Electric Car Lease Deals

[silver1011]

Current situation:

 

2011 Skoda Superb, CR140, 93,000 miles. Owned outright, current value £5,500. Monthly mileage 2,500.

Daily commute, 62 miles each way, average speed 50mph, a mix of moderate to fast A and B roads @ between 40mph and 80mph with no stop/start traffic.

Average 50mpg so 525 miles per tank. Approx. £60 to fill the tank.

 

Therefore I consume 4.7 tanks of diesel per month @ £283 or £0.11 per mile.

 

I was thinking of selling the Superb and leasing a Nissan Leaf Tekna with the latest larger capacity pack (30kW) and the faster 6.6kW charger (needed for my commute, I think I'm very much on the edge of the cars realistic range).

 

The Superb is running like a dream and has been bullet proof over the last 90,000 miles, so the only incentive to change is the comfort from running a brand new car that will always be under warranty for the same price as it costs me to fill up the Superb with diesel.

 

Question is can I get a personal lease deal on a top spec Leaf with the big battery, fast charger and with an estimated 25,000 mile annual mileage for £283 per month.

 

There are additional potential savings (no road tax, so £180 there), reduced servicing costs plus the comfort of knowing I won't have turbo, DMF, EGR, DPF, clutch costs that I might be facing on with Superb in the coming years.

 

A quick search of the leasing sites the monthly prices (taking the deposit + monthly payment divided over the full term) are all closer to £400.

 

Anyone got any experience of cheap Leaf deals, or other all-electric cars?

Edited 26 February, 2016 by silver1011

[Ootohere]

This is the last weekend to get the £5,000 grant is it not, reducing to £4,500 in March i think.

[silver1011]

I had heard that yes, I think that might be on out right purchases though?

 

I'm mainly focused on lease deals so not sure how they are affected by the government funding.

[Defenderben]

BMW I3 with range extender, any deals on them?

Or a Toyota Hybrid with 0 road tax, as they have it sorted and been doing it for about 13 years now?

Think your annual mileage will be the killer blow to any sensible lease deal :(

Edited 27 February, 2016 by Defenderben

[gullyg]

Have you taken a test drive in any of these cars? 

 

I would think you're really going to suffer doing that kind of mileage on one of these electric cars if they're even capable, especially coming from a Superb. 

 

The i3 might be better than the Leaf, but it's a good bit more expensive and it's starting to get a real reputation for bad driving (that might be just round here) which as much as people might dismiss is a real pita at junctions etc.

 

I do about 1k miles a month and was seriously considering changing the vRS for an electric car but imho they're just not there yet.  Maybe when the "everyman's" Tesla comes out we'll start seeing much more practical electric cars but I do seriously wonder if batteries are the answer, they're certainly not very environmentally friendly.  I'm planning on keeping the next car for 4/5 years so I'm hoping the car after than will be H2 or electric.

Edited 27 February, 2016 by gullyg

[speedy1]

I can give you my limited (12 months) experience, we got lucky as they were doing very good deals.  ignore the finance examples on the website as the salesman sometimes get incentives to sell leafs so its pot luck how desperate they are but if they are desperate they will give you big discounts.  we got  on a leaf tekna on around £35000rrp

 

2 year PCP 10k miles

 

£500 customer deposit (Part ex)

£3500 incentive deposit

£3500 friends and family discount...never met him before

£5000 government grant

 

I cant remember the GFV but its crazy high mid to high teens... the general consensus in the ev community is there's going to be a lot of leafs sitting around on forecourts in the next 12 months  as they are priced too high in the first place.

 

its a fantastic car and as a second car I couldn't recommend it highly enough however looking at your annual mileage you may struggle to get the pcp within the £283 unless you put in a big deposit especially on the new 30kw leaf which I'm assuming will more desirable in comparison with the 24kw.

 

we are thinking of going down to one car so unfortunately we are going to go back to an ICE car either this year or next year, but I will miss the silent drive, pre heat and the acceleration off the lights which is massively addictive.

 

 I hope you find the deal you want because if it fits your needs there really is nothing better.

 

Ps have a look at the Renault zoe same thing in smaller package

[speedy1]

Have you taken a test drive in any of these cars? 

 

I would think you're really going to suffer doing that kind of mileage on one of these electric cars if they're even capable, especially coming from a Superb. 

 

The i3 might be better than the Leaf, but it's a good bit more expensive and it's starting to get a real reputation for bad driving (that might be just round here) which as much as people might dismiss is a real pita at junctions etc.

 

I do about 1k miles a month and was seriously considering changing the vRS for an electric car but imho they're just not there yet.  Maybe when the "everyman's" Tesla comes out we'll start seeing much more practical electric cars but I do seriously wonder if batteries are the answer, they're certainly not very environmentally friendly.  I'm planning on keeping the next car for 4/5 years so I'm hoping the car after than will be H2 or electric.

they are capable of doing that annual mileage as there's a taxi company in devon that has a couple of leafs on 100k with no battery problems and very little wear and tear due to very rarely using the breaks or moving parts etc, but I think you right about electric cars not being there yet (tesla being the exception)   we went out the other night had 81% charge 42 mile round trip when we got home we had about 4% left , this was due to the outside temp being around freezing and it was all national speed limit roads ...   if you not prepared for that then it can be very stressful.

Edited 27 February, 2016 by speedy1

[gullyg]

they are capable of doing that annual mileage as there's a taxi company in devon that has a couple of leafs on 100k with no battery problems and very little wear and tear due to very rarely using the breaks or moving parts etc, but I think you right about electric cars not being there yet (tesla being the exception)   we went out the other night had 81% charge 42 mile round trip when we got home we had about 4% left , this was due to the outside temp being around freezing and it was all national speed limit roads ...   if you not prepared for that then it can be very stressful.

 

 

Ah, sorry - I might not have been clear, I was questioning whether the OP could handle 25k+ miles a year in a Leaf especially after having a Superb.  Small cars in general might be capable of doing high mileage but IMHO they're not really suitable in comparison with a larger car for extended periods of driving.

 

I certainly hated doing long distance in SWMBOs micra, it was fine in the town but Edinburgh to Birmingham was almost murder.  Edinburgh to Stoke in my MK1 Fabia vRS was pretty bad as well.

[silver1011]

Thanks for all the advice chaps.

 

Popped into my local Nissan dealer today and asked what could be done.

 

It seems that the 2016 cars have the uprated battery, a move from 24kW to 30kW which improves the range by 10-15 miles.

 

I asked for the top spec Tekna model and added the 6.6kW charger as it looks like I'll need 100% charge to get me home through the winter months.

 

On a 3 year PCP with no deposit (from me) and 25,000 mile annual mileage it worked out at £366 inc. VAT.

 

So I came home and did some basic calculations...

 

 

We Buy Any Car quoted £5,300 for my Superb, covering my mileage I figured £1,000 depreciation per year.

 

I haven't checked the insurance yet but have assumed the same as the Superb for now.

 

I'll also need to have a Pod Point (charger) fitted at home (£250) and persuade work to fit one too.

 

But all in all it seems like it might be a worthwhile move going for the Leaf?

 

I'll need to borrow one for a couple of days to see how it manages with my commute.

[silver1011]

Ah, sorry - I might not have been clear, I was questioning whether the OP could handle 25k+ miles a year in a Leaf especially after having a Superb.  Small cars in general might be capable of doing high mileage but IMHO they're not really suitable in comparison with a larger car for extended periods of driving.

 

I certainly hated doing long distance in SWMBOs micra, it was fine in the town but Edinburgh to Birmingham was almost murder.  Edinburgh to Stoke in my MK1 Fabia vRS was pretty bad as well.

 

A valid point, the Superb is a very capable and comfortable cruiser.

 

I very much remember the day I changed from doing the same journey in this to the Superb!

 

 

A 70bhp diesel Peugeot 306.

 

I certainly wouldn't want to go any smaller. I understand the Leaf is similar in size to a Ford Focus so I'm hoping it won't be too much of a drop down.

 

Refinement, rear seat space and boot space will certainly need to be compromised.

 

However the spec of the Tekna does put the Superb in the shade so I'm hoping this might soften the blow a little bit!

[silver1011]

...they are capable of doing that annual mileage as there's a taxi company in devon that has a couple of leafs on 100k with no battery problems and very little wear and tear due to very rarely using the breaks or moving parts etc.

 

I read that article too!

 

The beauty of a 3 year PCP is that even with my mileage the car and battery will always be under warranty.

 

This is one of the main attractions for me, no worries over potential big bills or hassle with getting an older car fixed etc... hopefully.

 

The Superb has not missed a beat in the 93,000 miles I had it, but assuming I could get it to 200,000 miles without issue that is only 3.5 years from now and by then it won't be worth a lot.

 

If I sell the Superb now then I'll also have over £5K in the bank too.

 

 

...we went out the other night had 81% charge 42 mile round trip when we got home we had about 4% left , this was due to the outside temp being around freezing and it was all national speed limit roads ...   if you not prepared for that then it can be very stressful.

 

This is one thing I do not want to have - range anxiety.

 

If during the test drive I don't have around 20% charge remaining after arriving at work/home then it'll be a no-go.

[silver1011]

BMW I3 with range extender, any deals on them?

Or a Toyota Hybrid with 0 road tax, as they have it sorted and been doing it for about 13 years now?

Think your annual mileage will be the killer blow to any sensible lease deal :(

 

As with any BMW they are generally quite a bit more expensive.

 

The Audi e-tron and VW Golf GTE also demand quite a premium over the Leaf.

 

I did also pop into the Kia dealer to look at the Kia Soul EV. The salesman was very poor, couldn't get me out of the door quick enough. No name, brochure or sales patter. A print out showing £550 per month and he was gone. So was I.

Edited 27 February, 2016 by silver1011

[speedy1]

Hi silver

Just with regard you commute You should always have a plan b and potentially even a plan c. If your charging at work and home you should be fine but what would happen if the work charger went down? In an ideal world you need another charger (preferably a fast charger) within 30 to 40 miles. I'm assuming 1% a mile on the 30kw leaf but that could drop in the worst conditions. I'm not trying to put you off, 60 miles each way is outside its capability so you have to have redundancy.

Tom

Edited 27 February, 2016 by speedy1

[silver1011]

Yep, I hear you, if for whatever reason I cannot charge at work then I am potentially screwed.

 

124 miles (62 miles each way) in a day at my speeds is not going to work, I appreciate that.

 

Assuming the charger that I have fitted at work fails then I think I can charge using a standard wall socket, albeit much more slowly?

 

Luckily if I check out the Zap website there are quite a few charging options along my route. Just next door to our office is the local council HQ, they have a charge point there, it is a 3 minute walk from my office.

 

I was offered a 24 hour test drive but might try and ask for a 48 hour one so that I can get two days of commuting under my belt.

 

Thanks Tom.

Edited 27 February, 2016 by silver1011

[speedy1]

yes you can charge from a socket which is brilliant but as you say it does take much longer (about 12 hours ) in my car. it does sound like your in a charger rich area so you should be fine.

 

go onto a forum called speak ev, they are really friendly and much more knowledgeable than me  and also there is a chap on you tube called Ian Sampson who is half way through a 4 year blog on switching to a leaf.  it really helped convince me to get one as he really does push it to its limits, just make sure you get passed the first 2 weeks "bedding in " because he does go through a learning curve.

 

Tom

[silver1011]

Thanks Tom, I've just registered over on SpeakEV!

 

Can someone please sanity check my numbers for me?

 

A guy over on SpeakEV said I was crazy for going for a PCP with my mileage, hinting at spending £13,000+ with nothing at the end to show for it. That number gave me a bit of a fright so I wanted to see what my Skoda Superb was costing me.

 

I bought it at 18 months old with 14,000 miles on it for £13,000 so have used this as an example if I decided to go for another Superb instead of the Leaf. Have I got this right?

 

 

You can see the difference is negligible. Not included:

• The interest I would pay on the loan if I needed to buy another Superb.
• Any mechanical failures / repairs needed on the Superb as it ages.
• The cost of diesel going up over the next three years.

 

So the Leaf would cost me an extra £48 per month. However if I increase the £250 for diesel up by £50 i.e. one extra tank of diesel per month or to reflect a rise in fuel costs then it becomes a face wipe, i.e. I'm paying no more for a car which is always under manufacturers warranty...

 

[speedy1]

just been over there  reading your posts hopefully they will be able to give you the answers you need... from  seeing your numbers above it looks like its going to work for you but i'm sure people with bigger brains than me will come along soon.

 

I must say  it brought one thing home to me,  and  that's how expensive it is to run a car!!

Edited 28 February, 2016 by speedy1

[lfc958]

Anyone See the tv program with James May about the different fueled cars ?

 

He has a BMW I3 and right at the end of the program he summarised  EV as follows.  

The 1st EV built nearly 80 years ago got a real world range of approx 85 miles,  His I3 has a real world range of approx 85 Miles, his face spoke more than any words could.

[Chubbs]

PCH deals are now a little more palatable with the VW GTE and thus would remove the need for constant charging and allow you to get home!

[silver1011]

That's good, I only need 62 miles, so 85 miles is a 40% bonus!

[silver1011]

PCH deals are now a little more palatable with the VW GTE and thus would remove the need for constant charging and allow you to get home!

 

I did briefly look at Hybrids but unfortunately they would work out more expensive than my current diesel for my mileage.

 

The GTE has a 31 mile range on battery alone, more like 20 real world miles, which for me would mean 42 miles using the 1.4 litre turbo charged petrol engine.

 

I haven't crunched the numbers but I'm guessing the 55mpg I'm getting in the Superb will make it cheaper to run than a typical hybrid... 

[Defenderben]

As speedy1 in post #6 said, as a second car it is great and made total sense but as the only and main mode of transport in the household, it just doesn't work for him.

What happens if you get home having driven the Leaf to within an inch of its maximum range and you get a call and need to go somewhere urgently?

Or

On your way home the road gets closed and massive hold up happens or you get diverted via a longer route....too much for me to worry about.

I could not spend my life having to constantly think about charging a car.

I think I could just about cope with the I3 with a range extender but pure EV would be a life shortner for me.

Be interesting to see how you get on.

Also on your figures I take it you are getting 0% on the PCP?

How do you work out £30 per month charging, if average charge (at home) is about £2 a go?

And you seem to miss the fact or not mention that at the end of 3 years you can still get to work as you still own the Skoda, where as the Leaf will be gone and you will be looking around at getting something else

BTW I'm not against EV just curious on some of the findings and predictions

Edited 28 February, 2016 by Defenderben

[XLBaconDoubleCheese]

There are charging stations all over the place, it'd need to be a serious diversion to take you that far away that you'd run out of battery. The Leaf claims a range of around 124 miles, so Silver would only be using 50% or so of the range per trip, leaving plenty spare for needing to make a trip once arriving at home. 

 

I'm not in a position to sink the money into a new car at the moment, but if I did I'd be considering a EV no doubt, over a 100 miles of range is plenty for me to make every regular trip I make, it's the same range as my motorbike and I can cope with that easily, if I was driving over 100 miles I'd likely stop for a break anyway, quick charge and good to go again. 

 

That said EVs aren't for everyone. 

[silver1011]

As speedy1 in post #6 said, as a second car it is great and made total sense but as the only and main mode of transport in the household, it just doesn't work for him.

What happens if you get home having driven the Leaf to within an inch of its maximum range and you get a call and need to go somewhere urgently?

Or

On your way home the road gets closed and massive hold up happens or you get diverted via a longer route....too much for me to worry about.

I could not spend my life having to constantly think about charging a car.

I think I could just about cope with the I3 with a range extender but pure EV would be a life shortner for me.

Be interesting to see how you get on.

Also on your figures I take it you are getting 0% on the PCP?

How do you work out £30 per month charging, if average charge (at home) is about £2 a go?

And you seem to miss the fact or not mention that at the end of 3 years you can still get to work as you still own the Skoda, where as the Leaf will be gone and you will be looking around at getting something else

BTW I'm not against EV just curious on some of the findings and predictions

 

It is a big learning curve for me too, so I have more questions than you 

 

I am relatively lucky with my commute. Being 'oop North' means the roads are a little quieter, the particular roads I use are pretty good. I've been travelling them for 6 or 7 years now and have come across a few road closures in my time so I have most of the short cuts and diversions pretty well sorted.

 

That said I very much share your reservations, I'm simply not prepared to walk into any kind of 'range anxiety'. If during the test drive I can't make the daily commute in the dark (lights on), in the rain (wipers on and increased friction from puddles), in the winter (heater on) with the head winds and without playing with the trucks (60mph plus) without a good chunk of spare battery capacity then I'll be walking away.

 

With the all new (for 2016) 30kwh battery Nissan are claiming up to 155 miles which as with typical miles per gallon claims is grossly inflated. There are lots of owners out there with the older and smaller 24kwh battery happily covering 80+ miles per charge in demanding conditions. Only the four day test drive will confirm it for me though!

 

No, the PCP is not 0%, it is 5.93%.

 

The only deal I've had offered is:

 

Can't remember the list price, was north of £30,000 though!

Government grant - minus £4,500.

Nissan discount - some more.

Dealer discount - some more still.

No customer deposit.

Total amount of credit - £21,021.30.

Term - 36 months.

Total amount to pay (including interest) - £23,912.99.

Minimum future guaranteed value: £11,246.75.

20,000 miles per year (60,000 miles over the full term)*.

£351.84 inc. VAT per month.

 

* I also asked for 25,000 miles (the salesman's iPad only had a max of 20K) so he came back and scribbled £366.60 on the paper, so an extra £14 / month for an extra 5K per year. Unfortunately after checking my actual annual mileage when I got back home it is more like 29K so more tweaking to be done.

 

On the cost of charging, £1.50 per night (off peak tariff), five nights a week (£7.50) = £30 per month. Approximate of course.

Free charging at work during the day for the return journey home from the office.

 

Yes, at the end of the 3 year term the Skoda will be gone but (in theory) I simply walk into another PCP at a similar monthly amount and just keep paying.

Remember, the £6,000 I get from the private sale of the Superb will still be in the bank if at the end of the PCP I have decided a life in an electric car is not for me.

 

Hope this makes sense, I'm still trying to get my head around this myself!

Edited 28 February, 2016 by silver1011

[silver1011]

Just had my 5 quotes from carwow in, all more expensive than the local Nissan dealer above except one.

 

His 'total amount of credit' is £20,390, so £631 cheaper.

 

Taking the mileage up to the required 30,000 miles means a monthly cost of £369, looking pretty good.