Next Purchase?

[DanD]

For those with a more modest budget, Renault is about to launch a revised Zoe with a whole new Battery that should allow a 200+ miles range. I will be seriously considering it when replacing our second car.

[Wallace]

To get back onto the topic, i had an NX for 24hours ending today.  Had a short drive around Stoke on Trent in an F-Sport in the pouring rain yesterday - did it rain?!?  Then we had a Luxury overnight.  We initially only went to see what the trim levels were on the different models of NX as the prices compare favourably with the IS300h.  Our PCP on our IS300h Luxury ends in May and the thieving tax man is going to change the VED rates on 1st April even though we have cut our emissions from the old IS250 Sport.  The Chancellor is obviously not getting enough road fund licence or petrol tax from me now so he is moving the goalposts yet again.  I wonder what he really wants motorists to do.  Long story short - the NEX F Sport was fitted up to the eyeballs with just about every extra you could have on it and it was tempting deal.  However, driving the NX Luxury home through the winding and undulating roads from Staffordshire into Shropshire it showed that the engine is underpowered for the size of vehicle and I also did not like the way the engine screams on acceleration before the revs drop again via the CVT transmission which I am not 100% sure of (have test driven a BMW 330e with a "normal" auto box).  The NX is a large and luxurious car but not for us.  I am waiting for the 2017 IS300h to come available and we will be choosing between an F-Sport and probably a Luxury.

[RichyRich]

IS needs a bigger power plant IMHO. I enjoy my IS300H for the smoothness but it lacks any real grunt. That said I am approaching 40 so perhaps I need to put my slippers on whilst driving

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[tayaste]

I've just turned 40. My Pipe and slippers are firmly bedded in now 

[rayaans]

Its plenty enough for me.

TBH Ive driven my son's Polo 1.4 S around a little bit to get used to manual cars again. Its only got 75hp and 0-60mph in 12.2s but still gets up to speed pretty well

Cant remember the last time I used full power in the IS or RX!

[RichyRich]

Sorry Rayaans your not comparing a 1.4 engine with the IS surely??

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[capese21]

4 hours ago, rayaans said:

Its plenty enough for me.

Me to!!

When I bought my IS300H Fsport & then the GS300H I asked myself how fast I wanted to go? I did want nippy move off from rest and they both more than delivered on that due to the electric motor. The mid range was decent to.

  I have seen these lads in there Golf R`s driving fast because if they don't what is the point of one?  Not particularly comfortable, not particularly reliable don't even look particularly good just like any other Golf and they cost £32k.  £32k for a freakin Golf.

Once you have done a few Launch Controls and wreaked your fragile DSG the novelty must surely wear off? 

Good for a burn around the lanes or on a track they say maybe true but I don't do that just A to B on public roads at the speed limit, or a bit over done in comfort .

Now 25 years ago perhaps but I couldn't afford a £32k car then!!  

The GS is actually pretty fast in sport mode and you can if desired use the flappy paddles but I cannot really be bothered. 

 

Ed

[rayaans]

7 hours ago, RichyRich said:

Sorry Rayaans your not comparing a 1.4 engine with the IS surely??

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Not comparing but just thinking aloud that I could probably get away with an IS that was 12s to 60 as I'm mostly in traffic or around town so 8s is plenty.

When I do decide to go for a quick blast I always seem to get caught behind some Sunday driver or an aygo/108/c1 going 10mph under the limit with a black box fitted no doubt 

[ganzoom]

8 hours ago, rayaans said:

Not comparing but just thinking aloud that I could probably get away with an IS that was 12s to 60 as I'm mostly in traffic or around town so 8s is plenty.

When I do decide to go for a quick blast I always seem to get caught behind some Sunday driver or an aygo/108/c1 going 10mph under the limit with a black box fitted no doubt 

And here's me worrying I was going to think our next car (Model X) was going to be too slow with a 0-60 time of 5.5 seconds :). 

[Martin F]

18 hours ago, RichyRich said:

Sorry Rayaans your not comparing a 1.4 engine with the IS surely??

 

You will get used to Rayaans pointless comparisons 

[RichyRich]

Sorry Rayaans your not comparing a 1.4 engine with the IS surely??

 

You will get used to Rayaans pointless comparisons [emoji23]

I already have, to be fair he is very knowledgeable on the Lexus brand so I somewhat regard his opinion as worthy of a read. Hehe

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[olliesgrandad]

Travelling 36000 miles a year I wouldn't even entertain a total even car. The thought of being stuck waiting for batteries to charge fills me with dread. 

[rayaans]

5 hours ago, RichyRich said:

You will get used to Rayaans pointless comparisons 

 

I already have, to be fair he is very knowledgeable on the Lexus brand so I somewhat regard his opinion as worthy of a read. Hehe

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Generally speaking, driving the Polo 1.4 full whack is like driving the IS in a normal manner, hence why I could get away with it but it needs some revs to go anywhere.

Bloody MPG is ******* though, averaged about 36mpg according to MPG calculator app and its £185 to tax! Fuel tank is tiny and needs brimming all the time. Ill prob swap it for a Polo GTI for him next April - unusually comes out only £100 more to insure for a 21 year old with 1 year NCD on a GTI hitting 60 in half the time than it does on the 1.4 S but the 2011 ones only seem to come in DSG format.

[DJP]

Travelling 36000 miles a year I wouldn't even entertain a total even car. The thought of being stuck waiting for batteries to charge fills me with dread. 

As I said, they are not for everyone and 36k a year fills me with dread, no matter what I was driving [emoji846].

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[ganzoom]

Jag have just announced their Battery EV SUV, due in less than 18 months time. 

I excepted something good from Jag but not so soon or so attractive  (18 month to delivery??). According to piston heads, price 10-15% above equivalent F-pace. The closest F-pace with similar performance is £53K before options, so say £63K with a few options, and on 10-15% your looking at £70K mark that's bang on Model X money.

Bugger...Maybe I jumped the gun with the Model X order, really really want one of these over any Tesla. Really tempted now to cancel the Tesla order - take the £2K hit on the deposit, get a cheap used Leaf/Zoe/i3 to bridge the 12 months gap before the i-Pace hit production. 

Jaguar I-Pace heralds electric future | PistonHeads

 

[royoftherovers]

7 minutes ago, ganzoom said:

Jag have just announced their Battery EV SUV, due in less than 18 months time. 

I excepted something good from Jag but not so soon or so attractive  (18 month to delivery??). According to piston heads, price 10-15% above equivalent F-pace. The closest F-pace with similar performance is £53K before options, so say £63K with a few options, and on 10-15% your looking at £70K mark that's bang on Model X money.

Bugger...Maybe I jumped the gun with the Model X order, really really want one of these over any Tesla. Really tempted now to cancel the Tesla order - take the £2K hit on the deposit, get a cheap used Leaf/Zoe/i3 to bridge the 12 months gap before the i-Pace hit production. 

Jaguar I-Pace heralds electric future | PistonHeads

 

You seem to live in a different motoring galaxy to me Gang.

You seem to be able to spend sums of money that my senses just cannot handle.

I wish you well and look forward to your reports in the fullness of time !

Regards

John

[dutchie01]

5 hours ago, ganzoom said:

Bugger...Maybe I jumped the gun with the Model X order, really really want one of these over any Tesla. Really tempted now to cancel the Tesla order - take the £2K hit on the deposit, get a cheap used Leaf/Zoe/i3 to bridge the 12 months gap before the i-Pace hit production. 

 

I would cancel the Tesla, order the Jag. And if in 6 months the new Merc E range is made public cancel the Jag and order a Merc. and when Audi presents the new QE8 i would......

 

 

[ganzoom]

^^ What can I say I like all cars, been known to change 3 times in 12 months before, but combustion cars were all getting so boring. 

Cannot wait to see what others come up with interms of EV, I cannot remember ever been so excited about up and coming cars as I am now :). 

[noby76]

3 hours ago, ganzoom said:

 but combustion cars were all getting so boring. 

 

Might have to disagree with you on that Gang ... Although i haven't had the privilege of driving a full EV car i have indeed driven the IS300h and although i quite liked when cruising in dead silence in EV mode i recon i would be bored of it after a while. i watched a review of one of the Tesla Models and the reviewer confirmed. although it was a quick fast car, it lacked something and felt like you in a roller coaster ride... nothing then suddenly a push at the back all happening instantly doesn't build up like a combustion engine would.

I have owned and driven V6, Straight 6, V8 and each of these engines had their unique character engine notes to go with when making progress on the roads. i also rode in a 5.8 Merc S Class V12 when i visited a mate in New York few years ago and he uses it for Chauffeuring work and that car had character once you floored the pedal.. and I now own an Accord 2.4 straight 4 engine and as you already know when it hits 6K rpm and above the i-VTEC engine note makes you feel like you driving a race car even with less than 200 bhp to it. its just something about combustion engines. 

Look at how car manufactures are now going as far as fitting speakers and vents to generate and create fake engine note sounds to give the notion to the driver the sound is being generated from the engine?  These Tesla's are fast but in my opinion they lack character of a Straight 6, V6, or V8 engine on song. 

If i was lucky enough and want to spend on a fast 4X4 SUV, it would have to be the 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT V8

[ganzoom]

^^ For a weekend family trip a ride on a steam train is fun, but I don't think anyone would wish to do their daily commute in one. The EV powertrain delivers the holy grain every single car manufacture has been trying to achieve since the invention of the car, instant torque, no nasty vibrations, and power but without effecting economy. Combustion cars will always be around, much like horses still are, but they will be relegated to the role of weekend toys.

I'm not the only person who have totally lost interest in combustion cars after driving an EV. It's the future, but actually it's something you buy/drive here and now. My experience of moving from combustion cars to EVs is the same as the when I knew my old Palm Pilot was as good as dead the first time I played with an Iphone, or the first time I edited a digital photo taken by a digital camera.

The current generation of EVs are only the start, individual torque vectoring at each wheel, motors built into the hub of the wheels, reduced sized of engines/lack of need for exhaust systems will allow car chassis to be totally redesigned.  We associated noise with speed because uptill now that's all we have known, but EVs are going to quickly make even the quickest combustion cars feel like shopping trolleys. Tesla aren't even a sports car manufacture but they have already got to the point where it's the physical lack of grip between the tyre/road that is impeding the ability of the motor to put down more power. The Model X we have ordered is the 'slowest' version they do, yet it cover the 0-60 sprint in less than 6 seconds.

I honestly cannot wait to see what Porsche can do with the Mission E, or a company like McLaren. 0-100 times in the single digits are doing to become the norm. The case of if we need that kind of performance, or if human drivers should be given access to this kind of power is whole different debate :).

 

 

[noby76]

But you see. instant Torque does not always translate as going fast. it just gets you going.. 

No nasty engine vibrations is nothing new. Toyota built a vibration free engine in 1989 which was fitted in LS400 remember the wine glass advert with the engine revved from  0 to almost 150 mph vibration free?  

power without affecting economy can be hit and miss if you  drive the Model X  using its full performance potential we know it will not achieve the nice mpg range figures stated i also heard range gets worse in winter cold conditions. and the batteries could over heat them selves with repeated spirited driving

 so to be fare the EV powertrain is not giving us anything new which has not been given to us by cars with combustion engines. 

[ganzoom]

2 hours ago, noby76 said:

so to be fare the EV powertrain is not giving us anything new which has not been given to us by cars with combustion engines. 

 

I 100% disagree, try a EV and than your see what am talking about. There is no comparison. 

[doog442]

I was going to post about engine note etc but noby76 sums it up well...even the old IS200 has that satisfying straight six noise..

Going from 0-60 in 5 seconds in an EV vehicle must be about as exciting as getting in a lift and pressing floor 3. At least with an engine when you floor it you have a multitude of experiences, engine note / sound / number of cylinders etc - you know the sort of petrol head thing that many of us like to experience.

However each to their own, I think its a really exciting development that is really gathering pace but you simply wont convert everyone..

[dutchie01]

8 minutes ago, doog442 said:

 

Going from 0-60 in 5 seconds in an EV vehicle must be about as exciting as getting in a lift and pressing floor 3. 

Haha what a great comparison!

My wife just got a bmw 118i 4 cyl 1.6 turbo 170hp with 8 speed auto. I drove it the other day and the gearbox was such a relief compared to the cvt. The lightness and nimbleness of the car made it feel so much faster, more nimble, easier to drive around town and just a great overall experience that made me think. Wasnt it Colin Chapman saying he added lightness to the car? the BM is some 500 kg lighter than the IS300H. The BM is almost 1200 ( twelve hundred) kgs lighter than the Tesla X. Somewhere this goes wrong....

Still puzzled i took the little Ford Ka of my daughter for a spin and this more or less confirmed my ideaś that stowing a car full of batteries to store electricity is not a long term solution.

EV cars need a breakthrough in batterytechnology to really become a mainstream succes.

 

 

 

[DJP]

Going from 0-60 in 5 seconds in an EV vehicle must be about as exciting as getting in a lift and pressing floor 3..

Sorry, completely wrong. Go and drive a Model S and you'll understand.

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