Thinking about used 330e or 350e - your advice pls
Discussion
Hi,
I have a 8 mile commute with a little bit of non congested town and some flowing (but not fun) B and A roads. The car covers about 8k miles per year.
My research suggests that a BMW 330e and Merc 350e should be able to cover all the commute on all but the coldest and rainiest days without the petrol engine.
I would be charging from the mains at home in the garage. The way our house is orientated solar panels wont work, but the car is at work during the day anyway.
We do occasional longer trips - weekend visits to the zoo and 200 miles each way to visit parents a couple of times a year.
How do I calculate running costs?
Is there anything else I need to know about a used hybrid?
Current car only just exceeds 30mpg so will be interesting to calculate savings
Thanks
I have a 8 mile commute with a little bit of non congested town and some flowing (but not fun) B and A roads. The car covers about 8k miles per year.
My research suggests that a BMW 330e and Merc 350e should be able to cover all the commute on all but the coldest and rainiest days without the petrol engine.
I would be charging from the mains at home in the garage. The way our house is orientated solar panels wont work, but the car is at work during the day anyway.
We do occasional longer trips - weekend visits to the zoo and 200 miles each way to visit parents a couple of times a year.
How do I calculate running costs?
Is there anything else I need to know about a used hybrid?
Current car only just exceeds 30mpg so will be interesting to calculate savings
Thanks
"Fuel" cost: It's cost about a quid the charge the car from "empty". If you go gentle on the throttle you should do both ways on pure electric only even in winter, esp if you "precondition" the car from the mains (nice getting into a pre-warmed car in the winter). You'll probably need to buy a charge point, seems to range from about £300 to £600 as you won't qualify for the Gov subsidy and the standard "granny block" is not really designed fro day-in-day-out use.
As the engine won't run very much (it will start automatically periodically if it's not been run for a while) then servicing should be cheaper, but I bet it's not. Also, if you are driving like Ms Daisy then tyres will last you years.
Depending on the model year the RFL will be either free or very cheap.
Your commute should be much nicer, more serene and with added smugness.
As the engine won't run very much (it will start automatically periodically if it's not been run for a while) then servicing should be cheaper, but I bet it's not. Also, if you are driving like Ms Daisy then tyres will last you years.
Depending on the model year the RFL will be either free or very cheap.
Your commute should be much nicer, more serene and with added smugness.
Thanks for the reply, very helpful.
However, it highlights my (nice to have) problem as I live so close to work and have such a nice cruisy commute. Though it does currently lack the smugness you promise.
At 30mpg my current car will cost just under £3 to do the return journey. (15 miles, nearly £6 per gallon).
So I'd save £2 per day by swtiching.
Or I could get a c63 and it would only cost and extra £1 per day!
However, it highlights my (nice to have) problem as I live so close to work and have such a nice cruisy commute. Though it does currently lack the smugness you promise.
At 30mpg my current car will cost just under £3 to do the return journey. (15 miles, nearly £6 per gallon).
So I'd save £2 per day by swtiching.
Or I could get a c63 and it would only cost and extra £1 per day!
You must have been looking at the claimed range of the vehicles. If you're expecting to do a 16 miles round trip on the battery from one charge, all year round, that ain't going to happen on the C350e.
I just got a C350e and the dash typically shows 12 or 13 miles range when the car has fully charged. That's in the summer, with very gentle acceleration.
Reading what owners get in the winter, it's more like 5 or 6 miles. With a warm engine, I reset the trip computer on the M25, and it showed 55mpg at 60mph on cruise control in Eco mode. That figure plummets to mid 30s once I'm driving at the limit and overtaking trucks etc.
When you are doing your sums, ensure you go beyond just the reduction in petrol spend, but also consider if insurance and servicing would be more than either your current car (or switching to a petrol/diesel bmw/merc equivalent) - My 2015 model has zero road tax.
If you prefer a more dynamic drive, don't go with the C350e, which is ideal at either very low speeds on electric in town, or cruising on the motorway. The 330e is much more fun to drive out of the two.
Beware of the hybrid system, at least on the C350e. Get a solid warranty if you do buy one. They don't seem to be as reliable as Toyota's system. I just read about a C350e and the hybrid battery needed replacing under MB warranty less than 2 years from purchase.
I just got a C350e and the dash typically shows 12 or 13 miles range when the car has fully charged. That's in the summer, with very gentle acceleration.
Reading what owners get in the winter, it's more like 5 or 6 miles. With a warm engine, I reset the trip computer on the M25, and it showed 55mpg at 60mph on cruise control in Eco mode. That figure plummets to mid 30s once I'm driving at the limit and overtaking trucks etc.
When you are doing your sums, ensure you go beyond just the reduction in petrol spend, but also consider if insurance and servicing would be more than either your current car (or switching to a petrol/diesel bmw/merc equivalent) - My 2015 model has zero road tax.
If you prefer a more dynamic drive, don't go with the C350e, which is ideal at either very low speeds on electric in town, or cruising on the motorway. The 330e is much more fun to drive out of the two.
Beware of the hybrid system, at least on the C350e. Get a solid warranty if you do buy one. They don't seem to be as reliable as Toyota's system. I just read about a C350e and the hybrid battery needed replacing under MB warranty less than 2 years from purchase.
As mentioned the car is indeed more of a company tax dodge, unless the cost to buy one privately is comparable to a 330i for example.
Although, saying that - I am lucky enough to get the best of both worlds getting one thru NHS salary sacrifice where the low BIK makes the car more affordable - eg the 330e is £100 a month less than a normal 320i. and being close enough to work to do the 8 mile commute in full EV. (easy in summer... marginal in the colder weather) im saving a fair whack on petrol too.
With just over 4800 miles under the cars wheels now (2600 those electric), its cost £355 in petrol so far, and about £100 in electricity charging at home every night.. So over a year i'm on track to save around £500 in fuel costs from the commute alone.
Based on the above im hoping to sway the missus to go full electric for the next car in 3 years haha!
Although, saying that - I am lucky enough to get the best of both worlds getting one thru NHS salary sacrifice where the low BIK makes the car more affordable - eg the 330e is £100 a month less than a normal 320i. and being close enough to work to do the 8 mile commute in full EV. (easy in summer... marginal in the colder weather) im saving a fair whack on petrol too.
With just over 4800 miles under the cars wheels now (2600 those electric), its cost £355 in petrol so far, and about £100 in electricity charging at home every night.. So over a year i'm on track to save around £500 in fuel costs from the commute alone.
Based on the above im hoping to sway the missus to go full electric for the next car in 3 years haha!
I don't think you will need a proper charge point fitted as the BMW battery is tiny, you can use the included brick charger to charge. The one the Leaf comes with is bullet proof, had one for 7 years from the original 2011 Leaf and it works in the wet, heat, frost etc just fine. I assume the BMW one will be the same.
With the right electricity supplier you could get the charge cost down to about 65-70p, or 45p if you go economy7.
With the right electricity supplier you could get the charge cost down to about 65-70p, or 45p if you go economy7.
Both brands seem to have had issues with the 'brick' chargers failing with regular use. Mercedes have come out with a new design, but no idea if it's any better TBH.
More generally, if you are looking for purely the cheapest running costs, then anything more than a small cheap runabout is not the way to go.
If you are looking for cheap running costs on a more up-market vehicle, then maybe one of those will work for you.
I bought a C350e 18 months ago, not entirely because I was looking for cheap running costs, but it was a factor as I'm retired. My shortlist ended up as 330e, C350e or XE V6. The XE came out a bit too pricey for me, and of course, would have had higher running and ongoing costs. Ended up with the C over the BMW simply from personal preference for the ride, styling and features. Ideally, I wanted a Tesla S but couldn't bring myself to stump up the cash - too big a chunk of the nestegg.
Best electric range has been about 14 miles in ideal conditions, driving moderately. Worst is about 6 miles, in winter. A driving pattern not dissimilar to yours (albeit less miles overall) has returned an average of about 66mpg so far. I've not included electricity costs as it's usually "free", charging from solarPV.
If you plan on using it and charging it daily, I would recommend a proper wall mounted charger, with a tethered charge cable. Some folk have arranged the brick in their garage, so effectively it's the same, but as I say, there are questions about the reliability of the things.
HTH
More generally, if you are looking for purely the cheapest running costs, then anything more than a small cheap runabout is not the way to go.
If you are looking for cheap running costs on a more up-market vehicle, then maybe one of those will work for you.
I bought a C350e 18 months ago, not entirely because I was looking for cheap running costs, but it was a factor as I'm retired. My shortlist ended up as 330e, C350e or XE V6. The XE came out a bit too pricey for me, and of course, would have had higher running and ongoing costs. Ended up with the C over the BMW simply from personal preference for the ride, styling and features. Ideally, I wanted a Tesla S but couldn't bring myself to stump up the cash - too big a chunk of the nestegg.
Best electric range has been about 14 miles in ideal conditions, driving moderately. Worst is about 6 miles, in winter. A driving pattern not dissimilar to yours (albeit less miles overall) has returned an average of about 66mpg so far. I've not included electricity costs as it's usually "free", charging from solarPV.
If you plan on using it and charging it daily, I would recommend a proper wall mounted charger, with a tethered charge cable. Some folk have arranged the brick in their garage, so effectively it's the same, but as I say, there are questions about the reliability of the things.
HTH
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