by DavidSpratt | Feb 10, 2019 | Energy
Warning! Formidable Japanese electric vehicles (EVs) are coming to a dealer near you this year.
After reviewing European and American EVs last year, I was offered the Mitsubishi XLS SUV plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) to test during my holiday break.
The XLS currently retails at $50,990 plus on-road costs (NZD). This puts it right in the sweet spot for businesses looking for a workhorse, four-wheel drive SUV.
Unlike two years ago when high prices and low residuals were a real turnoff for businesses, electric and hybrid SUVs are now in high demand on the second-hand market, and my industry contracts confirm premium trade in prices and strong lease residuals.
Lease companies’ reservations about financing EVs and PHEVs have largely evaporated.
The XLS combines a 2l petrol engine with twin electric motors, giving you a theoretical fuel efficiency of 1.7 litres of petrol per 100km travelled. In theory if you were running the electric motor only and never exceeded its specified range of 54km, then this incredible efficiency is quite possible.
However, in Auckland motorway traffic, I found a single tank of gas and a $1.50 overnight charge got me well over 700km or 6.43 litres of fuel for every 100km travelled: still an excellent range result by any measure.
Pragmatic manufacturing
When I drained the EV battery the XLS automatically switched to petrol power. It also offered the option of “charge” mode that used the petrol engine, engine braking and inertia, to recharge the electric motor. This proved more expensive in fuel usage but was convenient, simple and practical – Japanese manufacturing at its most pragmatic.
Charging has often been a bone of contention for users hooked on the convenience of petrol stations. This PHEV delivered a fast charge to 80 per cent in just 20 minutes. As fast chargers become more common the convenience gap should be a minor irritant for most users. We will have to alter our behaviours a little though.
Mitsubishi now offers a 160,000km, five-year warranty on the motor and an eight-year warranty on the battery. This largely matches the warranties offered for their petrol and diesel options.
So enough of the technicalities. What did I and the love of my life think of this Japanese invader? For me, words like practical, common sense, hardworking and efficient come to mind. My beloved liked the excellent visibility from both front and rear seats, the sensitive steering and braking and the fact that the vehicle looked stylish without losing its fundamental functionality.
We both loved the spacious leg room and fold-down seats for carrying luggage, samples and tools in the back.
We didn’t like the oddly small driver’s rear vision mirror. The acceleration and sustained performance that we have come to expect from electric vehicles wasn’t to the fore either. Not that the XLS was underpowered, it’s just that when you are used to the romance and zip of a pure electric motor the hybrid felt a bit like kissing your sibling: underwhelming.
Overall, I really liked this solid addition to the SUV fleet.
The years 2019 and 2020 will see big moves from Asian manufacturers into the EV market. Soon the combined price, residuals, fuel efficiency, reliability and convenient charging of hybrid and pure electric vehicle categories will make the business case very compelling for New Zealand enterprises looking to drive out costs, reduce capital deployed and contribute to a sustainable world for future generations.
Businesses will do well to keep a close eye on how they can reap the benefits.
I gave the Mitsubishi XLS PHEV a sturdy 7.5 out of 10.
See more electric car reviews, or New Zealand analysis of the electric car business case.
by DavidSpratt | Nov 14, 2018 | Energy
In this exclusive series of articles by David Spratt, he explores the electric vehicle (EV) options for specific business uses.
Part 3: Evaluating the Volkswagen e-Golf electric car.
It may be that I have now test driven one too many electric vehicles (EVs), but I have become increasingly irritated by the clunky and, dare I say, ugly designs that have been rolled out by some manufacturers.
Not the e-Golf, though. Volkswagen addresses this design challenge with a vehicle that feels familiar, comfortable and accessible from the moment you climb into it. Built from the ground up to look, feel and handle like a standard Golf Super Mini, this smart town car is a delight.
I want a car that can take me safely along country roads while allowing me to travel to the city, park in tight parking spots and save money on fuel. The e-Golf ticks every one of these boxes.
It accelerates smoothly and relatively quickly (from 0 to 100kph in 9.6 seconds).
It also has, for a small car, decent boot space and plenty of leg room for front and back seat passengers. I am six feet tall (1.83 metres for those of you living in the 21st century) and found the front and rear seating gave me plenty of leg room and riding comfort. My wife, a not-so-tall person, had an issue with seeing over the steering wheel for a clear view of the road ahead. But a simple height adjustment for the seat would have addressed this issue.
I live in the rural outskirts of Auckland and so want a car that can take me safely along country roads while allowing me to travel to the city, park in tight parking spots and save money on fuel. The Volkswagen e-Golf ticks every one of these boxes.
If I was to be critical though, there were occasions when the car’s electronics got themselves into a bit of a twist and just stopped working. On at least two occasions, the parking brake and the auto hold feature for hill starts went to war, leaving me stuck in one place with a warning light and screeching sound, raising my anxiety levels. In the end, the only answer seemed to be to switch everything off and start again: fine if you are in a parking lot but not great if you are pulling out into traffic. This may be the result of an idiot behind the wheel rather than a fault, but it happened to both me and my wife on separate occasions.
Are we there yet?
Range anxiety was also an issue with the e-Golf’s distance calculator.
One moment my predicted range was displayed as 157km, then a few minutes later was 140km, only to return to 150km a while after that. I put this down to the range calculator being very sensitive to driving style and conditions, but a bit less variability would have had me more focussed on the road and less on worry about getting home on the available charge.
But charging was a breeze. At home, using a simple three-pin connector, a total recharge took around 11 hours. My favourite, free, fast charger at Counties Power HQ took 45 minutes to get me up to 80 percent, plenty of time for a coffee and a quick browse around the shops nearby.
As is the case with all the electric vehicles I have tested, the e-Golf saw me spending less than $20 per week on charging with no concessions to convenience.
Despite the car’s price of $65,990 the economics for the average business owner almost make sense. Give it a year or two and EVs like this will be a no-brainer for many business applications.
My contacts tell me the Volkswagen e-Golf is rapidly becoming a European sensation, and the future of VW motoring. I can see why. This car is a little beauty.
I gave the Volkswagen e-Golf an admiring 7.5 out of 10.
Thanks to VW New Zealand for supplying the e-Golf for testing.
See more electric car reviews, or New Zealand analysis of the electric car business case.
by DavidSpratt | Oct 10, 2018 | Energy
In this exclusive series of articles by David Spratt, he explores the electric vehicle (EV) options for specific business uses.
Part 2: Evaluating the Tesla Model S P100D electric car
What do you get when you mix an eccentric, Los Angeles-based, internet billionaire with the desire to build an electric vehicle with speed and acceleration to challenge the world’s top performance cars?
The answer is the Tesla 100S, complete with vegan leather seats and “bio-weapon defence mode” to keep the car’s air fresh in case of anthrax attack.
I started test-driving the Tesla S (P100D model) with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. Excitement because I knew this vehicle could take me from zero to 100kph in less than three seconds; and trepidation because of the $250,000 price tag and more personally the $5,000 insurance excess I agreed to when I signed for the car test.
After a week, the fear of crashing a car worth more than the deposit on a Ponsonby house had almost completely gone but the sheer thrill of an EV accelerating in Tesla’s infamous, “Ludicrous” mode remained days after I tearfully gave the car back.
Long range
So, what makes the P100D so special apart from its raw power? First is the range. This beast will travel from Auckland to Taupo and back on a single charge. That’s 600km.
Despite reservations about charging and spare tyres, the Tesla 100S is, bar none, the most exciting and innovative car I have ever driven.
There is a downside though. Recharging the 100kW battery from empty in your garage power point means a 36-hour wait. But for around $8,000 you can install a special Tesla charger at home that dramatically reduces this time.
After failing the home charging test, I resorted to Tesla’s free charging stations (there are six across the country, with many more to come). This will recharge from empty in less than an hour.
I also tried using the Counties Power free charger in Pukekohe, only to discover that the Tesla charging cable requires a special adapter to fit standard charging stations. As this adaptor was not provided, I skulked home and resorted to an overnight top-up before driving to town and the Tesla service centre, where the unfailingly helpful people charged my car and provided the adaptor.
No dirty hands
Speaking of not provided. The Tesla Model S has no spare tyre. Instead you push the help button, and someone turns up and changes it for you! This service comes free for the life of the car and includes towing you home if you run out of electric charge. Ah to be that rich!
When driving I felt safe and in control throughout, even around the challenging corners of Auckland’s Waitakere Ranges. Traction control, adjustable suspension and the stabilising weight of the Mosel S’s powerful batteries made for responsive handling and comfortable road feel, this despite the Tesla’s extraordinary performance characteristics.
The Tesla even comes with “Santa mode”: listen to Christmas carols and glimpse a sleigh pulled by reindeer on the screen while winding the car out to a top speed of over 250kph (in controlled conditions at Hampton Downs racetrack of course).
The bottom line. Despite reservations about charging and spare tyres, the Tesla S is, bar none, the most exciting and innovative car I have ever driven. With companies like Tesla driving change, the future of the EV is in safe hands.
I give the Tesla Model S an ecstatic 8.5/10.
*Thanks to Tesla NZ for providing the Tesla S model for trial. For all the specifications visit www.tesla.com
See more electric car reviews, or New Zealand analysis of the electric car business case.
by DavidSpratt | Aug 27, 2018 | Energy
In this exclusive new series of articles, I explore the electric vehicle (EV) options for specific business uses. We are grateful to the car companies* for supplying their EVs to test-drive, charge and parade around Auckland.
Part 1: Evaluating the BMW i3 electric vehicle
The reality for all businesses is that electric vehicles (EVs) have to deliver on the promise of performance, economics and relevance. Many business vehicles never leave town. Whether they are driven from business to business by busy salespeople or thrashed by couriers, what is required is a car that is reliable, fuel-efficient and a bit good looking.
That’s a tough call, up against an existing petrol range of cool kids like the Suzuki Swift, Honda Jazz and VW Polo: especially when new, entry-level petrol models sell for around $20,000 and the i3 costs about $75,000.
Price is not the only factor though.
To test the distance range capability of the i3 I arranged meetings involving a 120km return trip across town: Drury to Albany at peak hour. With the car’s stated range of 180km, I have to say that on my first trip I was not filled with confidence. I wondered whether the i3 could take on the challenge of sitting in that giant carpark known as Auckland’s motorway system, without my ending up on the side of the road, with a flat battery and subjected to the shaking fists of irate rubberneckers.
At the end of that day, I had travelled 120km at the speed of a lame greyhound in nose-to-tail traffic yet ended up with a remaining range of 127km. So, to travel 120km I used 53km of range. This sounds impossible, but the i3 cleverly uses the stop-start acceleration and braking to recharge its batteries – and there was lots of that going on.
Lookin’ good: what’s great about the BMW i3 electric vehicle
The two-door BMW i3 looks sleek, Euro and sophisticated. The software features are very cool, guiding you to the nearest charging station and, if required, planning your route to ensure you don’t end up using the optional two-cylinder petrol backup engine to limp home. The auto-park feature is also excellent, if a little scary the first time you take your hands off the wheel and trust the computer.
Charging it in my garage overnight was a breeze – just plug it into a three-pin socket and walk away. Just as easy was the 30-minute rapid charge at Counties Power in Pukekohe. I literally plugged it in, walked across the road, ordered and drank a cup of tea and returned to a vehicle recharged for free!
I mention free fast chargers and easy home charging for context. The i3 is energy efficient, saving masses of money on fuel, especially since the new local fuel tax had just kicked in. On average each week I spend around $150 on petrol. In the week I had the i3 my electricity bill went up by $10 while my Commodore sat sulking at home consuming no petrol. On an annual basis that’s a fuel saving of $7280. With residual value and fuel savings the economics of an EV look pretty good.
Money savings on petrol stack up quickly.
Uh oh: problems with the BMW i3 electric vehicle
On the downside, the i3 handles like it is skidding on marbles. Maybe it’s the unusually large wheels, designed to generate more energy, but I never felt comfortable behind the steering wheel in this regard. Road-holding was fine at lower speeds around town but very disconcerting on the open road.
For such an externally large vehicle there is not a heap of room for back seat passengers or for luggage in the boot. Space wise it felt like a reverse TARDIS – bigger on the outside than on the inside.
Overall the i3 appears as if HQ in Germany identified the need to make an electric vehicle but gave the job to a bunch of petrol heads who hadn’t signed up for building a hippy, nippy town car.
BMW: for $75,000 you can do a lot better. Having said that, the first internal combustion cars weren’t exactly things of beauty either.
I gave it a solid 6/10.
*The BMW i3 was kindly provided by BMW and Contact Energy. For detailed specifications visit bmw.co.nz.
See more electric car reviews, or New Zealand analysis of the electric car business case.
