EVs - Test Drives and Impressions of NZ Available Models

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#2874297 24-Feb-2022 19:09

It is interesting you went for the Kona, particularly since you mentioned you aren’t small. It is quite a while since I test drove one, but it struck me as one of the smaller of the EVs on offer. It is also has an ICE sibling so it is quite ‘conventional’ in its interior. Did that sway you as well? Or was it more to do with being able to get some of the ‘elite’ goodies while remaining below $80K?

Edit: Since this thread is to assist other GZers with EV decisions, the good, the bad and the ugly that led you to your choice may be helpful.

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#2874490 25-Feb-2022 07:47

Dingbatt:

It is interesting you went for the Kona, particularly since you mentioned you aren’t small. It is quite a while since I test drove one, but it struck me as one of the smaller of the EVs on offer. It is also has an ICE sibling so it is quite ‘conventional’ in its interior. Did that sway you as well? Or was it more to do with being able to get some of the ‘elite’ goodies while remaining below $80K?

Edit: Since this thread is to assist other GZers with EV decisions, the good, the bad and the ugly that led you to your choice may be helpful.

Thinking about it, I'll probably driven a few Kona cars as they were offered as courtesy cars at the garage that I used to for servicing my car. These courtesy cars were usually entry point ICE motors. So you could evaluate the car and not the shiny thing on the car's dashboard. Never really understood why garages don't use higher spec care or even electric cars for this. Such a missed opportunity.

As for head & leg room in Kona cars. I've found that some cars are like the Tardis... that is, bigger on the inside. Kona's are a bit like this. And as my current car is an Elite model (even through Turners are offered me next to nothing for it), then those elite goodies become important.

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#2898528 8-Apr-2022 11:41

Cross post from the Kia EV6 Spec's thread:

For context, we currently have a 2006 Lexus RX 400h, and a 2014 Nissan leaf. We preferentially use the leaf when we need only one car, and we don't need stuff that the SUV has (Long range, AWD, towbar, more cargo & interior space, roof rails).

Our leaf was cheap as it has a fairly tired battery (75% health, over 1000 fast charges), real world range is around 100km. With a 100% charge it can do return trips to Piha, Murawai etc from central Auckland. Used to do a bunch of trips to the beaches a bit north of warkworth, but have decided to stop using the leaf for this. In short, it takes two charge stops, and the single charge in walkworth that is near SH1 is quite contested, and I have had to wait at the paid one by the supermarket too. Risk of a long wait to charge is now to high. Also quite like Te-Ari beach would need a 100% charge at walkworth which takes a long time on a leaf with a tired battery.

I really like the lexus. It was a $99,000 car when new (we paid around $12k a few years back). Shares a lot of parts with the Toyota highlander, but packed with sound deadening, and has the most comfortable seats of any car we sat when we were shopping for it (especially back seats. Spouse was recovering from surgery and at that time often road in the back to be next to our child, so this was very important to us). Does seem every year it on average it needs $2k+ of maintenance though. Last thing was a radiator replacement. Must say I have been been looking at the near zero deprecation of model 3's (and appreciation since the war in Ukraine), and thinking that a new model 3 would have given lower Total cost of ownership than the old lexus. (but still reluctant to tie up that sort of capital). And of course going to a sedan would mean giving up luggage space.

Never really had interest in the EV6 before, Had assumed that as with the ioniq 5, all the long range models with 1600kg towing would miss out on the rebate. But when the pricing, and spec sheets arrived, it turns out the Long range RWD, not only slides in under the $80k price cap, but also is extremely well specified.

First EV under the rebate, that could realistically replace the lexus with few compromises.

On paper the cars are very similar. Sloped back SUV's, with poor ground clearance. Only thing I would need to give up really is AWD, but the only time I need that is when I drive on the beach, something I do 2 - 3 times a year, and wouldn't be willing to risk in a expensive new car anyway.

Setup of the cars is the polar opposite of each other though. Lexus is softly sprung, and makes for a very nice open road cruiser. you sit up high, and Seats are soft too. EV6 is set up with much firmer suspension and seats, and the whole setup is lower slung.

Its obvious competitor is the Tesla Model Y SR+ when/ if it arrives (assuming it also comes in under $80k base).

Personally think the EV6 Air Long range RWD (which I expect to cost similar to the tesla Y SR+) looks nicer, and offers substantially more range, faster fast charging, and what I consider to be a more compelling feature set.

Model Y does win hands down in the acceleration (7.3 sec 0-100 vs 5.3 sec 0-97), offers a 7 seat option (unlike the EV6), and the 5 seat made in china version offers substantial more space. Fitted 9 Banana boxes behind the rear seats + 1 in the Bjorns test, vs 8 in the Back in 0 in the front in the EV6. (for reference the much smaller MG ZS EV also fitted 8 behind the rear seats.

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Scott3:

Took this for a spin today.

https://www.carjam.co.nz/car/?plate=PCZ697

Can confirm the charge cord in the boot had a 10A current rating, and a standard 10A plug. Salesperson didn't know if test car had a heat pump.

Test car was a forest green. Looked stunning in person.

Car was described to me as the base trim, which I wrongly assumed to mean the base offering ($73k, 125kW, RWD, standard range).

Turns out the car was a spec not listed online. "AIR AWD LR 239KWH/EV". So the entry level "Air" trim, combined with the 239kW AWD power-train.

Floored the accelerator from a standing start on an uphill motorway onramp, and can confirm this car is substantially faster accelerating than my current 200kW lexus SUV. Dramatically so.

I quite liked the interior.

Seating position is low and stretched out, more large sedan like than SUV like. (I'm 183cm tall with long legs, and generally run the drivers seat at the right back, and down, and the wheel at maximum extension and about mid tilt). Seat went a heap further back than my current SUV, and unlike my current SUV, I could fit in the back seat behind my preferred driving position. (but unlike my current SUV, with the drivers seat right down, I couldn't fit my shoes under the seat.). Head room in the back seat is tight, but I did just fit, which I often don't in slope back style cars. Center rear seat is more usable than typical due to the flat floor.

Boot space is similar to that in my 2006 Lexus RX (which has one of the lowest amount in it's class). Workable, but seems like a missed opportunity on what is a pretty big car.

Has a split level boot, but with the board removed, the brackets eat into the sides of the space. Would much prefer a boot optimized for low mode, to maximize capacity. I don't care if the boot floor that is flat with the folded setbacks, but if it is seen as important, I could be achieved with polystyrene spacer block, and a board on top of that.

Non GT line gets a under boot tub. Pritty small, but welcome none the less.

Frunk on the AWD is pritty tiny, and the bonnet is opened by a cable release near the drivers door, (as opposed to a button on the key like a BMW i3). Again, not perfect, but I am glad they bothered. I have quite a bit of stuff I like to carry in my car all the time, but like to have tucked away.

Suspension and seats are both firm compared to my Lexus SUV, but that does mean heaps less body roll. Never found any bad roads to test comfort, but seemed fine in suburbia.

Thankfully the headrest adjust forwards and backwards.

Lots less inverter noise than our leaf.

Could start to hear a bit or road noise coming up at 50km/h on chip road's. No high speed chip roads around to test, but would be interested to hear how the road noise levels are.

All up, I expect the Long Range 2wd version to sell like hotcakes.

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#2907894 28-Apr-2022 13:40

While it is not going to be as comprehensive a review as Scott’s above, I managed to take an EV6 (AWD GT-Line) for a short test drive. I went to the dealer to talk about the new Niro PHEV and despite turning up in my Model 3, the salesman was keen for me to try the EV6. So I did.

My first impression, considering the shared lineage with the Ioniq5, was the more car-like feel of the EV6 vs the I5. More of a ‘cockpit’ feel in the driving seat and that carried through to the drive. Externally the EV6 looks very wide, but doesn’t feel that way inside.

While I liked the centre infotainment display, I found the driver display difficult to view sufficiently through the steering wheel with the wheel in a comfortable driving position (the display is wider than the steering wheel arc). This model has a HUD (affordable “Air” models don’t) which helped. The displays themselves are a nice high resolution (as were the ones in the I5). When you consider how cheap touch displays actually are these days, the number of manufacturers that cheap out on low res displays is disappointing.

It was a very smooth car to drive (and quiet) although I found the fake energy noise it produced annoying (can be turned off I think). It was solid on the road although not much feedback with the steering quite heavy in all modes.
I was caught out initially expecting one pedal driving and a hold function. So when I put it into “D” and took my foot off the brake, it started to move (I have become used to having to press the accelerator to move in my TM3). Likewise it coasted, rather decelerating when off the accelerator. Eventually I figured out I needed to use the regen levers to select “i-pedal” to give me one pedal driving. Once again I would normally do more study before a test drive to get the most out of the drive, but this was an ad hoc opportunity. What it brought home to me though, is this vehicle is an easier transition from an ICE vehicle (particularly in the case of a Tesla) because you can essentially get in it and operate it in the same fashion as an ICE auto. It has an Off/On button, when putting into gear, it acts like an automatic (take your foot off the brake, it creeps forward). It has a separate electronic parking brake (although it is in a random spot, to the right of the steering wheel on the instrument panel). And it has conventional steering wheel buttons. It has a lot of capacitive touch buttons and I found myself accidentally activating switches for the heated seats and steering wheel by resting my wrist at the front of the console to steady my hand to operate the climate controls. Poor ergonomic design, or maybe just me…..

This car had the ‘virtual side mirrors’ that display on the driving cluster when the indicators are operated and a 360 degree parking view, according to the salesman neither are available on the ‘Air’ model, which is a shame, because even the “Air” is not cheap.

The boot is smaller than the Ioniq5 due to the slope of the rear window, so if family cargo capacity is important then the I5 is better (imo). Likewise the I5 felt more ‘airy’ in the back seat than the EV6, which may be better for kids prone to motion sickness.

The drive I did was a mixture of urban and motorway driving and produced a efficiency of 196W/km bearing in mind this was the AWD model, I did the same route in my TM3 (RWD std range) and it returned a figure of 138W/km. Both drives were done with no ‘heavy acceleration’ phases.

After getting back in my own car I have come to the conclusion there needs to be a new category of vehicles for large EVs. Vehicles like the EV6 (and Ioniq5) are not really SUVs, or sedans, or people movers or crossovers.

If I had to choose between the EV6 and Ioniq5, I would go for the Kia. For me it looks better and drives better, but I don’t have to consider carting a family around.

But at $108K for the car I drove, I think I would rather have the BMW i4 M40. But unsurprisingly, the salesman told me they were selling ten times as many Airs as GT-Lines.

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Dingbatt

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#2908370 29-Apr-2022 14:38

Dingbatt:

The drive I did was a mixture of urban and motorway driving and produced a efficiency of 196W/km bearing in mind this was the AWD model, I did the same route in my TM3 (RWD std range) and it returned a figure of 138W/km. Both drives were done with no ‘heavy acceleration’ phases.

For the sake of accuracy I mean 196Wh/km and 138Wh/km (missed out the ‘h’).

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#2908397 29-Apr-2022 16:16

@rogercruse I have edited your two posts where you used a "funny name". This is not acceptable here.

johno1234

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#2908401 29-Apr-2022 16:39

EV6 is 2.5 tonne? Yikes!

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#2908419 29-Apr-2022 18:49

johno1234:

EV6 is 2.5 tonne? Yikes!

Yes. I was just pondering whether it felt like it. It certainly felt heavier on the road than the Model 3 or the Polestar 2. I wonder how hard it will be on tires. Particularly the more powerful models.

Another reason it is not really an SUV.

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#2936005 29-Jun-2022 15:12

BMW i4M50

(As tested $140K)

I got a call from my friendly neighbourhood BMW salesman to say the i4 had arrived and did I want to come and have a look?

Yes, was the answer. I had been impressed by the 330e PHEV so was interested to see what the electrified 4 series would be like. I think the salesman was a little disappointed to see me arrive in a Model 3 rather than my venerable old Camry Hybrid.

The i4 is not a ‘clean sheet’ EV, rather an electrified ICE vehicle so it’s compromises include a transmission tunnel intruding into the cabin and the lack of a ‘frunk’ (even in the 40 variant which doesn’t have a front motor). Being a ‘fastback’ design the headroom in the rear seats is really only for children sized humans and the rear storage space while wide and long is not very deep and is further constrained at the back by the slope of the hatch. Certainly less boot storage than my Model 3 and I would suggest probably the least available practical space in this size of EV. The boot underfloor space had a subwoofer in it and not even enough space for a charging cable. Maybe enough space for a puncture repair kit, but the car had run-flat tires. The test car was black so the “baboon butt” front grill that BMW have gone for seems less visually offensive.

As seems to be the fashion these days the displays are perched on the dash rather than installed in it. While it looks a bit half-arsed when viewed from outside the car, the two displays that make up the iDrive 8 system look more integrated and less tablet-like than the ones in the Ioniq5 and EV6. They are really high res and clear and you can see the speed readout through the steering wheel arc. I like the iDrive system in the BMWs and the one in the i4 is no exception and can be operated by touch, voice or a scroll wheel on the centre console. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with info from them displayed on the HUD as well (incl media and nav) standard on both models (40 and M50).

The interior had black lining which made it feel dark and enclosing. It felt slightly better once the sunroof shade was opened but maybe I’m just spoilt by the glass roof in my car. People obviously like the black interiors, can’t say I do necessarily. (Real) Leather seats are standard and are super comfortable (and heated). In fact they are the only ones so far that are better than my M3 seats.

As for the test drive itself, the car was very pleasant to drive. It definitely felt heavier on the road than the M3 (it’s 2.3T vs 1.8T) but not as heavy feeling as the EV6. Despite being on run-flat tires, it was the smoothest and quietest ride I have had in an EV. The driving position makes you feel like you are sitting in the car rather than on it. View through the rear window is compromised by the fastback hatch but the M50 has a 360 and multi-view reversing camera. All the normal safety aids are there including cross traffic, blind spot monitoring, etc. Inexplicably the 40 model doesn’t have adaptive cruise (only dumb cruise) or lane keeping (both standard in the M50). While the chip shortage continues, BMW are prioritising the ‘goodies’ for the M50.

The i4M50 I drove is a dual motor performance model with a 80kWh (usable) battery and in my test drive around my standard route, which includes urban and motorway driving, it returned 20.4 kWh/100km. I had the car in ‘Normal’ drive mode with one pedal driving selected. It apparently has an ‘Eco’ and ‘Eco Pro’ mode that the salesman pointed out would have got me better efficiency but they turn systems off to achieve that (didn’t have heating on despite it being 12C outside). So that is a real world range of about 400km. Out of interest I did the same test run in the same conditions in the M3RWD and it did 13.1kWh/100km.

The BMW i4 is definitely a better quality car than my Model 3, and I believe it is also better quality than the EV offerings from Polestar, Kia and Hyundai. But that is reflected in the price. I consider my car as a $45K car with a $25K battery installed and look at the i4 as an $80K and $100K car (40 and M50 respectively) with a $30K battery onboard.

The BMW i4 is not really a practical car and has its limitations as an EV. It is nice to drive and will appeal to BMW fans who want something electric in a “look at me” kind of way.

Edit: Amended vehicle weight.

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#2936013 29-Jun-2022 15:26

i4 M50 is 2.4 tonnes with you in it

also the BMW adaptive dampers are amazingly good

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#2936018 29-Jun-2022 15:30

Batman:

i4 M50 is 2.4 tonnes with you in it

also the BMW adaptive dampers are amazingly good

I know I’m a little portly, but break it down a bit!

Yes I was going by the figure the salesman gave me. I will edit my report.

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#2936049 29-Jun-2022 16:34

drove past a EV6 ... looks weird ....

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#2936050 29-Jun-2022 16:35

I like your reviews. Quite detailed and well written. By chance will you look at the Merc EQC and Audi Etron and Q4 Etron? Given they tend to be SUV-like rather than "cars" - eg the Etron GT

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#2937402 2-Jul-2022 08:25

davidcole:

I like your reviews. Quite detailed and well written. By chance will you look at the Merc EQC and Audi Etron and Q4 Etron? Given they tend to be SUV-like rather than "cars" - eg the Etron GT

At this stage I have only tested cars I have been interested in, or for friends and family. In general the ones I (they) can afford. Even the i4 was a stretch of what is possible.

I do intend to test drive the Model Y, so some of the ‘taller’ EVs may be interesting by way of comparison. I’ll have to check if there are any ‘friendly’* Audi or Mercedes salespeople near me.

* While it shouldn’t matter, is does seem they are more receptive when you rock up in a Tesla rather than a 10 year old Camry!

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#2939932 9-Jul-2022 08:56

when is the Enyaq available? apparently it sneaks under the 80 mark by $10 ... i think it's a rather sizable SUV which is what I'm after (as well as range - not sure about efficiency, probably not that good)

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