Mick Woolley drives a Vauxhall Corsa-e 46.3kWh 2020

This is Mick’s second electric car, he’s owned the Vauxhall Corsa-e between 6-7 years and drives under 5,000 miles annually. The current mileage of the car is between 20,000-25,000 miles and he achieves 150-180 miles from an 80% charge. Mick’s Corsa-e includes upgrades such as mud flaps, rim protectors and mats.

Why did you choose the Vauxhall Corsa-e?

• Appearance
• best sales experience
• had many test drives before choosing.

Positives 

• Running costs
• convenience of home charging
• low service costs
• App to pre-heat/cool and check on charge levels and finding a charge station when on a longer journey.

Negatives 

The only negative is the dealer network, they are clueless. Avoid ‘main agents’, as they don’t know what they are doing.

Compared to when you first bought the car, does your battery still charge at the same rate & do you still get the same range?

Battery is at 90% of original and it should go on for another 10 years.

Have you experienced any faults with the car? 

The only issue has been with a recall for a software update, whereupon the clueless main agents messed it up after having the car for 2 days to plug in a laptop and update; many features stopped working. They insisted that there were faults with the car and quoted thousands to put right the issues that they had caused!

What are the standout technological features of the car?

The ‘Eco’ and recharge features make the range up to 25% greater.

Tell us something people wouldn’t readily know about your Corsa-e

The acceleration that leaves teenagers in hot hatches in your rear view mirror.

What electric car(s) are you interested in next and why?

My current Vauxhall Corsa-e will be all I need for my retirement and beyond.

What public charging networks would you recommend to others and why?

InstaVolt is good when out and about, because it accepts any card and there’s no need to download an app.

Please itemise where you’re saving money (or not) owning & running a Vauxhall Corsa-e

Yes, although VED (after Year 1)  is now identical to most small petrol or diesel cars, proving that VED is no longer emissions-based! Mileage costs remain lower, however.