Today I needed to go from my home in Saltash to Brixham. This is a round trip of 73 miles and right on the edge of the range of my Nissan Leaf so I might have chosen to use my Vauxhall Ampera. Instead, I decided to see if I could do it easily in the … Continue reading Saltash to Brixham – POLAR Charging Post Failed
I have been a staunch supporter and promoter of electric vehicles (EVs) over the past year. I have often tried to persuade people that 80 miles range is perfectly adequate for most trips and most days for most people but whilst I know that this is true even I feel that we need more range. … Continue reading Are Electric Cars Ready for the Masses?
As stated in the strategy document on Low-Carbon Transport the government has stated that it will develop a National Chargepoint Register (NCR). This all made sense when it was announced but that was before the various Plugged in Places had launched their various subscription schemes each requiring a membership fee to be paid and each … Continue reading EV Charging Should Be PAYG or Free
Last week I heard that there was a charging point with free parking in Bournemouth and as my nephew is studying at Bournemouth Uni I decided to visit in the Nissan Leaf. This is how I got on. I live in Saltash, Cornwall and so given the range of about 85 miles of the Leaf … Continue reading Trip to Bournemouth
It is a sad day today because I heard that Cornwall Council’s excellent plans to install a proper fast and slow charging infrastructure has had its funding pulled and so as I write this there is no plans within Cornwall Council, as far as I know, to install any EV charging infrastructure in the county. … Continue reading Bad News! Cornwall pull funding for Electric Cars
So, what has happened over the past week apart from my self-enforced exile? Firstly, and rather importantly, Nissan have finally responded to the issue of them supplying dangerously wired plugs on the Nissan Leaf charge cable. I received a letter from Nissan, presumably sent out to all owners, explaining the problem and asking owners to … Continue reading Getting back on the horse
For months now, ever since I got my Nissan Leaf, I have been shouting the benefits of electric cars. I have gone out of my way to promote them, I have argued their advantages on Facebook and Twitter, I have driven my car the length and breadth of England (literally!) to show that they are … Continue reading Why Electric Cars Are Not Yet Ready For Market
You know, the more I hear about the charging infrastructure that is being built in the UK by the Plugged in Places schemes the more I despair. It seems to me that the Plugged in Places projects are being run by people that have never owned an EV (Electric vehicle) in their life. Nor have … Continue reading No more slow charging posts and more fast chargers please
UPDATE 11/12/2011 00:04:Since posting this post a lot has happened that has forced me to reassess the situation. The government has launched its own national charge point database and to be honest, in my opinion, it is not loooking good. Many new databases, web sites and apps have spung up offering to provide EV drivers … Continue reading We Don't Need a Central Charge Point Database
The first year of owning an electric car for us has been a bit of a mixed bag. The car itself has been great and we use it for our everyday, local trips but using the car for anything over its typical max range of 80 miles (40 miles each way) requires a bit of … Continue reading Our 1st Year with the Nissan Leaf