Your EV place to be
I’ve completed quite a few weeks now in my varied adventures in pure electric cars (so not hybrids that also have a diesel or petrol engine). I can report that I have just about been cured of the usual complaint of the electrolyte neophyte – “range anxiety”.
The question that normally arises when a manufacturer brings out an “all-new” model is: Is it any better than the old one? Surprisingly, given the £1bn plus it costs to develop a new car, the answer is sometimes “er, no”.
One hundred and twenty-four miles. That is the most important single figure you need to know about the Renault Zoe. That, in case you’d not guessed, is its range in normal use in colder weather. I can vouch for that, and I can also tell you that you’ll find it can go somewhat further if you keep your speed down to, say, 50mph (which of course oftentimes you have to, involuntarily, because of weight of traffic or speed limits).
BMW is in talks with a Chinese carmaker to build electric Mini cars, alongside production in Oxford which is due to start in 2019. The partnership between BMW and Great Wall Motor will most likely see electric minis made for the local Chinese market.
This I had not expected. I am lined up next to a V8-engined BMW M3, 420bhp about to burst forth into its rear wheels, as we wait to be flagged off on a sprint along the longest straight at Brands Hatch. I am in a BMW of a different letter but the same number, an i3.
Yes, it’s just a BMW i8 without a roof. And yes, it’s taken BMW an unholy amount of time to get around to it, but the i8 Roadster is still a thing of beauty (how on earth did BMW’s designers manage to keep the flying buttresses despite decapitating it?).
Just over a year ago, I finally realized my long-time dream to purchase an affordable all-electric car with over 200 miles of range. Now that I’ve got a full year and around 8,500 miles of road behind me in the Bolt EV, let’s check in on the good, the bad, and the awesome. Continue reading “One year with the Chevrolet Bolt EV: Takeaways from my immersion into all-electric driving”
If you think electric cars are a new invention, prepare for a shock: they actually date back to Victorian times.
On April 21, 2015, a Tesla Model S P85D rolled off a transporter in front of Car and Driver headquarters, its cherry-red paint spattered with mud as if it had come from its Fremont, California, assembly plant by way of the Oregon Trail.
