5 or 6 dogs to the park. I must have a big boot I said. It was this same line of thinking that kept me financially ruined in a Toyota Landcruiser but smugly able to tackle the three days of snow we get bi-annually. Time to have a serious discussion with myself. I looked at my car usage dispassionately and realised I spend most of the time bringing myself to work and the two kids to school or activities.
Hello, I’m John and I DON”T NEED A BIG CAR.

Once I managed to get that out of my system, I went to look at the Zoe. First impressions: very comfortable, bigger inside than you imagine and nice to drive. When you consider the price, spec and range it was hard to beat. Factor in the 0% finance over 5 years and the fuel savings and I was looking at a monthly cost of €245 over what I currently spend. That’s do-able I said as I shook hands and signed on the dotted line.

So here I am, one week into ownership and extremely happy. I made the trip down to Mullingar today and showed it to my Dad who’s a sprightly 90 years old. Here’s a man who ploughed with horses, cut with scythes and saw steam engines in use. He wasn’t afraid to try to do things differently because there’s always room for improvement.
“So it pulls power back into the battery when you slow down?” he said when I explained the screen showing regenerative braking. “I always thought cars should do that. It’s wasting energy otherwise”. He was ahead of his time.

I wonder will my children look back and remember the day their dad made the plunge and brought them home in their first electric car.

John L’Estrange is Dublin based and an enthusiastic supporter of electrical transport and renewable energies. He is not affiliated with or supported by any relevant industry and his regular job is focused on criminal justice. You can follow more of his journey by subscribing to @evmyfirst on twitter where he’s documenting his journey into EV ownership.

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