Is an Electric Vehicle a good choice for you?


See how electric vehicles (EVs) compare to conventional petrol cars by scrolling down the page to view some facts and stats.

Fact

The average distance travelled by household cars is just over 20 miles per day

Fact

There are currently several EVs available in the UK with a range of 250+ miles on a single charge

How do ICE* vehicles and EVs compare?

(*internal combustion engine)

Driving 8,000 miles per year will cost over £1,000 in petrol (1)

Driving 8000 miles per year will cost around £320 on an average household electricity tariff (2)


Price for a mid-range 2018 petrol Fiesta approx. £21k

Price for a mid-range 2018 Nissan Leaf EV approx. £28k

Ford Fiesta dealership servicing - £170-£250 per service


Nissan Leaf dealership servicing - £130-£180 per service

Fiesta vehicle excise duty (road tax) - £145 per year

Leaf vehicle excise duty - £0 per year

Home charge point installation for Leaf - £0-£500 (one off)

90% of EV charging is done at home, but there are now nearly 20k public chargers across the UK

New technology, such as lamp post EV charging points on residential streets, is being rolled out in some areas with less off-street parking available for home charging.

At the end of 2018, the number of registered plug in vehicles in the UK was approx. 200,000

ICE Vehicles, especially, diesels, emit nitrogen oxides (NOx) and small particulates from their tailpipe. These damage local air quality and lower people's resistance to respiratory infections. They can even cause acute respiratory illness in children.

EVs have no tailpipe emissions and so keep air quality high, thereby improving the health of local citizens

Over an assumed lifetime of 179,000 miles, a Nissan Leaf charged with electricity from the grid has a carbon footprint around 51% smaller than a comparable Ford Fiesta (3)

There are many things to consider when it comes to making the switch to electric vehicles. Range anxiety could be a thing of the past, with many of the latest EVs able to cover hundreds of miles on a single charge. For those who can't charge their EV at home, the UK public charging network is growing all of the time.
Whilst EVs currently cost more to buy in the first place than a comparable ICE car, the running costs are significantly lower, especially when it comes to the price of fuel. Environmentally, the manufacture and running of an EV during it's lifetime leaves a much smaller carbon footprint than an ICE vehicle, and particulates and NOx emissions around our towns and cities are zero with an electric car.

Taking all of these factors into account, would you consider going electric for your next car?

Source:

(1) For a similar sized ICE car to the Nissan Leaf, say a mid-range 5-door Ford Fiesta with a 1 litre Ecoboost petrol engine and an mpg of around 45, a 150 mile journey will cost nearly £19, or over 12p per mile using average UK petrol prices in Dec 2018.

(2) Most homes pay between 11p and 15p per kWh of electricity (although there are specific EV tariffs that people can switch to, offering significant savings when charging EVs overnight, which will make this even cheaper) - so charging a 40kWh EV at home will cost between £4.40-£6.00, for around 150-170 miles of range (2018 Nissan Leaf). That's a worst case cost of around 2p per mile.

Department of Transport - National Travel Survey: England

(3) Data taken from https://www.nextgreencar.com/tools/emissions-calculator/ and https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1102307_once-again-electric-cars-have-lower-lifetime-carbon-emissions

Find out more

If you're still unsure whether an EV is right for you, check out our EV Myths article for more information