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Posted on November 10, 2019

Pros and cons of looking into purchasing a PHEV vehicle?

For a few years now, Gary and Michelle Fisher have been debating the pros and cons of looking into purchasing a PHEV vehicle. As the Directors of GF Electrical Ltd it seemed only right to consider all the benefits of our most loved commodity …. Electric power! As the company has also recently applied to become approved installers of EV Charger points, it became a necessity to sample our newest service we provide.

If the commute to and from work is of reasonable distance, it definitely is a saving on fuel, as most journeys will therefore be on electric power only. All you have to do is plug in at work or home. Keep a bit in your fuel tank for those extra ad hock miles, or a bit of extra power in sports mode or back up when you don’t get as many miles on a charge when it’s a cold, dark night with the heater, windscreen wipers and lights on!

How about on a long journey? Our maiden voyage was a trip up to Scotland. It did save a bit on fuel in comparison to the old diesel vehicle, it charges whilst you drive when the electric ran low, meaning when sitting in traffic on the M6 you could switched back to EV and feel a bit righteous that you weren’t contribute to the fumes.

Having the car has been quiet an eye opener, it’s changed the way Michelle drives. “I’ve actually turned into a bit of a geek, trying to maximize my miles on a full charge! I’ve slowed down a bit, no quick speed ups to overtake on the duel carriage way and I ‘ve never been better at staying in the speed limit…

You become very aware of your surroundings again, and although you have always been a safe, vigilant driver, you were still used to the public around you being aware of your movements and them also making sensible judgement of their safety – ie crossing a road or moving behind a reversing vehicle. But since drive on EV – I’m silent! The pedestrians have no idea I’m about to move or that I’m coming.

That person crossing the road, looking at their phone has no idea your there.”

It’s interesting to see the recent news report regarding new data has revealed that tens of thousands of hybrid cars bought over the past seven years may have burned as much fuel as regular petrol engines and claim that many owners probably never even unwrapped their charging cables.

In Gary’s opinion “This is because it can be a hassle to get the charging cable out, especially in the rain, and using an unsightly extension lead. But with a charging infrastructure in place it takes under 30 seconds to plug in. One of the best products to have is a mulit mode which comes with a tethered cable and charging unit in one.”

There are government grants available to companies to install charging infrastructures to support the wider use of electric and Hybrid vehicles and it’s a great incentive to the employees to encourage them consider cleaner cars for today and a better future.

For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-grants-for-low-emission-vehicles


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