The discussion covers a wide range of EV topics including Tom's detailed leasing journey for a Mini Cooper Born, Vicky's positive real-world experience with the BMW iX3 and its impressive range, and insights into the luxurious Mercedes VLE van. They also explore rising electricity prices affecting EV tariffs, the debate over ZEV mandates and industry challenges, and platform sharing among car brands. Listeners' comments on sliding rear seats, retro EV designs, and brand differentiation add depth. The episode blends practical buying advice, industry news, and listener engagement with a light, conversational tone.
Ginny, Tom and Vicky are back with another episode of the Kilowatt Half Hour, diving into the world of EVs with their usual mix of insight and inane banter. This week: spreadsheets (yes, really), conferences and rising fuel and energy pricesāplus why electric driving still stacks up.
Thereās talk of real-world range in the BMW iX3, a new āBarnardās Bargainā, and reactions from the ZEV conference. As always, your comments and questions spark debates on everything from efficiency and sliding rear seats to retro design and platform sharing.
Itās informative, irreverent and more entertaining than it has any right to be. ā”
"So my wife got a new job so she needed a new car to finally replace the leaf that we had for 10 years or something."
The Renault Leaf is an electric car that runs on batteries instead of gas. It's one of the first popular electric cars that many people use for everyday driving.
The Renault Leaf is a pioneering electric vehicle (EV) that has been widely popular as an affordable and practical electric car since its introduction. It is known for its role in making electric mobility accessible to a broad audience.
"And we had a I wanted to lease because I knew that was the most sensible way of doing it and much cheaper than the other ways."
Leasing a car means you pay money every month to use it for a few years, but you don't own it at the end. It's like renting a car for a long time.
Leasing is a method of acquiring a car by paying monthly fees to use the vehicle for a set period, typically with lower upfront costs than buying. It often includes mileage limits and requires returning the car at lease end.
"... And the first car we came up with was an Alpine A290 because an Alpine A290 was actually cheaper than ..."
The Alpine A290 is an old French sports car that was light and fast. It was cheaper than some other sports cars when it was new.
The Alpine A290 is a historic lightweight sports car from the French brand Alpine, celebrated for its racing heritage and affordability compared to other sports cars of its time. It is often mentioned in discussions about classic and affordable performance cars.
"... Alpine A290 was actually cheaper than a top spec Renault 5. And she wanted the top spec one because of heat..."
The 5 E-Tech Electric is a new electric car made by Renault that looks like an old Renault 5. It runs on batteries instead of petrol.
The Renault 5 E-Tech Electric is a modern electric reinterpretation of the classic Renault 5, offering advanced electric powertrain technology and retro-inspired design. It is notable for combining nostalgic styling with contemporary electric mobility.
"And she wanted the top spec one because of heated seats. So it was cheaper to have the Alpine that must have that."
Heated seats are car seats that can get warm to keep you cozy when it's cold outside.
Heated seats are a comfort feature in cars that use electrical heating elements embedded in the seats to provide warmth to occupants, especially useful in cold climates.
"So then I did a little bit of research because I was ready to press the button on the Alpine and you have to have it serviced an Alpine dealer. You can't have it serviced a Renault dealer."
Servicing requirements are rules about where and how you have to take your car for check-ups and repairs to keep it working well.
Servicing requirements refer to the maintenance rules set by manufacturers or dealers, such as where a car must be serviced to maintain warranty or performance. Some brands require servicing at specific dealerships.
""More importantly, real world range. So I've been doing lots of different kinds of driving. I did a big long journey last week. And I'm getting about 370-ish real world miles out of it on fairly steady motorway journeys.""
Real world range means how far an electric car can really go on one battery charge when you drive it normally, not just what the numbers say on paper.
Real world range refers to the actual distance an electric vehicle can travel on a single charge under typical driving conditions, which often differs from the manufacturer's estimated range due to factors like driving style, weather, and accessory use.
""But I'm not using efficiency mode. I'm just tootling around with the air con on. I like a massage seat. So I'm not really making any huge efforts to really get the best efficiency.""
Efficiency mode is a special setting in electric cars that helps save battery power so the car can go farther before needing to recharge.
Efficiency mode is a driving setting in many electric vehicles that optimizes power consumption by adjusting throttle response, climate control, and other systems to maximize driving range.
"But I mean, I love the iX3 and I think it's going to sell so well. It's great value for money for what you're getting in many respects."
The BMW iX3 is a fully electric SUV, meaning it runs only on electricity and doesnāt use gas. Itās made by BMW and is designed to be fun to drive while being environmentally friendly.
The BMW iX3 is an all-electric SUV from BMW, representing their approach to electric mobility with a focus on combining BMW's driving dynamics with electric powertrain technology.
"We're going to get one in as a long term test. And I really want to try and get 500 miles out of it."
A long term test means using a car for a long time to see how it works in everyday life, not just for a quick drive.
A long term test involves using a vehicle over an extended period to evaluate its performance, reliability, and real-world usability beyond initial impressions or short test drives.
"This now means that all of these people who can't charge at home, you know, you could put you could rapid charge your car once every couple of weeks now and be running around on that kind of range."
Rapid charging means plugging in your electric car to a special charger that fills up the battery really fast, so you don't have to wait long to keep driving.
Rapid charging refers to high-power electric vehicle charging that can replenish the battery much faster than standard charging, typically using DC fast chargers. It allows EV drivers to quickly add significant range during short stops.
"And Vicky, you'll be pleased to hear it has some clever self parking tech because I know how much you love that because you struggle with parking. I do not struggle with parking. I will not have this said publicly."
Self parking tech helps the car park itself. The car uses cameras and sensors to find a parking spot and can steer into it without the driver doing much work.
Self parking technology refers to systems in modern cars that assist or fully automate the parking process. These systems use sensors and cameras to detect parking spaces and steer the car into the spot with minimal or no driver input, making parking easier and safer.
"And I hate the sensation of the car driving itself, sitting in the driving seat and having the wheel spinning itself as the car goes into it. Honestly, it makes me shiver. I hate it, but I sort of had to restrain myself and let the car do its thing. And it was impressive."
A self-driving car is a car that can drive itself without you needing to steer or control it. It uses special technology to see the road and decide what to do.
A self-driving car is a vehicle equipped with technology that allows it to navigate and operate without human input. These cars use sensors, cameras, and software to control steering, acceleration, and braking autonomously.
"Am I the only one that I don't get the passenger screen thing that seems to be in everything like the CLA, not just Mercedes, but all all cars."
The Mercedes-Benz CLA is a small luxury car that has fancy features like screens for passengers to use while riding.
The Mercedes-Benz CLA is a compact luxury sedan known for its stylish design and advanced technology features, including modern infotainment systems with passenger screens.
"And they were saying that they felt like the ZEV mandate, which if you don't know what the ZEV mandate is, the ZEV mandate is basically targets that have been put in place that car makers have to make around selling electric vehicles. So it basically is percentages of their overall sales and it ramps up every year. So they were saying the ZEV mandate, they think needs to be looked at, needs to be consulted on."
The ZEV mandate is a rule that says car companies have to sell more electric cars every year to help reduce pollution and protect the environment.
The ZEV mandate (Zero Emission Vehicle mandate) is a regulatory requirement that car manufacturers must sell a certain percentage of electric or zero-emission vehicles each year. The target percentage increases over time to encourage the adoption of cleaner vehicles.
"Should they be mandated? Should they be forced to sell electric vehicles? Discussing the comments, I guess, is one for everybody out there."
Electric vehicles are cars that use electricity from batteries to move instead of gas or diesel. They are better for the environment because they don't produce smoke from the tailpipe.
Electric vehicles (EVs) are cars powered entirely or partially by electricity stored in batteries, rather than relying solely on internal combustion engines using petrol or diesel. They produce zero tailpipe emissions and are a key part of reducing environmental impact in transportation.
"And I think the Honda E was probably very ahead of its time. But yeah, at the moment, Honda seems to be extremely..."
The Honda E is a small electric car made by Honda that looks cool and has lots of tech inside. It was one of the first electric cars designed mainly for city driving.
The Honda E is a compact electric city car produced by Honda, known for its retro-modern styling and advanced technology features. It was considered ahead of its time for its focus on urban electric mobility and digital interior.
"But looking at Japanese and cars that do have grants, the Nissan Leaf is now on the leasing list. Ā£333 a month for 8,000 miles over four years, which I thought was pretty good if you look at its competitors."
Grants are money given by the government to help people buy electric cars, so the cars cost less.
Grants are financial incentives provided by governments or organizations to encourage the purchase of electric or low-emission vehicles. They reduce the effective cost to the buyer.
"Les Halliwell said, please tell Citroen to go retro. There is a lot to go for."
Retro design means making a new car look like an old or classic one, which some people really like because it reminds them of the past.
Retro design in cars refers to styling that draws inspiration from classic or vintage models, often to evoke nostalgia or heritage. It can be a marketing strategy to appeal to enthusiasts or differentiate a brand's lineup.
"I'd love to see an EV 2CV too, though I feel something so slab sided might be too challenging for any designer"
The Citroƫn 2CV is an old, simple car from France that many people remember because of its unique look. Sometimes people talk about making electric versions of it because it looks cool and different.
The Citroƫn 2CV is a classic French economy car produced from 1948 to 1990, known for its minimalist design and utilitarian nature. It has a distinctive slab-sided shape and is often referenced in discussions about retro or heritage-inspired electric vehicle designs.
"might be too challenging for any designer with a brief to produce a low CD factor."
A low CD factor means a car is shaped to cut through the air easily, so it doesn't use as much energy to move. This helps electric cars go farther on a single charge.
The term 'low CD factor' refers to a vehicle's low drag coefficient, which means it is designed to reduce air resistance and improve aerodynamic efficiency. This is especially important for electric vehicles to maximize range and efficiency.
"You know, it didn't tap into it in the same way. And I think, you know, I think you could argue, Mini, did Mini do it? I think Mini did it. But do they do it now?"
Mini is a car company that makes small, cool-looking cars. They also make electric cars now, which run on batteries instead of gas.
Mini is a British automotive marque known for its small, stylish cars that combine retro design with modern technology. The brand has expanded into electric vehicles (EVs) as part of its lineup, aiming to maintain its distinctive character while adopting new powertrains.
"Does anyone care about platform sharing? So we had a question in, so, at OB Smith 1A,"
Platform sharing means that different car companies use the same basic parts to build their cars. This helps them save money and make cars faster.
Platform sharing is when different car brands use the same underlying vehicle architecture, including chassis, engines, or other components, to reduce development costs and speed up production. This practice is common among automotive groups that own multiple brands.
"I remember Lotus Esprit having Austin Allegro door handles, and they actually looked cool at the time."
The Austin Allegro was a small car made in Britain a long time ago. Some parts from it were used on other cars.
The Austin Allegro was a compact family car produced by British Leyland in the 1970s and early 1980s. It is known for its distinctive styling and was a common source of parts for other British cars.
"I think the Stellantis EVs are quite appealing, but only make sense at the discounted prices."
An EV is a car that runs on electricity instead of gas or diesel. It uses batteries to move.
EV stands for electric vehicle, which is a car powered entirely or primarily by electricity stored in batteries rather than by an internal combustion engine.
"I think the Stellantis EVs are quite appealing, but only make sense at the discounted prices."
Stellantis is a big car company that owns many different car brands. They make many kinds of cars, including electric ones.
Stellantis is a large automotive group formed by the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group. It owns many brands including Peugeot, Citroƫn, Fiat, Jeep, and others, and produces a range of electric vehicles.
"The E208 is still the nicest looking car. Like, you loved your E208, didn't you, Ginny?"
The Peugeot e-208 is a small electric car made by Peugeot. It looks nice and can drive a good distance on electricity.
The Peugeot e-208 is an electric version of the Peugeot 208 supermini, produced by Stellantis. It is known for its stylish design and practical electric range.
"it's very clever for them to be able to make a Citroen and an Alfa Romeo using those same bits and make them drive differently,"
Alfa Romeo is a car brand from Italy that makes sporty cars. They sometimes use the same parts as other cars but make their cars feel different to drive.
Alfa Romeo is an Italian automotive brand known for sporty and stylish cars. It shares platforms and components with other brands but tunes its cars to have a distinctive driving experience.
"And having seen, you know, the VW group's small cars, again, they're different. They are, they're going to feel and look different."
Volkswagen Group is a big car company from Germany that makes many different car brands and types, from cheap to fancy cars.
Volkswagen Group is a major German automotive manufacturer owning brands like Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, and others, known for producing a wide range of vehicles from economy cars to luxury models.
"has a completely different touch screen system to the Jeep, to the Peugeot, to this kind of thing."
Jeep is a famous car brand that makes SUVs and off-road cars. It is part of the same company as the EC5.
Jeep is a well-known automotive brand specializing in SUVs and off-road vehicles, now part of Stellantis. It is mentioned here to highlight differences in touchscreen systems across brands.
Select text to request an explanation
Hello and welcome to the kilowatt half hour, a podcast about the world of EVs brought to you by the team at electrifying.com.
Well it is great to be back in with you once again. On the show this week we're talking spreadsheets, press conferences and fuel prices.
And I promise it's going to be far more interesting than it sounds. We've also had a really full post bag.
And I'm joined today by Mr Barnard, who is back in Vicky. Hi guys.
Hello. Hello. You've been busy with spreadsheets Tom.
Oh God yeah well I wouldn't say I love a spreadsheet but they are quite useful things.
And I've got myself a car which involved a lot of spreadsheets but then I've been trying to find energy tariffs again.
And that's making my head hurt. Yeah I don't envy you that one.
He loves a spreadsheet really. He does. He really does.
Yeah I think we're also going to talk a lot about the comments and questions that you've been sending in because it's been great that you've been in touch so much.
A reminder you can email us podcast at electrifying.com or drop us a comment. We do read them all.
We like and reply to as many as we can.
We had a very full post bag. We're going to kick off with a lovely one from Andy Smith.
9913. Long live the inane banter. So shall we get on to some inane banter for this episode?
So what have we been driving looking at? Tom I'm intrigued about the Barnard's bargain that you've got.
Worse spreadsheets involved in that one yes?
Lots of spreadsheets. So my wife got a new job so she needed a new car to finally replace the leaf that we had for 10 years or something.
So of course I went into my spreadsheets and I did an awful lot of research.
And we had a I wanted to lease because I knew that was the most sensible way of doing it and much cheaper than the other ways.
And so went in right this is what I want first.
And the first car we came up with was an Alpine A290 because an Alpine A290 was actually cheaper than a top spec Renault 5.
And she wanted the top spec one because of heated seats.
So it was cheaper to have the Alpine that must have that.
So then I did a little bit of research because I was ready to press the button on the Alpine and you have to have it serviced an Alpine dealer.
You can't have it serviced a Renault dealer.
My nearest one is in Cambridge which is probably an hour away and you have to have it serviced every year.
So I thought well a service is going to be at least 150 quid and some of the rivals only needed servicing every two years.
So it's 150 quid to go with the thing.
Also and this is something we'll talk about later Alpine wasn't eligible for the intelligent tariffs which I know are much cheaper.
So I worked out that would be an extra 75 quid a year on the charging.
And so the Alpine out the window.
Oh heartbroken for it.
I know but then of course then of course there was one.
You don't get divorced over that decision because that quite frankly would be a divorce issue for me if you were like banning the Alpine on financial reasons Tom.
Well it depends you say you just have to come up with different alternatives.
So then of course I was looking like you do when you're wanting to buy a car or a house or anything.
I was looking every minute of every day at the deals that were coming up because occasionally there's a really good deal.
So bang into my inbox goes a smart hashtag three premium top of the range one pre registered.
And you could have one in orange which was a bit of an attraction for me that was actually going to be cheaper than the Alpine per month.
Wow.
So I'm like this is brilliant.
That's a really nicely equipped car.
It's a car I enjoyed.
I went on the original launch.
So bang went in pull the finance documents in and the guy's like oh yeah I'm out till after lunch.
Anyway he rings me up says all that batch have gone.
There's another batch coming in in a month but they're going to be 50 quid a month more.
Is that all right?
No.
No it's not.
No.
And apparently there are some people in the leasing industry who do this as a kind of thing to reel you in and then hope that you once you filled in all the forms you won't be bothered to do it again and you just have it.
So then my backup then was the run out Cooper spawns.
So Cooper born V1.
I know it's a car that Lisa my missus has enjoyed and likes.
I had a couple of them as long term cars really like them too.
Right.
It's cheap.
It's bargain.
So go for that.
And this is where again you have to do the spreadsheet thing because what color do you want?
There's some nice colors on Cooper born's silver is the only free color.
And what you realize is that if you are buying a thousand pound paint option when it's three years old that has no value according to their their spreadsheets the leasing companies.
So you have to pay for that thousand pound extra over those three years in its entirety.
So to have a different color Cooper born was an extra 22 quid a month.
It's like I'll put up with silver.
It's not my first choice but for 22 quid a month I will have silver.
So all of that guy came back said all the silver ones have gone.
I'm sorry.
Do you want another one?
I'm like oh my Lord.
No.
No.
And I said go and find me a silver one.
So I went to another broker who said I've got some silver one.
So I went back to the original broker said there are some silver ones look on your system.
You went I've got you the last one.
So it arrived yesterday.
My silver Cooper born and we're very happy and there's strange things with lease cars.
It's like I didn't think it'd have mats carpet mats.
It had the carpet mats.
It's got a first aid kit.
It's got a nice little welcome pack.
Well you know when you go and buy a new car and they say oh do you want to buy the mats?
They're a hundred pounds extra.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I would expect that that I mean isn't that a bit like an iPhone not coming with a charger.
You know, I don't know.
I don't think it is.
I think it's like I think it's like an iPhone not coming with a case.
I mean I think that all those things the mats the mats you when you buy a new car you do not get carpet mats.
So I was all prepared to go out and buy some but no they came with them.
So I was really pleased and a little charge cable and a bracelet because I'm in the Cooper tribe.
Oh how nice Tom.
You're going to get a drive on it now that we can wear on in the future.
We will be at updates on your real world efficiency on that for the other spreadsheet that you're filling in.
You are.
Yeah.
Which is our real world efficiency drivers efficiency.
We've got a few coming up so don't forget to send those in whilst you're on the subject of the born.
Nicola's been to look at the new Cooper born hasn't she and we have a video of that on the channel which looks at the updates that have come to that.
So it's a really nice video and also there's a really good I say so you know just putting it out there.
There's also a very good review of the car up on the website so you could always go and check that out.
Electrifying.com go on you know you want to there's loads of info loads of pictures.
It's interesting.
It's good.
Good thing.
I love the Cooper.
I think the pre facelift born is more fashionable personally.
It's vintage darling vintage.
In silver.
Right.
Exactly.
I love that car.
That's a good choice.
But I just still like one to the LPs us.
So anyway.
And Vicky you've been driving a car.
Yeah.
Go on.
Tell us what you've been driving.
Yes.
I have been driving the new BMW IX3 Neuer class.
Which I think is probably the most exciting EV that we've seen for a number of years.
I'm really really I'm very taken with it.
I have actually spent quite a few days in it.
I've done quite a lot of miles in it.
And I really really like it.
I just think there are aspects of it that I think could be quite divisive.
I'm sure not everybody's going to love the way it looks.
I'm sure not everybody's going to love the optional the new fancy steering wheel.
Which is a little bit blingy but I do quite like it.
And also Nick drove it.
She likes it.
And I was like you know.
I love it.
I love the steering wheel.
Honestly I was like why would anyone not want this steering wheel.
It's just so nice.
I think it's just a bit unusual isn't it.
And some of the buttons on the steering wheel I find aren't in a terribly ergonomic position.
But I do really like the look of it.
And it didn't take long.
And I felt quite...
It doesn't feel unergonomic in terms of the shape of the wheel and stuff.
I quite like it too.
But I can...
I mean you can get a completely normal BMW steering wheel if you wish.
So it's one of those things.
If you like it, have it.
If you don't, you don't have to have it.
So that's all good.
More importantly, real world range.
So I've been doing lots of different kinds of driving.
I did a big long journey last week.
And I'm getting about 370-ish real world miles out of it on fairly steady motorway journeys.
Which is good.
I think I'd hoped it would be a little bit better than that.
But yeah.
So I'm getting sort of 3.4, 3.5-ish miles.
But I'm not using efficiency mode.
I'm just tootling around with the air con on.
I like a massage seat.
So I'm not really making any huge efforts to really get the best efficiency.
I'm just driving in a normal fashion in the standard mode.
So that's not bad.
And I have to say, when you get that kind of real world range, it's funny how it's just...
I suppose it is a bit of a game changer if you are a high mileage driver.
Because 370 miles without charging is a long time in the car.
So you don't even think about it.
That's days and days of driving basically for my normal life.
And it's pretty remarkable.
I don't actually personally think I need a car with that kind of range.
I find that if I have a car that can do 250 miles real world, that's about spot on for me.
So interestingly.
But I mean, I love the iX3 and I think it's going to sell so well.
It's great value for money for what you're getting in many respects.
We're doing a twin test with the Q6, which will be out on the channel in coming weeks.
So keep your eyes peeled for that.
But yeah, let us know which one you think is going to win that test.
So we'll see.
I wonder.
Anyway, I'm really impressed.
Which one is that?
I know.
I think the thing on the range for me is that it's difficult.
Because when I drove it on the launch, which is just not the right time to be looking at range figures.
Because it's been trashed by other journalists.
It's been driven short journeys.
You know, it's very difficult.
We're going to get one in as a long term test.
And I really want to try and get 500 miles out of it.
And that's going to be the mission for us with this car.
I think I found it when I drove it a little disappointing, a little under what I was expecting.
But again, because Twisty Country roads, motorway driving wasn't particularly an eco mode was filming,
doing lots of like back and forth as we do when we're filming.
So really interested to spend longer in it.
But I think even when you look at this real world of 370 on the motorway and obviously you'll get more around town.
This now means that all of these people who can't charge at home, you know,
you could put you could rapid charge your car once every couple of weeks now and be running around on that kind of range.
So depending on your lifestyle.
Depending on your lifestyle.
And I think so I think what it means is we talk a lot about these big battery cars being great for people who do long journeys.
But actually cars with this kind of real world range are a game changer if you can't charge at home.
An absolute game changer and really mean that that the pain point has gone as we will come on to costs,
you know, you've got to be factoring the costs that you'll get from charging more.
But particularly if you could find a way of charging somewhere overnight, you know,
when one of those lower cost charges, it's a really interesting proposition.
I think I don't know what your thoughts on IX3 Tom.
Well, I think it's great.
The one question I have, I don't know if you had a chance to ask them is about the waiting list because a friend of mine,
I recommended it to him.
He spoke to BMW dealer and they said, you have to wait a year.
Hands up on this.
Have you spoken to them about it, Vicki?
Because I have spoken to them.
I did speak to them on the launch and I got I got a very, very impressively vague answer saying,
well, it would be very regional.
They were surprised when I said we'd heard from people saying that they're having a year's wait.
They were like, oh, no, that can't possibly be right.
But the spokesperson says this is entirely useless to most people that it will be very regional.
It will depend on demand, but I think it would be.
I mean, I wouldn't be surprised at all if you're looking at a minimum six month wait for a newly spec for a freshly specced IX3.
I think that's what you're going to be looking at.
I had a chat with a spokesperson yesterday at the conference that I went to coming on to shortly and was told a similar thing,
but was told it's not a year.
It's less than that.
It's more in line with what Vicki said.
However, they're also bringing in the entry level model will be coming in soon.
So once that comes in, then supplier will start to lift as well.
So and that will be coming in.
I think it's fairly, it's sort of fairly imminent that that one will arrive.
So and you know what?
It's probably a car worth waiting for in our experiences of it.
Yeah, it is a fantastic car.
I mean, all I'd say is if you are spec'ing one up, go for smaller wheels because I'm a little bit surprised by how firm the ride feels on UK roads.
Not in any way a deal breaker.
I like it.
It's still lovely to drive, but you are, you know, that that ride is, you know, it's quite BMW-esque.
Let's say it feels like a BMW.
That's exactly what I would say.
And I can't talk about how the GLC drives it because that's still under embargo, but that's going to be the test that I cannot wait to do is those two together.
Volvo.
And the Volvo EX-60.
Triple test of that, which we'll do.
We're not driving the EX-60 though until midway through the year.
I think we're driving that in about May, but I think the, you know, the GLC and the Volvo once we can talk about that, that's going to be really interesting.
And talking Mercedes, I went to see a van.
Well, I don't know.
You can't call it van life anymore.
Can you?
Because van life has got very extra with the Mercedes VLE.
I think I likened it.
So, you know how when you go on planes, you know, we always would like to, to turn, you know, when most of us, we turn right and you get handed like you drink in a plastic cup and you're fighting for elbow space or you turn left and it's all champagne and reclining seats.
Well, that's what the VLE is.
It's definitely the first class experience.
It's quite insane.
And it's obviously really been built with that purpose of a very posh sort of, you know, taxi vehicle, obviously, you know, airport runs, I don't know, carrying around gangs of very wealthy people in the back.
I don't know.
But it's, I mean, the seats, the comfort seats in the back are insane.
You've got, you know, every kind of support everywhere, massaging everywhere, heating and cooling everything.
You've got a massive screen that drops down with your own remote controls.
The screen is huge.
It's basically got, you know, I think BMW i7 and you'll get the picture of what it's going to look like.
Check out the video if you haven't.
It was so extra.
It's just all I could think about was just how extra the whole thing was.
But it's such a big step forward, I think, in technology from where they've been, you know, 800 volt architecture, 300 to 315 kilowatt fast charging.
You can add about 200 miles in 15 minutes.
You know, so again, just the ID buzz, which I guess is the nearest competitor, you know, it can't compete on those kind of things.
So it's so much faster on charging.
You've got six to seven or an eight seat layout, stacks of range.
You know, I think if buzz is your sort of your posh family MPV, this is definitely the first class sort of celebrity experience.
It's right.
It's right.
It's rivals probably something like a BMW i7, isn't it?
Where you're being, yeah, where you're being chauffeured around because if you are being chauffeured around and you're very posh, then you probably have the choice of.
Yeah, it is.
And you send and a lot of the people driving this will be being paid to be in that front seat and and they have a very, very nice place to be paid to be in, honestly.
But it's the backseat passengers with their 31 inch screen that drops down and pillows and, you know, massaging everything that ones that are going to really love that experience.
But you know, it's not going to be as you would expect, you know, 70,000 and kind of taking a stab in the dark at that.
And they're doing well.
Yeah.
So go on.
I mean, but think about that in terms of how much a limo costs is actually not that bad, is it?
I mean, I know that you're probably not going to get the range you will have the new, you know, your new EQS and this kind of thing and that sort of stuff.
It's yeah, it's it's impressive, but it's not that it's I think it weirdly.
Yes, it's very expensive, but it depends on how you look at it, isn't it?
It's the same as the ID buzz, which is kind of expensive unless you start comparing it to some kind of luxury SUV rivals and then it sort of seems like good value.
But anyway, I don't know about anybody else.
I have never, ever been chauffeured to the airport or or tech taxage to the airport in something that posh.
It's nearly always a diesel, Skoda or Octavia is generally what it is.
I mean, the posh you start with hard is some of the that I was around here use.
There's one has got a model three.
That's the posh.
Yes.
Yeah.
Very nice.
That's about it.
But no, I completely agree.
You know, all kinds of, you know, random things, but the screen, the screens.
I mean, I'd love to know what everyone thinks about the screens.
They're so divisive.
Jay's YouTube, who is a regular to the podcast, has dropped a comment actually on the video and said, I'm not a screen fan, but I am shocked by how much I like the Mercedes hyper screens.
And they are going to be there, aren't they?
I mean, it's a meter of screen there.
They've basically replaced the dashboard with a screen.
It's an option, you know, you don't, you know, you don't get the, but then if you don't get the full thing, you don't get that bit in front of the passenger as well.
Do you, which is nice for the passengers to have.
It's very big.
It is a lot, but I suspect it will be, it will be divisive, but I think overall I liked it.
A very incredibly tight turning circle as well.
It's not steering back wheels.
Is that the.
Yeah.
And Vicky, you'll be pleased to hear it has some clever self parking tech because I know how much you love that because you struggle with parking.
I do not struggle with parking.
I will not have this said publicly.
I'm a very good Parker.
I will have, you know, an excellent parking.
I was just quite, I was quite impressed at the IX threes parking system.
It did genuinely surprise because I hate them.
I hate them all.
And I hate the sensation of the car driving itself, sitting in the driving seat and having the wheel spinning itself as the car goes into it.
Honestly, it makes me shiver.
I hate it, but I sort of had to restrain myself and let the car do its thing.
And it was impressive.
You know, the systems are good, but yeah, it's I still prefer to park myself, but I will give a nod to the systems and say they are quite impressive.
But on that note, on the tech and the hyper screens and this kind of thing.
Am I the only one that I don't get the passenger screen thing that seems to be in everything like the CLA, not just Mercedes, but all all cars.
I don't understand why people want a screen for the passenger.
I just even as a passenger, I don't want to screen.
I just find it such an odd thing.
Yeah, I don't get the benefits.
16 year old.
Then you know, then you'll understand.
That's what I believe for, isn't it?
Yeah.
Do they not just play with their phone?
Do they want to do the screen?
Screen to play around with too.
But, but, but, you know, there's all this stuff now, isn't there though that, you know, you can, you can listen to whatever you want.
So you might be carrying long journey, carrying passengers with this.
So the passenger can put their headphones on and watch something whilst you're driving away.
And then the people in the back can be watching something else.
So there's, I actually, you know, self driving cars are not going to be for you, Vicky.
One, if you don't like doing nothing, doing it on its own.
But also, I guess that when we get to this point where cars are doing more of the autonomy, then that will be what people will do.
You know, you might be on a zoom call in that.
If you think about the usage for some of these really luxury hind vehicles that have got this, you might be sitting in the front seat with your headphones on,
doing a zoom call and business call with work on your bit of the screen.
And then the driver can still have whatever they need for their bit.
That I think is where this is going and who it's aimed at.
Yeah.
I don't know.
The jury's out.
I see what you mean.
Yeah, you're not.
I think, I think, I think the VLE, I can see the, I can see the justification for it as for the driver when they're on rest stops and stuff as much as anything else.
But majority of cars, I just don't really, I just think people have laptops or iPads or phones that do the job just as well.
And I don't particularly want that much screen.
And I don't, I certainly wouldn't pay extra.
But what I would say at the moment, they generally quite expensive optional extras and having that tech there, if you want to, you know, fair enough.
Yeah.
Okay.
Good.
We move on to some news onto another spreadsheet.
Talk to us about your next spreadsheet, Tom.
Well, of course, because I got a Cooper born and because I knew that was going to be eligible for the intelligent tariffs, I went to change over to from my octopus go to octopus intelligent go as soon as I plugged in the car.
And I looked up the prices and thought, oh, hang on a minute.
That's more expensive than I'm currently paying on my dumb tariff.
So I had a look at my big long list of recommended tariffs and it's chaos out there.
So two suppliers have taken away their electric car tariffs completely octopus, which is the biggest has put up its its price by one people killer, which doesn't sound like much, but that's a 14% increase.
And its daytime rate has gone up as well for new customers, which means that if you're an average driver like me, you'll be paying 136 pound more per year.
The other companies have got smaller increases, but there are still substantial increases, especially in the daytime rates for those.
So it's not great news.
What I have heard through the grapevine is that it's expected to settle down a bit at the beginning of April.
There is a lower off-gem cap at the beginning of April anyway, but they hope that they'll be able to settle down and find some more long term deals on fuel.
And it will get a bit better.
So currently I'm still on my old tariff because it's cheaper, which seems crazy because it's dumb.
Yeah, still cheaper than petrol though.
Oh, a lot cheaper than petrol.
Petrol has gone up, but not by as much as you'd think actually.
It's gone up by six per litre, which is in percentage terms, not that much.
I mean, it still hurts if you're having to fill up your tank, but it's not like a huge catastrophe.
Okay.
And we've got a full, we're going to get full, a lot more updated explainers about charging and tariff in coming weeks over the website.
That's your next job.
Isn't it time to convert your spreadsheet into words?
Let's go on to something else geeky now.
Conferences.
So I went to a conference in Westminster yesterday, the Society for Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
So this is the trade body that represents all the different car brands in the UK.
And they were saying that they felt like the ZEV mandate, which if you don't know what the ZEV mandate is,
the ZEV mandate is basically targets that have been put in place that car makers have to make around selling electric vehicles.
So it basically is percentages of their overall sales and it ramps up every year.
So they were saying the ZEV mandate, they think needs to be looked at, needs to be consulted on.
Now, there is a consultation that the government's doing.
They're going to announce findings on that apparently early 2027,
but they were just saying that it with everything that's happening in the world with all the uncertainty and how things have not perhaps where we thought they'd be in terms of, you know, electricity pricing and the cost of batteries and just general chaos that they felt that the targets were unfair.
And I think it's quite easy to get the tiny little violins out and say, oh, well, you know, they always have a moan, don't they?
But I don't know. I think for me, it is an interesting thing, isn't it?
Should they be mandated? Should they be forced to sell electric vehicles?
Discussing the comments, I guess, is one for everybody out there.
Or should we let the market decide?
And is it actually those brands that are producing really good, great electric cars will sell them and those others that don't, you know, won't?
And is there a better way to doing it rather than forcing set numbers?
And I think one couple of interesting points was, well, the charging industry isn't fine.
If it doesn't meet its charging targets.
So why is the car industry being fine?
Because there are some hefty fines.
It's Ā£11,000 per car.
Fine if you don't meet the targets that are in place.
So it was an interesting one because I think there's also this thing about electric cars have taken billions and billions and billions of pounds worth of investment.
And not a lot of brands have been making money on electric cars.
You know, they have been pushing deals, but they're not making as much money as they would have made on petrol and diesel sales.
And in fact, some brands are only literally just starting to make money years and years after selling different models.
So I think it's a really interesting approach.
You know, I mean, personally, do we want a stick for the car industry or do we want more carrots for the car buyer?
I think I'd like a few more carrots for the car buyer.
I'd like to have seen the electric car ground extended to all the industry.
You know, so people have got choice.
I'd like to see as I run to look back a bit more support for the used industry.
I'd like to see more support for charging, you know, and charges being fitted at home for those that are buying smaller affordable cars.
So I don't know. I just think it's a really interesting. It's very easy to go.
Oh, yeah, they're always moaning. It's the car industry, you know, they make loads of money.
But the reality is this transition is costing billions and billions and billions.
So I don't know. I thought it was an interesting one to discuss.
I suppose if you look at the stick situation, they're always asking for some sort of stability and some sort of foresight of what's coming.
And they've had that. And if you start changing, does that mean that they can say, oh, well, this is no lot, especially if you're one of those people who's invested billions.
Now you're changing it to benefit the people who didn't invest that money.
And also, I'm a great believer in people will come to electric cars because they're just better than their petrol car they had before.
But would they be better if there hadn't been that investment and they hadn't been forced into it?
Or would the car makers just have dragged their feet a bit more and made their electric cars a bit worse?
Would the BMW X3 exist in its exceptional form if BMW hadn't thought we're going to have to do this because of all these rules that are coming?
I don't know.
Yeah.
No, I'm in agreement, actually. I think, well, I'm going to slightly split the difference here because I'm going to say that we need the stick and the carrot.
I think you do need the Zev mandate.
And I think it was always going to be a tricky thing to get the actual parameters of that mandate right.
And I think that may be open for discussion.
I think I could understand why manufacturers are feeling a bit kind of put upon.
I suppose it's a very mild worth putting it because, as you say, I know the investment and the effort that's gone into this.
But the problem is it's very difficult for some of them to sell EVs and some of them, I would say, because some are selling a good number of EVs.
Yeah.
Profit margins are small, but the problem is there isn't the carrot then, is there?
They've got the really big stick, but they haven't incentivized them enough and not consistently enough.
I think consistency is really difficult.
They've had grants at different times.
They've had grants for charging that have gone.
They've grants for cars they've gone.
Then they've added grants for that and grants.
And it's very confusing and it's not very confidence inspiring.
And we're back to this thing where the government isn't consistent in its incentives for the car buyer.
So I would say that we need the stick and the carrot.
And that is where I fall on the argument.
I think I wonder if the fact that we're quite unique in these very specific targets in the UK.
And of course, as we talk about a lot, the car industry is a global business.
So you've got different targets in different countries.
Europe's doing one thing and the UK's doing another.
I think it makes it very hard for these global brands, I think.
And as we've seen recently, is this right that we've just seen?
I'm not across the story of it, but I think it was either you or Tom that mentioned that today, as we're recording this,
Honda now is stopping some EV sales, is that right?
Yeah.
Well, so it doesn't sell the ENY1 anymore, does it?
And it's just an answer that I think it's going to stop.
It's the new range of EVs that it was coming out with.
I don't think it's coming to the UK.
So I think basically at the moment, Honda is, yes, there doesn't seem to be any particular desire from Honda
to actually offer an electric car.
And you have to wonder whether...
And I say this, it's very sad because I love Honda as a brand.
I think it's an incredible brand and I love a lot of their cars.
And I think the Honda E was probably very ahead of its time.
But yeah, at the moment, Honda seems to be extremely...
It seems to have decided that it's better just to not put the investment in.
I think probably is where they're at.
But we'll see.
We'll see.
Maybe that will change, but that's where they're at right now.
Interesting.
One for you to discuss in the comments, please.
Let us know what your thoughts are on it.
Carrots or sticks?
Do we need both?
Well, which one do we need?
Barnard, just give us a bargain.
Come on.
What have you got?
Well, all these quotas and things do mean that there are some bargains out there.
And one of them was actually that a dealer who was doing Honda E and Y1s for, I think it was 298 quid a month with 298 quid down.
I did think about it and thought, no, I've never driven it.
I don't know.
I don't like it.
So didn't.
But looking at Japanese and cars that do have grants, the Nissan Leaf is now on the leasing list.
Ā£333 a month for 8,000 miles over four years, which I thought was pretty good if you look at its competitors.
So, big battery.
I like the Leaf.
I really like it.
I think it's a decent car.
I think decent is a really good word to describe it.
It's so decent, Vic.
It's just like perfect because it's not kind of like, wow, in any way, right?
But it's a really good, decent, solid car.
Whether you want it in turquoise, I think we'll be very much down to you.
I'm here for the turquoise.
I like it.
I like it.
I love it.
It's teal, isn't it?
It's not turquoise.
I like it, but I think there's a good price on that one.
The thing is, where are they?
And the Micra.
I haven't seen them on the road, have you?
They're coming soon.
I think they're arriving very soon, I think.
Every time for a facelift, by the time it...
I think this happened with the area as well.
It's just like, where is this car?
Yeah, well, I mean, on that note, has anybody spoken to Fiat about where the Grande Panda is?
That's been...
How long has it taken them to get that here from Italy?
Goodness me.
I got all the time to have that curly charging.
You did, yeah.
I'm stuck in Italy.
Right, let's move on to your comments and your questions.
I'm going to just kick off with a quick shout out to DS Bluma, who has sent us efficiency on the LeapSea 10.
Kenneth Paul, Renault McGann, e-tech efficiency.
We've got loads of great facts and figures for our owner's efficiency spreadsheet that we're working on.
Keep them coming.
Tom loves doing that.
He's ready for your spreadsheet.
Also, if you can, we've got a survey running on electrifine.com, which is just trying to figure out what could...
What should be done to make the...
To make public charging better in terms of signage and pricing.
So, pop over to electrifine.com.
And if you haven't, fill that survey in for us.
It should pop up the first one you visit the site.
So, shall we do...
Vicky, do we have an electric version of the week?
We do.
We have so welcome to our electric version of the week, who is at Scorpion X ROG.
I'm not entirely sure.
So, you'll have to forgive me if I've got that wrong.
So, yeah.
So, we've got a message from them saying, hello.
I also took the jump and joined the gang with the stunning Polestar 4.
So, I do hope that you are enjoying it because it's a cool car.
I'm quite a big fan of the Polestar 4.
You see a lot around as well.
That's a good deal on them.
That's why.
Really good deals.
But also, so Ben, Ben of our parish has bought one.
Two of my friends bought one actually on my recommendation.
People that have them really, really like them.
The two make mine that bought one.
They love them.
Ben, Ben our money man, Ben who signs the checks and pays our wages.
He like, he really likes it, doesn't it?
And he's very cautious with his money, Ben.
Because he's the keeper of the brand.
Yeah, exactly.
And Nick's got one for a long term, hasn't she?
So, there's that content up on the channel as well.
So, you can see how Nick's been getting on with her Polestar 4.
And don't forget, she's obviously still in love with the BYDC.
Also, it's got quite a hard job to persuade her how good it is.
But yeah, I have to check that out.
It's just an interesting car, isn't it?
I think it feels like a lot of car for the money that Polestar 4.
So, very nice.
I hope you get on well with it.
Yeah, Tom, what's up next?
There's something else.
Mr. Claw, UK, was talking about sliding bench seat saying,
I think the Ice T-Cross, Volkswagen T-Cross,
let us all choose legroom versus boot space for different needs.
Yeah.
It's not a new idea, is it?
No, it's not.
It's interesting because there were some quite supportive comments
that I picked up on for that one, which was slightly bored,
hopefully not slightly bored as our podcast from our podcast,
said, yes, Answer in the Crowd.
Yes.
Also, the load lift from the Renault 4.
If we aren't allowed smaller states anymore,
at least let us have practicality back.
And SWR 12 on YouTube also said,
the rear legroom actually stopped me getting a Renault 5.
I may still get one, but it gave me that moment of pause.
And I've just left it at decision making for now.
If you could move the rear seats without luggage to give more room,
it would be my default.
And I've got to say,
as somebody who's been running that Renault 5 for almost a year now,
it's not great in the back if you've got, you know,
I've got teenagers, you know, I'd carry my son in the back,
he's like 5'11", and his mates,
and they were in there last weekend and, you know,
it's like heads to the seat, you know,
it's not great and it would give a bit more,
you know, legroom's not great either.
So I don't know, it's not a new idea though, is it, Tom?
No, like the original Twingo had a sliding rear seat.
I don't know if it was first, the Yaris, I think, had it as well.
Tom, I'm surprised at you that you don't know this
off the top of your head immediately,
what the first car ever made with the sliding rear seat was.
I'm going to go for Twingo,
but there's probably, you know, some strange car
from the 1930s that had it off the top.
I will chip in here, yeah, almost certainly.
I will chip in here because I have also had this thought
that it seemed to be that there were years and years
that went by when you could not get a sliding seat in any EV,
and I've never been entirely able to get an answer
as to whether that's to do with perhaps how the seats are mounted
because of the battery under the floor,
whether there was an issue with that being a difficulty.
Things like when the Renault Scenic came out,
which is to use it as a very decent family EV,
I like the Scenic, it's really good,
but it always frustrated me that it felt like it didn't have
the versatility, it should have had a sliding seat.
Where is the modern Skoda Yeti of the world
with the removal seats and the sliding, you know,
and that kind of compact but practical.
Maybe the Renault Fours as close as you get?
I don't know.
I've got the answer for that.
The Mercedes VLE, if you go for one of the versions
without the squishy seats, you can take all the seats out
and basically...
Ginny, that's an 80-90 grand luxury car,
that's not a modern Skoda Yeti.
I don't know, I was just chucking it in there anyway.
But yeah, what...
Go on, sorry, Tom, I just...
I suppose one of your favourites, Ginny,
was sort of Yeti-ish, the Kia Soul.
Oh, I lost.
That was kind of practical, wasn't it?
I don't know if you could take the seats out,
but it was certainly boxy and practical, wasn't it?
I love that car.
I might have to see one of those, just to...
But I know what they're saying.
It's the sliding bench seats.
It's just a really handy idea.
It's the versatility, yeah.
Let us know in the comments below what feature
do you think every EV should have.
We've got sliding bench seats.
Come on, add some more for us.
What do you reckon?
And we'll read them out on next week's podcast.
Now, we were talking last week about Citroen.
We're talking about, well, we're talking about lots of things,
but we're talking about how Renault has done that great job
with its retro models,
but bringing them back without it being a past station.
You know, it's just doing great stuff, isn't it?
And I made the comment of,
why doesn't Citroen lean into this a bit more?
Why are more brands doing this?
Because wouldn't we love to see an electric Citroen 2CV?
And a lot of people agree.
Les Halliwell said, please tell Citroen to go retro.
There is a lot to go for.
Brian Davies 6.074 said,
I'd love to see an EV 2CV too,
though I feel something so slab sided
might be too challenging for any designer
with a brief to produce a low CD factor.
And I think, you know, there is this thing, isn't there?
Why do you think it's Renault
that's mainly leaning into its history really well?
Why do you think brands like Citroen aren't tapping into it?
I think it's all down to the boss, isn't it?
So I think Renault, the boss came along,
who thought it was a good idea
and saw it in the styling studio
and thought we'll go for that.
And Citroen have always been,
no, we're forward looking
and we're not going to tap into our past
in that sort of way.
And has that done them harm?
I don't know.
I mean, the Volkswagen Beetle was...
It wasn't quite there, was it?
Lord, people loved it.
It didn't work.
It just didn't work when it came.
It was fine, but it wasn't...
You know, it didn't tap into it in the same way.
And I think, you know, I think you could argue,
Mini, did Mini do it?
I think Mini did it.
But do they do it now?
Not with everything in the range.
I don't think they do.
So I think it can be...
It's a very hard thing to get right, isn't it?
It is tricky.
Can I just say, because as you were reading this out
across my mind,
what about calling it the 2C EV?
I mean, isn't that kind of a...
There you go.
The name, the 2C EV.
There you go, the 2C EV.
And I think...
I mean, if you want slab sided but aerodynamic,
they're out there.
I mean, that VLE video that you did, yeah.
So I think that could be done.
I think Citroen should do it.
And I will put this out there.
I actually quite like the look of modern Citroens.
Maybe not so much the EC4, but I like the EC3.
I like the EC5.
I think they're doing quite good things with design,
but I am absolutely on board with going more retro
and doing something really cool like that.
The LO concept, that had some fantastic styling stuff.
So hopefully we'll see more of that in production.
But what do you think it should be?
What do you think it should be?
Do you think it should be like the original 2C EV was?
Very basic.
So like the...
Yes.
Olly concept that you drove with this,
or should it be like the Renault 4?
Which is...
The Renault 4 is just the bigger Renault 5.
It's not actually anything like the original Renault 4
in its concept business.
I don't think the Renault 4 works for me quite as well
as the Renault 5.
And I think if they did do the 2C EV,
it should absolutely tap into the Olly concept.
Because I think the joy of that was it was so paired back.
And I think it should be no screens and you plug your phone in.
I think it should have some of those themes that we see in the AMI.
So it's almost like, you know,
it's somewhere between an AMI and, you know,
one of their bigger cars.
And I agree on Citroen design.
I think their design team are doing some really interesting stuff,
but I think they need a bit of freedom to be allowed to do a bit more.
The problem is we're never going to get a really basic 2C EV,
are we?
Because they've already done it with the EC3.
And they'd locked in the shorter range one,
cut the EC3 urban.
They're kind of in that segment already.
They've already got a car that's worth 18 grand and up,
isn't it, for the smaller battery.
But maybe in the future, maybe in the next, you know,
maybe that is something they could look at.
I'd like to see the 2C EV in some way,
but I do wonder if...
I know what you mean about the Renault 4 Tom,
but I think the modern buyer,
I wonder if with that kind of heritage,
I think maybe you want to lean into a slightly more upmarket,
slightly more longer range,
something above the EC3.
I wonder.
I think probably it would actually make more sense financially these days.
Much as I would love to see the two, you know,
a modern 2C EV that was, you know,
really basic, really car for the people,
but I'm not sure.
I don't mean it should be really expensive,
but I think it would have to be slightly more upmarket.
And let us know what you would like to see coming back as an EV.
I want an electric MX-5.
So bad.
Yes.
So bad.
And I want it to have pop-up headlights.
Which I know is not allowed, it's not a thing anymore, is it?
But that's what I want.
Let us know in the comments below,
what do you want to come back and why?
Right, what next?
Well, this leans into the Citroen thing as well,
and it's worth commenting to,
because I think this is an interesting question.
Does anyone care about platform sharing?
So we had a question in, so, at OB Smith 1A,
and they said,
I don't think the majority of people notice
that different brands are on the same platform.
It's only car people who do.
And I've had this discussion a number of times with lots of people,
and I suspect that OB Smith is correct.
They go on to say,
I remember Lotus Esprit having Austin Allegro door handles,
and they actually looked cool at the time.
80s Ferrari had Fiat Sturz,
Polestar 2 was very Volvo in places,
but that doesn't bother me either.
And OB Smith goes on to say,
I think the Stellantis EVs are quite appealing,
but only make sense at the discounted prices.
The E208 is still the nicest looking car.
Like, you loved your E208, didn't you, Ginny?
So, yeah, I do.
I mean, I think this came off the back of Batch and I
talking about the Stellantis financial news as well.
And then there's also a general chat about,
have they gone too far on,
we all know that these big brands share switches and buttons,
and do people really care or is it an industry thing?
And I think what was interesting was,
we had quite a few comments sort of agreeing.
We had Alistair Hughes saying,
the similarity of designing features is very much a you issue.
So, as in journalists, which I'm kind of wondering if it was.
Most people own a car for a number of years,
and therefore don't experience other cars with similar features,
so they don't really care.
But we actually had somebody who, Tom,
if you want to take this one, Stevie Card,
who had a very different opinion.
Yeah, he says, very interesting what you say about Stellantis.
My wife has a Mocha electric,
which she's been driving for four years.
It was our first electric car, no bother,
but sometimes she's ready for something more exciting.
She's not really into cars,
but just like something distinctive.
So, we went to look at an Alfa Romeo Junior.
She jumped out in horror, identifying straight away the parts
sharing and hard points on the platform.
Hard points, there's a technical term.
Even non-nerds notice these things.
Stellantis needs to take better care of their emotional brands.
I think that's where it is, isn't it?
Is those emotional brands we need to make it different?
I mean, if you have a platform sharing
where you've got all the major components that are different,
it's very clever for them to be able to make a Citroen
and an Alfa Romeo using those same bits
and make them drive differently,
which they do by changing the way the steering feels,
the way the car rides.
But occasionally, you do get into a car,
even as a leper and go,
well, this is just the same as another distinctive car.
Or it isn't up to the quality that I would expect from a X brand.
And where you get with, if you're looking at a Leasing,
as I have been doing, and there's a Citroen EC3
and a Vauxhall Frontera,
and you can tell just by the pictures
that they're very, very similar cars.
Unless there's a dealer down the road or whatever it is,
you're just going to go on the cheaper one.
And if you're going on price alone,
and same with the micro in the Renault 5,
then that's a dangerous thing for car companies and their profit,
because they just go for whichever one's cheaper.
Yeah, I think it's interesting, because Nick in particular,
I mean, let's not get her started on the slap,
and they sound bad,
Jonik Rantz from last season of the podcast,
which was just how actually sort of lazy in a way,
the fact that there's been bad sharing
between Nissan with the Micra,
and they've basically taken the Renault 5
sort of platform and engineering,
but even the interior, even to the point that
it's so much like a Renault.
So I think they do have to be really careful.
We had an interesting one in about this one as well, didn't we?
Just saying that there are other groups that do this
and actually do it really well.
Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, I think we had a comment as well, haven't we?
So we've had Neil R. Williams has written in
and said, perhaps you should compare Stellantis to the VW group
in terms of platform and parts sharing.
And I was thinking this myself,
because it's not exactly like Stellantis are the only ones
who have a lot of brands using all of the same parts.
VW group obviously has sort of become a bit of a poster child
for how that can be done very successfully.
But what is it that Volkswagen's done that others haven't?
They've sort of, I mean, Cooper is a really good example
to go back to your born again.
So Cooper, which essentially was, you know,
it was the hot badge for Seat.
And now I think Cooper is far more desirable than Seat
and everybody's sort of forgotten that Seat does actually still exist.
But Cooper was really well launched
and has done a really good job
of establishing a completely different brand identity
and the cars actually do feel different to the others,
which is a really difficult thing to do
because it is still parts sharing
in exactly the same way that Stellantis do it.
They have made it different.
And having seen, you know, the VW group's small cars,
again, they're different.
They are, they're going to feel and look different.
So I just, yeah, I don't know why it's not as apparent
with Stellantis because it definitely isn't.
They do feel more samey.
Not in exterior design, of course.
I don't think they're doing exterior design.
For what it's worth, I think Stellantis are aware of it
and I think you're starting to see how they are trying
to differentiate more.
If you look at things like the new EC5
has a completely different touch screen system
to the Jeep, to the Peugeot, to this kind of thing.
So I think they are trying to introduce more differentiation,
but obviously they've had a big change of boss.
And I'd be the first, I think Stellantis is a bit muddled
and a bit tricky and yeah, but they do some good cars
and I think we might see them improve
in terms of that kind of brand identity in the next few years.
I hope so because I think it is important as we've discussed.
So yeah, we'll see.
Good.
Well, let us know as always your thoughts.
We're now at the podcast.
We're coming up to the kilowatt 45 minute mark.
So should we end on some random thoughts that we've had
and just some random comments that caught our eyes.
Okay.
So DFID7 Torah.
Oh, ID7 Torah.
Has he been listening to Vicky?
Has he been listening to Vicky Barra?
Yeah, it's me.
It's actually me and they're a different name.
That is Vicky's favourite car.
Vicky's answer to everything.
What shall I buy?
ID7 Torah.
ID7 Torah.
It's big, it's comfy, it's eco, I love it.
We know, we know that you know.
We've been banging on about it for two years now.
So he said, well, he's put it nicely,
but he's saying bugger me.
Twice in a week and the Mighty Bee as well,
which is Bach, the only member of the team
that hits the eco mode.
Which is not true.
You've never hit the eco mode in your life, Ginny.
You don't even know it exists.
Leadfoot Ginny.
I was about to say that you are a regular B mode user,
the Mighty Bee Barnard as well.
I use it all the time.
Yoda lives in eco mode and B mode.
I swear.
Yoda lives in that mode around town.
Last time your car was checked,
it was a Renault 5 and it was doing about
one mile per kilowatt hour.
That's unfair about Yoda.
Yoda has lived in...
Look, occasionally I might not,
but most of the time I am down with the stalk to B mode,
put her into eco.
Don't look at me like that.
Shall we move on?
Normally the heat is a smelting aluminium heat.
In sport mode.
Let's move on now.
Let's talk about Ohio.
We had a comment.
Our electric virgin last week was one of our fabulous
listeners from Ohio.
Buckeye EV charging,
who had finally gone electric after watching
lots of our videos and getting lots of advice.
He'd said,
but had gone for a car that we don't get in the UK,
the Chevrolet Equinox EV.
And I just thought maybe the Buckeye state,
which is where Buckeye EV charging comes from,
was named after me.
Maybe it's a Buckley connection,
but Stuart J5520 has said no.
Ohio is known as the Buckeye state due to the Buckeye trees
and their nuts being plentiful there.
And then I googled a Buckeye tree and they're beautiful
and I now want to go and live in Ohio
because it looks really pretty.
Nothing to do with EVs,
but the Buckeye tree is a very, very pretty thing.
I'll just look it up now.
Beautiful.
We'll put a picture on the podcast.
Hopefully there'll be a picture of a Buckeye tree for you.
Honestly, you should see them in autumn.
The colours of the leaves.
Beautiful.
Right, we've got another comment at Stephen Wensley
on the VW Spice Cards.
If the T-Cross is the fourth one,
then surely the rumoured return of an MEB platform,
the Audi A2 is fifth, that would be interesting, wouldn't it?
But does that make it scary or ginger?
Perhaps the latter now that Skoda has taken
its premium slot in the group.
And yeah, so I don't know.
Comments again, let us know what do you think
the fourth and fifth Spice Cards will be called?
What will they be? What will they be called?
I'm not sure.
And let's end with a final comment on...
We were talking, if you missed this,
about the beeps and bongs that tell you you're tired the minute
that you've pulled off your drive,
and how we really don't like those,
because we don't need reminding that we look tired
on a Monday morning.
And Brian Davies, 6S74,
said about dopey drowsiness monitors,
they should be mandated to initiate with,
hey, you don't look old enough to drive.
Please verify your age.
Which I'm completely down with that.
It depresses me so much
that the years have long since gone
where I get S for ID when I buy alcohol in the supermarket.
It's only when I go through the automatic ones
where they beep for everybody.
And they do it remotely.
It's like, yeah, yeah.
I've been spot the grace from here.
She's definitely old enough.
I was going to say, Ginny, I don't know what you're talking about.
You don't look a day over 18.
Pay increase across the team for everybody.
Yeah, absolutely.
So it's really nice to be back, isn't it?
Really fun to be back.
Well, I think we need to wrap this one up
because we will be at the kilowatt hour soon.
Yeah, I was going to say we're nearly
at the full kilowatt hour at this point.
So let us know your comments, your thoughts,
and your car buying questions.
We'd love to help you out if you've got any dilemmas
that you're trying to choose between this car and that car.
We will be back next week in the meantime.
Have fun and drop us a line podcast at electrifying.com
or leave your comments in the comments below.
But for now, from us.
Bye.
Request an explanation for:
6 cars
6 cars featured
Request an Explanation
Heard something you'd like explained? We'll add it to this episode.
Sign in to request explanations for terms you heard.
Want to learn more?
Browse our glossary for plain-English explanations of automotive terms, jargon, and concepts.
See something that's not quite right? Our annotations are AI-generated and can sometimes miss the mark.
Click the flag icon on any annotation to suggest a correction.
