Kilowatt Half Hour Ep 95: VW’s Spice Girls, Polestar windows & Cars of the Year!
The Kilowatt Half Hour
Kilowatt Half Hour Ep 95: VW’s Spice Girls, Polestar windows & Cars of the Year!
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Concept
mid-life facelift
A mid-life facelift is when a car gets a bit of a makeover halfway through its time being sold. It might look a little different or have some new features, but it’s still the same car underneath.
Concept
model year upgrade
A model year upgrade is when a car gets some improvements or changes partway through its production, like new features or better software, but it’s still mostly the same car.
Brand
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a big car company from Germany that makes electric cars among others. Sometimes they need to update the software in their cars to fix problems and make them work better.
Term
software update
A software update is like when your phone or computer gets new instructions to fix problems or add new features. Cars, especially electric ones, also get these updates to work better.
Term
kilowatt hour
A kilowatt hour is a way to measure how much electricity a battery can hold or how much energy a car uses when it runs.
Car
Dodge Charger
The Dodge Charger is a big, strong car from America that looks cool and can go really fast. Sometimes people call an older or simpler version a 'granny charger' because it's more for easy, everyday driving than racing.
Car
Skoda Epic
The Skoda Epiq is a small electric SUV that is good for daily driving and doesn't cost too much. It's made by a company called Skoda and is designed to be easy to use.
Term
Q at the end of Skoda model names
Skoda puts the letter 'Q' at the end of some car names to show that they are SUVs or crossovers, which are cars that are a bit bigger and good for different types of driving.
Term
crossover
A crossover is a car that looks a bit like an SUV but drives more like a regular car. It’s a mix of both to give you space and comfort.
Car
Kia EV2
The Kia EV2 is a new electric car that will be available soon. It's designed to be a good and affordable option for people who want to drive an electric car.
Term
one pedal driving
One pedal driving means you can make the car slow down just by letting go of the gas pedal, so you don't have to press the brake as much.
Term
kilowatt battery
A kilowatt battery is like a big rechargeable battery in an electric car that stores energy. The number tells you how much energy it can hold to make the car go.
Part
adaptive sport suspension
Adaptive sport suspension is a car feature that changes how soft or hard the car's suspension feels while driving to make the ride smoother or sportier depending on the road.
Term
electronic stability control
Electronic stability control is a safety feature in cars that helps keep the car from sliding or spinning out by controlling the brakes and engine when the car starts to lose control.
Car
CLA Shooting Brake
The CLA Shooting Brake is a type of car that looks like a sporty wagon. It has more space in the back than a regular car, so you can carry more stuff, but it still looks sleek and cool.
Car
Byd Seal
The BYD Seal is a new electric car from China that is fast and has lots of cool features. Many people think it's a great car that can compete with other popular electric cars.
Car
Tesla Model 3
The Tesla Model 3 is a fully electric car that runs on batteries instead of gas. It's known for being fast, having a long driving range, and lots of tech features.
Term
European Car of the Year
It's an important prize given every year to the best new car in Europe, picked by car experts who look at how good and useful the car is.
Car
Porsche Taycan
The Porsche Taycan is a fast electric car that can charge quickly because of a special electrical system. When it first came out, it had some problems with this system, but those have been fixed now.
Car
Renault 5
The Renault 5 is a small car made by a French company called Renault. It was popular because it was easy to drive and had a cool look. Some versions were made to be sporty and fast.
Car
Ford Fiesta
The Ford Fiesta is a small car that was popular because it was easy to drive and saved gas. Ford stopped making it in some places because more people want bigger cars now.
Concept
SUV
SUVs are bigger cars that can carry more people and stuff. Many people like them because they feel safer and can go on rough roads.
Concept
concept car
A concept car is like a design idea for a new car that companies show to people. It might look cool but usually isn't sold exactly like that.
Car
Peugeot In Peugeot
The Peugeot iOn is a tiny electric car that is easy to drive around the city. Peugeot is adding new technology to their cars that helps with steering without using traditional parts.
Term
steer-by-wire
Steer-by-wire means the steering wheel controls the car's wheels using computers and wires instead of a physical link. It can make steering easier and safer.
Car
Peugeot 208
The Peugeot 208 is a small car made by Peugeot. It is popular in Europe and now has new technology that changes how the steering works.
Car
Peugeot 2008
The Peugeot 2008 is a small SUV made by Peugeot. It is like a taller version of the 208 and has more room inside.
Car
EX60 Volvo Ex60
The Volvo EX60 is a new electric SUV that is safe and stylish. It's made by Volvo, a company known for making cars that protect people well.
Car
Volvo XC60
The Volvo XC60 is a popular SUV that many people buy because it's safe and comfortable. It helped make Volvo famous for making good SUVs.
Car
Bmw Ix3
The BMW iX3 is an electric SUV, which means it runs on electricity instead of gas. It's a fancy car that is quiet and clean, and people compare it to other electric SUVs like the Mercedes GLC.
Car
Mercedes-Benz Mercedesbenz Glc
The Mercedes-Benz GLC is a fancy small SUV that is comfortable to drive and has lots of modern features. People often compare it to other similar cars like the BMW iX3.
Term
claimed range
Claimed range is how far the car maker says the electric car can go before it needs to be charged again.
Car
Polestar 4
The Polestar 4 is a new electric SUV that looks cool and drives well. They recently changed the design to add back the rear window, making it better for everyday use.
Term
estate
An estate is a type of car that has extra space in the back for carrying things, like a longer trunk with a door you can open from the back.
Term
wagon
A wagon is a kind of car that has a big space in the back for carrying stuff, like a longer car with a door at the back to open it.
Car
Chevrolet C10
The Chevrolet C10 is an old pickup truck from America that many people like because it's strong and easy to fix. It's famous and often talked about when people want to restore or collect old cars.
Car
Alpina B10
The Alpina B10 is a special, faster, and fancier version of a BMW car. It has extra buttons on the steering wheel that let you control some things easily while driving.
Concept
electric
Electric cars run on batteries and use electricity to move instead of gas or diesel.
Concept
charge point
A charge point is like a gas pump but for electric cars, where you plug in to fill up the battery.
Car
Polestar 2
The Polestar 2 is an electric car that looks nice and drives well. The long-range version can go farther on a single charge and uses one motor to keep things simple.
LIVE
Hello and welcome to the Kilowatt Half Hour, a podcast about the world of EVs brought to you by the team at electrifying.com.
We're back!
Most of all, before we get started, we're so sorry to everyone who's been emailing and messaging and shouting at us, wondering where we had gone.
Yes, I know. The simple answer, I think we just needed a bit of a factory reset, didn't we really?
Yeah, if we try and put it in like car terms, we've had like a model year upgrade, so we've got like new software, we've had a mid-life facelift, but not on our actual faces instead with some mid-life facelift.
Speak for yourself, I might have a bit of work done over here.
I have quite an idea of a mid-life facelift, maybe that's a different podcast.
I think this is our new version 2.0, with fewer glitches, a bit like when VW had to do the massive software update, but it's going to be better than that.
Yes, but most of all, we have missed you all, and we've missed everybody, haven't we?
We really missed everybody.
We have, so welcome back everyone. Do you want to dive straight in?
Let's dive straight in.
The busiest time, I mean, I actually can't remember being this busy.
It's been absolutely crazy, and obviously it means that we haven't had as much time to do the podcast, but look, we're back.
So what's been going on in the world of electric cars?
So should we kick off with what we've been looking at, what we've been driving, what's been going on?
I think we need to do an edit of this, I think, because if we just did everything that's happened, this would not even be the kilowatt hour.
This would be the kilowatt day, I think.
The kilowatt omnibus, is that a thing?
I think it's the omnibus.
The granny charger.
It would be the granny charger at first.
And that is, in all honesty, why I think it took us so much longer to get this podcast back on air, because it's been very, very busy.
So let's kick off, shall we, with the VW Group triplets, I think?
Because in a really kind of nice piece of synergy, we've each driven one of them.
So congratulations, Volkswagen, they're having triplets.
Yay for them.
So sweet.
So I think we can each take one of these to talk about, but when I drove the Ravel, I likened them to the Spice Girls.
And I realised that actually, you can think of each of one of these three cars as a Spice Girl.
So the VW ID Polo, well, it's Baby Spice.
Spice!
It's definitely Baby Spice.
Everyone's going to love that car.
Yeah.
Cooper Sport Spice.
Of course.
It doesn't actually get much more in terms of performance, but it's got a few nice little tricks that you can, which I'll talk about a minute, that you can spec and we'll make it more fun.
And then I thought Epic.
Epic is posh Spice, because let's face it.
Skoda is basically Audi these days.
This is like, that's the job that Skoda.
Yeah, maybe.
That might be a different discussion, but yes, I know exactly what you mean, actually.
It's quite an aspirational brand, Skoda, hasn't it?
So shall we each take a VW Spice Girl, Vicky?
Why not?
How did you buy posh when you went for a drive in her?
So I went for a drive in posh Spice, which I don't think is a sentence I ever expected to say.
But yeah, so I drive the Skoda Epic.
Epic with a Q.
And with a Q, of course.
Epic or Epic?
No, Epic Qua.
Epic.
Epic Qua.
No shush.
It's a bit like just giving, when you give your baby a normal name, but you make the spelling slightly different just to annoy everyone.
This is like the first day back at term when everyone's overexcited.
Everyone's really overexcited.
As you were, Vicky, please lead us.
No, it's a Skoda thing, isn't it? The Q at the end of their model names.
But anyway, so this is the Skoda Epic.
I drove a prototype version in a very funky camo around Porto, which is well worth checking out.
Got YouTube shot because the car looks amazing and also Porto is very beautiful.
So it's quite nice.
And I really like it.
It's interesting because actually the Epic, I think is further removed from the Polo and the Ravel.
I think it's quite, it's a bit different because it's a bit bigger.
So it's actually the same size as the Kamek, which is also with a Q, by the way.
And so you're talking about, it's, yeah, so it's a little bit bigger.
It's about 4.3 meters, I think, off the top of my head.
And it's a bit chunkier.
It's got kind of quite a jeepish grill on the front of it.
So this is like a crossovery thing.
It's definitely a little bit bigger, a bit more rugged.
And that sort of separates a bit from the smaller, I think slightly kind of more, you know, a bit more sort of urban oriented Polo and the Sportier Ravel.
So I think that's how it's kind of panning out really.
Okay.
And you took Baby Spice.
I took Baby Spice.
I took Baby Spice for a drive.
We had a wonderful time.
Me and the Polo have got along like a house on fire.
Now, here's the thing.
I think recently with a lot of sort of VW cars, there's obviously been all of the hatred for all of their entertainment and the whole touch screen thing.
And they basically have listened and changed it because they changed it for no one liked it.
And they went, yeah, you're right, we're wrong.
We'll fix it.
And they fixed it.
And honestly, I think I even gave a round of applause to VW during that video.
I was like, this is such a good car.
Fun little facts.
Actually, I was told by the VW guys when I saw them a few weeks ago at the awards thing where I saw you at.
And they went, oh, just so you know, your video was played internally to like all of VW because the guy said, well, I can't describe the Polo better than Nicola from Electrifying and played our video, played our video to everyone internally at VW.
Amazing.
That is so nice.
Yeah, that's so good.
And also that fact that the thing we love the most is that the design director at VW, who is the nicest person.
Well, one of the nice people I've ever met is called Drumroll, please.
Andrea Smith.
It's perfect.
It's just too good.
It's so perfect.
And also the retro screen that they now have is easily the best thing I think I've ever seen.
And for those that love the old video, the old VWs of back in the day where you could put in a cassette tape and that kind of thing.
That's all there, but digitally.
And it's the little tiny details, the fact that you can see that little bit of the red of the tape in the cassette turning round.
The fact that when it goes on to maps, it's like it's a paper map so you can see creases in the paper and stuff.
It's so good.
Very cool.
It drives brilliantly on what a car.
Honestly, I think this is going to be a really interesting sort of time when these guys come out and when the EV2 comes out as well.
Cool stuff coming in this section.
So I went for a little ride in Sporty Spice, which again is a line I never thought I'd say, but there you go.
And I can't actually say a lot because I couldn't see inside was completely covered.
Had that amazing camo on, which was, for memory, I think that I can map of the Reval district, which is a really cool neighbourhood in Barcelona that the Reval has been named after.
So straight away they're saying I'm cool and funky and urban, but we have got a first look video.
So what I'd done, I'd been out there to see the car film a first look video that's dropping in April.
So we're not far off that arriving.
So I didn't actually see much in the car.
The thing that I saw that I loved of were unused and tried flappy paddles for break regen.
Who else is happy about that?
Yes, very.
It's so good, isn't it?
And it's actually really, really nicely calibrated.
It very much surprised me.
You've got full one pedal driving.
It's such a smooth system.
I just, you know, I used it, I did.
It was a nice sort of twisty tourney mountain drive and I used it on that and it's joyful.
It's really, really joyful.
So that again drives incredibly well.
I can't do the comparison because I'm driven the other two.
But you know how we always said in the past, our electric cars are all going to feel the same.
It doesn't.
It feels sportier.
There's a limit to what they can do because these are all effectively based on the same hardware.
They've both got 38 kilowatt batteries or 56 kilowatt battery.
They're both sharing so much.
So it's not necessarily got more power, but it's what they're doing with it.
So it gets a really nice adaptive sport suspension.
You can turn off the electronic stability control if you want to have a bit of fun in it and make it sportier.
And it just has got really nice grips.
I was really pushing it on these country roads.
I thought the steering was lovely.
The grip into the corners was fantastic.
So I think I predict they're going to have a triplet of winners on their hands with these three.
I think so too.
And it's just going to basically be down to which Spice Girl was your favourite?
I was always a sporty Spice kind of girl.
Which Spice Girls were you forgetting?
I can't remember the other two Spice Girls.
We've got posh, sporty, ginger and scary.
Ginger and scary.
I was posh.
Of course you were.
We know Ginny, we know.
I was born in a terrorist place in Rochdale.
I'm really quite not posh, but I did once or twice get mistaken for her.
In the late 90s.
I was like, okay, anyway, should we talk about cars more really?
I was in the triplets while driving.
I'm going to kick this off.
Well, you've driven it as well, both of you recently, I think.
So the CLA.
So this one European car off the year.
I'm really pleased it did because I really, really like the CLA.
It's got a long range, 480 mark claimed and real world efficiency.
Good.
I just really like the way it drives.
I think I have got a bit of beef with it in certain respects.
I think slightly kind of not mad on the dash design.
Not crazy about rear passenger space.
But I reckon when they bring out the fastback, the shooting break,
that's the word I'm looking for, the CLA shooting break.
That's the one.
That's the one.
I love a shooting break.
I love a shooting break.
Because they're not like full estates.
They're not like full long boys.
They're like sporty long boys.
Sporty long boys.
Long boys and trainers.
He's come up with a term for that.
Let's get your comments.
Okay.
So, Nicola, as you know, loves a long boy.
AKA in a state.
A sporty long boy.
Okay.
I think you just call it a sporty long boy.
I think it's a long boy in joggers.
Maybe our fabulous audience have got better, you know,
some better alternatives.
So drop us a comment.
Don't forget you can email us podcast at electrifying.com
with all your comments, all your welcome backs.
You can scold us for not being back sooner.
We've had quite a lot of that.
You feel like you need to do that.
That's fine. We understand.
Car buying questions.
And if you want to electric, let us know.
Then we can give you a shout out for that as well.
CLA, what did you make of it, Nic, when you drove it?
I didn't mind it.
I think it, I think it.
The thing is, is we, we did a video with me
and wonderful batch on a twin test on,
which is the best sort of electric saloon that you can buy,
which I will always fight the corner of the BYD seal
because I think it's a fantastic car.
And so that day I did take the CLA out for a drive
and I was like, do you know what?
It's all right. I quite like it.
I think for a Mercedes, I think it feels a tad
on the cheap side, on the interior,
in terms of materials and stuff like that.
I think it rides perfectly fine.
It's still, it's still, it's not quite my favourite.
Don't hate me.
No, I had it.
I had it for several days before that.
We did that shoot at the barn.
If you haven't seen that video, it's here on the YouTube channel.
You really should do, because we now have the,
the electrifying two Ronnies as we are now calling back to Nicola.
Well, it's like they're calling back to Nicola.
They're so funny. Anyway, please.
It's only because he's so annoying.
That's the only reason it ends up being funny
that it's not bully. I don't want to have to phone HR.
That's me.
I was going to say, that's you, isn't it?
So I reckon, I thought it was all right too.
I wanted to like it more than I did.
That screen is ridiculous. I'm sorry.
But that's just too much. It's too big.
It is good. It is good though. It works.
It's good.
You just got to get used to it, I think.
I was just going to say, you have got to remember that it is,
it starts from £45,000.
So it's the same price, you know,
it's not that much more than a Model 3 and a BYD seal.
So if we're, we're claiming that it feels a bit cheap
for being a Mercedes and all of that stuff.
And yes, I agree.
I do think some of the plastics and it's just a bit too glossy
and the screen is a bit big, but it doesn't bother me that much.
Yeah. No, I don't like the screen.
I thought some of the plastics were cheap.
I didn't think the steering wheel felt nice.
And for me in a car, I want the steering wheel to feel nice.
That didn't even cross my mind.
And I just, I just felt a little underwhelmed by it.
And, and I think I would probably personally take a BYD seal over it,
which I was quite surprised by.
I wasn't underwhelmed. It's a really good car.
And obviously there is a reason it got voted European car of the year.
I just think maybe I was expecting just a little bit more.
And then we've got the charging issue in the UK as well, haven't we?
Which has that been, I don't know, that's been sorted.
Yeah, I think that's been sorted now.
So it's kind of, I think the cars that they're,
I don't know whether they're in the showrooms now,
but I think the car that you order now will have the 400 volt.
So basically if you don't know about this,
so when the CLA was first released in the UK,
it has 800 volt architecture,
which means that it can use ultra rapid charges that are 800 volt or more.
But peculiarly, and I've never really got to the bottom of how or why this is the case,
because that's not been the problem with any other 800 volt cars.
Actually the Taycan, when it first came out, had this issue, didn't it?
I've had issues, yeah.
You couldn't charge a 400 volt charger without a,
you needed a converter thing.
A special connector.
But it's still a bit annoying, a special connector.
You needed an extra dealer.
And it would have just been really irritating, I think,
and I think they have solved this issue now.
So I think if you're thinking of getting a CLA
and you're going to speak to Mercedes about it,
and I would harshly recommend that.
I would have the CLA over a BYD seal all day, every day personally.
I think it's great.
I love the way it drives personally,
and make minor shooting break in that really nice red that they do.
Yes, sporty long boy.
I think that, yeah.
Sporty long boy in the red,
and just ask your dealer about what,
just make sure that the car you're getting does have that issue solved.
And then you're all right,
and you can charge it all the charges.
And that's fine.
Yes.
It was a bit of a ball drop, that wasn't it, or a mic drop.
Not a mic drop, that's a good thing.
Let's talk about other award winners.
Yoda, my Yoda, my Renault 5,
who has seen me through now,
four seasons, spring, a summer.
Yes, Yoda.
Mine's green though.
I've had a spring, a summer, an autumn,
and I'm coming to the end of the winter with Yoda.
Yoda has won an award.
Yes.
That is our resident UK car of the year judge.
Yes.
Well, that's only just been a recent job for me.
It's very exciting.
So thank you to John Chalon and the team for allowing me to join.
But we had a day a few weeks ago
where we went and drove some cars
to decide what was going to be UK car of the year.
And hey, it's gone to the Renault 5.
And I think it was pretty much unanimous
because obviously it's got to go to the Renault 5
because it's brilliant for the price,
for the styling,
the nods to the sort of the original Renault 5,
they have absolutely smashed it out of the park
and they deserve everything coming their way.
And I borrowed your Yoda for about three weeks,
didn't I recently, Jen?
And I just love it.
I just love it so much.
It's just such a fun car.
I'm just sort of writing my
365 day
report upon it.
So we're going to be shooting a video on that.
And there have been some things
that have driven me mad with it.
So in terms of other stuff,
like I said,
I can't really go into everything we've seen
in the last few months because it's been really busy.
But I think the interesting one that I've been to see is EV2.
So there's a first look video of that
on the channel.
We're going to be driving that in the coming weeks.
I think that's going to be a really interesting,
you know, addition to that whole,
you know, the triplets from VW, the EV2.
It doesn't seem to me two minutes
since we were ranting and shouting,
there are no affordable electric cars.
There's only three electric cars under £30,000.
Where are all the little cars?
I mean, these are not cheap bargains still.
You know, we're not in kind of 15,
£16,000 territory.
They're going to be sort of all 23, 24 starting prices
and somewhere around there.
And of course, if you want the bigger batteries,
in all of them, you're going to pay more.
But I think what we've got are some really nice alternatives.
And I think after Ford cancelled the fiesta,
we all wondered whether there are small cars gone
if we just become a nation of SUV lovers.
Is that all the world wants now?
Personally, after a year in a Renault 5,
I'm really happy to see these smaller cars back
because I have loved having a car that size.
Yes.
So that's one that I've seen
and will shortly be driving that's impressed me.
You've been driving something bonkers, haven't you?
I don't know if I should.
I mean, I keep being allowed to drive concept cars.
Thankfully, I didn't break this one.
I'm very proud of me.
But I drove the Peugeot Polygon.
So this is the concept car.
Now, obviously, whenever we film a concept car,
nine times out of 10, it's not really going to look like that.
But that's not kind of the reason that I drove it.
The reason that I drove it is because
they're now introducing steer-by-wire in Peugeot cars.
And they're going to start off with the 208
and then gradually work their way up to their bigger cars.
So I drove the Polygon with steer-by-wire.
And I also, I drove the 2008 with steer-by-wire.
Okay.
And it's so interesting what they've managed to achieve.
And honestly, I thought I was going to hate it.
I thought it was going to be one of those
who will don't like this, don't like this.
But actually, the more you ended up driving,
we would take going around this little sort of track
that was set out with cones to kind of see what it felt like.
And the more I did, the more I was like,
well, this is easy.
I quite like it.
So we've done a whole video that's up on YouTube
about that.
But it's a bit like instead of turning a steering wheel
over 360 degrees to make a turn,
instead, the biggest turn it will make
is 180 degrees, the steering wheel,
which is now a square.
It's a square with four holes in it.
Yeah.
Are we going to see that though?
Yeah.
Oh, we are.
Yeah.
I think it'll be optional on the 208.
I actually drove the set, the 2008,
before Christmas.
And it is a really interesting thing.
I think it's going to take a long people need to get used to it.
I think they're going to get to cry before you buy.
Because it's quite quick.
But I agree.
It does actually feel really good when you get used to it.
It's really cool.
But I think it's going to be optional on the 208.
But we're talking the 2027, 208 here.
Yeah.
And actually what we're going to do is,
because a lot of this technology is news people,
you're currently working on an explainer about all this,
aren't you?
And, you know, the way we use cars and drive cars is going to change.
And we're going to see a lot more of this stuff starting to filter through.
I think for me,
the probably the most interesting car that I've seen this year,
and I haven't driven it yet, was the Volvo EX60.
Yes.
And I say that because it's the XC60 is, of course,
Volvo's best selling car.
It's the car that, you know, of all time, by the way,
it's the car that really established them as that massive powerhouse of SUVs
that really kind of, you know,
you know, that move away from estates that they did.
And actually I was so impressed with this when I saw it.
It is beautiful.
Now, I haven't driven it yet.
I just don't have all of those, that information.
But to look at, it's a thing of absolute beauty.
So do go and check out that car.
And I just think it's really interesting because we've got BMW iX3.
I'm off next week to drive the Mercedes-Benz GLC,
which, you know, you've spent a lot of time in the car,
in the production versions of that, but I haven't driven it yet, Nick.
I think I like the EX60.
And I just think that these three cars are going to be really strong in that section.
So I think it just, you know, it's a, that I think is a,
well, I don't think it is a very important car for Volvo,
the EX60, to see how many of them.
The claimed range.
Oh God, yeah.
It's 503 miles or something.
It's literally every single thing that the BMW iX3 does,
like the range on the BMW iX3, the longest range in the UK,
or on a production vehicle, 500 miles.
Oh, we do 503.
In your face.
It literally goes 100 miles in, in like a minute quicker.
It's almost as if they've literally gone.
Well, they're the Volvo, they're the iX3 stats.
We're just going to beat them slightly.
Fair play.
Oh, I can't help but respect that.
I like that very much.
Yeah, me too. I like it.
Have you seen the Volvo ad for the EX60 as well,
where they've done the whole thing about thanking everybody
that's done the early adoption thing and, you know,
it's just like a normal car now, you can just keep driving.
And it's a really interesting one. Check it out.
Have a, I'll find a link and send it to you guys.
But yeah, if you're, if you're out there,
have a look at the advert for it because it's quite interesting.
If you get a link.
Yes.
If we can put it in the description on YouTube.
And the link below.
Yeah, I like it.
It's not often I like an ad, but I did like that one.
Shall I just find out that it is the kilowatt half hour
and we're now well over 20 minutes
and just see if we should, um,
some news quickly.
Yeah, let's move on and I'll give you,
I'll give you my long-term updates on that on another episode
because I've got the car till May.
So we're fine.
Polestar 4 is getting its rear window back
and the boss says climate change is real.
So that was my take out from a day in Gothenburg.
In this day and age, how bizarre, you know,
the boss of a CEO of a major car company
needs to come out and say, actually, you know,
we do think climate change is a thing and no,
we are sticking to electric because of that,
but that's what we said.
Um, but the biggest story that Polestar 4
is getting its rear window back,
it's not the coupé as that car is now going to be known,
the Polestar 4, for coupé.
It's just that lovely Michael Losch-Sheller,
and I'm saying his surname wrong, I'm sure.
That's not how you pronounce it.
I think that's close enough.
He's the CEO.
Yeah.
He said to me, it was the first thing he did when he joined,
so he's a recent addition to Polestar.
And the first thing he did was go,
love the Polestar 4.
They've actually been really surprised by sales on it.
So it's their best-selling model.
It's doing really well.
You see them a lot.
You do see them a lot.
But he was like, but people have dogs
and we need a more practical version.
We need an estate version of it.
And that version, of course, will get a window.
So I'm not allowed to talk about what it looks like
or anything like that other than we know it's a window.
And they're unsure whether it's going to be called
an SUV, an estate, or a shooting brick.
No, an SUV, an estate,
and I said, what about a wagon?
And he was like, oh, I like that.
I love the term wagon.
Me too.
So what should Polestar call their estate version
of the Polestar 4?
Do you not even throw Longboy at them?
Did you not want to give that to them as an option?
Anyway, but I thought that was really interesting.
And they've got a big product defensive.
That's very technical.
That's such a kind of journalist term, isn't it?
Product defensive.
They've got loads of cars coming because they're currently
only available.
You can only buy a Polestar in 15% of the market
and they're pushing that into 65% now.
They've got lots of new stuff coming.
But I do think that estate,
they reckon that's going to be,
probably will sell even more than what will be known
as the Polestar 4.
I agree.
They will.
And let us know what do you think they should call it?
SUV, estate, wagon, something else.
Longboy.
Longboy, let's go.
Right, that was my bit of news.
So what else have we got?
So I was going to talk about BYD, wasn't I?
Because we've got a few updates for this.
You'll be pleased by this, Nick.
They've updated the seal.
And also the attitude screen.
It's actually slightly concerning
because we were talking about it on Monday with BYD
and I'm a bit worried about it.
Why?
What are you worried about?
Basically, they've made the boot bigger.
Nobody understands how or why it wasn't bigger
in the first place, but they've made the boot bigger.
There's some space here.
So they've made 85 litres of bigger boot.
That's not a tiny amount now, is it?
Where did they even suddenly...
Oh, there's an 85 litres now that we haven't noticed.
Was there a spare wheel well that they'd previously
got the boot covering and now they've decided to...
I haven't seen it.
I don't know much, but I do know it's a much bigger boot now.
So that's good.
And in the Etto 3, which I don't think has sold brilliantly
in the UK, it was their very first car that BYD bought in.
And that's the one with the funky.
It's got the guitar strings on the doors
and all of this stuff.
So they've made that longer range, also a slightly bigger boot.
All of that.
So yeah, a few tweaks and things going on there.
Bigger boot, bigger frunk in the Etto 3.
That's what I was driving on Monday.
But I think it's just didn't have a frunk before, did it?
Yeah, the frunk now, can confirm, fits me.
Find out in the video.
Where have they just randomly...
So it's become rear wheel drive now, the Etto 3, hasn't it?
So that's obviously where they've found space for the frunk.
So it's not going to later in the front anymore.
But interesting.
I can see why they'd find space for a frunk.
Completely get that.
Like, how do you suddenly...
I'm still going back to it.
How on the scene did they suddenly go?
Here's 85 litres of boot space.
I don't know.
I don't know how they do it.
But can I tell you what my concern is, please?
Go on.
So the outgoing seal, the one that I filmed my video with,
the one that I'm a big fan of,
at the moment doesn't have that sensor that watches your face
to make sure that you're constantly watching the road.
Oh, God.
Now, the Etto 3 has,
and it's obviously with the same sort of software,
I can't tell you what it's like to drive it.
I think it's all embargoed, but there's a video coming out soon.
And I know that they're putting in that sensor into the BYD seal.
And that's the only thing that's really going to bug me.
Now, I know that you can turn them off
and you can set a shortcut and all that sort of stuff.
And I understand I had a little mini rant in the video
that's going to be coming out soon.
I understand that ADAS systems are important
and they're good for safety, good for end cap ratings
and all that sort of stuff.
But I don't need you to tell me every five minutes that I look tired.
I'm not having it.
I'm not having it.
Monday morning, when I was out in Madrid,
I was driving the Etto 3 ten minutes in.
I had a really good night's sleep.
I actually had two coffees that morning.
If anything, I was wired, not tired.
And it was telling me, tiredness detected, take a rest.
And I was like, well, I'm a little bit livid by that.
So it's one of those things that I feel like
I'm going to have to turn it off constantly.
And I don't appreciate the fact that you have to do that.
So I think BYD need to find an easier way to switch everything off
rather than having to go through a menu and set it as a shortcut.
I think you should take, take heed from Renault
and have a little double tap by the side of the steering wheel.
And then we're on to a winner.
So my concern is that's now going to go in the seal
and it's going to tell everyone they look tired
and everyone's going to be really annoyed by it.
And it's going to take away from a fantastic car.
They're not the only ones, are they though?
Because I know we're going to save your whole staff for long term,
which is a great car.
It really drove me mad when I had that for a few weeks,
was the fact it told me I was tired all the time.
But I'd have gotten the car, be driving down the road
and it'd be like, take a break.
You look tired, time for a rest.
Are you just having a knock-hold?
I've got confidence in my eyes.
I've not wanded.
You know, yes.
So anyway.
We've got to mention here, Leap Motor.
If you think BYD is bad, some of the Leap Motors,
the C10, I think.
She don't shut up.
In their defence, I think they've already updated it
because so many people complained about it.
And I know that you can.
They've added shortcuts and stuff, so on the B10
you can turn it off on the steering wheel.
So they've improved it already drastically.
But especially when Leap Motor first released its cars,
they were almost undriveable
because you couldn't go anywhere without it beeping at you.
It was really bad.
But I'm with you on BYD.
I had a Seal 6 and had exactly the same thing.
And if you've got glasses on and at night
it's even worse because it thinks
you're not looking at the road.
So it beeps at you all the time.
Sorry.
If you're then going to give me just a screen
with all my buttons,
I'm going to need to look at said screen
to press certain buttons.
Then you're going to tell me off for not looking at the road
because I'm looking at the screen that you've given me.
Let's move on.
I feel we've ranted enough.
I'm sure the comment section will continue this rant for us.
So it works over to you guys.
Let us know in the comments.
Should we very quickly cover this
home charging announcement
that's come out from the document?
I've got my notes here on my laptop.
Oh, how efficient.
I have a laptop because I'm therefore intelligent
and can do some research.
Home charging grant.
So did you know that the government has basically
increased the home charging point grant
from 350 quid up to 500 quid.
This is happening from the 1st of April,
which I think is a good thing
because it will encourage more people
to turn electric and all that sort of stuff.
So it's been extended for another 12 months,
which is lovely, lovely.
So it covers up to 50% of installation costs.
It's available to renters, landlords, businesses,
all that kind of thing.
Schools as well.
They're being offered £2,000 per charge point as well.
So that's all going to be good.
If parents, teachers need to charge at work,
that's absolutely bloody wonderful.
I think this is nothing but a positive
and it's not just to be put on your driveways.
It's also to be put on pavements
if you don't have a driveway or that kind of thing.
So I think this could be potentially
a very positive thing.
So well done, government.
Shall I be a bit contrary on this?
Hit me.
I just thought it was a bit rubbish,
if I'm honest.
I thought the 250 quid though.
But I think they're looking at the wrong thing, right?
So they're assuming that anyone who has a driveway
is loaded and can afford and doesn't need to grant.
Now that's just rubbish as we know.
Absolute rubbish.
So there are lots of people who live in houses
with driveways who are not loaded.
So that's just assuming that people don't need support
on a charger.
And my point would be,
it's not very good if you buy a new EV,
well you might get one bundled in and all of that kind of thing.
But we've got an amazing used market now.
And one of the things we've been championing for a long time
is more support around used.
So you can pick up now a really good used EV
for about 10 grand.
If you're making that switch for the first time
out of a petrol or diesel car into an EV
and 10 grand is still a lot of money
to spend on a secondhand car.
If suddenly you go,
oh, and then there's also that £1,000 there
and more potentially to get your home charger fitted.
That is a lot of cash to find.
And I think that may well be the difference
between people going,
oh, you know, well, I'm going to make the switch.
But oh, God, no, that's an extra expense.
So I actually think we don't need to make,
to give, you know, chargers to landlords
to make their homes more valuable,
which is effectively what we're doing.
So we're renting.
We're going to be doing that
because that benefits the landlord ultimately as well
because their property value increases
and they've got a charger there.
I just think they're looking at it all the wrong way.
What we need to look at personally
for me is affordability.
We need a much better thing would be
to look at, is there a level at which
if you're buying a used car at a certain amount
or, you know, I don't know.
I don't know how you do it,
but I think there are better ways
to spend this money personally.
Well done.
Well done.
It's also because I think I'm thinking of my sister.
My sister's just bought herself a plug-in hybrid.
She's not gone fully electric.
She bought herself a plug-in hybrid
and she doesn't have the money for a home charger.
So she's been messaging me like crazy,
going, can you sell me one out for free?
I'm like, I don't think I can smell that.
But I don't know.
They're so expensive.
Pensioners on a pension,
they bought a secondhand EV.
And, you know, the charger was like such a big,
a big thing for them.
It was a lot of extra money.
And I think the government is just not thinking straight
about this whole transition.
It's spending its money in the wrong places.
A very simple solution to potentially this.
Well, it's around, but we've discussed this before,
but I think a solution to this would be to offer
a very simple, interest-free loan to people,
which can be applied to a used EV purchase,
a new EV purchase,
and to your charging infrastructure changes.
So if you need to add a home charger or a pavement gully,
you can use that loan to cover those costs.
And it would just need to be a fairly common-sense loan.
It can be spread over a number of years.
It's interest-free and it would make it all a lot more accessible to people.
That would be a straightforward way of doing it.
Thank you, Prime Minister.
Thank you very much.
Scotland has been doing this for years.
We've been campaigning on this issue since I launched electrifying.com.
Because back when I launched electrifying,
I discovered that in Scotland,
you could get a...
It was an interest-free loan at the time.
It was on a new and a used vehicle.
And now it's on a used vehicle,
and you can get it on a used electric van,
electric motorbike or electric car.
I think from memory of the top-up,
the cut-off point is 28,000,
and it comes through the Energy Saving Trust.
It's Scottish transport that runs it and provides the money.
It's a brilliant, brilliant scheme.
And I've been banging, you know,
I've been moaning and whinging at them at Westminster
to introduce something similar.
And I just think that, like you say,
I'd never actually thought, Vic, about the fact
that it could be used to cover infrastructure changes.
It's such a good idea.
Absolutely. Definitely it could.
I think maybe we need to formalise this.
Who's with us?
Shall we start a petition?
Let's do it.
Let us know if we should start a petition.
Okay.
Shall we move on to what people have been saying in the comments?
Yeah, we might have to trim this down
because we're at 40 minutes.
They love it.
They expect us to go to 45 minutes at least.
It's fine.
We just keep talking.
Well, comments and questions are basically everyone,
mostly people having to go at us
for not being here for a while.
Where the podcast is, exactly.
So, we've already apologised.
What more do you want from us?
We actually had people e-mailing us, asking why.
And Barry B. Tingels and Roger Stevens,
a couple of them were quite a bit,
and I really appreciate that.
So, thank you.
Did anybody write long-form old letters?
Did we get any actual physical letters,
I hope so, or postcards?
I'd love it.
Does anybody send a letter anymore?
Especially a letter about a missing podcast.
Can we give you your address?
I know, Vic.
I know, actually.
OK, 36, Schmeblebeb Drive.
And there's nothing in the PO box
that we use for companies' houses.
Maybe they're all there.
OK, Mark CN 007.
I said on a left bank.
Has this podcast stopped?
Update, please.
Hella's a hive.
He lays a hive?
He lays a hive.
He's gonna lead that to you.
He's been a month now.
months worth sorry but then this one from Richard Piper Richard was not happy
hello are you still there whatever happened to the killer what half hour
being your Winkley capitals update on all that's happening in the EV world I
would have expected you to have a break of a Christmas and New Year and I know
you presenters have been off on new car jollies but what is the excuse for
complete silence excuse me Richard new car jollies are you trying to tell us that
they don't fly us over to lovely countries and make us stay in five-star
hotels and drive cars and take us for fancy that's what they do that is what
they do don't tell me hard work it's very late nights the harsh reality we
didn't cover all these cars and there's been so many we have literally just to
put it into perspective there was one day where there was one week where we had
nine cars launched in a week now there's not enough to do that I was on
my army with formulary yeah there's a day coming up in two weeks where we've
got four launches on one day yes one of those launches involved seeing four
cars so that is seven cars in one day so it has definitely got a lot of stuff
coming but I agree and we're sorry and what we should have done is just put a
pin comment yeah and look we understand and I understand it can it can come
across as jollies and very fancy and all that kind of thing but they're not all
like that I have a theory have I told you my theory no go on
so you know what he really is I know go on when you go on a car launch if you stay
in an amazing five-star hotel and you stay and you have this incredible dinner
and sometimes they might fly in business class then most likely the cars
rubbish if you stay in a crummy airport hotel which happens very often and
you're just flight you're at the back of the plane you've hardly and they're
probably just gonna give you hardly any food the car is probably decent that's
my theory well I attended a launch once at a travel lodge and the hotel was the
travel lodge band that you know what that press launch was run by our very
own Tom Barnard so maybe we want to come back to that and he can tell us all
about it was it a good car though was the car good that's why if the cars good
they don't need to splash the cash if the car is rubbish they need to try and
schmooze you doesn't always work but I think it's a good theory but yeah I'm so
anyway we're sorry about that but anyway we've had some emails in so let's
write through some emails okay this is from Adam Palmer hello Adam who says
good afternoon to the electrifying team and thank you for all of the useful
information and informative videos that you generate very nice for this
question I'm asking you to stare into your crystal balls and try and answer
the following well when do you think the automotive industry will produce an
electric performance estate car with a 500 mile motorway range the space of a
Skoda superb estate and the driving characteristic characteristics of the
best Richard Perry Jones Ford's looking forward to hearing the answer on the next
podcast thanks Adam that's a name I haven't heard in a long time Richard
Perry Jones what a god what a god yeah what a god so he was if for people that
don't know he basically is a driving dynamics literal God isn't he legend he
was yeah and he well he was responsible for the focus the mark one focus and
fiestas of many generations and he sort of really try he sort of turned Ford
around and he made he kind of made that you know it was fantastic really
incredible guy okay basically what Adam is asking is when is he gonna get a
super sporty awesome super fast amazing estate car with over 500 miles that you
can do on the motorway you're gonna get the you're gonna get the Polestar 4
coupé slash no the Polestar 4 estate slash wagon slash long boy but that ain't
gonna be able to do 500 nothing nothing will do 500 miles on the motorway at the
moment you know it's even even the CLA shooting break or whatever it is which is
you know that's gonna be probably a claimed of close to 500 isn't it but
it's not gonna actually do that if you're a steady motorway do you really
want to be able to do 500 miles on the motorway no well he wants to do I get it
speed on the motorway so fast that everyone at every gantry is gonna be
taking flashy pictures of him I think these I think the estates with a good
decent range in sort of really you know so for example we have we you know there's
a potential really lovely Škoda estate coming isn't that we saw that vision was
it the visioner concept that will be coming up New York Tavia I think there
aren't really interesting things coming and yes like you know we're saying
earlier about the small cars you know you get in these cars with if you get the
bigger batteries little cars the range of 280 odd miles I mean when we first
launched little cars had a range of like a hundred and twenty a hundred and
fifty now who remembers the Honda there's been changes happening in my
crystal ball which I have here it's a crystal pillar it's telling me 2029
I have to say this before we move on you want an electric car with a space of a
Škoda superb that's lovely to drive it's so comfy and so massive and I love
it and it does have a range of over 400 miles and I want one I just want them to
give me one to keep a while we're there just check out the Enyaq 2 we've taken
46 minutes for you to mention the Enyaq let's keep moving this is from Adam
emailed in and his email had a great subject title oh no that's the one you've
just done sorry but you say this is the honest podcast we're not we're not
going to edit this straight on to the next one you're reading a message from
Gabby Gabby Sheridan Neuer class hi there I love watching your your show on
YouTube as a retired German teacher thanks for that by the way Gabby as a
retired German teacher could I ask you to revisit your pronunciation of Neuer
class the E at the end is send it on both words it would be great if you'd be
the show to get this spot on and you are so right we should do because I know it
is Neuer class it is Neuer class I know that I know it's Neuer class that
class don't show them Gabby they're pointing that out to us and I am going to
make it my mission now to not get that right because I'm off to see another
Neuer class of things okay so show me after three one two three I'm glad that
we're all in sync that was so bad thanks Gabby thank you Gabby we will try and
Neuer class yeah okay what are we going to end on are we going to end okay
should we should we go with Polestar 2 I've got one on the Polestar 2 long range
single motor from Nigel Knowles he says hi nice hoping you can explain a query I
have read my Polestar 2's range with my car's 20 inch wheels the
manufacturer has quoted range is 385 miles so he does say it's a Polestar 2
long range single motor however when set to charge to 100% the maximum that my
car will charge to according to the car's battery gauge is 320 miles is this
normal I expected to see 385 miles but see this drop more quickly due to cold
weather well I think you know this is unfortunately the WLTP versus real
world isn't that situation so the gauge on your car is showing you the mileage
that the car will do in practice in the real world even when it's cold even when
you do mostly motorway journeys the WLTP range which is the official government
tested range that they get in a lab according to very set sort of specific
ways that they test the car that is the WLTP range so that's what the car will
do in a combined situation under lab tests real world is what your car's
showing you on the dash and it may even not quite do that because some gauge
readouts are a bit optimistic yeah I've gone next home in the in the Polestar
this is one thing that I love about Polestar is that when you do charge to
100% and it says whatever mileage is in that car at that time at 100% that is
normally what they can give you so if it's so if you've charged it to 100% and
it says 320 you're probably going to get 320 if you've then charged it the
following day and it says 285 you're probably going to get 285 it doesn't
throw lies at you in that sense which I appreciate so sometimes I don't know when
I was in the Peugeot E3008 I would fully charge to 100% and it would tell me I
can do 380 miles or something ridiculous but actually that would just drop so
quickly and I'd only get about 180 to 200 miles so at least I think that's where
Polestar are stronger than other brands that they will always be honest with
what you're going to get at that particular day I think this is more
now something that we're seeing in it in sort of second and third generation
EVs the good manufacturers those range predictions are more spot on and I think
what can be really hard to get your head around is that at different times of the
year your battery will show a different range because it's what it's
what it does if you do if you're new to electric is it's learning like how
much range I've been getting out of it recently on average so for example with
Yoda was getting pretty much the official range in summer during the
summer months in winter I've been getting around 2.9 miles per kilowatt out of it
it's it's been pretty much bang on that and I think we debate a lot about what's
an acceptable drop-off in colder weather or if you're doing long motorway
journeys and I think I don't know I might I always standard around around 20% I
think I'm not yeah it's where I would be like okay that's not worrying me what
when I do start to I think they need to really be looking at you know the
thermal management the batteries or the claims they're making is when you're
getting to light a battery is dropping 30 35% and we do know cars that have that
happens on yes that's something we're going to do a lot more of the sheer
vic isn't it is really trying to drill down into you know what what are those
realities and it is difficult because it's been great for me with a long term
over a year actually where I've seen four seasons I've had that really good
comparison of what that cars like and that's why the long term is a brilliant
but in the other instances we get a car for a week so you're not even really able
to you know to really drill down into that efficiency and I think what we
would like very much is for owners to start letting us know what are you
getting out of your cars so if you can email us podcast at electrifying.com
would be ideal with what you're running and what you're finding you're getting
because I think this is the data that's really interesting for people and
there's only so many long-term cars that we can run so if you can do that we
would love you for it. There you go lovely good okay is there is there
another message or we have officially done at 52 minutes? Should we maybe stop
there I think maybe? I think we should. Shall we? I think we should stop there.
We can carry on if you want to it's all good. This is a pretty spectacular comeback for
the kilowatt half hour at 52 minutes. Maybe we should have just relaunched the
kilowatt hour and been done with it. I'm just gonna do that next week probably
instead yeah I honestly it's been a joy to be back and we are sorry and we hope
that you'll continue to join us and we really promise pinky pinky pinky promise
we'll be back next week yes some of us are off doing stuff aren't we next week
yeah we're on it we're on it okay so thank you for joining us any other
questions and stuff you know the drill any other questions and things put it in
the comment section below anything else that you want us to talk about put it in
the comment section below drop us an email by the email address which is
podcast at electrifying.com drop us a message on social media follow us there
by the way because I don't know if you've noticed but our social media has had a
nice little revamp literally and we've been posting some funky stuff so we're
just electrifying doc or electrifying com aren't we on socials yeah so thank
you very much for joining us and we're now 53 and a half minutes you take it
love to the kids bye
About this episode
The hosts return from a break to discuss the busy world of electric vehicles, focusing on Volkswagen Group's new trio of EVs dubbed the 'Spice Girls': the VW Polo (Baby Spice), the VW Ravel (Sporty Spice), and the Skoda Enyaq (Posh Spice). They share their driving impressions, highlighting VW's improved infotainment and the sporty handling of the Ravel. The episode also covers the Mercedes CLA EV, praising its range but noting some interior shortcomings. The lively banter and unique car-to-Spice Girl comparisons add a fun twist to the EV updates.
Original notes
We’re back! After what can only be described as a full factory reset (call it a model-year upgrade with a light facelift), the Electrifying.com team returns with a jam-packed episode covering one of the busiest periods the EV world has seen in years.
Ginny, Nicola and Vicky dive straight into what they’ve been driving – including the VW Group “triplets” (Epiq, Polo and Raval), the Mercedes CLA, EV of the Year contenders, the Skoda Elroq, Volvo EX60, Kia EV2, Polestar 4 and more. There’s also talk of regen feel, buttons and switches (yes, really), and whether some new models genuinely feel different under the skin.
In the news: Polestar makes headlines (again), BYD’s mysterious boot space growth spurt, and the Government boosts the home charging grant to £500 – but is it actually enough to make a difference? The team breaks down what the changes mean for renters, landlords and drivers without driveways.
Welcome to the Kilowatt Half Hour - your weekly podcast from the team at Electrifying.com
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Watch this podcast at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3yQxluEm5c&list=PLFQ1iRNtDyJt9rr1UT0pHCeMuOvm-6b9Q
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The Kilowatt Half Hour
Electrifying.com
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