In praise of the cable release button (notes from a roadtrip)

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MattHero
Posts: 295
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 2:17 pm

Post by MattHero »

Did the longest roadtrip in the 2 years, 3 months I've had my e this weekend, 400 miles from Thanet to Birmingham and back across 2 days. Sure, I'm sure it's pretty small by comparison to some you've all done, but generally the furthest I go is the 280 round trip from here to my family on the south coast. A few small notes;

- I think we take the cable release button under the charging flap for granted. In 2/5 of my charging stops, there was someone really struggling to get the cable released after an unsuccessful handshake when starting a charging session. The solutions that people seemed to use for their non-e were varied; in the case of the BWM I was stopped next to at an Ionity charger, it was switching the car on and off *5 times* and then it releases. So the button whilst at first confusing, seems to be a far better solution.

- Averaged 4.1 kWh per mile across the 400 miles, 10 degrees and drizzly and sitting around 65mph pretty constantly. Pretty pleased with that economy.

- Beginning to get notice a little light hate for the charging speed of the e from owners much faster charging cars, waiting behind at rapids. At another Ionity, where the e was pulling a frankly heroic 45 kW at over 60% SOC (I was waiting to get to 80% before I left), there was some talk at why I hadn't instead used a 50kw charger across the car park? Other than the big Gridserve graded sites where there are bays set aside for 50/150 etc - where I'd certainly choose a 50kw by choice - there's no reason to ask someone on an Ionity charger to move to a Pulse one because they've dropped £££ on an etron and are being impatient, now is there?

- 5 charging stops, not a single other e. We're a rare groove.
Advance Charge Yellow on 16s.

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FDAD
Posts: 492
Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2020 1:55 pm
Location: Porto, Portugal

Post by FDAD »

MattHero wrote: Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:29 am Did the longest roadtrip in the 2 years, 3 months I've had my e this weekend, 400 miles from Thanet to Birmingham and back across 2 days. Sure, I'm sure it's pretty small by comparison to some you've all done, but generally the furthest I go is the 280 round trip from here to my family on the south coast. A few small notes;

- I think we take the cable release button under the charging flap for granted. In 2/5 of my charging stops, there was someone really struggling to get the cable released after an unsuccessful handshake when starting a charging session. The solutions that people seemed to use for their non-e were varied; in the case of the BWM I was stopped next to at an Ionity charger, it was switching the car on and off *5 times* and then it releases. So the button whilst at first confusing, seems to be a far better solution.

- Averaged 4.1 kWh per mile across the 400 miles, 10 degrees and drizzly and sitting around 65mph pretty constantly. Pretty pleased with that economy.

- Beginning to get notice a little light hate for the charging speed of the e from owners much faster charging cars, waiting behind at rapids. At another Ionity, where the e was pulling a frankly heroic 45 kW at over 60% SOC (I was waiting to get to 80% before I left), there was some talk at why I hadn't instead used a 50kw charger across the car park? Other than the big Gridserve graded sites where there are bays set aside for 50/150 etc - where I'd certainly choose a 50kw by choice - there's no reason to ask someone on an Ionity charger to move to a Pulse one because they've dropped £££ on an etron and are being impatient, now is there?

- 5 charging stops, not a single other e. We're a rare groove.
I never thought of the button being confusing...
If you're paying it's your charger t'ill it's done.
Honda E advance [Modern Steel Metallic] 8-) [DELIVERED JULY 2020] - 85 000Kms + ✌️🎂
MattHero
Posts: 295
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 2:17 pm

Post by MattHero »

FDAD wrote: Mon Nov 28, 2022 5:11 pm
I never thought of the button being confusing...
Well, me neither.... but I know there's been a couple of "cable won't release" queries on here from people who didn't know about the button. Turns out the button is a hidden hero.
Advance Charge Yellow on 16s.
CHags
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Mar 09, 2021 6:51 pm

Post by CHags »

MattHero wrote: Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:29 am Did the longest roadtrip in the 2 years, 3 months I've had my e this weekend, 400 miles from Thanet to Birmingham and back across 2 days. Sure, I'm sure it's pretty small by comparison to some you've all done, but generally the furthest I go is the 280 round trip from here to my family on the south coast. A few small notes;

- I think we take the cable release button under the charging flap for granted. In 2/5 of my charging stops, there was someone really struggling to get the cable released after an unsuccessful handshake when starting a charging session. The solutions that people seemed to use for their non-e were varied; in the case of the BWM I was stopped next to at an Ionity charger, it was switching the car on and off *5 times* and then it releases. So the button whilst at first confusing, seems to be a far better solution.

- Averaged 4.1 kWh per mile across the 400 miles, 10 degrees and drizzly and sitting around 65mph pretty constantly. Pretty pleased with that economy.

- Beginning to get notice a little light hate for the charging speed of the e from owners much faster charging cars, waiting behind at rapids. At another Ionity, where the e was pulling a frankly heroic 45 kW at over 60% SOC (I was waiting to get to 80% before I left), there was some talk at why I hadn't instead used a 50kw charger across the car park? Other than the big Gridserve graded sites where there are bays set aside for 50/150 etc - where I'd certainly choose a 50kw by choice - there's no reason to ask someone on an Ionity charger to move to a Pulse one because they've dropped £££ on an etron and are being impatient, now is there?

- 5 charging stops, not a single other e. We're a rare groove.
That's a pretty good efficiency at this time of year/temperature with that speed.

I agree with the other poster. If you're charging then it's up to you how long you take. On long trips I've always aimed to stop at places that have 4+ chargers (generally shell or instavolt). I think initially you had what you might call an enthusiast who were more likely to research range/charging stations but I've noticed at chargers more recently that people are a bit more oblivious to the lack of charging/how long it takes to charge even on a fast charger and that it won't charge at the max speed for the entirety of the charge as electric cars become more mainstream. (Although there does seem to be a big push to increase charging infrastructure coverage.)

We've been looking at some other hatchbacks/small SUVs and it really does show off how high spec/high quality the e is for it's price. Ok it has low range but quality wise you're looking at £45k+ to get close imho. Other than mercs/BMW electrics, the closest I've found quality otherwise is the Nissan ariya but it's pricey for the big battery...

The MGs are functional as are the VW/cupra but they don't come close to the E quality/spec wise. We test drove a Mégane e tech "techno" today which is the mid range spec and were really disappointed.

Sorry to side track!
MattHero
Posts: 295
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 2:17 pm

Post by MattHero »

CHags wrote: Wed Nov 30, 2022 10:06 pm The MGs are functional as are the VW/cupra but they don't come close to the E quality/spec wise. We test drove a Mégane e tech "techno" today which is the mid range spec and were really disappointed.
I'd love to hear more about why you didn't like the Mégane; on paper it sounds great. The upcoming R4/R5 are those most likely to replace the e (though, I still love the e TBH).
Advance Charge Yellow on 16s.
CHags
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Mar 09, 2021 6:51 pm

Post by CHags »

MattHero wrote: Wed Nov 30, 2022 10:58 pm
CHags wrote: Wed Nov 30, 2022 10:06 pm The MGs are functional as are the VW/cupra but they don't come close to the E quality/spec wise. We test drove a Mégane e tech "techno" today which is the mid range spec and were really disappointed.
I'd love to hear more about why you didn't like the Mégane; on paper it sounds great. The upcoming R4/R5 are those most likely to replace the e (though, I still love the e TBH).
We saw the launch edition one (but it was a french version) when it toured the UK and it looked great apart from the deep boot.

This was the mid spec which, as you say, on paper looks great. But driving it; the rear window is incredibly narrow for size of the car and no rear view camera available on UK model (I don't think), the screen is too shiny/fingerprints easily, the brake is really jumpy even on different regen settings, I can't see how it will get anywhere close to it's supposed range. Ok it's cold weather at the moment but on our demo in mainly urban driving with a short burst at 60 in eco mode it would struggle to even hit 180-190 total range, you have to get an additional accessory to make the boot flat, I've read the fast charging is quite poor, the front windscreen is also quite cramped due to aerodynamics I'm guessing, my wife often complains about the front pillar being difficult to see around but in the megane it was quite chunky, it's got a slightly odd shaped steering wheel which makes seeing the entire dashboard tricky, the rearview camera was "incredibly clear" according to the sales person but it really wasn't!

Overall pretty disappointing.

It wasn't to replace the e. It was to replace our current small SUV. My son was watching a clip today of the ID Buzz and was asking for that instead! :D

I can't see myself replacing the e for quite a long time as our second vehicle. It's such a brilliant small car, basically a perfect city car and dirt cheap to run on octopus night rate.
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FDAD
Posts: 492
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Location: Porto, Portugal

Post by FDAD »

CHags wrote: Thu Dec 01, 2022 9:52 pm
We saw the launch edition one (but it was a french version) when it toured the UK and it looked great apart from the deep boot.

This was the mid spec which, as you say, on paper looks great. But driving it; the rear window is incredibly narrow for size of the car and no rear view camera available on UK model (I don't think), the screen is too shiny/fingerprints easily, the brake is really jumpy even on different regen settings, I can't see how it will get anywhere close to it's supposed range. Ok it's cold weather at the moment but on our demo in mainly urban driving with a short burst at 60 in eco mode it would struggle to even hit 180-190 total range, you have to get an additional accessory to make the boot flat, I've read the fast charging is quite poor, the front windscreen is also quite cramped due to aerodynamics I'm guessing, my wife often complains about the front pillar being difficult to see around but in the megane it was quite chunky, it's got a slightly odd shaped steering wheel which makes seeing the entire dashboard tricky, the rearview camera was "incredibly clear" according to the sales person but it really wasn't!

Overall pretty disappointing.

It wasn't to replace the e. It was to replace our current small SUV. My son was watching a clip today of the ID Buzz and was asking for that instead! :D

I can't see myself replacing the e for quite a long time as our second vehicle. It's such a brilliant small car, basically a perfect city car and dirt cheap to run on octopus night rate.
:cry: I was hopping for an improvement to the E in this segment but your comments make me sad.
Honda E advance [Modern Steel Metallic] 8-) [DELIVERED JULY 2020] - 85 000Kms + ✌️🎂
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