Buying my first EV!
Discussion
crofty1984 said:
A little earlier than planned, I was hoping to get a couple more years out of the Berlingo, but there you go. I'm picking up a 2020 e-golf on Saturday. Interested to see how I get on with electric motoring.
Congratulations! The e-Golf is a great first electric car; perfect stepping stone from ICE in my opinion. We only changed ours due to our needs changing and needing to do 2 x 74 mile round trips in a day three days a week. In summer, with a charging window of 3-4 hours between the trips it would have been just about ok, but in winter, wasn't feasible without rapid charging. We really missed it whilst waiting for the Born to arrive, going back to a Golf 1.5TSi Petrol just highlighted how much of an advancement EV drivetrain is for a daily car.
NDA said:
Will you be charging at home?
Yes, pricing up an ohme charger at the moment to get that installed but until then I'll be on a 3 pin plug. No facility at work unfortunately! Can always jump on a rapid charger in an emergency. But mainly through the week it'll just be a 50 mile commute (25 there, 25 back). So overnight I should be easily able to put that back in, even on a 3-pin 
plfrench said:
crofty1984 said:
A little earlier than planned, I was hoping to get a couple more years out of the Berlingo, but there you go. I'm picking up a 2020 e-golf on Saturday. Interested to see how I get on with electric motoring.
Congratulations! The e-Golf is a great first electric car; perfect stepping stone from ICE in my opinion. We only changed ours due to our needs changing and needing to do 2 x 74 mile round trips in a day three days a week. In summer, with a charging window of 3-4 hours between the trips it would have been just about ok, but in winter, wasn't feasible without rapid charging. We really missed it whilst waiting for the Born to arrive, going back to a Golf 1.5TSi Petrol just highlighted how much of an advancement EV drivetrain is for a daily car.
Funny enough the "perfect stepping stone" was almost a downside for me - I would have loved something that looks like a space ship like an i3 but "just like a golf" will have to do
Agree with your last point. I've got my lotus and bikes for my petrolhead fix, but for clomping down the dual carriage way and the odd jaunt into town, it's just a much better tool (I hope!)
crofty1984 said:
Yes, pricing up an ohme charger at the moment to get that installed but until then I'll be on a 3 pin plug. No facility at work unfortunately! Can always jump on a rapid charger in an emergency. But mainly through the week it'll just be a 50 mile commute (25 there, 25 back). So overnight I should be easily able to put that back in, even on a 3-pin
I have one of these - https://simpson-partners.com/One of the best looking units available in my view and the app works well.
crofty1984 said:
Thanks! Really interested to hear from another owner. Do I read that correctly as a realistic range of 125-150 miles? That works for me. I'm mainly going with a couple of days of 25 miles e/w commuting between charging, plus an occasional 120 mile visit to my parents (and recharging there)
Funny enough the "perfect stepping stone" was almost a downside for me - I would have loved something that looks like a space ship like an i3 but "just like a golf" will have to do
Agree with your last point. I've got my lotus and bikes for my petrolhead fix, but for clomping down the dual carriage way and the odd jaunt into town, it's just a much better tool (I hope!)
It doesn’t like motorways with efficiency seeming to drop off way more as a percentage than it does on the Born. Odd really as the Golf appears to have a smaller cross-section . Round town and up to 50 mph then in the summer you’ll get solid 140 miles plus without trying ( we just left in normal and B mode all the time with climate on etc). In the winter though with higher speed driving you’ll be nearer 90miles indicated if you’ve got heating on etc. still be fine for your commute though. Ours was a 21 plate so the same battery size as yours. Funny enough the "perfect stepping stone" was almost a downside for me - I would have loved something that looks like a space ship like an i3 but "just like a golf" will have to do
Agree with your last point. I've got my lotus and bikes for my petrolhead fix, but for clomping down the dual carriage way and the odd jaunt into town, it's just a much better tool (I hope!)
Just been out in my TVR for a V8 fix - other than the noise, nothing I miss from ICE for daily. I can’t wait till my Q4 turns up so I can get rid of my E350d too.
Got a 2016 e-golf and it’s a great city car, and sounds like a good fit for your needs. In winter, keep it plugged in when pre-heating the cabin. Saves that energy having to come from the battery which helps with range a good amount.
Also, changing the front tyres for some thing a little grippier makes it a much better steer. The factory tyres are too eco focused and have poor traction for the amount of torque it has, particularly in the wet.
Also, changing the front tyres for some thing a little grippier makes it a much better steer. The factory tyres are too eco focused and have poor traction for the amount of torque it has, particularly in the wet.
crofty1984 said:
NDA said:
Will you be charging at home?
Yes, pricing up an ohme charger at the moment to get that installed but until then I'll be on a 3 pin plug. No facility at work unfortunately! Can always jump on a rapid charger in an emergency. But mainly through the week it'll just be a 50 mile commute (25 there, 25 back). So overnight I should be easily able to put that back in, even on a 3-pin I put a 32 amp commando socket in to charge mine as I figured the car was the 'smart' bit of the charging - the car schedules the charge.
Good luck with the new toy, I'm sure you'll find it as easy to own as I do with mine.
I did the same. Have a commando equivalent (US market) and a 32A (7kW) granny charger permanently plugged into it. The car contains the actual charger, and has all the scheduling features you could ever need.
7kW charges it quickly, and can also power the HVAC for preconditioning at full power without it having to draw from the battery. This makes a big difference to winter range, particularly in my neck if the woods where -20C isn’t unusual.
7kW charges it quickly, and can also power the HVAC for preconditioning at full power without it having to draw from the battery. This makes a big difference to winter range, particularly in my neck if the woods where -20C isn’t unusual.
Congrats. It's plenty nippy enough for real world driving isn't it! On paper you think, hmmm. But in reality, below 50mph it is more than adequate.
I never looked back after my wife had one of these and I'd got used to it. I was 100% sold that EV for daily use was just so much better as a drivetrain. Really does make ICE look antiquated and compromised.
I never looked back after my wife had one of these and I'd got used to it. I was 100% sold that EV for daily use was just so much better as a drivetrain. Really does make ICE look antiquated and compromised.
Loved mine - had a heat pump. Great solid car and easily parked. I ran it for two a half years and replaced it with a Tesla Model 3 RWD because of the range. If I didn't need to travel 100+ miles a day I would have one again! VW Connect app was good too - got to chat to a nice girl in Germany as part of the security! Best range was 133 miles in summer - worst just below 90 miles in freezing conditions. Tesla has been a great car - fast and technically way ahead but if anyone asks me about my favourite EV it will always be my E-Golf. 
t but if it meets your needs then ...Gassing Station | EV and Alternative Fuels | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff