The MG ZS EV is an electric SUV. The caller is sharing that they’ve been driving one for years and are thinking about getting another one when the lease ends.
In EV and plug-in hybrid discussions, “range” means how far the vehicle can travel on a single charge (or on its available energy). It’s usually expressed as an estimate under specific test conditions, so real-world range can vary with speed, temperature, and driving style.
Warranty is the coverage that pays for certain repairs if something goes wrong within a time limit. They’re saying the car’s problems were fixed for free under that coverage.
Concept
conversion to electric
Conversion to electric means the car was adapted to run on electricity instead of petrol. The host is suggesting this EV was based on older, non-electric design ideas.
This is a tax rule that can make certain car deals cheaper or more expensive. The hosts are saying they got their EV before the rules changed, so the deal was better.
The Dodge Charger is a car that can be powered in different ways depending on the version, including plug-in options. When people talk about charging it, they mean how you plug it in at home using a wall charger or a slower standard outlet. The discussion is about what’s practical for daily use.
“Granny charging” means charging your EV from a normal home power point, not a special fast charger. It’s slower, but it can work fine if you drive a short distance each day.
This means an electric car that can drive all four wheels, which can help with grip on slippery roads. The host is saying there weren’t many of these available yet.
BYD is an automaker that makes electric cars (and also plug-in hybrids). The hosts are saying BYD’s premium brand could bring strong options later.
Concept
super hybrid
“Super hybrid” sounds like a marketing term for a hybrid that relies more on electricity than a simple gas-only hybrid. The exact technical meaning depends on the specific model.
They’re talking about EV influencers—people who share opinions and reviews about electric cars online. The point here is that the hosts’ advice helped someone decide for themselves.
CarPlay is the phone-to-car screen system. “Dropouts” means it sometimes disconnects or stops working for a moment while you’re driving. The hosts think it may be caused by software and could potentially be fixed.
Apple CarPlay lets you use your iPhone through the car’s screen. You can get maps, music, and calls without touching your phone. If it “drops out,” the connection between your phone and the car isn’t staying stable.
The Toyota Prius is a hybrid car, which means it uses both a gasoline engine and an electric motor. People bring it up a lot because it’s designed to use less fuel than many regular cars. The “first” and “second” Prius references usually mean different generations with different features.
A hybrid is a car that uses two kinds of power: a gasoline engine and an electric motor. The car decides how to use them, which can make the system more complicated than a simple gas-only car.
An electric motor is the part that uses electricity to make the car move. In hybrid cars, it can help the gas engine or sometimes move the car by itself.
Car
Holden Volt
The Holden Volt is a car that can run on electricity some of the time, but it also has a gasoline engine as backup. You can charge its battery from a plug, so it’s not a full EV.
The Chevrolet Volt is a plug-in hybrid, meaning it can be charged like an electric car but it also has a gasoline engine. When the battery runs low, the car can use the engine to keep you going. People talk about it because charging affects how much you can drive on electricity.
The electric battery is what stores electricity for the car’s electric motor. In plug-in hybrids, you can charge it from a plug, so you can drive on electricity for a while.
Diesel is a type of fuel and engine. It’s different from petrol, and people often choose it for efficiency, though it depends on where you live and how you drive.
Pickles is mentioned as where they bought a used car. It’s basically a used-car marketplace/auction style seller, which can influence what deals you can find.
A “dealer demo” is a car the dealership uses for customers to test drive or to show off. It usually has fewer miles than a regular used car, but it may have been driven a lot.
“Z car” sounds like the speaker is referring to a particular car they were considering, but the exact model isn’t clear from the transcript. It matters because they’re comparing it to other EVs while shopping.
Concept
vehicle for grid
They’re talking about using the car’s battery in relation to the electricity grid. The idea is that the car could help with how electricity is used—either by charging at the right times or potentially sending power back, depending on the system.
A panoramic sunroof is a big glass opening in the roof. It can make the cabin feel brighter, but if there’s no good cover, it can also let in too much heat or glare.
An awning is a retractable or fixed shade that blocks sunlight. In the context of a panoramic sunroof, the speaker is saying they want a way to cover it to reduce glare/heat.
Heated seats use electric heating elements in the seat cushions and/or backrests. They’re a common comfort feature on many modern cars, especially in colder climates, and can be tied to trim levels or option packages.
Cars today run on computers. A software update can fix problems or improve how the car behaves without needing new hardware.
Term
blind for the window
A window blind is a cover you can pull down or adjust to block sunlight or add privacy. It’s usually a feature you only get on certain versions of a car.
Charging means plugging the car in to refill its battery. The idea is that once you do it a few times, it becomes a normal routine.
Concept
driveway price
“Driveway price” means what you’ll actually pay to have the car in your driveway, not just the headline price on the ad.
Concept
ordering online
Ordering online means buying the car through the internet instead of just walking into a dealership. People do it to compare prices and deals more easily.
Concept
car off the boat
“Off the boat” means the car is shipped in from elsewhere by sea and you buy it when it arrives. It’s another way people try to get a better deal.
The Honda Jazz is a small Honda hatchback. It’s the kind of car people pick for practical daily use, and here it’s just what the speaker currently drives.
The Fiat 500 is a very small car made for city driving. Because it’s compact, it can feel cramped compared with bigger cars, especially for taller people or when carrying more passengers. People mention it when they’re talking about how small cars fit real-life needs.
The Mitsubishi Outlander is an SUV. In this conversation it’s mentioned as the family’s plug-in hybrid, and the point is that they can drive a lot while using very little petrol.
Instant torque means the electric motor gives you strong pull right away, even from a standstill. That’s why EVs can feel quick and eager when you put your foot down.
The Hyundai Ioniq is a model line that includes electrified versions, like hybrids and plug-in hybrids. In the conversation it’s brought up as one of the cars you might find used.
They’re likely talking about a special kind of lease arrangement where your employer helps pay for the car through your pay. It can change the cost and how easy it is to get the car.
Charging an EV from a wall socket usually means using a standard household outlet (often via a portable charging cable). It’s typically slower than dedicated home charging equipment, but it can be enough for plug-in hybrids and for drivers who don’t need fast turnaround.
The “second hand market” refers to used-car sales, where buyers can often find lower prices than buying new. For PHEVs and EVs, used availability can be especially important because battery technology and charging infrastructure are evolving quickly, affecting what’s considered “worth it.”
This is a Mercedes-Benz SUV. They’re talking about a version that can run on electricity and also uses gas, and you can plug it in to charge the battery.
Plugging in every night helps the PHEV start each day with a full battery. If you don’t drive farther than the car’s electric range, you can use electricity most of the time.
In-car infotainment is the touchscreen/console system that handles things like navigation, media, phone pairing, and vehicle settings. In this segment, the hosts are comparing the user experience across Mercedes models.
Hybrid mode lets the car decide when to use electricity and when to use gas. It’s useful for longer trips when you don’t want to worry about running the battery down.
Recuperation is when slowing down helps recharge the battery. Rather than losing energy as heat, the car turns some of that slowing energy back into electricity.
The EV plug is what you use to charge the car from a charger. It’s different from the gas cap, and the car usually has a charging port you plug into.
LIVE
This is Two Blokes talking electric cars with Trevor Long and Steven Fennig
thanks to NRMA Insurance and Unidan. And we appreciate their support NRMA
Insurance helping Australians protect what matters most for a hundred years
and many more to come and they're also one of Australia's largest insurers of
electric vehicles and Unidan Smart Dash Cam. So you've got a car, you've got a dash cam
and Steven's big recommendation is always go the R model that means a rear
camera as well. So front and back. Look if you're going to go to the trouble get
covered in all directions. Absolutely. It gives you peace of mind and that's a
great way to drive. So knowing that whatever happens around you you've got
some peace of mind around it. We're going to talk plug-in hybrids later in this
episode because you know it's been a constant conversation over the last few
months. We're into May now but the conversation around fuel is intense and
there's a lot of people who are just not ready yet to go full electric and so the
plug-in hybrid is a genuine option so we've been driving one and we will give
you a view. Steven even took it on a long road trip. I did yeah it was it was very
handy. We'll talk more about the actual car that I drove. Very handy device. Very
handy device at a really really good price but yeah it was it was great. Very
good we'll tell you about that shortly but most importantly we want to take
your calls. If you have a question about EV's a problem with your EV or you want
to talk about your buying experience or anything to do with electric cars we'd
love to hear from you. Thanks to Vodafone 0-477-657-657 is the number to text or
WhatsApp and we'll get you on the show. MIRRIC's on the line good day MIRRIC.
Good day how you going? Yeah really good mate where are you at in your EV journey?
Well I've had a MG ZS EV for almost five years now and about to the lease is
about to run out so I'm about to pull the trigger on another one and so I'm
looking at the AON V. I did say to the other sales guy it's an AON 5 but he
said no no it's a V. Well I'm going to stop you right there. I was at the
Melbourne Motor Show a month or so ago and I spoke to the people at AON and I
think it might be ION. So I had quite a debate with them about whether or not it
was AON or ION because we debated this too didn't we when we had the car. We
agreed that what they should do so if you see this video on the internet folks I
come up with the idea they should get all the reviewers from car expert and drive
and us or whoever get all their videos and clip them together going AON AON AON AON
and then just have someone at the end go but by the way sorry to upset you
it's ION just tell us what it really is they really need to set that in stone
but leaving that aside the ION V what drew you to that one mate?
Well your your review of it was the first thing because I never heard of it before that
and I was looking at the Zika but you know the price on the ION is a lot lower so I
thought more money in my pocket so I don't have to spend as much. The Zika is nice it's
got the and it's got the good range it's got the range of about 600 approximately 600 but
the ION's got just over 500 which is pretty good and the price is great for the for the
luxury model and I drove it and it was really really nice and comfy I thought it was great.
So you have driven it you're happy with it it is actually we've driven it too it's actually
quite a nice car fit and finish is pretty smart. This is the one that had the fridge and heater
like fridge oven in the middle isn't it? That's it yeah yeah the fridge in the middle. You laughed
like that's a stupid thing but I'm telling you mate when you want those meat pies to stay warm
yeah or a few drinks to stay cold you want a you got a couple of diacokes in here.
I guess it's yeah it's handy and it's got the you know the the massage seats and my wife was
happy with that she goes oh yeah really okay okay and I think it's got aircon seats as well but
yeah it was the price and the range that's basically what I what I went for. You going the luxury or
the premium? Yeah the luxury so it's a top top what did you get it for about 48? I think it's on
the right 48 plus maybe I'll put the tint in because I think you said the aircon wasn't too good
with the non tinted windows right so I'll put the the good tint on for about 800 bucks or whatever
it is hopefully that'll help with the airconing yeah. Are you your MG is that just your trading
or you're selling that what do you deal with that one? No yes I can't trading because it's
some salary sacrifice so it's lease so I have to sell this. That was a lease car wasn't it?
Yeah yeah so you're just giving that back? Yeah right. Oh no no so I have to say it's mine but I'm
just gonna pay out the residual whatever it is. Can you keep it or you keep it or even
you'll sell it what would you do with it? No I'll sell it yeah I'll sell it. How's that
been? That's sort of one of the OG EVs on the market how have you enjoyed driving that?
Yeah that's been amazing so I bought it when there were only a few EVs on the market at the time
especially cheap ones anyway. I think this was the cheapest one. At the time yeah. Yeah the
advertised range was 280 I never got 280 out of it I think I got 240 out of it I get about
pretty close to 240 an hour still it hasn't really gone down in range. That's a good call after five
years? Yeah yeah and I've done a hundred and so far almost 140 kals of k's on it. Wow and it run
okay no issues that's a bit of a compliment to MG it's got a efficient good good well-running car.
Yeah no issues MG's fixed anything that I've asked to fix so for example the aircon then
surround plasticky thing that started to bubble and they just replaced it. They replaced the seat
coverings because they started to crack so that was replaced. Anything I asked for basically
they just replaced under warranty and I haven't had any issues with that. And so a five year owner
of an EV and with respect a cheap EV like you didn't have a Tesla and a lot of Tesla owners talk
about how they're unbelievable and they keep their quality and all that which is true they're
great cars but this is a car that was a punt in a sense too. I mean MG had been around for a while
that car was essentially a petrol car with a conversion to electric. How do you feel about
the experience of owning an electric car over five years of that style because you know you
would have learned everything you needed to know coming into the next one have you become the advocate
among your mates? Well absolutely so yeah I tell everyone especially at work because you know they
can all salary sacrifice so I tell them go and get an EV. I got it before the new policy which is the
FBT policy came in so yeah just before so I had to wait until the lease ended because otherwise I
would have lost too much money on it so yeah I'm paying a little bit more than I probably could be
with the new policy in place but I tell everyone at work and the three of my kids have got some EVs
or two have got the Edo 3 and one's got the shark and they're all very happy with it. You're
breeding EVs. You'd be set up at home then on the charging front mate what's the what's the
store you got a wall charger how are you charging? I just granny charge here. Five years of granny
charge. That's a big deal because a lot of people they sort of balk at the granny charging
you've done five years of driving and that's been okay for you? Yeah absolutely I come home after
work plug it in in the morning it's got probably enough definitely enough range to get to work and
back in most cases. I've been caught out once when I had to drive to Quimby and the GPS told me to go
through Durago there we go away and there was no reception so and then I took the wrong turn and
had no GPS had no phone reception so I was a bit stuffed so I ended up in Durago and had to
call tow truck so that was the only one time that I got somebody I probably didn't have to but I
didn't want to risk driving in further if there was no reception then I'd be stuck in the middle
of nowhere so I just made it to the pub and called from there. So what's your I mean you're
obviously a massive advocate you're breeding EVs as we said both in your in your workplace and in
your family um yeah there was just no hesitation for you to to EV again and are you a two car
household or are you your single car? Yeah no we've got two cars so we've got a diesel for the other
car so yeah that's at least as well but that's good another year and a half to go so we'll see
what EVs are out there at that point but there weren't really any four-wheel drive EVs when we
go um yeah um this one so that's in and maybe maybe Denza by then will be a great contender in
that four-wheel drive space to be go go super hybrid from BYD's kind of premium brand.
It's a nice looking car so we're going to have a look at that. Yeah yeah we'll have a look it's
got a while to go yet so I mean it changes so quickly you know even when I started looking
probably six months ago at a new replacement for this one um there there have been so many
new additions to the market so yeah and so I'll keep looking but I mean I went there had a driver
the A on V whenever it's called and um yeah I really liked it the cup holders didn't hold me back
I thought oh well yeah I did have a look at the A. What was the car where the cup holder was really
tight it was tight you cannot get the cup out? That's what that's this one that's this one the
tight it's like a grip do you know what I'll make you a promise Stephen will 3d print you a cup holder
integrator so it'll be like a cup holder in a cup holder that sticks it up for you yeah that's
perfect yeah I'll fix you up yeah yeah fair we can just send me the file and I'll print it
oh there you go oh you can look for it on bimbo anyway that's right um with the last thing when
do you get the car mate? um well I um they said I I should be able to get one by mid-may maybe
end of May so okay I said a couple of weeks so it's still not bad not bad yeah and they said
you know they've got the deal as well which is I think two thousand bucks back and they've got
the wall charger and yeah and they've got eight-year warranty as well you know so they're
current deal on their website is eight-year unlimited kilometer warranty eight-year 200,000
kilometer battery warranty five years roadside assistance free 22 kilowatt EV wall charger and
$2,000 premium cashback wow yeah that's great dude yeah yeah yeah you can't really walk away from
and I mean I think BYD is doing something similar at the moment I'm not sure so you never did BYD
was never in the picture for you Mirick? um well I just I think the price and the range I it was I
didn't I was looking at the 803 until you guys mentioned the um yeah the a on actually so I was
looking at it because my two girls have got it and then it is an amazing car yeah um but yeah I wanted
something cheaper so I didn't want to go anything over 50 really right okay well mate happy moment
we could help you with that you know just tell tell a on that we uh the two bloke listen mate
I'll be telling a on I don't want to break your miracle that clip will be going directly to Alison
and a on a on um because no it's great you know and we're we're gloating but it's lovely to hear
that someone is able to take on a bit of a bit of our information and make a decision independently
because you've gone and driven it and I made I hope you love it it it's a it's a premium car
what color do you get I've got the sandy color with the beige interior that's what I'm looking
I reckon I reckon it's the one on the R it wasn't a it wasn't a demonstrator mate it's not the car
we drove is it no no it's still on the ship apparently okay yeah that's the same color car
we drove I think yeah yeah it'd be it'd be the one we drove if you could see dints from Diet Coke
cans sunkeys cans and heather braze pies yeah mate happy happy motoring enjoy it buddy
oh thanks guys nice talking good morning mate great to hear from you excellent stuff there uh
Mirac with his brand new hey we are EV influencers does that make us EV influencers
officially but officially um and the the head of PR at uh ion used to be at Kia
and she's just moved over there I ran into them at the motor show and we had that debate about the
name um and look I mean it's it's it's a silly thing for us to get excited about but I've always
loved that for 15 years we've been talking tech yeah and logging that but on the on our podcast
I still love the fact that someone says I bought this because you said so you know well you know
we bring bring it to your attention and then you they take it the rest of the way we we we come
we're not writing the check yeah we're not paying for it but yeah that's right please drive the cars
before you buy them I don't want to I don't want to be that responsible we drive most of them so
you know what's fascinating about that though is that that that wasn't a I'm gonna have to listen
back to it but it wasn't a glowing review we definitely talked about you mentioned I think the
carplay dropouts yeah and I think I think if Mirac Smarty think that's a software issue and can be
fixed pretty easily you know we mentioned the cup holders yeah um and they're little things but
it's fascinating that you that someone's listened to that and then go into the trouble of you know
checking it out for themselves he sat in and drove it himself too so that's that's the ultimate
kind of that that's what seals the deal when you're sitting in it spot on so let us seal the deal
for you folks find an EV through us or whatever you like and if you are in the mark for an EV
please reach out we can try and hook you up with Aaron our dealer contact no kickbacks just
yeah trying to get you a better deal uh send us a text 0447 657 657
well I wanted to make sure I caught that last point there Steven it's a very important thing
yeah uh two blokes talking electric cars we'd love to hear from you 0447 657 657 save that
number you're in your phone just call it Steven Fennick private line and uh that's your joke but
but it took a long after hours yeah anyway it's not a 005 number uh how old am I yeah
1 800 don't be sure no no no well that's not 180 that's free 100 it was 1900 wasn't it
190 the ones that I don't know never called it mate yeah no neither did I be waiting to tell him
where they advertise the damn things in the classified anyway not uh not talking uh silly
phone lines we're talking electric cars and if you've got a story we'd love to hear from you
Antony's on the longer Anthony hello Steve hello Trevor mate great to have you on the show mate
where are you at in your electric car journey well I'm waiting for delivery whoo what did we get
how exciting what are you getting okay I've got a depot s 07 s you got the s 07 s yeah the uh so
the model why you look alike kind of thing uh yeah yeah pretty much a beautiful looking car
beautiful looking car yeah right but it's I'm still waiting and it's um becoming extremely
frustrating wow so how long ago did you uh put your money down well um we put the car down well
I put the deposit down oh jeez I think it's about three weeks ago now okay which is not bad I mean
you know you know so uh generally I mean we're what he told us we're waiting that it's just a
frustrating you know because I want the car it's nervous anticipation rather than disappointed
broken promise anxious to get it yes yeah very anxious and also now I'm starting to doubt my
some of my decisions but I'm pretty confident that it's been a it was a long journey to get here
tell us about your doubts mate yeah what what happened there yeah I've been waiting for an EV
since I was a little kid that's how long I've been waiting for an EV in the seven years I thought
pre-date for you on musk wow oh yeah I loved it what gave you that sense in the seven years yeah
what what what did you think I was just obsessed with you know science fiction and future and oh
electric cars would be fantastic and even then in high school our school had like an electric an
old electric milk um van and for the kids to learn on and it was awesome my god this is amazing this
is fantastic love there's always a car nut and I was just obsessed obsessed with electrical cars
this is the future it has to be the future it makes so much sense so is this your first EV then or
you've had one before well I've had I've had hybrids I had like the burst and second Prius I think
it was the first model Prius and the second model Prius oh my god that was the future that I saw
this is just unbelievable but or I I think and I still think hybrids are compromised and overly
complicated compromised to have an electric motor and a petrol motor together just doesn't make any
sense yeah in the Chevy Volt remember the Volt was the Volta Volt oh it was the over here it was the
Volt the the Holden Volt um I remember driving first time thing it was amazing but it was a
petrol engine charging an electric battery that you would then power the car with it was a very
strange thing um it wasn't really an EV but it makes more sense because it's not complicated the
transmissions of that right I'm saying so having two forms of actual propulsion is over complicated
so what then what then fast forwarded you to the point of going right I'm ready to buy one
well you know then I had I currently have a Volvo V40 diesel love it love it I think the car is
absolutely gorgeous but it's no longer the right car for us because we've got grandchildren
and also I have elderly parents I'm now responsible for and they can't fit in the back of the car
yeah there's no leg room yeah there's no room so we knew we had to get something
trying to convince the wife we've got to get something oh look at all these electric cars
and I was you know I've been listening to your shows since day one thinking oh this is great
this will help me in actual fact they're just um my gosh how many different cars and I would say
we've over well we can choose you if I was given a hundred thousand dollars I kept saying I don't
know what I would buy there were so many good choices so many good choices anyway and then
then I retired and the wife is retiring she said we don't have the money
hmm my son just before Trump his war happens my son buys an electric car second hand off pickles
and my wife says class amazing value and everything like that then pack diesel goes up
my first five hundred dollar plus bill for a diesel car a diesel truck an earth moving machinery
ridiculous this is unsustainable yeah and that was what I needed to convince my wife
that's all that was required to convince my wife yeah so we started looking at second hand cars
and seeing the valley I looked at pickles I looked at car sales and to cut the story short
every time I looked and if I didn't buy that immediate time I missed out missed out on six
six from Melbourne to Sydney oh it's getting so frustrated thought I knew what I wanted I was
looking originally for a poll star because I wanted to keep in the Volvo family yeah yeah poll
stars I still think they're a good looking car they are yeah absolutely hold their look yes
amazing I'm a I'm a big fan of that how's it gonna how's it gonna look in five years from now I'm a
I'm a real fan that's how long we hold the cars for at least yeah but the Volvo is five years old
and still looks good yeah yeah the poll star yeah 100 so then I started looking looking looking
looking I kept missing and then I said okay let's look at the other Volvos I love like the C40
oh that's good room and everything anyway missed out on six cars I was so angry so because I couldn't
make a decision straight away and and then I found like dealer demos because you know I wasn't going
to buy a car for that kind of look at it blah blah blah and I'm over so my wife's now getting
caught up in excitement and I found and then we looked at the Z car yep X the the little one yeah
nice yeah yeah I thought beautiful looking car beautiful looking car and I found a dealer demo
oh fantastic and it was a dealer demo I found in um car sales in Sydney but the dealer they
wouldn't respond they were just so unresponsive didn't call me back wouldn't answer the questions
it was just ridiculous and the car was still for sale oh so I said let's try Z car in Canberra
yeah we got some bar we just sold that particular one at a good price we have this one's a little
bit more and I thought okay yeah no worries and anyway we're looking and the wife was really keen
so then I started taking the old man with me to look at you got can you get in and out of the car
how easy is it in and out of the car so that became the criteria yeah you know we were going from
looking at pole stars of all those can you get in can you get out can you get in can you get out
yeah and he's getting out he's like nearly 90 and he needs you know and so that's you know it's
things to take care you know not all absolutely anyway so we we thought oh the the Z car fantastic
beautiful um and you know my dad can you get in and out yeah yeah it was good he liked it
went for a test drive and they were fantastic the dealer was fantastic oh my god that was so
busy wow and anyway and we're thinking thinking and I I kept looking at the car and then my criteria
started increasing and I watched everything everything I was consumed watching YouTube yeah
I've watched every review must be on the internet on YouTube about electric cars
doing over research and I started to have the checklist it's got to do this it's got to do that
my first thing which I wanted I said if I'm going to buy an electric car it has to have a vehicle
for grid has to be that makes the most logical sense why am I buying like you say Trevor yeah
you don't buy you know you got a big battery in the car why buy another battery on the hand
yep and we've got solar and we got battery and I said to my wife we can fill this up so sorry
fantastic blah blah blah we don't have to increase the battery size you know we can't find vehicle
of grid it's just so hard and not everything doesn't so that's right I thought that's next gen
that'll be in that future car started looking had to have the room for my dad to get in and out of
the car had to we had to have big boot for the grandchild and all the prams you end up with a solid
list yeah but but you're doing a lot of driving around how did you stumble across depot was that
through online viewing all these videos or was there a dealership nearby no no I was looking
looking and we basically we can't we were going in to pay the deposit on the Z cut and I was just
unhappy it didn't tick enough boxes even down to like oh beautiful big panoramic sunroof
there's no cover for it it's just ridiculous why can't there's no awning
and and then the other one was the thing that was the deal breaker for me I wanted to have everything
that I had in my Volvo it's as petty as it is I wanted here to seats I live in Canberra I needed
heated seats I needed that and the Z cut oh that's on the next option up right so so the depot
obviously ticked more of those boxes for you one of the big things about the depot back in the day
and depot even advertised based on this was it was it was deemed by most reviewers to be annoying
because of the beeps and chimes and things so exactly why I went past it but then when you
look at because I heard that Anthony I need to get you to why you bought it right so you've ended
up buying one what convinced you did you take it for a drive and it didn't have those problems
no never drive it I saw a review from one of the online one the big reviewers in Australia
and he said how it went from the most annoying car in Australia to one of the best yes and then
he said what software update and I said oh my god that's fantastic and I said and I told my wife
that and I think I found a car that ticks every box because I looked at it had the heated seats
it had the on they had the blind for the window had a big boot it had everything and we were at
the Z Cadella and I said can you hold the car to after lunch I've got I need to have a look at
another car can you just hold this car for us until after lunch and the guy was fantastic
he said yep no worries no worries we had to go find the depot dealer because I couldn't find where
they were ended up oh it where it was and found it went there and the guy said oh because I saw
on that night there was again a dealer demo $42,000 non-negotiable that's the price and I
thought you know but every car the and my wife kept approving the budget creep started off at
like 30 and it crept up and crept up so now we're at 42 okay you happy yes that's what I want all
right decision made went and looked at it and I know they sold the cars um become have a look
at this other person's car you know a car we're preparing for it you can't take it for a drive
have a look at it and it was beautiful had all the features I wanted everything great room
you can see those and I interestingly enough he he pulled up my car the v40 compared to that car
measurement wise external and it was like 70 millimeters difference in length that was it
wow but it was so much more spacious yeah I think that's what one of the things you find is there's
actually a lot more space inside the car it's the way these cars are kind of set out so money
mate fast forward because because we need to move on to other callers but fast forward you haven't
you haven't driven it but you you have bought it on the spot and and you're now in that flux
zone of just going oh you're questioning yourself but mate it's what it's going to be a great car
you're you're probably weeks away mate you're weeks away but it's in Sydney they said we
we found you the car dealer demo from deep bull headquarters whatever it is and it's going to
be on a truck from Canberra from Sydney and I keep going to him where is it where is it
I said how come I can order something from China and get a delivery date but you can't tell me
when I'm getting a delivery date from Sydney yeah well I just shrugged my I would check the contract
and say to say to them listen I'm prepared to take my money back if you're not prepared to
deliver me a car or at least give me a date that you can stick to I think you need to be a bit
strong about that because they may well be playing you off for off a break with other buyers other
cars and shipping it around so they need to know you're going to walk as well yeah yeah well okay
I was going to give him okay he's stirring stuff like that and yeah but he showed me I went into
that's right I went in on Friday last Friday and he showed me the email from um deep pool whatever
in Sydney he says look that's your car and four other customers I've got yeah and it's all you
know getting ready for you and I said but where is it where I have come I haven't got it so I'm
giving it to this week but you can't find cars I don't want to miss out on the deal we'll just
we'll just wrap up with this mate the squeaky wheel gets the oil mate so keep reminding them
where's my basket the question but congrats the squeaky wheel buddy that's what you've
got to be Anthony so mate enjoy it it's a great car mate with that software update our biggest
gripe was the bings and bongs yeah but the software update solved all that the software updates have
solved that yeah can I ask one more question because it's the only thing which I found which
has got which I've now thinking oh did I do the wrong car is the charge rate something to worry
no you know what we we just spoke to someone who had owned an MG for five years never used a wall
charger at home just a trickle charger every night unless you are doing 150 kilometers a day of driving
and you're both retired that's unlikely mate yeah you don't need to you don't need to worry about
charging mate just get into the routine as we talked about on last week show for you rewind to last
week show when you get a chance to listen and you'll hear us talk about what you do when you
get your first dv and that's gonna that's gonna be the information for you don't stress about it
Anthony all right enjoy the car good on you so I've got the tick from the two blokes there you go
tell the wife you're you're fully ticked off no don't tell her that all right mate have a good one
great to hear from you thank you mate no worries at all good to hear from you mate I mean it's a
journey that's wow it's not unusual but I'm surprised it's taken so long to get his car though
well you know what I think in the end it sounds like he's the kind of person that's always trying
to get the dealer demo like he's not he's not going for the driveway price brand new car he was
looking at pickles he was in the car sales and then he went to the dealer demo demo angle so
you know he's trying to get the best the best deal um and that that doesn't always mean you get
you're not ordering online or getting a car off the boat in that sense so that's probably the
challenge well he's had quite a journey that's good glad that he's finally got exactly almost
got some good luck with the car Anthony nothing did not for anything other a couple of finger
points done more than you mate that's your job more than you know job on this show is to entertain
the viewing audience during the out of break stinks that's why I try my best mate yeah you
do a great job at it Stephen oh four double seven six five seven six five seven phrases on the
line go Fraser hello how are we really good mate where are you adding your EV journey
well I'm uh I haven't got an EV yeah I'm I'm 18 I'm looking I'm looking because you know
petrol's expensive and you know I have to be honest with your EVs uh you know a lot more
exciting to me than petrol cars you know you're a young driver yeah yeah yeah um you know I've got
a full-time job now and you know I've got enough money that I can sort of look at buying things
you know maybe a year from now but yeah good for you mate so is this your first car you're gonna say
your first car is this going to be your first one and it's going to be an EV uh I it's it's
unfortunately not um I've got a Honda Jazz at the moment that's what I've got that's a cracker
2012 2012 what do you reckon as an 18 year old with a full-time job what do you think your budget's
going to be in six months or a year from now when when you are looking to buy mm-hmm I think maybe
like uh a bit under 40 probably okay it's a good number there's a lot of options there's a lot
of options everything from the from the bottom end of BYD up through the JQ and yeah there's a lot
there do you you a bit of a Honda Jazz is a choice let's be honest with you have you seen also at
the Melbourne Motor Show have you seen the Honda Super 1 which is a tiny compact I have I have seen
it yeah it's quite nice honestly it looks cool Stephen hasn't seen it yet I don't think I think
he's Stephen's about to be blown away by what this is Fraser this is it's it's pretty neat yeah it's
it's neat and niche in this world of you know pay trucks and uh and little the little cube and all
those crazy Japanese car that is one heck of a little uh little beast that should come in under 40
though shouldn't it yeah I'd hope I'd hope I mean if they can price that in it like you know 37
something around that I feel like they probably sell well but I've I've sort of heard more stuff
around like people saying you know it's going to be priced run you know whether Mini Cooper and the
Fiat 500 that sort of stuff it's far too small for them to do that it genuinely can't see those
prices mate it's tiny though they wouldn't get away they'd sell a hundred of the things in a year
wouldn't work yeah yeah exactly what's the what's the family situation mate like are there any EVs
in the family or do you think you'll be the first well my my parents have a Mitsubishi Outlander
yeah so I mean I'm not I'm not too big on plug-in hybrids but I mean they do have that place um
I don't know they're good um and you know they barely use any petrol now and uh you know they
they drive quite a bit and I'll be honest with you the other thing about EVs is right is the
acceleration on them and the instant torque it's like it's very exciting compared to Eddie like
petrol car driven you know it's like that's that's a great feature yeah but a lot of cars have
more racing too yeah yeah a lot a lot of EVs a lot of EVs have that uh you know they you know if you
get a bike test you can go zero to 100 in like under three seconds but generally yeah the performance
2.1 seconds yeah it's crazy but a lot of your energy don't need 3.1 3.1 3.1 so yeah 3.1 yeah others
have obviously it's others might be four seconds or seven seconds anything would be better than the
Honda Jazz but uh no that's definitely a feature so there's a specific type of car like is it I mean
like you're looking for a sedan he's looking for an SUV what's what's your preference nothing in
particular I'm I'm working at the moment as like I'm working at a valuation firm property
value firm um and I'm you know a year from now or maybe six months I'm looking at like becoming
an assistant value so it doesn't really matter um what what type of car it is so you do a bit of
driving there don't you so you you you drive around yeah yeah how many k's a day would you do man
yeah maybe like I don't it's not that much it's probably because I'm doing more specialised like
commercial so it's probably only like a hundred maybe okay that's a good number per day that's
decent yeah so range is important to you then range would be something yeah yeah top of the list
yeah yeah sure you're gonna have a fun experience mate there's a lot of cars on the market as you
say there's going to be more there you could probably also mate look I don't want to give
fatherly advice to an 18 year old but buying a brand new car when you're 18 is almost insanity
if I'm honest with you I did it and I regret it um I could probably own a house by now if I uh
you know earlier than I did if I hadn't bought that car he's a property value man he knows I know
I'm just saying mate previous call I spent some time looking at pickles auctions and things like
that you know you might be able to find it might not be a Honda super one right but yeah you might
find a key and neo or an Ioniq or different things that are only I can't lie to you I'm I've not that
financially smart what it comes to cars but um but it is the second-handed option though mate
second hand of it is that or did you want to buy something new the thing for me is is that from
what I've seen I'm not first like it's that much cheaper like dramatically like you know if you
they were selling those for like $30,000 at one point and they haven't like gone down that much
like from those specific models yeah you're balancing the the pure number at the top top end
and that's fair yeah I just all I'm saying to you mate is just remember you don't have to buy a new
car it's all I'll say to you when you are truly ingeniously shopping in a year from now unless
you're doing a no-vated lease and all those kind of things that that might require it to be a brand
new car um you don't need to buy a new car there'll be plenty of options out there on the market and
I think you've got a fun journey ahead mate that's the thing yeah definitely definitely I mean I'll
have about yeah where would you charge it you've got a charging setup or how how would you charge
your car I mean I'm I I think probably just like a wall wall socket I mean I could probably install
something in our house but I don't know I might be I might be moving to Tasmania actually
half a year so yeah yeah well that will affect the decision that's going to affect a lot of what
you're doing Fraser but uh lovely to hear from you mate good luck with the EV journey mate and
let us know let us know how you go yeah yeah yeah sure thanks guys we all appreciate what you're
doing don't worry it's it's good work good on you mate thanks very much cheers buddy and uh look
that's the fun fun part of the journey there very early days first 18 year old by the EV how good
that's wild isn't it yeah well you know that's that generations now that's probably what the
front of mind for them now that's probably they've seen more EVs that have others and the other thing
about that is um whenever Jackson isn't driving my Cooper which is very rare um he does mention
petrol prices because the Mazda it's like 80 90 bucks to fill up now there you go and do you
notice how so when you when you drive 35 minutes to your girlfriend's house and you stay there for
two days and then you drive home that's two journeys that's that you see the money like
it's actually what is that costing me as opposed to when you're in an EV you know that it can be
costing you zero basically if you if you do it right so there is that but uh anyway the like
a real world experience I can imagine the second hand market being a boon for parents buying their
kids first cars too absolutely you know like that mg that our first caller had what a what a great car
it's had five years and a good life but a great first car for someone absolutely as well um we're
and Fraser just mentions plug-in hybrids we we should we should take a time to talk about
plug-in hybrids because we drove the Mercedes Benz GLC 350 recently yes we did um you know
SUV uh Mercedes SUV but the big difference here is there's a battery there that gives you that
around 100 kilometers or fully electric range about 110 it gave you and when you when you gave it
to me it was it was i charged to 100 and you had it in full electric mode so the thing about and
we've spoken with this briefly before but the Mercedes system particularly has multiple options
one of them is you know just you know use you do your best the other one is kind of battery saver
so it kind of just tries to keep the battery at the same level using it and the petrol engine
then there's just full electric so you can you can truly choose so we drove for we have the car
if we haven't talked about this before we have cars for two weeks and we swap in between so we each
driver for a week with the exception of a couple of days that Steven will mention we drove this thing
exclusively in electric mode yeah and i in the in the week that i had it i charged it
probably two and a half times essentially i've charged it to full a couple of times and then
one day i just put it in for in a half an hour and got a bit um and never touched the petrol
tank like it it didn't move didn't dial i saw i did see the i would have used
maybe a half a milliliter of petrol at one point because i did gas it off the lights
at one point and when i've gassed it too much here it's it's used it's one of the one in the
engine to kick in right okay um but you can you can if you if you drive it particularly well
and you charge properly as in you plug in every night you can drive a fev as an electric car
because as we've said over and over again people on average drive about 50 ks a day
you know less battery on this is 100 and change so you could exclusively drive this on the battery
so i took it up to newcastle we're going to see my daughter hailey and uh we i had it all fully
charged up on the battery and it started on in electric mode and then once we were halfway there
then it kicked over it just said no no nothing i needed to do it said uh electric mode now
unavailable and then boom it was on the on the petrol motor and then on the way back the hotel
i stated had a charger so i just plugged it in for two hours re recharged the battery to full again
and then did it did it the opposite so started off with the battery now halfway back to sydney
and then that's the thing with a fev the batteries are so small that the trickle charge yeah is all
you'd ever need at home because it only takes a few hours no but i'm saying at home yeah i rarely
ever need anything more unless you're in one of those moments where i want to drive a hundred
crates i want to be purely electric i need fast charge that's like when's that going to happen
very rarely so man i i drove it obviously it's a beautiful car it's a Mercedes it has all the
all the fittings and you own a Mercedes electric car very similar inside there's not much difference
to it it's the same infotainments as mbux and all those different things um but you know the fit
the finish the quality it felt a Mercedes right but the the thing that stood out to me was
without thinking about the car but just remembering to charge every two days or so
i drove an electric car for a week it didn't yeah right it was an ev yeah and i think that's
what people should know we've seen and my wife particularly loved she said i would i would
drive this car because she's of the mindset where she likes evs but has the the fear that you know
there might not be a charger when she needs well with a grandchild in new castle later this year
she's going to need those kilometers and i look not to put words in joe's mouth but i would guess
she would be reluctant to have to go to an ev charger every time she goes up there to be able
to get home maybe maybe but i did uh i did show her the chargers at the hotel and there's plenty
of charting and where they can plug in she can plug it at hailey's home and and all that so
uh it's look it's a great i think she liked it because it was a Mercedes first but she loved
it too because it had that option of having and and the the petrol motor the the range was like
740 kilometers it was it was we could have just driven up and back i could not have even you didn't
need to bother to charge the battery but what you did was save money on petrol exactly using 100
kilometers so we hardly touched the petrol we only sort of did 100 k's up 100 k's back the other test
that would be nice next time we get a fiv um is to just put it in hybrid mode yeah so that you
don't specifically go electric but you drive to new castle and back in hybrid mode it would have
been interesting to see how much petrol you use how one versus the other balances out because i think
it would be on a on a road trip it's more efficient to go in hybrid mode so the car
works out when to use what sort of power and does it give recuperation to the battery that
would recharge our wow that would have worked out but you know the recuperation is never going to
be enough there's a lot of downhill runs it would have given a bit of recuperation yeah on the on
the on the highway for sure anyway so while we are all in on electric cars yeah there's nothing
wrong with a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle especially if it's what meets your budget but
the critical thing for me is it's a great teacher of how to drive how to how to charge and i had to
remember i had to remember what side the uh the e-v plug was it's on the it's on the left side
there's there's a plug plug in hybrid has got you got your petrol cap and your e-v your e-v
chargers uh as well so uh yeah i had to keep remembering it was back back but there is a
you're right there is a tiny little arrow petrol symbol has a little arrow pointing to the right
and the little battery has a little arrow pointing to you will need your glasses to see the arrow
very hard to see two bloke's talking electric cars thanks to uni then smart dash cams and in our
main insurance we'll be back again next week with another episode we can take your calls we'd love
to hear from you oh four double seven six five seven six five seven thanks to Vodafone send us a
text or a whatsapp steven let's just do it all again next week i'll see you then
About this episode
The hosts explore whether plug-in hybrids make sense by comparing real-world EV ownership, family-friendly buying decisions, and a week in a Mercedes-Benz GLC 350 PHEV. A recurring theme is practicality: listeners weigh budget, comfort features, software updates, and dealer incentives, while the PHEV discussion argues that regular charging can make a hybrid behave much like an EV for many daily drivers. The episode also includes long-term EV ownership evidence, with one MG ZS EV still holding strong range after nearly five years and 140,000 km.
This week, we've been driving a PHEV - Plug in Hybrid, how do they work are they worth it for those not quite ready for an EV?
We talk to a man with an original MG electric car, ready to move to his AION
A story about Zeekr losing business to Deepal, and a young man with electric desires!
Thanks to NRMA Insurance and Uniden Dashcams!
