Any views on 0% BIK for electric cars?

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newtothis

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I currently drive a Prius, and was thinking of a plug-in hybrid for my next car.

However, the introduction of 0% BIK for 2018 for electric-only cars is a huge financial incentive for those who can avail of it (luckily, I can).

So, is it time to go electric?
 
I would say if overnight charging is enough to cover your daily driving. Then sure. If you need to charge more than that I would say no.

if it makes sense in the long run in terms of depreciation, I have no idea.
 
This info may be out of date... but I heard that electric only vehicles rely on breaking power to recharge when driving. So fine if you are in a city... but on a motorway you are not breaking, you are just driving so must easier to drain the battery?

https://www.rte.ie/lifestyle/motors/2017/0509/873841-life-in-the-electric-lane-no-more-fuel-bills/

My key takeaway from that article is importance of figuring out your typical driving range and how far you will get on a fully charged battery in models you are looking at.
 
Much like a mobile phone overnight charging is no hassle.

It is hassle if you have to charge it multiple times through the day.

Also remember the range on these is over very over stated. So check out reviews on YouTube to see real mileage figures.
 
odyssey06 said:
This info may be out of date... but I heard that electric only vehicles rely on breaking power to recharge when driving. So fine if you are in a city... but on a motorway you are not breaking, you are just driving so must easier to drain the battery?

https://www.rte.ie/lifestyle/motors/2017/0509/873841-life-in-the-electric-lane-no-more-fuel-bills/

My key takeaway from that article is importance of figuring out your typical driving range and how far you will get on a fully charged battery in models you are looking at.
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Wind resistance and drag drag are probably a bigger factor. Range is reduced the faster you go.
 
The other thing I'd be concerned about is maintenance of this in a few years time... is servicing \ repairs a lot more expensive? I'm guessing there's a much smaller number of places you can go to, so your local back street garage won't be an option.
 
From a tax point of view, if it suits your driving then I'd go for it. However, it's initially only available for 1 year. I'd be checking to see if you could get a lease for 1 year, and avoid any concerns about unknown maintenance or depreciation.
 
I think there's a lot less mechanically to go wrong. The Prius Hybrid is one of the most reliable cars. hence why its so popular now with taxi's.

I would expect all electric cars to be even better. An electric car has a lot less going on than a regular car.

Probably one of the things you will save money on. They are starting to offer battery replacement too. So that opens up a lot of possibilities.
 
I drove the Tesla S last week.Absolutely stunning car.Its good for 300 km on a full charge.Battery has an 8 year warranty.Electric is the way to go.
 
It's very realistic in terms of my typical usage: I do about 300 kms/week, and the BMW i3 I've been looking at has a real world range of 200 kms (plenty of people stating online that they get this). I live in Dublin, where there are planty of charging points.

I've test driven one, and it's an amazing car to drive. I'm used to silent running from my Prius, but this remains very quiet regardless of speed. It rockets off the line if you want it to (though no doubt this would affect the range if you did it every time). Although relatively small inside, it feels roomy and is a very pleasant place to be. It is quite expensive, though, even with the various VRT rebates etc. that electric cars get. However, the BIK reduction (since confirmed to be 3 rather than 1 year) makes a huge difference to affordability. I've yet to run the numbers, but I suspect it'll be quite a bit cheaper for a company car than anything even remotely close to it.

Regardless of how it's done (i.e. purchase or lease), for someone with no business mileage with a marginal tax rate of about 50%, as far as I know, the cost to a company to give the use of a car is roughly double the cost of the car, if take-home pay is kept the same. Is this correct? If it is, a 0% BIK rate is a very serious concession.
 
Clonback said:
I drove the Tesla S last week.Absolutely stunning car.Its good for 300 km on a full charge.Battery has an 8 year warranty.Electric is the way to go.
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Its a very expensive car. How does the depreciation work out? That has to decimate any cost saving?
 
My current car is a Jaguar XJ and both cars are the same price.So when I change I will make a big saving as I get 33 mpg at the moment.
 
I think this is a very generous offer for people lucky enough to in a position to take it up.

The 2nd generation Nissan Leaf is due in March 2018 and the specs look fantastic.
 
seamless said:
I think this is a very generous offer for people lucky enough to in a position to take it up.

The 2nd generation Nissan Leaf is due in March 2018 and the specs look fantastic.
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I'd agree - I think it will have a huge impact once people realise. The BMW dealer I've spoken to didn't seem too aware of it. For now, the public charging points are free, which is another incentive, though this won't last for ever.

I'm guessing Tesla must have done some serious lobbying to get this, as they currently stand to make huge inroads into the top end of the market.

As you say, the new Nissan Leaf looks to be another beneficiary (the current one has too limited a range). I believe there's an all-electric version of the 3-series BMW on the way, the archetypical company car, so that should do well too.
 
newtothis said:
For now, the public charging points are free, which is another incentive, though this won't last for ever.
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The Regulator has already advised the ESB to either sell off the charging network or to start making it pay for itself. They see it as unfair that electricity customers should be subsidising EV drivers. They have stated there is to be no further charging of electricity customers for the development of the network.
 
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