PURCHASING A NEW car is a big decision, and it can be even more complex if you’re considering switching to an electric vehicle. 

But with environmental benefits, reduced running costs and technology that’s constantly improving, it’s easy to understand the appeal of making the move to electric.

According to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), there are over 26,000 electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids on the road today – while almost 40% of people would consider purchasing an electric vehicle.  

To find out first-hand the experiences of ‘going electric’, we spoke to three people who have made the leap. Here’s what they had to say.

1. ‘It’s much more convenient than I expected’

Back in 2016 I’d been working in Waterford for about a decade and was commuting from just outside Wexford town, so I was looking to upgrade my car at the time. I was spending probably about €10 euro a day on petrol for a 120km commute.

A big thing that appealed to me about electric vehicles was the cost. I was looking at hybrids and plugins, but I supposed they wouldn’t reduce the fuel expense all that much. So I got a Nissan LEAF and was basically plugging in every night, unplugging it the next day when I was leaving home, that was it.

I’ve upgraded the car since to a Tesla Model 3. We’re a fully electric household now. I was driving the LEAF for three and a half years, and I had no issues with that so I definitely wouldn’t foresee any issues with the longer range vehicle.

The most surprising thing about driving an electric vehicle is the convenience of it, because I can have the car set to preheat itself every morning before get in. Usually I’d be leaving for work at say seven o’clock, so you might have to deal with defrosting the windows, but that’s just gone now. Plus, I can get through the day without having to stop to refuel.

- Thomas McGuire, Wexford 

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2. ‘Owning an EV is more affordable than people think’

Before I got my car, I’d been following the automotive sector, what is going on and I was aware of electric vehicles. I guess I was a bit of a skeptic, but I could also see how switching would fit my needs, and it would save me a lot of money in running costs, and also, from the kind of environmental perspective, that was something that was quite important to me, as well. So I decided for one of our cars we would get an EV – a Nissan LEAF - and it worked out really well for the needs that we had.

I think one of the things that puts people off is they look at the new prices for electric cars, and they go, ‘oh my God, I’m never gonna afford that, it’s too expensive’. But there is such a good used market, and you can really analyse and think about what your needs are, and what you use your car for every day, then you can get something at a very competitive price.

I would use public charging infrastructure maybe once or twice a month, but other than that I charge my car at home. My wife still has a diesel car, but now when I have to go and put fuel in that car, I’m like, ‘this is a really unpleasant experience’. It’s a real hassle, actually. Once you’ve seen the other side of it, you actually go, ‘what I was doing before?!’

I suppose one of the things that I notice, most, especially if you go back to another car is how smooth they are, how quiet they are, and how easy they are to drive. 

- Simon Acton, Dublin

Shutterstock / Nick Starichenko Shutterstock / Nick Starichenko / Nick Starichenko

3. ‘I was worried about range, but a charge usually lasts me the week’

I bought my electric vehicle after a friend had a Tesla and I took it on a test drive. I think the performance for the price is very good. Even with things like the acceleration, every month you get a couple of different updates. It’s constantly getting improved.

I drive it mostly around Dublin city, but I thought it was important that I could go for long distances. We went down to Kerry for a staycation last year and we were able to just charge it up in the hotel when we got there. I haven’t had any issues with charging it. I find it quite cheap to run. We have solar panels on the house so a lot of the time it’s charging kind of off the grid.

I would never be in trouble with the range or anything like that, which I would have been worried about. The range on mine is 500km. A lot of times I don’t bother charging it overnight, I charge it maybe once a week. It charges up quite fast as well. I think from zero all the way up to the 500km takes less than eight hours.

- Wayne Healy, Dublin  

Thinking of making the switch to an electric vehicle? With SEAI, our electric vehicle grants make it more affordable to make the switch. Find out more about the benefits of driving an electric vehicle, and the grants available, here.