Comparing Different EV's and features

[forbin404]

I'm starting this thread to compare different EV's and things you get and don't get.
1 Post for Each Car

 

[forbin404]

Volkswagen eGolf


Things I liked

• 4 Levels of Brake Regen
• Eco mode setting required when under 20 miles of distance
• Option to show the radio in the center console

Things I found meh

• The center console 12v adapter keeps pushing out even though it's downward
• Placing the ECO button next to the On/Off button
• Does not show a percentage of the battery
• Display is analog

 

[forbin404]

Fiat 500e

• 93 Mile

Things I liked

• Fiat App shows individual tire pressure
• No charge lock to get stuck
• Sunroof (One of the few to have it)
• When you turn the car off, it tells you how much time it will take to charge at 220V and at 110v (Assuming a 6.6 charger)

Things I found meh

• Fiat App is very buggy
• This car is SMALL, there isn't even enough room between the seats for a center console
• No moonroof cover, the sun is blocked by a small mesh cover
• No Eco settings, there is an included regen but not programmable

 

[forbin404]

2017 Kia Soul EV

• 93 Miles Range

Things I Liked

• LED Lit Charging ports
• Emergency switch to unlock a stuck charging cable
• Full size moonroof (open the cover and it retracts behind the back seat)
• tells you how much time it will take to charge at 220V and at 110v (Assuming a 6.6 charger)
• Heated and COOLED seats

Things I think are meh

• No external way to open charging port (button inside of car)
• Immediate charge switch is in side the car
• Opening of the Driver door does NOT show a display of charge (Must start the car to see it)
• Edit : a software update fixed that. Opening a door shows a Percentage.
• Front Charging Ports (Due to my garage is configured for Right rear)
• If you plug in AFTER charging time starts, it will not start, need to push the immediate charge button

 

[forbin404]

Honda Clarity EV

• 93 Mile

Things I liked

• Right Side Camera used for parking and turning

Things I think are Meh

• Front Left charging port (Due to my garage being configured for Right Rear)
• Honda App - Almost nonexistent at this time.
• Length - Dang this is a long car, it's as long as my SUV
• Clarity throws an error on charging if your parking brake isn't set (And no it doesn't tell you that's the problem)

 

[forbin404]

Car #5 (Future Use - Probably a Nissan Leaf 2018)

 

[forbin404]

Car #6 (Future Use - Probably a Bolt)

 

[JoulesThief]

Honda Clarity EV

• 93 Mile

Things I liked

• Right Side Camera used for parking and turning

Things I think are Meh

• Front Left charging port (Due to my garage being configured for Right Rear)
• Honda App - Almost nonexistent at this time.
• Length - Dang this is a long car, it's as long as my SUV

It's a very big car, longer that my 2014 Passat. Material appear to be good quality. Lift the front hood, and you'll see the car looks like it was designed to house a V6 under the hood, it's spacious with just an electric motor in there.

 

[RonDawg]

It's a very big car, longer that my 2014 Passat. Material appear to be good quality. Lift the front hood, and you'll see the car looks like it was designed to house a V6 under the hood, it's spacious with just an electric motor in there.

The Clarity was never designed with a gas or diesel engine in mind. It was originally designed for a hydrogen fuel cell.

Note that the only other FCEV available in the US, the Toyota Mirai, is also a similarly large car.

 

[dustboy]

Ford Focus Electric

Range (2018): 100 mi

Pros: Good handling
Priced lower than eGolf
Looks good (IMHO)

Cons: Battery takes up large portion of cargo space and creates a load floor that is not flat (this was the dealbreaker for me)
Interior is just OK, Ford Sync 3 system is eh, less than great
No Apple/Android integration
No user adjustable regenerative braking
Heavy torque steer
WTF is up with the butterflies?

 

[dustboy]

It's a very big car, longer that my 2014 Passat. Material appear to be good quality. Lift the front hood, and you'll see the car looks like it was designed to house a V6 under the hood, it's spacious with just an electric motor in there.

The Clarity was never designed with a gas or diesel engine in mind. It was originally designed for a hydrogen fuel cell.

Note that the only other FCEV available in the US, the Toyota Mirai, is also a similarly large car.

I had assumed that the Clarity was purely an FCEV, but I was looking at your photo, and it looks an awful lot like an ICE with intake plumbing complete with MAF sensor, and a liquid cooling system with what appears to be a thermostat housing. So, that's confusing, is it an FCEV or not?

I was surprised to learn that in 2018 the Clarity is available as an EV, Plug-in Hybrid or FCEV. Looks like Honda is either hedging their bets or can't decide which technology to ride.

 

[f1geek]

A hydrogen fuel cell burns hydrogen, albeit very slowly, to produce electricity. The burning process: hydrogen + oxygen (from air) = water. That's why you see water coming out the tail pipe of a Clarity or Mirai. The air is filtered and metered so that the chemical reaction proceeds at the correct rate.This is why the Clarity plumbing looks like ICE plumbing.

 

[RonDawg]

It's a very big car, longer that my 2014 Passat. Material appear to be good quality. Lift the front hood, and you'll see the car looks like it was designed to house a V6 under the hood, it's spacious with just an electric motor in there.

The Clarity was never designed with a gas or diesel engine in mind. It was originally designed for a hydrogen fuel cell.

Note that the only other FCEV available in the US, the Toyota Mirai, is also a similarly large car.

I had assumed that the Clarity was purely an FCEV, but I was looking at your photo, and it looks an awful lot like an ICE with intake plumbing complete with MAF sensor, and a liquid cooling system with what appears to be a thermostat housing. So, that's confusing, is it an FCEV or not?

I was surprised to learn that in 2018 the Clarity is available as an EV, Plug-in Hybrid or FCEV. Looks like Honda is either hedging their bets or can't decide which technology to ride.

The 2011-2012 Leaf had a similar ICE-inspired design motif with the fake cylinder head cover:

The motors and charging systems of an EV still need cooling, but can get away with a much smaller radiator.

FCEV sales haven't exactly taken off so Honda needs those EV credits.

 

[RonDawg]

Ford Focus Electric

Range (2018): 100 mi

Pros: Good handling
Priced lower than eGolf
Looks good (IMHO)

Cons: Battery takes up large portion of cargo space and creates a load floor that is not flat (this was the dealbreaker for me)
Interior is just OK, Ford Sync 3 system is eh, less than great
No Apple/Android integration
No user adjustable regenerative braking
Heavy torque steer
WTF is up with the butterflies?

This Canadian review has both the good and bad for each vehicle:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7MgEoYNhgs

RE the "butterflies', a few months ago I rented a Ford Fusion Hybrid (non-plug-in) and it had "leaves" instead of butterflies. If you drove gently, your foliage got more lush, if not you were staring at a twig in front of you.

 

[Zeuser]

2017 Hyundai Ioniq Electric

- eGolf looks better
- eGolf handles better
- Ioniq is better at energy use. It has a smaller battery and same range as eGolf. This also means less time to charge.
- Ioniq is better equipped. Base model Ioniq vs. base model eGolf
- Ioniq is cheaper (Canada)
- Ioniq has much larger trunk although the slope of the window discourages tall items.
- Ioniq has ability to auto-unlock charger when complete
- Ioniq central LCD is smaller but is simpler than eGolf
- Ioniq dashboard is electronic in base model. You need eGolf DAP to get electronic dashboard
- Ioniq has programmable modes. You can set your own speed limit in ECO+ instead of eGolf's default 90km/h.
- Heat pump is default in eGolf but is part of cold weather package in Ioniq. In Canada.
- Ioniq uses push-button shifting. Not sure about this one. But deleting the stick, which the Ioniq Hybrid has, frees up lots of space for storage in the EV.
- Ioniq uses paddle shifters on steering to control regen levels. eGolf uses the stick (left-right)
- Ioniq has a split rear window which is annoying but not a deal breaker
- Ioniq has moving guidelines in the rearview camera. Rearview camera also looks better. But this might be because of lower res. monitor.
- Fully loaded Ioniq (Limited) is far better equipped than fully loaded eGolf (Tech + DAP). ex: You get a sunroof!
- No custom paint colours on Ioniq. You only get white, black, silver and blue. But that's fine. I always thought that $2950 for custom paint was just stupid.

And finally.... NO ********!

- I put my $1000 refundable deposit for a base eGolf in white in June 2017. In December 2017 I got news that the car wouldn't even be built until April 2018 and delivered around July 2018.
- I put my $1000 refundable deposit for a base Ioniq EV in blue in December 2017. I picked blue because it really looks awesome. But I instructed the dealer for "anything but black". Dealer calls me up 2 days later and tells me they've started building a batch of white ones in first week of January 2018. Some special "white package" model. I said ok. My car will be built in Jan 2018 and delivered in April 2018.

VW treated us Canadians so badly they forced me to go looking for alternatives. And once I looked at the Ioniq, it's now at the top of my list.

Edit: Hyundai just sent me, Jan 2nd, the vin# on the Ioniq I ordered in December. Should be here in 30 days. Still don't have a vin from VW after 6 months.

 

[RonDawg]

Heat pump is default in eGolf but is part of cold weather package in Ioniq.

Heat pump is default for Canadian market eGolf, but for the US requires the SEL (top trim level).

 

[forbin404]

Added a little note on the clarity that it throws an error if you try to charge without the brake set.

 

[MickM]

2017 Hyundai Ioniq Electric
VW treated us Canadians so badly they forced me to go looking for alternatives. And once I looked at the Ioniq, it's now at the top of my list.
/quote]

You're not alone. I've been trying to buy a 2017 e-Golf with DAP here in the NE region of the US for about a year without luck (I'm still waiting). I've never owned a VW before and my impression of them is that they couldn't possibly suck more at selling cars if they tried. They truly are their own worst enemy...

 

[forbin404]

Just an Update about the Kia

So far this car is probably the best of the 3 EV cars I've had.

Software is up to date.
Works incredibly well with CarPlay
Gets 93 (Well..that sucks)
The App integration is incredible.
The infotainment is top notch.
The mirrors fold in automatically.
Fits in the Garage well (I'm looking at you Honda Clarity)
The full sized moonroof is very nice.

Still don't like the button push to get to the front charger, but owells can't have everything perfect.
When the next set of long range cars come out when this lease ends, the Kia is probably my first goto.