Buying an eco friendly car

[ufkacbln]

This may not be practical, but your OP (...short journeys, many under two miles) suggests that some sort of electric assisted bike / trike may may be a viable alternative. Maybe worth a look at what's out there.

http://www.atob.org.uk/uncategorized/tricycle/

This is an answer we use

My wife rides a Bionx powered HP Velotechnik Gekko wit adaptations
(Edited fro Bronx to Bionx)

I then have an assisted Christiana trike that carries a folding Mobility Scooter

I would love to carry the Ottobock chair, but it is simply too heavy at 90Kg to lift in and the scooter is a compromise

Problem is that practically is has less room than a car and for longer periods of activity the scooter does not fully replace the wheelchair

There are occasions where despite the best intentions, a car can have advantages, especially when this setup costs as much!

 

[Bonefish Blues]

OP if you want eco-friendly and are therefore prepared to go older to achieve this, then this is a very underbought car:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...dius=1500&advertising-location=at_cars&page=1

It's a Suzuki SX4 in all but name, is like a mini-mpv before they became fashionable (not sure the nature of the family disability, but might be useful to have something that doesn't require too much bending to get in?), will give you 35-40 mpg all day long and with the petrol engine will run forever. I regret selling mine very much.

 

[MarkF]

As my example above illustrates, cheap does not necessarily equate to an old banger.

View attachment 155437

So clean I could eat my dinner off it, and one careful elderly owner, always garage, and a full Ford service history covering it's mere 60,000 miles. I'm not suggesting for one moment a Fusion would suit you (it was far from my first choice) I present it to show what £700 can buy you, what can be achieved on a tight budget. Not spending much doesn't automatically mean you'll get an unreliable old hack, and if you're running it into the ground anyway...

Cheap does not necessarily preclude cheer.

This chaps musings are worth a read. I didn't achieve his goal of retiring in my thirties, I had to wait until I was 48 for that, but his attitude to spending money is an interesting alternative viewpoint, well worth considering before any capital purchase.

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/

Agree with all that, I always buy 1-2 owner FSH cars. Posted this before, but I crashed both our cars on the same morning in March 2013, I bought a black 2002 Focus on Ebay from lady in Ilkley for about £800 to keep the family mobile whilst the insurance was sorted. I expected to own it for a few weeks but we still have it, and why not? It has sailed through 2 mot's and has just had routine services at £100 each year. We are £££££'s up.

 

[marknotgeorge]

I've read that these early electric cars depreciate a fair bit, so a one or two year old Zoe or Leaf, for example, might be worth looking at if you can get the charging issue sorted. Is there a nearby friend or relative who could help out?

 

[Bonefish Blues]

I've read that these early electric cars depreciate a fair bit, so a one or two year old Zoe or Leaf, for example, might be worth looking at if you can get the charging issue sorted. Is there a nearby friend or relative who could help out?

There's a massive glut (in relative terms) of Zoes in particular on the market as early killer lease deals come to an end and owners return them. Battery lease is the thing though - they seem wedded to that business model when in fact the batteries are hugely long-lived and don't need replacing.

OP
Twizy. Double-dare you

 

[marknotgeorge]

I think the idea around laying the battery is that it possibly makes it more likely the battery will be swapped when it fails, rather than scrapping an otherwise perfectly good car. That and recycling, and out makes the idea of swapping batteries on the move more feasible - you don't own the battery, you have the right to use a battery of a specified minimum capacity.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

I understand the idea, but it's not borne out by real-world experiences of battery life, and it's a significant barrier to adoption.

 

[Drago]

I'm not sure why, but something in the past few days makes me think Drago might have bought a Ford Fusion.

Well, I didn't like to mention it

 

[ufkacbln]

There's a massive glut (in relative terms) of Zoes in particular on the market as early killer lease deals come to an end and owners return them. Battery lease is the thing though - they seem wedded to that business model when in fact the batteries are hugely long-lived and don't need replacing.

OP
Twizy. Double-dare you

Twist is fantastic fun, under rated and over priced

Basically the recumbent of the car world

 

[marknotgeorge]

Definitely don't buy a diesel Fusion. While it's very economical, there's not much low end power, and the injector seals are prone to failing. This means difficult starting and a diesel smell through the vents. Parts aren't particularly expensive, but the injection manifold has to come out, and tons of carbonized crud scraped off the cylinder head, injectors and manifold. Not nice.

 

[Drago]

He's a low mileage man. Any diesel is fundamentally unsuited.

And mine is asthma friendly petrol.

 

[marknotgeorge]

He's a low mileage man. Any diesel is fundamentally unsuited.

And mine is asthma friendly petrol.

I understand that. I was mentioning it for general consumption.

 

[Drago]

That particular engine made it into Fords, Peugeots, Citroens, Toyotas, and in modified form into dozens of other cars including Volvo and MINI. Avoid the DV4 and its derivatives and that's half the cars of the last ten years off the list.

 

[NorthernDave]

That particular engine made it into Fords, Peugeots, Citroens, Toyotas, and in modified form into dozens of other cars including Volvo and MINI. Avoid the DV4 and its derivatives and that's half the cars of the last ten years off the list.

We had that engine in a 2003 Citroen C3 HDi - and while it developed the "tick" from carbon build up on the injector seals (at well past 100,000 miles), it cost around £100 to sort at a non-franchise specialist and was about the only mechanical fault that the car had in over 10 years and well over 160,000 miles (and mpg permanently fixed in the low-mid 60's). It's over 3 years since we sold it and it's still on the road, according to DVLA.
That really is value for money motoring (although probably not suited to the OP on this thread).

 

[buggi]

If your partner is disabled is she not entitled to a grant for an electric socket and then able to get one through the mobility scheme? Although cheaper to run, electric cars are expensive to buy tho. I have an aygo, cheap on petrol and insurance, no tax.