e-autos and ?'s

[cnighbor1]

e-autos like the VW Golf e-autos are selling used at big discount
like
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/cto/d/vw-golf-2015/6364541081.html
my questions are with 85 mile range 125 v2017 e-golf has any member make these all electric cars with a range under 150 miles work for them
Like last Sunday I drove 61 miles to Woodside CA for a classic ride No way could I get there and back without getting a 30 minute charge someplace and not at Woodside So after the ride I would have to find a charging state in the Palo Alto area OK but still would like more range
For a person or family with two cars one e-auto should make sense
I like the fact an electric motor should last over 500,000 miles
But electric motor is in the wheels will that last ?
e-Golf write is great same has normal Golf in ride handing etc
That is it

[fa63]

For a person or family with two cars one e-auto should make sense


I think at the moment, this is what makes the most sense. As battery technology improves and fast-charging infrastructure starts to appear, that will change.

That said, the long range version of the Model 3 by Tesla, which sells for $44K, has a claimed 310 mile range. Not bad already.

[ultraman6970]

Well for 90 miles per charge at 17000 new or more, is better get the gas one. Or buy an electric one like that one at discount and pretty much wait like 150 years to get the investment back. The other problem is that german cars aren't famous for being super reliable in the electrical and electronic dept, nice cars tho.

[Drmojo]

I got mine 2 months ago.
224 mile range, and I drove 330 miles from No Cal to Grant's pass OR charging once.
Never again will I buy a petrol vehicle.
It is fast, quiet, and a Tesla killer.
See the USA in Chevrolet!
And I charge forf free in Davis, Winters, and Napa (where I work)
Charging takes time, but a bit of planning solves that--bike fits in back without removing wheel so- I put bike in car, drive to Charge Point, take a ride, come back and voila, full charge.
I am a true beliver. Full stop.

[ultraman6970]

I need a new car and i put my eye in the bolt... thanks for the really short review :D Dont have the money to buy it tho :D

Due to my job electric is the way to go, a tank last me like 4 weeks, I imagine that a full charge in a bolt will last me maybe the same? Nice car...

[Drmojo]

if you drive 65, and reasonably on surface streets, range is closer to 250-260 miles

[oldpotatoe]

I need a new car and i put my eye in the bolt... thanks for the really short review :D Dont have the money to buy it tho :D

Due to my job electric is the way to go, a tank last me like 4 weeks, I imagine that a full charge in a bolt will last me maybe the same? Nice car...

I think this sums it up. Depends on where you live. In the great expanse of Colorado...where everything is 50-60 miles away and lack of charging...not gonna work. Better range, more charging, faster charging...drop-in batterys(?)..BUT when everything is electric, the strain on the grid will be noticed. :eek:
I think a better/safer/cleaner/more efficient way to generate electricity is needed as well.

[AngryScientist]

i think for a person with access to a second petrol car and a regular commute into a city, where there is access to a charging station while you sit behind a desk all day anyway - it's a brilliantly good idea.

it would be lovely if the freeways and surface streets in LA and SF were slam packed with electric cars that emit 0 emissions when grinding along at 5-20mph. there is a real potential for air quality impact in the city with all electric IMO. I'm all for it in such circumstances.

i would also LOVE to see taxis go to all electric sometime soon. Maybe some depot where they could go and trade into charged cars, or swap entire battery banks to keep working all day.

out in the country where driving big miles at high speeds - nah, gassers are king there, but for city life - bring on the electric cars. our lungs will thank us!

[pdxharth]

After a job change and a miserable winter with a 30 mile bike commute, we decided to get a second car. We bought a ‘14 Nissan Leaf to complement our old Subie wagon and it’s the perfect combo. Kate drives the Leaf to work regularly, I mostly ride, and the Subie sits until it’s needed for a commute or longer trip or hauling stuff.

Three year old Leaf with 23K miles cost us $10k.

Couldn’t be happier. Well, we could be happier if it had twice the capacity, but it’s ok for our current usage. We plan to upgrade in about three years and hopefully we won’t lose much on the sale of the Leaf as the used market for e cars stabilizes.

I can’t call the Leaf a great car by any stretch. For example, the visibility is not good at all. But driving an electric car feels so much more sophisticated than a petrol burner. It is quiet and smooth, and feels like gliding rather than driving. It makes a basic stereo system sound really good. We don’t have solar but we do pay for “green” energy sources from our electric company. That may or may not be a ripoff, but it’s a start. And we haven’t put gas in the Subie since early September, which really helps offset the extra insurance payments.

We did go camping near Mt Hood this summer, about 50 miles away, and found a quick charging station right near the secluded campground at a restaurant. We will take advantage of that next year.

All in all, it’s a great second car.

[cmg]

by the time they sell the bolt/volt nationwide they'll be selling used in cali. by then 3rd party upgrades will becoming available. seen a couple of Tesla's, quiet and fast. there is a charging station at one of the missions in town. http://www.evwest.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=40 http://www.e-volks.com/about2.html

[Clean39T]

I've been driving a BMW i3 for about a year and half now. I got a ridiculously great deal on a leftover '15 and pay like $130/month for the top-of-the-line version after factoring in my company kickback (work for an electric utility who offered us cash to use us as test subjects and study our driving/charging behavior - great company, great program).

It has an 85mi range under "normal" conditions, which means not using the heater or AC, and going under 65mph. It is really the perfect car for what I use it for: city trips, commuting to work when not riding my bike (8mi each way, but 2,000-ft climbing RT), etc. I pretty much always just charge at home and just with a Level 1 charger (wall outlet). As long as I don't space-out on plugging it in for multiple days, I rarely think about the range. I've only been caught out once - drove to a ride in cold/rainy conditions, got lost, and had to scramble to find an emergency charging station at a BMW dealer when soaked and shivering after a 4hr ride in 40 deg rain. I could have avoided it though, so not the car's fault in the least. I love the way it drives and am going to be bummed to let it go when the lease is up.

It has the best interior space of any car I've driven. It doesn't have a transmission console running up the middle, so my long legs can splay out like I'm in a '60's truck. The headroom is great. And I can fit two full-size bike boxes and a double-wheel box in it at the same time - don't ask me how I know...

It's RWD and is insanely fast on a smooth road. When it gets bumpy though, it feels like you're riding a '90s Cannondale on 21c tires at 125psi. It's not rattling or falling apart, the tall wheels and low-pro tires, along with light weight, just make it feel that way. And it's downright scary in the snow until you turn off the regenerative braking - at which point with the heater on you're lucky to get 40mi range, if that.

All told, its been fun to have this as our primary vehicle for 90% of the trips we do. I think I'm at 11K mi on it after 20 months of leasing it. But I'd never have gotten it at full price, and will probably be going to something like a Honda Fit when the lease is up...it will be a rude awakening...like dumping Super Record for 105...

[paredown]

Charles--thanks for posting. You got me looking at the possibility for us.

Over 95% of our trips would fit comfortably within the range of the e-Golf, and I already have 220v wiring in the garage for a charging station. Plus a lot of our trips are later in the day, so presumably in my personal ecotopia, I would get the solar panels installed first, and then charge my car for free...

A man can dream, can't he?

I found this article about driving in the NYC area--sounds as though the charger infrastructure is pretty under-built--although the charge station they describe on Long Island that is solar powered sounds pretty cool:
https://www.cheatsheet.com/automobiles/volkswagen-e-golf-test-does-zero-emissions-work-in-new-york.html/?a=viewall

And I did read lots of chatter on the boards about the charger points being monopolized by hybrids, so the full electric folks who need to charge to get home can't get access.

Color me interested but not fully convinced--but I have to say the prices on those Golfs are pretty great (though none local to us).

[Black Dog]

Like old spud mentioned; drop in batteries would really change the electric car landscape. Imagine driving into a "gas station" swapping batteries and away you go. The station would recharge the batteries for the next car. You could have a few size standards and when the batteries are toast they can be easily recycled. Automation could make a battery swap faster than filling up. Range and charging time become less of an issue once the stations are in place. We did it with petrol, we can certainly do it with batteries. Hell, we already do it with propane BBQ tanks.

[csm]

Battery swaps have been done for years with forklifts. Certainly could work for cars.



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[Steve in SLO]

Fiat 500e here and 2.5 years into the lease. It's the most fun city car I have ever driven. I live about 7 miles away from work and have all city or partial freeway routes. It does well on either and can cruise at 80+ MPH, and average 90-100 mi ranges. It scoots off the line (thank you 100% torque at 0 RPM) and can park just about anywhere. Maintenance is effectively zero. Sure it has a spartan interior and is not good for long trips, but as a second car it can't be beat. When my son rode in it for the first time, his comment was "It sounds like the future!"
I have given Elon my $1000 deposit for a Tesla Model 3, but may just lease another Fiat until the tech tapers off a bit. In a couple of years there should be many attractive options, as well as insight into whether swappable batteries and changing stations are coming.
Oh, and I can fit a bike on it.