What do you enjoy the most about the car?
Silent, clean, efficient, environmentally friendly and very comfortable city driving. Yes, we save money on fuel (over 60% saving) but that is really secondary, and not the reason we bought the PHEV.
What niggles you about it?
Very little. A bit more range would be nice for longer trips but not essential as there is always the petrol engine if needed. I wish it had an “80%” charge mode as that is better for the battery’s longevity, and also gives you instant regenerative braking. (If the battery is full, that doesn’t happen- full is full!), so for the first few kms, you’re using the brakes. Most days we would be lucky to do 15-30kms, so 80% charge option would be very handy. I can “guesstimate” 80% using the time switch on the charger but it’s not very accurate.
Has your style of driving changed since owning an EV?
Yes definitely, it is enjoyable to drive a little bit more conservatively and try to avoid the brakes altogether. It’s amazing how the “petrol heads” rush off and we then catch them at the next traffic light. (Yet I’m not a slow driver or road hog, definitely drive at the speed limit when conditions are suitable and used to be a bit of a petrol head myself!)
What’s the longest and shortest range you’ve experienced?
The shortest range on battery alone is highway driving at high speed, (110kph) due to wind resistance, probably around 40-45kms. The best range I have achieved is about 55kms which is conservative suburban driving in light traffic, with a few traffic lights thrown in. The regenerative braking is obviously efficient as traffic and stops don’t make the range much worse.
I reckon I could do even better at a steady 50 kph, but of course, you’d likely never do that.
We’ve done a fairly long drive around the North side of Brisbane, totalling about 45 kms in all, with the aircon occasionally cutting in (not very hot conditions) and managed it all on battery with a kilometre or so range to spare, pretty happy with that!The feel of the accelerator is certainly nicer with the addition of the PHEV box, so yes, I am very happy!