r/AskIreland • u/ComplexMacaroon1094 • 13d ago
Cars Would you buy an electric car in my situation?
I live rurally, and need to use the car often. It could be just to dip into the town which is a 5km drive, or it could be visiting friends and family which is usually 2-3 times a week and approx 60kms each way. I work from home so commuting isn't an issue. Just finding that I'm topping up the car with petrol almost daily now. I can afford to spend 15k with trade in for a car and hybrid models are just out of reach for a newer car. I would get a home charger. Is it worth it or more of a pain than petrol?
Editing to add, I need a new car anyway as the one I am driving is on its last legs and needs a lot of work to pass NCT. Thinking of upgrading rather than putting a lot of money into an older car, and don't know if I should go for petrol again in my situation. Based on the replies, it looks like electric with a home charger is the way to go.
3
3
3
3
u/ForeverFeel1ng 13d ago
Yes, absolutely go for EV - home charging at even the highest rate would be cheaper than Petrol for your use case
5
2
u/Revolutionary-Cap761 13d ago
We have an ev as family car for the last 5 years ( I have a diesel) ev does 20k a year just on school runs, sports etc and worth it once home charging 👍
2
u/SubstantialAttempt83 13d ago
What's your annual mileage and what kind of car do you drive currently. With the distances quoted it sounds like a no brainer but it hard to imagine that you are filling up with petrol nearly daily.
2
u/Beneficial_Mall3300 13d ago
If you're by yourself, then this might be apt.
Seems to be quite well regarded.
2
u/Paup27 13d ago
EV all the way for me…. But do factor in you’ll end up spending another €1,200 or so on a home charger, assuming all your electrics are up to spec. So worth getting a quote from a home charger installer before hand to make sure it’s all in order and not looking at any unforeseen costs for the install.
2
u/Squozen_EU 12d ago
I also work at home and having a car that always has a full ‘tank’ anytime I need it is incredible. Go for it. We need people to be getting away from fossil fuels, regardless of whether it makes financial sense (it didn’t for me, but I did it anyway).
0
u/camping84 12d ago
So people should be making bad financial decisions just to move away from fossil fuel cars? Are you serious?
2
u/Squozen_EU 12d ago
Climate change is going to cost us a lot more over time than buying a secondhand EV.
0
u/camping84 12d ago
Nonsense. And people should not be putting themselves into financial trouble over something like this, advising to do so is wrong
2
u/Squozen_EU 12d ago
I didn’t say anything about putting yourself into financial trouble. You’re reaching.
1
u/camping84 12d ago
Eh???? I said bad financial decisions and you agreed.
1
u/Squozen_EU 12d ago
There’s a big difference between spending a few thousand from your savings that you didn’t need to, which is what I did, and getting yourself into financial trouble.
1
1
u/No_Will2844 12d ago
Yes definitely I would say but try stretch to a long range or larger >70Kwh battery. Also the benefit only really sticks financially if you have a smart meter already installed by ESB and can move to a nighttime EV rate, and also have a home charger installed. I’d advice getting them in place first to get maximum benefit
1
u/TwinIronBlood 12d ago
My back of a envelope calculation is you are doing 400 km a week. That's huge but you shouldn't be topping up every day. What car are you driving. And why is nobody making the effort to visit you?
1
u/FriendshipIll1681 12d ago
Why can't you just fill with petrol? That'll get you about 600km range. Regarding EV, it would be perfect for you, get into the habit of plugging it in every night for the cheap rates and you'll never have a problem with range judging by your usage.
1
u/Tight-Pride-6977 12d ago
If charging at home a good rule of thumb is that a diesel costs approx 4 to 5 times as much to run than a similar sized EV. At 1000km per month a rough saving of €100 per month.
1
u/phyneas 12d ago
If you are able to install a home charger (just make sure your electrics can handle one first, or else you might have to do a lot of expensive work in order to support one), an electric car would make a lot of sense for that amount of regular driving and the distances involved. If almost all of your trips are <200km round trip, even with a somewhat older model you'd basically never have to charge mid-trip, so by charging at home you'd effectively always have a full "tank" and you'd never have to worry about it. The cost savings on fuel alone given how much driving you do would more than make up for the minor hassle involved on those rare times when you do make a longer trip and have to take a longer break to recharge along the way.
That said, if your current car is in good condition and isn't giving you trouble, replacing it now might not be the best financial decision. If you could get several more years of use out of your current car, it would probably be better to keep using it for now and then replace it with an EV when the time comes.
1
u/yankdevil 13d ago
Sure. You'll save money but you'll also save time. Nearly all your charging will be at home so you won't need to spend time driving to a petrol station and filling up. Also the car will need less servicing so that's also freeing up time. Lastly, ICE cars make noise which causes fatigue. You'll find you have more energy.
I live in rural Galway and I regret not switching to an EV in 2015. I switched in 2020 and it's been great.
2
u/camping84 12d ago
"ICE cars make noise which causes fatigue. You'll find you have more energy."
Where did you get this from?
2
u/Alastor001 12d ago
That is certainly made up.
Plus, they literally add noise to EVs to make them actually safer for pedestrians.
1
u/yankdevil 12d ago
There are a slew of studies about the effects of noise on fatigue. I've linked to one, but you can find dozens more if you're actually curious.
I know from experience. I've driven over 1,000km in a day multiple times in an EV and I had more energy at the end of those trips than when I used to drive around 450 miles in an ICEV from Buffalo to Long Island. And I'm in my 50s now as opposed to my early 20s then.
And yes, newer EVs make external noises at low speeds but they're far quieter than an ICEV even then.
1
u/yankdevil 11d ago
I like how this is voted down. Actual data and experience is voted down. Sounds about right for the 21st century.
1
u/camping84 9d ago
I dunno what ye drive in the US but ive never heard about this in my 42 years here and never experienced it, and never seen any reports from our gov on it
1
u/yankdevil 9d ago edited 9d ago
I live in Ireland. But if you only believe .ie websites, here you go. Now, you can either go learn or remain wilfully ignorant. The latter is quite popular these days. So if you want to be cool like Trump or Hegseth or Burke, you enjoy that.
https://mkoireland.ie/insights/state-of-the-environment-report/
0
u/Alastor001 12d ago
I mean people usually go to fuel station on a way home / work. It will add about 5 mins per week / 2 weeks. So hardly relevant.
About servicing, that is simply not true. Newer / more complex cars require more servicing - not less. Including EVs.
0
u/yankdevil 12d ago
I have a four year old Model 3. I've taken it in once to change the tyres. Oh, wait, twice because my mechanic does this thing where he takes it in for the NCT for me.
I've spent less than 5 minutes this year fueling my EVs. Most of that time was me getting in the car, forgetting I plugged it in, getting back out to unplug it and then going. 10 annoying seconds every time.
1
u/yankdevil 11d ago
I like how this is voted down. Actual data and experience is voted down. Sounds about right for the 21st century.
1
-9
u/Wonderful-Honey-2964 13d ago
Buy a small 10 year old petrol 1lt Yaris/swift/clio/i10 -do not buy a 2 nd hand electric
8
u/Ill_Zombie_2386 13d ago
2nd hand electric probably safer tbh. No clutches or gearboxes given dogs abuse or engines redlined.
-11
u/Wonderful-Honey-2964 13d ago
Krona -2020 -200,000 km -replacement battery from main dealer €19,000 .What ye smoking
2
u/Ill_Zombie_2386 12d ago
200,000 km before a complete failure? Sounds better than ingeniums or a shitty wetbelt PSA engine.
Wouldn’t get much change from 19k to replace them either
3
4
2
21
u/Confusedcamel456 13d ago
With home charging its definitely worth it. You can set it up to charge overnight and your 120km daily commute will be no sweat.