What Should You Know Before Purchasing an EV – Electric Car in Ireland? Electric cars have started to become important for reducing the financial burden and saving the environment.
According to a source, EV showrooms sold more than 2,000 electric and 7,500 hybrids in Ireland between January and June 2019.
Moreover, the government plans to bring 950,000 electric vehicles on the road through the Climate Action Plan.
The plan also focuses on implementing an electric vehicle scrappage scheme and increasing charging networks throughout the nation.
However, people thinking about buying an electric vehicle in Ireland must consider a few .
These include average range, deciding between hybrid or fully electric, monthly savings, power output, road tax, maintenance costs, battery replacement charges, etc.
Besides this, buyers must consider their new electricity bills, find the distance of the nearest station, estimate resale price, depreciation, etc.
5 Things to Think About Before Purchasing an Electric Car
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Vehicle Range
Electric vehicle (EV) buyers always worry about the average distance. It is one of the most commonly discussed topics on forums, in groups, and during conversations.
According to a source, citizens in Ireland travel no more than 50kms everyday.
Moreover, EV’s measure the unit based on kilowatt-hour (kWh). Each unit can enable a driver to travel between 3 to 6 kms on a battery-electric vehicle (BEV). In 2019, an average BEV could have a range between 28 to 60 kWh.
Besides this, a 40 kWh BEV reportedly has a range of 270 kms. Moreover, luxurious Tesla vehicles have an average of between 75 to 100 kWh.
However, buyers must know that the range diminishes by upto twenty per cent after eight years of regular travelling.
Regular drivers can even expect an additional drop of thirty per cent for continuously using air conditioners, heaters, and defrosting features.
Therefore, after a few years, the vehicle would deliver an average range of 150 kms under adverse weather conditions.
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So, on a full charge, a new vehicle would run for five days continuously, whereas a few years old car would have a battery life of three days.
Unfortunately, factors like carrying heavy loads, sloping roads, and aggressive driving would also diminish the average vehicle distance.
However, EV users can even increase the range to its maximum by driving safely and reducing the everyday distance.
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Fully Electric or Hybrid?
Unlike a fully electric vehicle, a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) comes with two energy sources, namely an electric motor and a petrol engine. Some of the prominent HEV’s include Lexus RX 450h, Toyota Prius, Hyundai Ioniq, and Ford Mondeo.
The efficiency of the engine maximizes by using a combination of electrical system and battery. Moreover, if the petrol engine becomes inefficient, the car still operates without making any noise for several kms.
Additionally, HEV offers a fifty per cent higher fuel economy than a petrol engine vehicle. Besides this, the driver doesn’t worry about the vehicle range because an HEV diminishes emission and increases efficiency.
Furthermore, there are different forms of electric vehicle besides full electric and hybrid. These include plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and mild-hybrid (MHEV).
Unfortunately, fully electric vehicles don’t meet the requirements for off-road travelling, last-minute plans.
Another source reveals that the UK government plans to reduce the ban from 2040 to 2030 for all petrol and diesel vehicles. Meanwhile, the hybrids might get banned by 2035.
Additionally, the UK government plans to incorporate a 10-point plan to make the nation carbon neutral by 2050.
Therefore, buying hybrids could last for a few years and offer negligible resale value if it crosses the government parameters.
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Financial Requirements
Before going ahead with the type of vehicle required to meet everyday needs, it is essential to analyze the financial status.
If you have saved enough to buy a new vehicle instantaneously, the car service provider will not hesitate to complete the formalities.
However, all car service providers would require paperwork if you are thinking about car finance in Ireland. They would also check the credit rating and ongoing debt before estimating the maximum repayment capacity.
Unfortunately, making a full payment would immediately provide the vehicle but would shatter the savings. On the other hand, taking a car loan would incur a higher interest rate.
Therefore, buyers must estimate the current monthly income, expenses, and upcoming monetary requirements.
Additionally, they should consider recurring insurance expenses for a new vehicle, travelling costs, effect on the home electricity bill, service charges, etc. These become added financial expenses.
Besides this, the owner would require to recover ongoing monthly repayments, create emergency funds, and save fifteen percent of income as savings.
Simultaneously, buyers should even consider the distance and diminish expenses of travelling, especially for long-distance.
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Battery Life and Maintenance
Unlike traditional petrol and diesel vehicles that might become obsolete shortly, the EV’s don’t have significant consideration for parts. The most significant part of an EV is the battery.
Therefore, buyers must consider the battery’s longevity and potential replacement cost.
According to a few manufacturers, the battery life of an average EV is more than 100,000 kms. Therefore, replacements become unnecessary for a long duration unless the mileage is improperly maintained.
However, EV batteries degrade over time and result in lower charge capacity. As a result, the average distance covered on a full charge might significantly diminish.
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Moreover, the vehicle may start demanding a battery replacement due to the low average offered through the battery.
Additionally, EV batteries operate better in tropical regions compared to the arctic. So, buyers keep this in perspective before buying an EV. Additionally, the vehicle would only incur high costs after an accident or driving roughly.
On the other hand, hybrids might require continuous maintenance for specific parts.
They may incur high service charges compared to fully electric vehicles.
Fortunately, the savings generated through free charging stations for EV’s in the UK can help diminish expenses.
Moreover, hybrids could come with specific powertrains unavailable in traditional petrol and diesel vehicles.
Therefore, such vehicle drivers would require to find nearby specialists for maintenance and servicing.
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Resale Value
The last important factor to consider before buying an EV is the resale value. Many online calculators can help to determine the estimated value based on ongoing resales.
Besides this, buyers should consider that EV depreciation value would remain more than traditional vehicles until the market flourishes.
Resale EV buyers would point towards the high battery replacement costs besides the kms driven on it. Moreover, EV’s with replaced batteries would also diminish the resale value.
On the other hand, it will more likely enhance the vehicle’s ownership costs.
In addition to this, EV buyers would account for factors like battery warranty, best-used model, statistics, average electricity requirement, mileage, and price.
Moreover, hybrid vehicle buyers would also account for maintenance costs.
As per a source, average UK vehicles depreciate almost sixty per cent in the first three years. The basis for the estimation is 10,000 yearly miles driven every year.
However, another source suggests that EV’s retain 48.9 percent value after three years. Therefore, buyers must also consider this factor while estimating the resale cost.
