On 17/08/2024 at 13:32, lol-lol said:

One of my daughters just kick BG in to touch as they had nearly £1k credit but BG would not let me lower their DD.

I have the opposite problem.

My supplier owe me over £1K and they wont let me raise my DD above £95.00 / month.

 

 

Thanks. AG Falco

 

 

48 minutes ago, Graham Butcher said:

That tends to be ideal for the roads in the UK what with our max speed limit of 70mph and more chilled relaxed acceleration figures also help the economy performance without any sacrifice really. I have said it before, and I'll say it again, about 150HP is more than enough to keep up with modern traffic in the UK. As to the limo type cars you talk about, most cars less than that sort of size would require me and my family to have major surgery in to lop at 2" off our legs and maybe around our waistlines and still be able to carry 5 people and all the shopping. So it looks like I'm going to stuck with ICE for some time to come then.

 

Now here's a radical thought as well, just maybe if the makers were to limit their electric cars to around 150HP, they would be able to squeeze much more range out of them and people would find that their tyres lasted longer and also maybe a large reduction in the number of accidents, and as an added bonus, insurance costs might actually come down as well.

 

One reason I have gone for the Scenic as several of us are 6 footers and daughter no 1's man is 6 foot four, his brother is 6 foot 10. Head room and knee should be fine, only the cabin width might be a bit short for say one or two kids chairs and adult size people.

 

Megane would have been too tight but Scenic has lots of good reviews fo those 6 foot plus a few inches.

 

The Passat and Superb had been the go to cars for the giants, maybe a Cryshler 300 and maybe the ID7 might be the VW tall persons car of the future and perhaps Skoda will do a version of that.

 

ID 7 seems to be being met much more widely praised than the ID 3,4 and 5 with the Skoda Enyak being further up Journo list than the smaller IDs.

 

4 minutes ago, lol-lol said:

 

One reason I have gone for the Scenic as several of us are 6 footers and daughter no 1's man is 6 foot four, his brother is 6 foot 10. Head room and knee should be fine, only the cabin width might be a bit short for say one or two kids chairs and adult size people.

 

Megane would have been too tight but Scenic has lots of good reviews fo those 6 foot plus a few inches.

 

The Passat and Superb had been the go to cars for the giants, maybe a Cryshler 300 and maybe the ID7 might be the VW tall persons car of the future and perhaps Skoda will do a version of that.

 

ID 7 seems to be being met much more widely praised than the ID 3,4 and 5 with the Skoda Enyak being further up Journo list than the smaller IDs.

 

Well the 4 men in my family are all 6ft 4" and we are all well-built, especially myself and my eldest one, who you would not want to pick a fight with I can tell you. I did look at the Chrysler 300 and let me assure that it looks bigger than it actually is. It is an optical illusion.

1 minute ago, Graham Butcher said:

Well the 4 men in my family are all 6ft 4" and we are all well-built, especially myself and my eldest one, who you would not want to pick a fight with I can tell you. I did look at the Chrysler 300 and let me assure that it looks bigger than it actually is. It is an optical illusion.

 

I know a giant 6'6" South Afrikan whose car of choice was the 300. 

 

There are few cars I do not put the seat right back to the stops and some smallish cars let you do it but the room behind that seat would be for primary school persons or younger.

Use to be that many cars from certain countries seemed made for the smaller stature.  Tried a Hyundai Coupe and it was just way too small for those over 6 foot.  

 

Original 10 foot long Mini could be setup to accommodate those 6 foot 6 but needed the stop tabs removed from the seat rails and the little bracket to drop the steering column down. Zero room for legs of the passenger.

 

I will test out the Scenic on those well over 6 foot tall relatives but the spec looks fine for them, as long as there is not 3 across the back seats.

 

 

4 minutes ago, lol-lol said:

 

I know a giant 6'6" South Afrikan whose car of choice was the 300. 

 

There are few cars I do not put the seat right back to the stops and some smallish cars let you do it but the room behind that seat would be for primary school persons or younger.

Use to be that many cars from certain countries seemed made for the smaller stature.  Tried a Hyundai Coupe and it was just way too small for those over 6 foot.  

 

Original 10 foot long Mini could be setup to accommodate those 6 foot 6 but needed the stop tabs removed from the seat rails and the little bracket to drop the steering column down. Zero room for legs of the passenger.

 

I will test out the Scenic on those well over 6 foot tall relatives but the spec looks fine for them, as long as there is not 3 across the back seats.

 

 

Thereby hangs the problem, we often go out as a family and the wife as well, and I do have to put my seat all the way back as does the son who sits in front passenger seat. If it was just myself, then there are quite few cars that would allow me to sit comfortably behind the steering wheel until you come up my second problem, I also have extra, extra wide size 15 feet that do not fit into most cars footwell,, even with auto's there is often not enough space for my left foot to sit to the left of the brake pedal.

The error from BMW / MINI might well be the GWM getting together and the MINI electric being built in China.   Now with the tariff issues which surely was thought about they need to get a move on and build the cars in the UK and the EU, or at least the EU.     Regardless of where they build then the cars IT  software stuff is really just too much of a concern for the future and repair and maintenance.  Or just repair.    The latest and coming soon BEV,s and non electrified or part electrified cars and the sorts of garages and dealership the UK has is not a match made in heaven IMO.     PS, a Toyota IQ had loads of shoulder as and leg room for 2 wide and tall people and room for luggage or when the passenger slid their seat forward and still had leg room a passenger could get behind them.  They really are an amazing design for interior space.  Just no glove compartment in front of the passenger.  I am amazed to have not seen one converted to an EV. But then they are great as they come with a petrol engine. 

Edited 20 August, 20241 yr by Ootohere

I remember sitting in an IQ at the Bluewater shopping centre, way too small, I was rubbing shoulders with the passenger and feet didn't fit in the footwell. 

Strange as i am not narrow of shoulder and 6 foot tall and did not need the seat fully back.

they are a wide car. 

Only 2 size 10 shoes though and one not moving as sitting to the right of the accelerator and the left foot doing the work. 

 

@Graham Butcher

Was it a manual you were in with 3 pedals?

Is there any small cars that you can fit comfortably in & drive in comfort?

 

There was more shoulder space and foot space than in a MINI.

I have a more comfortable driver space in a MINI compared to a 520 BMW. 

 

 

Edited 20 August, 20241 yr by Ootohere

10 hours ago, lol-lol said:

 

 

Original 10 foot long Mini could be setup to accommodate those 6 foot 6 but needed the stop tabs removed from the seat rails and the little bracket to drop the steering column down. Zero room for legs of the passenger.

 

 

 

 

Trivia Time: "When Sir Leonard Lord the Managing Director of the British Motor Corporation specified the dimensions of the Mini he said it should be no more than 10 feet long.  They missed their target, by a quarter of an inch, the classic Mini was 10 feet ¼ inch long."

Source: https://www.haynesmuseum.org/news/spotlight-classic-mini-10-fact-you-might-not-know

30 minutes ago, Ootohere said:

 

 

That Jacked up Jiminy pickup  looks cool 

1 hour ago, Winston_Woof said:

That Jacked up Jiminy pickup  looks cool 

Top heavy.

15 minutes ago, Graham Butcher said:

Top heavy.

Just like Barbara Windsor or Dolly Parton , doesn't stop them looking good lol

@Ootohere yes it was a manual version and as to small car I could fit in comfortably and drive, I really don't know the answer to that as I've always had to have a car that would carry a family around in as that family have grown, along with me growing feet (for years I was fitting into a wide size 12, but I was told I was damaging my feet). I had size 12 feet as a young teenager and that was about the biggest shoe around in those days then gradually more shoe shops stocked larger shoes, like Brantano shoe shops used to do size 13 and sometimes 14. Now my feet have spread out to size 15, and I have spend quite a bit on soft Sketchers when they occasionally get round to making a batch of larger ones, which I know have to source from Amazon, so I tend to 2 pairs at a time because they are a rare commodity, they don't come around very often. My dad always called them clown feet 😂

 

Hence why I have always tended to go for the larger cars but not ones with massive engines.

Edited 20 August, 20241 yr by Graham Butcher

12 hours ago, Graham Butcher said:

I also have extra, extra wide size 15 feet that do not fit into most cars footwell,, even with auto's there is often not enough space for my left foot to sit to the left of the brake pedal.

Something I noticed whilst renting a Model 3, there is a strange lip in the Model 3 footwell. I think it is where the battery starts. In order to give the sense of lower driving position and/or attempt at accommodate large feet, Tesla have the heel rest area lower than flat area in front of the seat. But as soon as I move my feet back to rest on the flat part, feels like knees are at chest level. I personally found it difficult to get comfy whilst on AP. That lip probably wouldn't work well with large feet. 

@Winston_Woof When Suzuki do an Electric Jimny i will have one.

@Graham Butcher It was not built to be top heavy, just for a purpose and that was to go any place a Quad could and in comfort. 

(Or where you might not take a Quad.)

 

 

 

Edited 20 August, 20241 yr by Ootohere

Another Octopus fee hour of lecky 1300 to 1400 BST.

I am away in Liverpool so will not  be able to exploit it so well.

 

Wonder when these free lunchtime session will come to an end.  Probably as we get close to the Autumnal Equinox/ Equilux.   

 

Sol is not a point of light but a sphere of about 860,000 miles diameter 

https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/equilux.html

 

 

1 hour ago, lol-lol said:

Wonder when these free lunchtime session will come to an end.

It will become a normal regular occurrence, but also might become regular is higher 4-8pm peak-time pricing. Renewables are cheap and clean, but they are unpredictable. So they need to be built overcapacity. As with anything over supplied, there will be times when they become extremely cheap to generate demand.

 

This is where batteries come in, ability to be flexible in time domain ensures getting maximum savings in cost domain from unpredictability nature of cheap and clean energy. Hence why I pointed out EV's are typically charged with more renewables in the grid mix than typical household. It isn't about where that electron came from, it's about grid carbon intensity and the time that demand was put onto the grid.

 

It is also important to get those who can be plugged in when at home to driving EV and keep plugging in. The more people do this, the more renewable can be connected without shutting down/going to waste.

 

On a larger scale (both in time and capex), this sort of surplus period is the exact time to produce renewable fuel (green hydrogen, e-fuel). The more excess renewable capacity there is, the more low efficiency method of energy use is viable.

25 minutes ago, wyx087 said:

It will become a normal regular occurrence, but also might become regular is higher 4-8pm peak-time pricing. Renewables are cheap and clean, but they are unpredictable. So they need to be built overcapacity. As with anything over supplied, there will be times when they become extremely cheap to generate demand.

 

This is where batteries come in, ability to be flexible in time domain ensures getting maximum savings in cost domain from unpredictability nature of cheap and clean energy. Hence why I pointed out EV's are typically charged with more renewables in the grid mix than typical household. It isn't about where that electron came from, it's about grid carbon intensity and the time that demand was put onto the grid.

 

It is also important to get those who can be plugged in when at home to driving EV and keep plugging in. The more people do this, the more renewable can be connected without shutting down/going to waste.

 

On a larger scale (both in time and capex), this sort of surplus period is the exact time to produce renewable fuel (green hydrogen, e-fuel). The more excess renewable capacity there is, the more low efficiency method of energy use is viable.

 

I admire your optimism and faith in this renewable utopia and hope it all works out for the consumer.

 

One thing that can be guaranteed is the respective companies seeking increasing annual revenue turnover and profit.

 

I don't think there is a "might" in your prediction of higher 4-8pm and peak time pricing once everyone has been sucked into a smart meter.

 

They will be empowered to identify individuals use and price accordingly to the point were "peak times" can be customised at client level.

 

 

1 minute ago, Stonekeeper said:

They will be empowered to identify individuals use and price accordingly to the point were "peak times" can be customised at client level.

This is opposite of my optimism and utopia vision.

 

But remember just like right now where all time of use tariff that are variable (eg. Intelligent Octopus Go) have to adhere to price cap average throughout the day, if your theorised client-level peak pricing becomes a thing, there will still always be cheap periods to offset those more expensive peak periods. So it's no problem for people who can be flexible with their grid demands.

 

Would be problematic for those without home storage capability.......

1 minute ago, wyx087 said:

This is opposite of my optimism and utopia vision.

 

But remember just like right now where all time of use tariff that are variable (eg. Intelligent Octopus Go) have to adhere to price cap average throughout the day, if your theorised client-level peak pricing becomes a thing, there will still always be cheap periods to offset those more expensive peak periods. So it's no problem for people who can be flexible with their grid demands.

 

Would be problematic for those without home storage capability.......

 

I agree it's no problem for people who can be flexible with their grid demands. If i was a lot younger and had the finances to build a solar array and have power banks, i would be seriously investigating the possibility of going off grid.

 

The real world unfortunately has people who do not have such funds, are committed by circumstance to use electricity in no other way than to cook before and after work etc on the traditional 9-5 work regime. So cannot benefit apart from giving up their weekends to do the washing.

 

Once we get to the 100% electric car goal these  "non-peak" times will also reduce

Between Monday's peak and troughs there is a difference of over 15,000,000 kW

 

 

Typically there's between 10,000,000 to 15,000,000 kW of difference. Over 1 hour during the trough, let's say 12,000,000 kWh. That equates to 42,000,000 miles (at 3.5 mi/kWh). How much does UK population drive in total per day? We have 42 million miles per day of EV driving capacity just in just 1 hour trough window.

 

It will take a long time to close this day peak and night trough demand difference.

 

People say the off-peak time length will decrease or it will disappear. But forgetting as long as we have (ever increasing) portion of the grid on renewables, the unpredictability will always be present. The price will thus always be changing to generate the demand to match the supply. It's simple demand and supply management theory.

 

This is the energy market, and now we, the end user, can finally participate thanks to smart meters.

I’m sorry but sunshine is not renewable 

 

once a photon has left the sun and commenced its journey to who knows where (maybe a solar panel) it can’t be renewed. 
 

It can be replaced by another photon but that’s a different photon. 
 

 

Most domestic properties can only charge at a maximum of 28mph. 7kw x 4? if we use 3.5 it's only 24.5mph

 

When they give you a free hour you save 52.5p charging the car if you have the ev tariff?

 

effectively your standing charge for the day?

 

Good promotion to get more involved.

 

If they get to 40% market share it's game over?

Edited 20 August, 20241 yr by Stonekeeper

I am going to have to let Eon Next have a Smart Meter fitted after years of ignoring them and them missing appointments that were made and even them saying a Smart Meter could not be fitted at my house.

 

I was starting a charge of the car and the meter should have read 90735 & it is at 60735.

It was reading OK up to yesterday and i charged 32 kWh over night. 

 

I will leave it a week or 3 or until they next want a meter reading and then they can go by my usual usage.

(Sadly higher than my usual 5 kWh a day since i started charging the car at home when the tariff dropped.) 

 

EDIT.

Getting fitted Friday lunch time, or someone is coming to fit then.

It could have been done today as an appointment was available. 

Edited 21 August, 20241 yr by Ootohere

A shame, there would otherwise have been an opportunity to exploit the situation, you may still think of one!