My first EV experience

A life changing driving experience

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦 / Unsplash

I am no car enthusiast and therefore; it is only recently that I got interested in electric vehicles (EV). In the last 12 months, my cousin and my brother-in-law bought a Tesla Model 3 and Tesla Model Y, respectively.

My first car, bought from my money, is the 2014 Mazda3 that I still drive today. At the time of writing, it's almost 10 years old and has done over 78,000km.

Last month, I spent one week in New Zealand and rented a Kia Niro. I actually booked a Ford Mach E but on the day, only the Kia was available. My slight disappointment quickly disappeared as soon as I drove the Kia. My very first EV experience and boy oh boy, I was impressed 😮.

It is a fundamental shift from driving a petrol powered car. There is a significant difference in how it feels. It feels better, and it feels snapper and powerful 🔋💪. The ride is super smooth, and I appreciated not having the annoyance of gears changing or the engine raving.

Not the one I drove, but this is what it looks like. My one was in white.

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Cars are not just machines. These days, cars are a beautiful union of software and hardware, receiving regular software updates and have apps. What a weird world? This is probably why I am interested in cars now because they are like a tech product.

Kia Niro, being a new car, also came with safety features that my Mazda did not have. The two most important ones for me were the blind spot alert and the auto set to park (brake). Equipped with a lot of technology. Strangely, I felt safer, and that was reassuring.

😒

In my Mazda, I always have to check if the car is on parked or not. It's because during my teenage years, once I forgot to set the car on PARK brake and it rolled. Thankfully, no one got hurt.

I drive past petrol stations regularly, but for the first time; I did not care about the prices displayed. It was a tremendous relief that oil prices can increase all they want. I am not affected.

I drove over 500km and I charged the car once at my brother-in-law's place in New Zealand. Therefore, from my perspective, it's the first time where I paid zero dollars for travel on vacation.

On the flight back, I was really nervous because I knew my Mazda was waiting for me and I would just hate driving it. To my extreme surprise, I was wrong. As soon as I started my lovely Mazda, I felt at home. It is difficult to explain, but I have lived with this car for almost 10 years. The car knows me just as well as I know the car. We share a bond and we have shared history. At 1am, I was driving from Melbourne Airport to my home. It was a strange drive. I felt torn and the plans I had to explore buying an EV lost a bit of momentum.

I do not want to ramble on too much. I loved driving an EV and I really want one in my life. However, buying a car is a big decision.

The current state of the car market in Australia

Number of cars sold in Australia - source: CarsGuide The only EVs on the list is the Tesla Model Y and MG ZS. Australians seem to really love ❤️ pickup trucks.

The number of EVs sold are growing, but even today, more people are buying traditional cars. Pretty confident this will change in the next 5 years.

Considering buying an EV

I don't buy cars often. I've only bought one car in my life, and I still drive it today.

💡

In my view, cars are machines that transport you from one place to another. As a result, it makes little sense to spend more money on something that loses value over time.

My Mazda3 cost was approximately AUD22K.

Today, give or take, a brand new EV in Australia costs around AUD55K to AUD60K. Trading in my current car, a new EV will cost me $45K to 50K (optimistically).

Financially, it makes little sense because I have no genuine need to upgrade my car. Logically, I can and chose not to apply the same reasonings I had applied for buying an iPhone every year. The difference is the cost. Comparatively, a car purchase is a significant portion of my salary as opposed to all gadgets that I buy. In addition, for $40K, I can travel a lot more and buy even more gadgets. I have considered buying a used EV but I do not know enough about them, so if I go down this path, I will ensure it still has a sufficient warranty period.

Thus far, my reasons for upgrading my current car are:

I want an EV
My current car is ten years old, which in the grand scheme of things still has a lot of life in it.
A new car will have safety features and technology advancements that my 10-year-old car does not have.

🚗

My dad drives a 17th-year-old car.

Other associated costs of owning an EV:

AUD3000 a year for car insurance for EVs compared to AUD1100 I am paying for my Mazda
AUD2000: installing a fast charger at home
Tesla tyres are move expensive than the run-of-the-mill average joe tyres I am currently enjoying
The countless Tesla accessories will no doubt tempt me to buy

What now?

I am confident there is an EV in my future, but as it stands today; I have no good reason to buy one today. This equation may change in the coming years as my current car gets older and EVs (hopefully) get cheaper with more options.