Rob drove from Wrexham to Saint-Lô, Normandy in his Renault Scenic E-Tech Long Range Techno 87kWh.
Introducing your road trip
We went for a holiday and to finally visit the D-Day memorial sights. We left home at 10am on the Friday and drove 250 miles to Maidstone Services where we stayed the night. We arrived with 19% battery so I put the car on a GRIDSERVE charger and charged to 88%, at a cost of 0.92p per kWh! It came to £50 in total, I was not impressed! If I knew what I now know, I would have waited until the Tunnel terminal and paid 0.54p per kWh, but hindsight is a wonderful thing.
We departed the train with approx 70% and maps were saying I would arrive with -2%, so we made a quick stop half way through the 4.5 hour journey and added around 15% at a price of just 44 cents per kWh (and that was in an Aire). As it turned out, I arrived with nearer 20% remaining and the site we we stayed at had 22kW chargers at 24 cents per kWh; so approx. 4 hours and the car was back at 100% for around 14 Euros.
Planning & preparation
I mainly used Google Maps as that is what the car has on the infotainment system, but also had a quick look at Electroverse now and then.
Charging
The charger at the site was a DRIVECO, so I just downloaded the app and in a couple minutes I was charging. I did try a charger at a Lidl but it looked damaged with a broken screen and although the car previously charging seemed to charge OK, I couldn’t get it to start.
Did you encounter any great driving roads on your road trip? If so, where were they and why were they great?
The French roads are another level compared to UK roads, so smooth. Admittedly, I did pay approx 20 Euros in tolls but that was to save an hour in travelling time.
Renault Scenic E-Tech
It was a pleasure to drive and very comfortable. We took a lot with us, including my electric folding wheelchair, 2 x full size suitcases and various plastic storage boxes. I folded the seats down and it swallowed it all!
I used cruise control with all assists including speed limit adherence 95% of the entire journey. As the temperature was in the 30’s, the air con was running non-stop!
Road trip conclusion
A resounding success, and even with rip-off Britain charging prices, it cost a lot less than my daughter’s diesel car. It has dispelled any fears I may have had about taking an EV on a (foreign) road trip and would do it again in a heartbeat! Biggest lesson learnt is to try and get over the Channel with as little UK public charging as possible!
