Trevor Long and Stephen Fennick discuss the Geely EX5, highlighting its strong value proposition in the EV market. They chat with guests Chris and Andrew, who share their experiences with EV ownership, including considerations for home charging solutions and the importance of premium interiors. The conversation touches on the growing popularity of Geely's models, the challenges of range anxiety, and the significance of research in choosing an electric vehicle. The episode emphasizes the practicality and affordability of the Geely EX5 compared to other options.
We talk to a man who put his money down on a Zeerk 7X and just needs a test drive to lock it in - but what to do about home charging? Take the 7kW supplied or go all in?
Andrew got in touch to tell us about his new Geely EX5 and the Two Blokes share their review of this affordable EV
Plus, turning sceptics into owners, Trisha and her love for her MG4
Be part of the show, text or WhatsApp us thanks to Vodafone on 0477 657 657 - all thanks to Uniden and NRMA Insurance
"...we've actually just put a deposit down on the new Zika 7X. That's more than active..."
The Zika 7X is a new electric car that people are starting to think about buying. It's part of a movement towards using cars that are better for the environment.
The Zika 7X is an electric vehicle (EV) that is currently in the consideration phase for buyers, indicating a shift towards electric mobility. It represents a growing trend in the automotive market focusing on sustainable transport options.
"...we have a Mazda CX-5 so you know a medium SUV so that was the size that we were looking to..."
The Mazda CX-5 is a popular family SUV that is known for being comfortable and fun to drive. It's a good choice for families who need space and versatility.
The Mazda CX-5 is a compact SUV known for its stylish design and engaging driving dynamics. It serves as a practical family vehicle, which is relevant as the speaker is looking to replace it with an electric vehicle.
Car
X-Pen G6
"...we had the X-Pen G6 we had the BYD C9-7 we had the Kia EV-5 they were probably the ones that we were considering mostly."
The X-Pen G6 is a new electric car that features modern technology and design, aimed at drivers looking for something different.
The X-Pen G6 is an electric vehicle that is part of X-Pen's lineup, which focuses on modern design and technology in the EV space.
"...we had the Kia EV-5 they were probably the ones that we were considering mostly."
The Kia EV5 is a new electric car from Kia that is designed to be practical and fun to drive.
The Kia EV5 is an upcoming electric vehicle that is part of Kia's expanding lineup of electric cars, aimed at providing a blend of performance and practicality.
"...we were pretty impressed by the Zika X. Yeah I was yeah I just want to ask though the Zika very brand new brand here in Australia..."
Zika is a new car brand that has recently started selling cars in Australia. They focus on modern features and technology to appeal to buyers.
Zika is a new automotive brand in Australia, known for its innovative designs and features. It aims to attract consumers with modern technology and competitive pricing.
"...Zika for people who don't know they come under the Geely umbrella brand so Geely is a big Chinese manufacturer..."
Geely is a large car company from China that makes various vehicles and owns other car brands like Zika. They are becoming more popular around the world.
Geely is a major Chinese automotive manufacturer that owns several brands, including Zika. They are known for their rapid growth and expansion in the global automotive market.
"are going to talk about the Geely EX5 blade in the episode and that's in market at the moment... it's in the top five in terms of EV sales..."
The Geely EX5 is a type of electric car that has been selling well. It's part of a trend where more people are buying electric vehicles.
The Geely EX5 is an electric vehicle (EV) that has gained popularity in the market, ranking among the top five in EV sales recently. It represents Geely's push into the growing EV segment.
"...it had the massive panoramic sunroof but you can close it..."
A panoramic sunroof is a big glass roof in a car that lets in a lot of light. You can open it to let in fresh air or close it when you want to keep the weather out.
A panoramic sunroof is a large glass roof that extends over a significant portion of a vehicle's roof, allowing more natural light into the cabin and providing a more open feel. It can often be opened or closed for ventilation.
"...you'll notice that Tesla Model Y wasn't on the list..."
The Tesla Model Y is an electric SUV made by Tesla. It has a lot of space inside and comes with modern technology, making it popular among electric vehicle buyers.
The Tesla Model Y is a compact electric SUV that offers a spacious interior and advanced technology features. It is part of Tesla's lineup of electric vehicles, known for their performance and range.
"...I've been interested in EVs probably for the last 10 years..."
Electric vehicles, or EVs, are cars that run on electricity instead of gas. They are better for the environment and can save you money on fuel.
Electric vehicles (EVs) are cars that are powered entirely or partially by electricity instead of traditional gasoline or diesel engines. They are known for being more environmentally friendly and often have lower operating costs.
"...this is a 10 kilowatt battery so as part of the pre-order was Zika they included a seven kilowatt home charger..."
A kilowatt is a way to measure how much electricity is being used. For example, a 10 kilowatt battery can provide a certain amount of power for your home or electric car.
A kilowatt is a unit of power equal to 1,000 watts. In the context of electric vehicles and home charging, it indicates the rate at which energy is consumed or generated.
"...included a seven kilowatt home charger so I am sort of now trying to figure out what is the best home charging solution..."
A home charger is like a gas station for electric cars, but it's at your house. It helps you charge your car's battery when you're not driving it.
A home charger is a device that allows you to charge your electric vehicle (EV) at home. It can vary in power output, affecting how quickly the vehicle charges.
"...both have a wall box charger wall box lets you go up until..."
A wall box charger is a device you can install on your wall to charge your electric car. It's usually faster and more convenient than using a regular outlet.
A wall box charger is a type of home charging station that is mounted on a wall, providing a convenient and efficient way to charge electric vehicles.
"...if you know you're going to have perhaps even a second EV maybe down the track or yeah you might want to have a faster charging situation..."
An EV is a car that uses electricity to run instead of using gas. They're better for the environment and can save you money on fuel.
EV stands for electric vehicle, which is a car that runs on electricity instead of gasoline or diesel. EVs are becoming increasingly popular due to their lower environmental impact and potential cost savings on fuel.
"...I guess where I really started getting serious was the BYD Shark I saw that which with the um the V2L points where I thought running my laptop all the time..."
The BYD Shark is a type of electric car that can help you power things like your laptop while you're on the go, making it very convenient for daily use.
The BYD Shark is an electric vehicle known for its practicality and features like Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) capability, allowing users to power devices directly from the car's battery.
"...I saw that which with the um the V2L points where I thought running my laptop all the time..."
V2L stands for Vehicle-to-Load, which means you can use the electricity from your car's battery to power other devices, like your laptop.
Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) is a feature in some electric vehicles that allows the car's battery to power external devices, such as laptops or appliances, making it versatile for various uses.
"...the other one that sort of came pretty close in the end was the Kia EV6 I really liked that particularly in the GT form yes but hard to justify that it so it got a um a huge performance which was incredible..."
The Kia EV6 GT is a fast electric car that offers a sporty driving experience. It's part of Kia's lineup of electric vehicles and is known for its good performance and modern features.
The Kia EV6 GT is a high-performance variant of Kia's electric crossover, known for its impressive acceleration and sporty handling. It features advanced technology and a spacious interior, making it a popular choice among electric vehicle enthusiasts.
"...my previous work car was an ice car of course..."
An ICE car is a regular car that runs on gasoline or diesel fuel. It uses an engine that burns fuel to create power, which is different from electric cars that run on batteries.
ICE stands for Internal Combustion Engine, referring to traditional vehicles powered by gasoline or diesel engines. These vehicles rely on combustion to generate power, unlike electric vehicles (EVs).
"other than the geely probably the x-pang g6 similar car yeah yeah right up there another night so yeah"
The Xpeng G6 is an electric car made by a Chinese company called Xpeng. It's designed to be high-tech and comfortable to drive.
The Xpeng G6 is an electric vehicle produced by Xpeng Motors, a Chinese automaker focused on smart electric cars. The G6 is designed to offer advanced technology and features for a modern driving experience.
"the weirdest thing was that the steering wheel couldn't handle the the placement of the um spokes on the steering wheel and it just really felt odd to drive all the time"
The steering wheel is what you hold onto to steer the car. If it doesn't feel right, it can make driving uncomfortable.
The steering wheel is a crucial component of a vehicle that allows the driver to control the direction of the car. Its design and ergonomics can significantly affect the driving experience.
"...when you look at the yearly honestly price is what's selling it you know it's a $44,000 car I mean it's unbelievable value..."
MSRP is the price that the car maker suggests the dealership should sell the car for. It's a starting point for how much you might pay for a new car.
MSRP stands for Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price, which is the price that the manufacturer recommends retailers sell the vehicle for. It's often used as a baseline for negotiations when buying a car.
"...I guess that sort of fear about range anxiety but now after driving it I sort of think maybe I should have gone for one with a bigger battery..."
Range anxiety is when you're worried that your electric car will run out of battery before you can charge it again. This can make long drives stressful if you're not sure where to find charging stations.
Range anxiety refers to the fear or concern that an electric vehicle (EV) will run out of battery power before reaching its destination or a charging station. This is a common issue for EV drivers, especially on long trips where charging infrastructure may be limited.
"...that's probably the biggest concern I've got now man I think a 410 kilometer range..."
Battery range is how far an electric car can go before it needs to be charged again. It can change depending on how you drive and the type of car you have.
Battery range refers to the maximum distance an electric vehicle can travel on a single charge. This range can vary based on factors like driving conditions, speed, and the efficiency of the vehicle's battery.
"...most of the charges on the solid highways are spaced out 150 kphs apart so and they charge faster..."
A charging station is a place where you can plug in and recharge your electric car's battery. They are similar to gas stations but for electric vehicles.
A charging station is a location where electric vehicles can recharge their batteries. These stations can vary in charging speed and are often found in public areas, such as parking lots or along highways.
Car
Gili X5
"...but while we're talking gili x5 we have driven it just recently and it is man it's here's the thing about this car how do you describe the looks it doesn't stand out..."
The Gili X5 is a small SUV that doesn't have a very flashy design. Some people like its round shapes, while others prefer cars with more angular, sharp designs.
The Gili X5 is a compact SUV known for its neutral design and practicality. It has been noted for its curvy aesthetics, which some may find appealing while others may prefer sharper lines.
"...money folks yeah um but while we're talking gili x5 we have driven it just recently and it is man it'..."
The BMW X5 is a fancy SUV that offers a smooth ride and lots of space inside. It's known for being fun to drive while also having a lot of nice features, making it a popular choice for people who want both luxury and practicality.
The BMW X5 is a luxury midsize SUV that combines performance, comfort, and advanced technology. Known for its sporty handling and high-quality interior, it has been a popular choice among affluent buyers since its introduction in the late 1990s. Discussions about the X5 often revolve around its driving dynamics and premium features.
"...it's an electric car and that got a bit of curiosity it's front wheel drive which I didn't love..."
Front-wheel drive means that the front wheels of the car are the ones that get the power from the engine. This can help the car grip the road better, especially in bad weather.
Front-wheel drive (FWD) is a vehicle configuration where the engine's power is directed to the front wheels. This setup can improve traction in certain conditions and is commonly found in many passenger cars.
"...I found myself getting that kind of torque vectoring as you kind of accelerate out of a driveway or something like that I get a lot here driving..."
Torque vectoring helps control how much power goes to each wheel, making it easier to drive, especially when turning or accelerating. It helps the car grip the road better.
Torque vectoring is a technology that allows for the distribution of power to individual wheels, enhancing traction and handling. It helps improve a vehicle's performance, especially during acceleration and cornering.
"...they've put more acoustic buffering in this thing than anything else like obviously electric cars are quiet when it's um when it's going slow..."
Acoustic buffering is about making the inside of a car quieter by using special materials that block noise. This is especially important in electric cars, which are usually very quiet.
Acoustic buffering refers to materials and design features used in a vehicle to reduce noise and vibrations inside the cabin. This enhances the driving experience by providing a quieter environment, especially in electric vehicles that are naturally quieter at low speeds.
"...the bottom line is this thing is affordable..."
'Affordable' means that something is priced so that most people can buy it without too much trouble. In cars, it means getting a good deal for the money you spend.
The term 'affordable' refers to something that is reasonably priced and within the financial reach of most consumers. In the automotive context, it often describes cars that offer good value for their price.
"I got an MG4 Excite. Nice yeah we've driven those that's a nice car..."
The MG4 Excite is a type of electric car made by the brand MG. It's designed to be affordable and practical for everyday use, making it a popular choice for people looking for an electric vehicle.
The MG4 Excite is an electric vehicle from MG, known for its affordability and practicality in the EV market. It offers a good balance of features and performance for those looking for a reasonably priced electric car.
"...did you use public charges sir you've you've you've experienced the public charging oh yes oh well I've done the rapid charging because you know I've been up to Coffs Harbour..."
Public charging is where you can charge your electric car when you're not at home. You find these charging spots in places like parking lots or along the road.
Public charging refers to charging stations that are available for electric vehicles (EVs) to recharge their batteries while away from home. These stations can be found in various locations, such as parking lots, shopping centers, and along highways.
"...I've done the rapid charging because you know I've been up to Coffs Harbour twice and I stopped at Glenbrook on the way up..."
Rapid charging is a fast way to charge your electric car, letting you get a lot of power in a short time, usually in about 30 minutes to an hour.
Rapid charging is a type of electric vehicle charging that provides a significantly faster charge compared to standard charging methods. It allows EVs to recharge their batteries to a substantial level in a short amount of time, often within 30 minutes to an hour.
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This is Two Blokes talking electric cars with Trevor Long and Stephen Fennick thanks to NRMA
Insurance and UNIDEN. Great to have you company. Trevor Long and Stephen Fennick as the intro says
thanks to the great people at UNIDEN Smart Dashcams. If you've got a car you need a dashcam. What are
we talking about? It's really that simple. Front and rear UNIDEN have got you covered.
Look them up. They've got a dashcam for every price point as well. We also do it thanks to the
people at NRMA Insurance helping Australians protect what matters most for over 100 years.
Stephen, great to be with you mate. You good? I'm great thank you. Good to be back with another
episode of just information packed episode. You're just spending your life just scrolling
through the internet looking for your next car because you've got to have that sorted in the
next six months or so. I'm holding open auditions here. We are doing weekly auditions for your
next car but most of them don't fall within your your plans I would argue. Something might catch
my eye. We've got some great cars to talk about over the months ahead to be honest. We will talk
later today at the end of the show about the Geely. It's called the Geely one of the many
Geely models. We've got our bums in the seats of the IM, the MGS premium brand. Which I'm going to
say I'm really impressive. Very nice. So there's plenty of cars we've got to get through and get
to over the over the weeks ahead. So stay tuned here on TubeBikes talking about electric cars.
But one of the things we love to do most is talk to you. So if you've got a question about electric
cars send us a text message. Send us a whatsapp message and all you got to do is send that to
477-657-657. We'll get you on the show so let's not wait around. Let's get on with it.
And Stephen on the line is Chris Gaye. Chris how are you doing?
Hi guys, how are you? Good to be here. Mate really really good. Where are you
at in your EV journey? What's in the driveway? So we we do not have an EV but we are in the
I guess the active consideration for an EV. We've been interested in being thinking about it for a
while and we've actually just put a deposit down on the new Zika 7X. That's more than active
7X isn't necessarily available in the country yet. I think it starts to I think over the next
couple of months. So you put a deposit down and then subject to a test drive and then that will
obviously be the term impact. So the refundable deposit I'm assuming should you not enjoy the
test drive as you might like. What are you looking for in the car? What are you looking for in an
EV before we find out what guided you to the 7X? Yeah good question. This is to replace the family
car so we have a Mazda CX-5 so you know a medium SUV so that was the size that we were looking to
replace. Looking I guess in the in the in the ballpark of around 50 to 80k in terms of price.
So we wanted it to be the right size the right price and then I guess there were a couple of
there were a few different options that we were considering and what for me I was sort of mostly
interested in was like premium inside the cabin. I wanted to you know I wanted to ensure that that
experience when you sort of drive in the car is an enjoyable one and then there was again I mean I
can go into more specifics. The Zika in terms of the other cars that we were considering in in the
market that we had the X-Pen G6 we had the BYD C9-7 we had the Kia EV-5 they were probably the
ones that we were considering mostly. They were on the short list were they? They were on the long
yeah I mean to be honest with you I'd had my eye on the Zika 7X probably for the last six months
understanding that it was something that was coming to the market understanding what it was
going to bring and so for me that was I was very keen to kind of see one in person and so Zika
I think they started they brought them out to their dealerships probably about a month or six
weeks ago where you could have a little bit of a look around and the car impressed me when I kind
of had a look around how to sit in it and then they had you know the pre-order of deals where you
got a home car you're included you got. We were pretty impressed by the Zika X. Yeah I was yeah
I just want to ask though the Zika very brand new brand here in Australia so what is it that
got you that attracted you to the brand was it advertising did you see one did you what was it
yeah there's a lot of brands out there that in front of people what got your attention why did
that get your attention? That's yeah good question so Zika for people who don't know they come under
the Geely umbrella brand so Geely is a big Chinese manufacturer that you just I know that you guys
are going to talk about the Geely EX5 blade in the episode and that's in market at the moment
and that's actually doing really well I think it's in the top five in terms of EV sales over the
last couple of months so Geely actually they Geely own Zika they own Polestar they own Volvo
they have a stake in Lotus and Smart with Sadie so for me what the Zika is a is marketed in China
as a premium EV brand they and one of the selling points is it's manufactured in China but it's
designed in Europe so they actually have a design center in Sweden I believe so there's a little
bit of a kind of European sensibilities when it comes to the look and feel of the car so that
was sort of something that was uh that that was attractive and and when you consider when I considered
the Zika 7X compared to the X-Ping or the C-Line 7 on the key EV5 it sort of ticked all of those
cars are sort of decent cars but there would maybe there would be some slight compromises in various
in different areas and for me the 7X ticked all the boxes that I was interested in so I had like
I said I had that kind of premium interior feel it had the massive panoramic sunroof but you can
close it so it's not constantly open to the elements which was something model model y
failing you'd have to admit yeah exactly yes you'll notice that Tesla Model Y wasn't on the list
Tesla was conspicuous by its absence mate what can you tell us what
well yeah I mean I would say I mean I've been interested in EVs probably for the last 10 years
or so and Tesla was the large reason for that not necessarily a car guy I didn't grow up to
necessarily liking cars but I work in technology and for me the technology side of EVs how it's
almost sort of changing the the future of transportation and Tesla was obviously a leading
proponent in that and so I mean 18 months ago this would have been the easiest decision in
the world I would have just gone for a pivot model y but I you know look for me I just couldn't
in good conscience contribute financially to uh to Elon Musk and I know some other people will
disagree but for me that just wasn't something that I we discussed how amazingly jarring that can be
for people and that's absolutely well within your means and if he's gonna we've talked about
there's no other car company I think we said this one there's no other car company where there's a
person such a visible person yeah that would be like I've got no doubt that CEOs of businesses
we all interact with support yeah absolutely we don't support but because he's so visible yeah
yeah yeah it's so I've already framed it is yeah I've sort of framed it as you know I'm just not
comfortable contributing to you know financially to Elon Musk you know and I accept that I probably
contribute financially to less obvious um CEOs who are probably just problematic but you know I'm
not aware of it so I'm at the moment I'm sort of happy in my experience so are you are you ready
for an electric car where are you adding to the the home process for you know yeah so we we yeah
obviously so we have solar panels on the roof we've got a battery it's not a not a big battery
this is a 10 kilowatt battery so as part of the pre-order was Zika they included a
seven kilowatt home charger so I am sort of now trying to figure out what is the best home
charging solution so we've got a seven kilowatt home charger that's included but as far as I'm
aware that's a that's a dumb home charger or not a smart home charger because we've got a battery
and panels through one inverter we could possibly go for a smart home charger which then helps the
control obviously when to be powering the EV and you know it's selecting the best times during the
day to do that both got Trevor and I both have a wall box charger wall box lets you go up until
depending on the car I think it can do up to 32 kilowatts but depending on the car it's 11 my
car's 11 kilowatts and most critically it's smart so it can yeah it'll it'll determine
when you green power you're getting versus grid power so that's what you want to be able to do
you want to be able to say I'm I'm green powering this car yeah but I guess for me the question is
is it like is it is it worth spending the extra money on a smart charger when I've already when I
basically got a charger for free I just need to pay for the installation and just ensure that
we're charging during the day when the sun's out oh I was just gonna say it's a great question
because you are already getting let's call it $750 worth of value by getting a wall charger for
free yeah retail value okay so you're gonna have to pay installation no matter what so it doesn't
that's just discount that for a minute maybe an extra few hundred bucks for the the solar inversion
if you do get a more premium one to the board but if you think about it and I don't know what your
work situation is and everything but like my wife says should I plug the car in now I go babe
just the sun's out plug it in because yeah if we're getting if I'm getting 60% of the power from
the sun and 40% from the grid it's still better than getting 100% from the grid obviously we can
set our charger to be only taking solar which is great but if you're kind of smart enough about
your charging and you know it you're only taking 7.5 off that thing anyway so it's not going to be
overwhelming it's not going to bring in too much from the grid even if the sun's not there but
if you go okay I'm going to charge between 11 and 3 every day and then you know you're going to be
primarily using solar can I just say Chris I recently like I've got panels I've got an inverter
I've got a 10 kilowatt battery and I recently switched to OVO energy and it was one of our
listeners actually suggested it OVO have an EV plan that allows you you get free electricity
between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. every day so you can charge then you also get 8 cents a kilowatt
between midnight and 6 a.m. so another opportunity to top it up as well so if you yeah okay if you're
happy with the slower charge with the 7 kilowatt slower charge yeah you could probably get by if
you're on the right our right energy plan I don't know if you're off the grid or what the situation
it's a kind of interesting one isn't it because in reality it's all about what am I trying to do
completely minimize my my bill or just rely as much as I can on solar look it's it's all about
that upfront cost you know you're probably going to need to spend you know 1500 on a charger that's
going to be smart enough to cope with that whole home situation that you've got going on is that
1500 dollars going to see its way back into your pocket over the next three to four years
probably it also to a monthly basis I'd consider to like try to future proof it a bit as well
because if you know you're going to have perhaps even a second EV maybe down the track or yeah you
might want to have a faster charging situation depending on the car you've got in the driveway
well that's why I mean personally I'd go the wall box or something that's
more options yeah yeah that's a good point about the charging the Zika 7x is one of the
few EVs that can actually support 22 kilowatt charging at home so yeah that that obviously would
be beneficial which also comes down to your driving styles are you doing long trips are you doing
no you're doing trips that are unplanned because mate 22 kilowatts amazing and and we've talked
about household cars don't do whatever but in the end you only need that that speed of charging
when it's of urgency so like the other day the man had said to me oh we're going to we're going
to Richmond air show on the weekend and the car's only 40% I said babe I'll plug it in now but 40%
enough to get us to Newcastle you feel you feel you need it but actually if it was at 1% and she
said we've got to go to Richmond in an hour and a half then I'd be like I'm going to take it to
the amp pole and and do a hundred kilowatt charging if we needed to go in three hours then I'd love
to have 22 kilowatt charging but how often do you need urgent charging that that would be my
answer to the I wish I had 22 kilowatt honestly no that's a I think that's a good point and I don't
think I look I mean I think we would rarely need that so I think the kind of seven kilowatt is
probably fine for us I feel like Steven's 100 right look if you want to go full future proofing
and thinking out loud about it then yeah go the smart charger but I also think I feel like you're
on the side of let's just get this thing installed it's going to be great it's going to be better
than the trickle charger that might have otherwise come with it and should still come with it and
you know what the great thing is if you see benefit to the to the thing on your bills
you can rip that wall charger out and put another one in at some other point so that's right that's
right yeah you're good to go mate we want to hear back from you when you pick up the car mate okay
yeah once we've done the test drive once we had a drive yeah I feel confident you're gonna buy it
mate I feel very confident it looks great I'm gonna say beautiful looking car yeah very nice car
that's right even even without the test drive I think I'm pretty sure that we'll probably
all right great to hear from you Chris really appreciate it thanks guys appreciate the chat
cheers mate no worries at all yeah I mean that's the thing about charging is it's um it's it depends
on your circumstances as well yeah suit your needs if it's if you do that you got a bit of
flexibility with it what a what a smart little pre uh what's it called pre-order
bonus to say okay rather than any discount just we'll throw in a wall charger you know because
you normally just get a trickle charger I remember when I got my the Tesla back in 2018 it came
whether the wall charger was in the in the boot early days mate early days not anymore Tesla they
want a bit more out of you nowadays uh two blokes talking electric cars we'd love to hear from you
if you want to talk to us send us a text or a whatsapp on 0477657657
two blokes talking electric cars love talking to our listeners we love hearing from you
because it's the connection between us and the people downloading and watching the show
that I think makes us understand the market probably better than most people
yeah which is very useful helps them understand them we every every day's a school day Stephen
often says absolutely yeah we're helping people find information that they would
normally ask about and I think and when you're in the market for a new car of any kind
more information and more experience from other people often helps you word of mouth does goes
a long way and we learn at the same time because our callers help us learn so let's keep going
with that trend and Andrew's on the line get Andrew hi how's it going yeah really good mate
where are you at in the EV world uh recently purchased my first EV um sort of congratulations
long thank you it was a long time coming I've sort of been looking for I don't know for 12 plus
months I guess and finally decided to pull the trigger well I mean most importantly uh we've
got a ranking system here like the top gear uh lap chart board uh penalties at the top with a
large number of test drives how many cars do you reckon you uh your test drive during that 12
months and what what we we're looking at anything or we're trying to narrow it down to a certain style
of car well so first of all I guess my car ends up being pretty well my office I spend most of the
day in the car so trying to find the right car wasn't just about the drive was more about I guess
well it was about the comfort and yeah day-to-day livability with it as well so I guess where I
really started getting serious was the BYD shark I saw that which with the um the V2L points where I
thought running my laptop all the time I thought being able to plug that in would make a world of
a difference in terms of yeah making my life a whole lot easier yep for sure and so what what uh
how many cars did you drive until before you decided on the winner uh if we're talking about
just the the PHEVs in the EV space um probably about eight or nine I think it's a good number it's a
good number but you started at a shark and as I understand he ended at a Gilly EX5 they're
very vastly different cars um but the shark wasn't there for because it was a ute the shark was there
because of that power point option the ability to have the V2L and that kind of stuff so did you
find others that gave you that satisfaction yeah so there was so I guess the other one that
sort of came pretty close in the end was the Kia EV6 I really liked that particularly in the GT
form yes but hard to justify that it so it got a um a huge performance which was incredible um
but I'm also a bit worried about getting used to that the head-on exception of my previous or
still my my weekend car I guess gives me that performance drive so that's I didn't want to
be hold on to the beast mate hold on to the beast very nice and that's look that's a great thing
to if you love the the sound the feeling the performance of a car like that and you've got
the ability to hold on to it that's your weekend car how good is it but uh you know that's not the
kind of thing that you need on a daily basis especially as you say you're working from this car
you don't need performance of the lights you need something that allows you to have easy access to
power as you mentioned what else was was critical when it came to working uh on a on a daily basis
in and from your car well I mean the big thing was so my previous work car was an ice car of course
and um when I'm sort of making video calls I really struggle with the idea do I leave the
aircon on with with the engine running or do I turn it off and then I find during the meeting
I'm turning car on and off and it starts beeping as all cars do when they start up so one of the
ev side was the fact that yeah you can leave it running you don't have to worry about turning
car on or off anything like that so that was one of the big selling points um the v2l given the
flexibility of that I think yeah and most of my cars on the list I think had that included um
what did you narrow it down to before you pulled the trigger on the on the geely do you call it
geely or geely uh what did you what was what was the closest thing to to hitting the mark other
than the geely probably the x-pang g6 similar car yeah yeah right up there another night so yeah
yeah and to be honest I'd be happy with that and as strange it is the weirdest thing was that the
steering wheel couldn't handle the the placement of the um spokes on the steering wheel and it just
really felt odd to drive all the time if you're going to be in it all day and that bugs you that
absolutely yeah yeah how long you had the geely then uh about six weeks now nice oh so it's pretty
fresh there hey so what what is your so I'm no doubt all the preparation and test drives you've
done you've given charging at home some thought what what's the situation there so I have got
so a single phase house and we've got a um wall box a deep hour wall box installed um so yeah that
gets me sort of seven kilowatts per hour twenty eight and yeah I've got like this um energy plan
where if I'm at home during the day I do get to charge it for free um and then I've got solar as
well to help with uh having the costs as well yeah that's good so would did the did they throw the
charger in or was that extra uh it came with the granny charger with it and I used that for two weeks
and yeah it was fine I did feel like I was sort of always charging for hours on end because I do
do about 200 kilometers a day um right okay sorry and so does this mean then you're on the road a
lot so does this mean you you're hitting the public charges as well uh on your on your during your
daily drive the the good thing about having that seven kilowatt at home now I don't have to charge
during the day so it's sort of it's getting I mean I haven't got it down below 25 percent
realistically but um yeah it it's saying 360 and I'm guessing I'm getting going to get more than
that because it was the range on the cars 430 kilometers I understand so that's that's more
than enough to suit your full day yeah yeah so the inspire specs is 410 is what the estimate
so was one of the things that attracted you price because that I I imagine and I've seen a couple
of messages from listeners and just people on the internet saying like when you look at the
yearly honestly price is what's selling it you know it's a $44,000 car I mean it's
unbelievable value it's probably like we've talked about MG being amazing value but the
the specs this this car is pound per pound probably the best value electric car out there
absolutely I think when we sort of negotiate the price I think it's kind of
yeah there's no way for me to really say no and I don't see the value proposition
changing in the near future so and I mean in the EV world concerned about depreciation
that's kind of a yeah relieving have you noticed already in just six weeks running costs is that
has that been apparent oh well I mean with the free electricity it basically means that it costs
nothing I've got three years of servicing so for free so effectively no cost until I've got to
replace the tyre is what my thought is wow that's good sounds like you're on the same plan as me too
with the free free electric three times during the day and the here with Ovo are you an Ovo
customer yes that's right yeah here we go there we go should be getting commission in here
and anything in just six weeks obviously it's a short amount of time but anything you
regret or wish might be different about the car obviously six weeks is a lot longer than a test drive
so I mean realistically when I sort of went into this I sort of thought I mean we're a two car
household we've still got one car that's a ice vehicle so my thought was this is only going to
be city use work use so kind of 200 kilometers per day because I mean I did sort of fall into I
guess I guess that sort of fear about range anxiety but now after driving it I sort of think
maybe I should have gone for one with a bigger battery that is designed for that I can do road
trips easier with because I am concerned at 110 kph an hour how far I'll get on the battery
that's probably the biggest concern I've got now man I think a 410 kilometer range I think you're
going to expect to get 290 kph and you know most of the charges on the solid highways are spaced
out 150 kphs apart so and they charge faster like your car can go 30 to 80 20 minutes so it's pretty
good yeah so that's something I haven't tried yet but that's probably the the one thing that I
kind of wish maybe I had a bit more range and then I have a bit more confidence in the long
drives but I haven't done that yet and that's probably the next experience that I have to get
well we look forward to hearing from you again in in a little while once you've got some more
k's under your belt some more time under your belt but it sounds like you're a happy man and you
you had a great process of searching for and then finding a car that is honestly offering great
value for people mate well done yeah it's yeah exceptional value and I'm really happy with
it overall one last question what color did you get yeah they've got some nice colors the
the the GD leads so it's the gray so the gunmetal gray is what I call it I'm not sure what it's
actually called oh the the gunmetal gray the volcanic gray that's called yeah yeah probably
color very nice well done well congratulations on your new baby mate thank you for that cheers
get in touch anytime thank you Andrew we'd love to hear from you if you just bought a car
like Andrew then we'd love to hear from you understand the process you went through thinking
about it you know there's there'd be I reckon there'd be a lot of people who can't decide maybe
between a couple for sure we might be the one we might be the get you off the fence I often say
when I'm doing when I'm talking tech on EFT I'm happy to shop vicariously for you yeah I'm happy
to spend your money for you we're here we're here to spend your money folks yeah um but while we're
talking gili x5 we have driven it just recently and it is man it's here's the thing about this car
how do you describe the looks it doesn't stand out it's it's actually very neutral and I don't
think that's a good or a bad thing for them it's got a lot of curves I like it's a bit too bubbly
it's not very angular my my design preferences I think is as obvious from the Cooper born I'm very
angular I like a I like a sharp edged car I don't love the bubbly like a sharp lines like a I didn't
I don't like the x-ping look either um even the model y I prefer now because it's got a sharper
front end to it but you know so this the the the design of this I don't love yeah it's got it's
got a sort of a cross between like a model three uh sea lion seven uh a bit of a look in the front
you know that's sort of the the narrow headlights and the the curve to um the what's not a radiator
I don't think people put it this one I don't think people are going oh what's that when the
although I've got to say when I drove it I had it and that's because you're driving so fast no
wrong I was parked and people were asking because they didn't recognize is you know the the logo is
like six squares and the logo they were thinking what what is that yeah and I had to explain oh it's
a glee it's a this and it's an electric car and that got a bit of curiosity it's front wheel drive
which I didn't love I felt I found myself getting that kind of torque vectoring as you kind of
accelerate out of a driveway or something like that I get a lot here driving and I was driving
exactly well you know I noticed the difference in a front wheel drive um you know it's a very
neutral car it really is but but as Andrew said it I think it's it's really nice like it's inside
is actually quite quite nice for for what you're paying it is a really nice premium look you know
it's most outstanding feature let's say and I think I would put this in the top three cars I've
driven quiet yeah dear lord this thing is quiet I they've put more acoustic buffering in this thing
yeah than anything else like obviously electric cars are quiet when it's um when it's going slow
outside yeah yeah it does a little bit but inside the cabin driving at all speeds in all places it
is pretty quiet it is good insulation beautifully quiet yeah and I think I think that that gives you
a real experience a feel when you're driving a car like this so I don't I don't think it's dynamic
to drive I don't think it's amazing to look at but I think for the market that they are attacking
here and it's also strange to me that Geely Geely they're the big company and and you know as Andrew
said or our previous call before that said you know you got Zeke you got all these brands they've
got but the the biggest brand the actual the company name is the cheap brand is Geely yeah um
it's kind of incongruous to me it's a little bit strange to think about but
but it's yeah they're a huge company I know I remember when I had this I took it and we had
a recycle day at our council and so I put all the seats down big big when you pull the seats down
massive space inside and mate I had TV boxes and foam and everything in there filled the back of
the car I noticed it was still there when I uh when I went there with a lot of foam when I when I
got to the to the council to the drop-off the guy says what's this car and and he he goes oh look at
the size of the screen and he was just fascinated with the whole thing you know I gave him a little
walk around I said oh yeah it's a Geely it does this and everyone else is still behind you're
wishing to get this but no all the all the boys as they have taken the help and take all the stuff
out of the car were at the same time admiring the car as well and I said yeah jump in sit inside have
aside from noise and how quiet it is the bottom line is this thing is affordable
yeah 40 to 45 000 dollars also big screen love the big screen love the sound system too the sound
system is punches above its weight as well good audio quality uh so yeah I think all over package
it is as we said pound for pound a very very nice car great value nice looking I think uh comfortable
yeah right if you're looking for an EV fact is you've kind of got to consider the Geely at the
budget level and not just because it's budget it's not a cheap car at all for 40 000 dollars
then go and look at a Toyota petrol car that's 40 000 dollars and you'll be like oh my god what are
you this is unbelievable this is premium but also too like we I noticed Andrew had ever mentioned
Tesla at all like you compare like the Tesla sort of the the model y is sort of in this ballpark
here would be way more expensive than this and the model y is so so minimal whereas this actually
looks like a real car looks like a like a car you're used to seeing a normal car experience for
sure all right two Blake story electric cars we love to hear from you at any point 047657657
two Blake story electric cars thanks to uni then and of course NRMA insurance we appreciate their
support of the show and we appreciate your support of the show too because we love to hear from you
047657657 thanks to Vodafone you can text us or send us a whatsapp and we'll get you on the show
just like we have Trisha Trisha's on the line today Trisha how you going really really good
where are you at in the EV world you got you got yourself an EV I have I've had an EV for about
18 months or so now looking nice nice what did you what did you get Trisha I got an MG4 excite
51 nice yeah we've driven those that's a nice car what what brought you to that car what did you
look at many or was it an instant love oh no it I did a lot of research on the internet
and I went out to the everything electric you know events show at the show ground out there at
Olympic Park and I drove one I looked at all the reviews of you know
reasonably priced electric vehicles and I chose that one was there anything that
you were put off by like in the reviews because that's one of the things we hear a lot about
people that do their research and we have it in the world of tech where we operate as well you
know people read our reviews other reviews and was there anything you were looking for anything
you read that you made you or maybe I need to look at that or was it just very much confirming
what you want boxes for you it definitely ticked all the boxes and also I don't know car sales
dot com and all and the people that drive around reviewing the car as they're driving around
I just it was just all very positive yeah and I understand you bought it was a demo model too
wasn't it so you uh sounds like you got a decent deal on that one oh reasonable yes and and it was
a very sudden thing I uh I decided in the morning and I had the car by the afternoon
that's outstanding well done that's an impulse purchase I've ever heard one oh yes but no regrets
no regrets oh yeah no I haven't got any regrets but it has been a bit of a you know it's a
learning curve and you've got to learn things one step at a time absolutely and yeah so you're
a pioneer Trisha you're a pioneer essentially let's be honest even though electric cars have been
around for a while yeah many of us and I look I don't know maybe you can tell us but among your
group of friends and family are there many other electric vehicle owners or are you the are you
the one that they all look at and go what did you buy that for and how does that work and how do
you charge and you can't go anywhere yes yeah yeah all of that all of that yeah and uh yeah no they're
all very skeptical most of them but I have um I have inspired two of my friends to buy wow and
MG4 nice nice so yes what sort of driving did you Trisha are you uh how many k's would you do a
week are you do you drive every day oh yeah well I have been to Coffs Harbour and back twice okay in
nine days and the first long trip I did was let's go on back in one day because I've got my niece
living out there oh that would be a learning experience for you Trisha because of the mountain
that would have you would have learned a lot about range very quickly there I learned a lot
about going uphill and a lot about going downhill and it was all very enlightening and yes no I used
about I think I used about 40% less energy on the way home yeah 100% did you use public
charges sir you've you've you've experienced the public charging oh yes oh well I've done the rapid
charging because you know I've been up to Coffs Harbour twice and I stopped at Glenbrook on the
way up just to you know make sure I've got a full battery there and then I can get up and back easily
and what do you do at home you know for charging how do you how do you handle the day-to-day
charging yeah well I've got um I've got solar on the on the roof so I've got a 5.2 kilowatts solar
system and so I can plug in when you know I just uh I've got trickle charging at home
and uh that was one thing I didn't know I didn't know you could plug me into into a
PowerPoint yeah we also call it the granny charger do you think there was a failure of
anyone involved in the sales process to not even just go to your by the way you don't worry about
anything you can just plug it into a PowerPoint the fact you didn't know that is no no yeah no
the friend told me beforehand because I I was saying look I'll have to get one of these wall
charges and all of that and he said no no you can just plug it into the into the PowerPoint
and so I did know I did know that when I bought it so I just um you know I was I drove home at
about 515 from our time and over the Harbour Bridge and that was uh you know I thought I was
going to stop or something terrible was going to go wrong but yeah no it's been great it's been really
good and is this uh so is there any plans on getting maybe a wall charger down the track or
the trickle charger does the job uh well also where I live there's um you know the telegraph pole
charging so I'll see you got access to a lot of charges nearby okay I have yeah I've got like a
rapid I can rapid charge up at south Everly or I can plug into a pole just you know within a
kilometre of where I live so I do a range of different charging just because you know I can
of course but that's the beautiful thing I think that's one of the things what would you say is
the most common misconception you hear from people when they learn that you drive an EV
well they think you can't go very far that's that's like is coughs harbour not far enough
well they just they I must say I get a lot of negatives um sort of looks when I say I've got
an EV yeah it's very odd you know there's a lot of myths out there people don't know the facts
that's the thing that's what a lot of people who hear our show they they understand it more I think
it's so if you can understand it you can appreciate it and make it make the decision which
just sounds like what you've done oh definitely yeah yeah because I did a lot of research I was
going to get a misson a second hand misson leaf but when I went out to the you know when I went
out to the car show I I talked to a woman who was showing off her misson leaf and she said
if she got a new car she'd get an md4 oh wow there you go there you go boom so that was did you try
any other cars did you test drive any others or you just were no no no no no no no that was
it I didn't test drive love at first sight was it hey well the thing is I'd never had a new car in
my whole entire life so I just thought I love how you turned up in the morning and that afternoon
you got a car that's great that's amazing yeah no it is yeah because I think because you know
the thing was you thought you had to wait you know six months for it to come into the country or
whatever yeah so what color did they have on the lot for you because if you walked in in the morning
and said here's my money what color was on the lot because that that it would be dependent on stock
uh yeah well it was just it was I saw it on the internet because they you know I googled a googled
mg4 and that was it it's like a silver color of you know a gray silver color yeah didn't get the
outlandish orange I was gonna say the orange and blue colors too that model we've driven those
colors well I did yeah I didn't want to stand out too much but you have another orange on there yeah
well you know what you are you're an absolutely brilliant example of the kind of yeah the the myth
management of this world the the research that people can do you're an example to you're an example
to many 18 months of owning an electric car it's a beautiful that's your first ever new car as well
and you'll cherish it on shore and you're also an advocate without and I'm I'm tipping you're not out
there you know bashing down doors telling people to buy EVs but it's just one of those things isn't
it where you talk to someone and you go hang on a minute ask me anything and I'll I'll dispel whatever
myth is in your head that's most likely the situation at most of those dinner parties isn't it
yes and also people have got to be receptive to the information as well yeah because some people
are quite closed off about it's like if you I don't know it's a very odd kind of
but Trisha did say she's giving a couple of her friends are considering it now aren't they
yeah oh no a couple of my friends have bought have bought them yeah as a result of your your
influence I hope you got a spotter's fee
well good on you Trisha so lovely to hear from you we're glad you enjoy the show and we're glad
you're loving your MG Trisha yeah and congratulations on the podcast because it's very informative and
even though I've got an EV I learn a lot just from listening to other people that means a lot
that means a lot thank you so much Trisha lovely to hear from you don't don't hesitate to get back
in touch again if you've got tips for people yeah you know as much as that so many ways okay so
don't don't hesitate to get in touch yeah don't be a stranger okay see you all right thank you
thanks very much great to hear from someone who yeah is look at that just come an advocate now
for when they're in the wake up and then in the afternoon she had an EV
love it that's awesome research is critical there you know so many people spend time reading and
that also shows that you can be a little bit of paralysis by analysis too you know some people
it also shows you can cut through the the myths and the and the problems out there by just doing a
lot of research absolutely listening a lot watching a lot that's awesome I'm a big fan of that um
good on you Trisha yeah and I'm sure the people at MG would love to hear her story as well absolutely
yeah it's the only cast she considered that was it that was it one and done one and done all right
well if you like Trisha have a story to tell about the EV that you bought we'd love to hear from you
anytime any day if you're thinking about buying it as well yeah wherever you're at in your EV journey
it absolutely doesn't matter here to help but here to talk here to listen here to talk here to hear
here to answer we're just here we're like that really good friend that's always there for you
oh you know that you reckon oh that's us that's the two bikes that's nice oh four double seven six
five seven six five seven and he is he's always there from how I text him he's there he texts me
like what depends if it's the bed if he goes to bed if he goes to bed at seven o'clock at night
yeah I'm a bit a bit a bit miffed about that don't text me at nine o'clock at night and ask me
about tomorrow I'm already in bed yeah he's already been asleep for two hours that's great
thanks for listening folks uh we appreciate your support and and for listening and thank you to
you
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