The following is a discussion with Aussie electric vehicle (EV) owner Henry about their purchase of a Volvo XC40 Recharge Twin Ultimate 2024 and experience driving, servicing, charging etc.
EDITOR: I’m publishing a regular series of articles with the views of Australian EV owners about their EV ownership experience.
This will help fill an information gap as the majority of electric car news articles are about new car launches and there’s relatively little published about the longer term Australian ownership experience after you’ve paid for your electric car. Hopefully this shared information helps other Aussies make their own EV purchase decision.
If you’re an Australian electric vehicle owner and would like to participate in this interview series by sharing your experience please contact me directly or add a comment below and let me know.
Was your electric car bought or leased?
Leased
Please describe your purchasing / lease process experience … Easy, Mediocre, Frustrating..?
Relatively easy
What has the regular servicing / dealership experience been like?
Purchasing the car through the dealer was relatively smooth, and luckily the vehicle was in stock, so quite quick.
The sales person was fairly knowledgeable, but I actually knew more about the car’s features and tech than he did.
No service yet as I’ve only had it for a few months.
How do you regularly charge your car for day to day usage?
- plug in to standard PowerPoint at home (when there’s spare solar power)
- plug in to standard PowerPoint at home (whenever it’s convenient for me)
- plug in to specially installed faster EV charger at work
What has your day to day normal charging experience been like?
Charging has been fine, between slow AC charging at home and my wife using the EV charger at her work carpark.
How do you charge your car for longer road trips on the weekend or during holidays? Do you prefer any particular brand of public fast charger during road trips eg Evie, Tesla, Chargefox and why?
We’ve previously used the Chargefox network in Tasmania (with a hire car, see below) which has been really easy and convenient.
We also use the DC fast chargers at Ampol on the Hume Motorway (Pheasants Nest).
Actually we don’t need to charge there while driving between Inner West Sydney and our destination in the Southern Highlands most of the time, only if the XC40 battery is less than 50% when we leave.
What’s the farthest road trip you’ve done in your EV and what did you learn from this experience that would be useful for others to know?
Haven’t yet done a long road trip (though I’m planning to in the coming months).
If you’ve done a long road trip and would like to share your experience of it please share. Detailed EV trip diaries give readers the confidence to do the same themselves.
We hired a Tesla Model Y last year when we visited Tasmania. It was modern, comfortable and quiet.
Most importantly, we didn’t have any problems using it to get around Tassie for a week, and keeping it charged using the Chargefox network.
It was all very easy, and cost us nothing as it was included as part of the SIXT car rental fee.
Looking at the price of each charge, it was about half the price of filling up a tank full of petrol.
After that, we were really confident about going ahead and getting our own EV.
Does your EV have any special features like V2L reverse charging from the car to your portable/home appliances? If yes please share your experience using this special feature
No V2L, unfortunately.
If you have roadside assist included with the car purchase/lease and have had to use it, which company provided the service and what was that experience like?
We have it through Volvo, but not had to use it yet.
If you have had issues with your car and asked for these to be fixed under warranty, did the car brand do the right thing and fix it without causing you stress?
No warranty issues yet.
What are the 3 strongest aspects of your electric car compared to other similar price electric cars available in Australia?
- Luxury finishes and comfort
- All wheel drive (dual motor) handles light off-roading quite well and is really fast
- Google Automotive operating system built-in to the car works really well.
What are the 3 weakest aspects of your electric car compared to other similar price electric cars available in Australia?
- Familiar SUV form factor is not as efficient as other EVs.
- Shared platform with ICE vehicles means it still has a transmission tunnel rather than a flat floor in the 2nd row.
- Wired Apple CarPlay only, not wireless.
What is your view on car software updates? Some people prefer it be done by dealers, some don’t want updates, others want them regularly over the air?
I like over the air updates as long as I can choose when I can install them.
What questions would ask your car manufacturer HQ if you could?
Can we get wireless CarPlay in a future software update?
Can we get a modern redesign of the Google/Android Auto interface?
Would you buy or lease this brand of electric car again and recommend it to others?
Yes I would happily recommend it for people with similar needs.
I think the single motor version is also a good, more affordable option, and prices have been reduced recently too, so I’d definitely suggest shortlisting the XC40 for anyone looking for a compact electric SUV.
Do you have any other comments about your electric car brand, experience etc?
My overall experience has been good.
I became an enthusiast (nerd) before I bought an EV, read lots of reviews and comparisons, watched lots of review videos, and test drove a good number of EVs before I settled with this one.
So I knew the pros and cons going in and have been very happy with my purchase.
If you’re an Australian electric vehicle owner and would like to participate in this interview series by sharing your experience please contact me directly or add a comment below and let me know.
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