Drew

Boom tish!

I'm not really sure what the point of plug-in hybrids is. Perhaps the idea is that you get the best of both, but surely that works with the self-charging type system that Toyota and Lexus use on their hybrids, without the hassle of having to plug in. To be honest, plugging the car in at home for a few hours doesn't concern me at all. Beyond that it is just a case of planning your trips a bit more carefully. My wife met a woman in Balloch who was charging her car and asked her how she found it. The woman doesn't have a charging point at home, and just parks up and plugs it in when she is going to the Co-op for her messages. The charging point doesn't cost, so she basically charges her car for free. All good in theory, right enough....

You can lease the battery for at a year a time (it isn't any more expensive to do it that way). When the car is transferred, the new owner takes responsibility for the lease. I would have thought that owning the battery would have been more of an issue in the scenario you describe.

Yes. It does. It demonstrates that our new manager was very quick off the mark to strengthen in a key area. Stop trying to shit-stir, Andy. I wasn't.

Aye, it sounds likely that a hybrid would be the more realistic option for someone with your requirements. Mitsubishi and others manufacture much bigger cars that have hybrid power plants. The Zoe is actually bigger and more practical (5 doors, decent boot space) than my wife's current car - Fiat 500, size certainly isn't an issue for her (well, when it comes to cars at any rate). It still feels like a bit of an experiment/punt, but we've done it now, so it will be interesting to see how it pans out.

On your last point, one of the big oil companies (can't remember which) recently purchased the power utility company First Utility for that very reason. Also, another big petrochemical mob have apparently bought Chargemaster, who install home and business charging points across the UK (they are fitting ours).

As things stand, it will only work for us (hopefully!) as we have another car. I would certainly consider a hybrid but only having an EV to use would be too much of a stretch. Maybe when EVs that have a standard range of 250 - 300 miles are affordable, I'll take the plunge and do away with my diesel. Like anything else, though, I suppose if you plan ahead it would be doable. Let's face it, folk who use public transport do that routinely. Perhaps we have all become a bit to complacent.

Cheers for the replies and interest, folks. The story so far.... By way of a wee bit of context, my wife's current car is on a PCP and we were having to look at changing it soon. She was keen that her next car would be an EV (or hybrid). In the past few weeks, Arnold Clark (yes, I know....) had been advertising used Renault Zoes at what, on the face of it, were very good deals. I think this is partly due to the fact that there is now an upgraded Zoe that has a more powerful battery with increased range, so Renault were offloading a lot of the older style cars that were used as fleet vehicles, etc. My view on totally electric cars has been that it is a bit too soon to be considering purchasing one on account of the mileage range of the cars and the cost of buying and leasing of battery (if applicable). I reckon the technology will advance a fair bit in the next few years. Anyway, it will primarily be my wife's car, so her call. After a bit of research - mostly undertaken after we'd already put down the deposit, I have to admit - we established that it will cost roughly the same to finance and run the Zoe as it does my wife's current car - a Fiat 500. As such, the benefits are arguably questionable. The Zoe is newer, however, is a higher spec car, and has lower mileage (11,000). Obviously, the environmental credentials are another factor, and this is the main motivation for getting the EV (and yes, I have heard many of the arguments about the production of the batteries and the electricity used to run the cars, but we still believe that the environmental benefits are pretty obvious). Range - this is obviously a significant issue for people considering the option of a fully electric vehicle. The car we are getting is widely reported as having a range between 65 and 150 miles or so on a single full charge. That variation is accounted for in terms of the time of year (fewer miles in the winter), and the manner in which the car is driven. The Zoe has an Eco mode which increases the range if you drive it a bit more conservatively. The more powerful battery that the newer Zoe is equipped with seemingly has a range of up to 250 miles, so quite a significant upgrade, but you'll pay for that - a lot! We figure that it will be possible to get by with the range of the car we're getting as I have car that we can use for longer journeys as required. Battery - there tends to be a couple of options when it comes to the battery. Buy or lease. As far as I can work out, there are pros and cons for each. We are leasing the battery from Renault as it is the only option available to us. The benefits? You can lease on an annual basis, so won't be stuck with a battery that you need to offload if you decide to change your car. The manufacturer will repair or replace the battery if it drops below 75% of original full capacity. Renault provide 24/7 breakdown for your car and battery. This applies if you run out of charge somewhere. They will come and collect you and your car and take you to a charging point. There is no limit to the number of call-outs, so this is reassuring. The cons? it isn't cheap. The amount you pay depends on your estimated mileage. We'll be paying around £90 a month for the battery alone. Sounds like a lot, but the actual car was very reasonable to buy as I think they have to factor in the battery lease cost. Currently, my wife puts approximately £100 of petrol in her car each month. Charging at home (assuming you have a home charger installed) will cost about £3 - £4 per full charge. If you are looking at an average of around 100 miles for that, it isn't too bad at all. Also worth bearing in mind that the Scottish Govt subsidise many public chargers, so you can charge up for free. Buying the batter is the other option in some circumstances. I think I'm right in saying the battery for a Zoe costs around £6K. I imagine it is much the same for other cars of a similar range/spec. This increases the up front/finance cost, but you aren't paying a cut to the manufacturer, and once you've paid for it, its your's. The warranty on the purchased battery tends to be quite long (6 years or so). I think people do encounter issues when trying to trade in cars with old batteries, or otherwise get rid of them, but I imagine there is some provision for this. Home Charger: we are getting a home charger installed on Saturday. This has been a bit of a pain, but here is where you'll find a benefit if you live in Scotland. The approx cost for a 7kw charger (it will provide a full charge within around 3 hours) is the best part of £1000. However, the UK govt provide a £500 grant towards this, and this is pretty much automatically applied as soon as you can confirm your purchase/order. In Scotland, you will qualify for a further £300 grant from the Energy Saving Trust. At least, you will for the moment (I think they are reviewing this provision next year). The total I will have to pay after my EST grant is applied (which you have to claim back after your installation, albeit they have already told us we're eligible) is £104, so pretty reasonable all things considered. The fitting on our charger is Type 2, and, increasingly, this looks set to be the industry standard so we are future proofed to some degree. I had some issues with the timescale for getting the charger fitted but kicked up a bit of a stink so they brought it forward. Insurance: this is still a bit of an unknown quantity. The big issue seems to surround cover of the leased battery. We're in the process of sussing this out, but it is something to bear in mind. Some companies are reluctant to cover the battery if leased as a third party is involved (ie - the manufacturer you lease the battery off of). In terms of the cost of insurance itself, I've read suggestions that it can add 50% onto a standard premium. Bizarrely, this is attributed to additional issues such as - wait for it.... people tripping over charging cables in public areas and claiming damages, and folk wandering out in front of the car and getting hit as they can't hear it coming! Hmm.... Anyway, my wife called her current insurance company (Direct Line) for a quote to change over to the Zoe, and it didn't seem any more that it would be to change to any other car that was newer and higher spec, etc. Anyway, that's pretty much where we are at just now. I'll provide updates as we go along. Oh, just one other thing, I did test drive the car. My wife wasn't so keen as she isn't used to driving a car with an auto gearbox so wants to get a bit of practice in somewhere quiet before hitting the open road for the first time. My car is an auto, so I was quite happy to take the Zoe for a spin. For me, it felt much like driving an ICE car. It felt pretty refined, comfortable, roomy, and nippy enough. More on that later.

An interview with Ferdinand at the weekend confirms that it was OK who made the initial approach, and seems to have utilised a few contacts. All good.

I seldom post in the General Nonsense board these days, but thought I would offer this one up for anyone who might be interested. Last weekend, we ordered a fully electric car - primarily for my wife's use. Making the various arrangements for a home charger, insurance, and swipe card for public chargers, etc. has been an interesting experience. I won't bore on about it in event that no-one is especially interested, but happy to share elements of the experience as we go along (picking the car up on Friday) for anyone who is considering the option of an EV or is just curious. Apologies if there is a thread already running.

Parks is the Scottish sports hack equivalent of Katie Hopkins. I wouldn't dignify his pitiful attempts at being a shock-jock to the hard of thinking with any further response. The incoherent slabberings in that piece are embarrassing. Beneath contempt. File it under never to be referred to again and move on.

Stevie Mallan scores another free kick for Hibs.

I reckon that was the final nail for him. A f**king ridiculous position from a man who had clearly lost the plot. Thank christ he has gone.

Are the BT pundits still bemoaning the departure of Stubbs?

That is the only scenario that I can confirm will definitely not materialise. Lewis won't feature at all this evening.

Sometimes the high profile signings are the ones that bomb spectacularly. Maybe is a case of managing expectations. At the end of the day, he is just another player in the squad. Another option for the manager.

He has had a trial of sorts. OK is in the press saying he has shown up well this week whilst at the club. I don't recall either Camara or Double D spending any time at the club before signing, so hopefully that has a bearing. It is certainly an area where we need experience, so that will be welcome. Who knows, it might not work out, but that applies to any signing.

No, I'm just I'm sitting here on my thumb as usual Ricky

Aye It has the potential to be a right good signing to complement what he have. Bags of experience at a good level, and still at a reasonable age for a central defender. Even if, as reported, he has slowed down a bit, the manager can build the defence round him and has younger lads available who should have the other attributes required to balance it out.

I believe it is. Sit tight....

Great gesture from OK and the club.

Fair play to him. Demonstrates a bit of personal and professional integrity in that interview.

Aye, you should. Useless fecker

In what ways? This is a genuine question. He has been managing a p/t club for years now, so is hardly likely to have established an extensive list of contacts in the game that could be drawn upon in our new manager's hunt for players. MacPherson may well have been popular with his players, but that is what we expect of the new manager, not a backstage official at the club - or would the TD have a more hands-on role (which, in itself, throws up all manner of questions). What experience does he have in a similar type role? I don't know what his role is at QP, but it would likely be quite different from anything remotely equivalent at a full-time club in the top division. As much as some are letting their experiences and memories of Gus' time at the club cloud their judgement in a negative way, the flip side might also be applying here. Yes, he was a relatively successful manager for us, but does that mean he would seemlessly slot into this role? The other big question for me is whether Kearney was aware of the plans to bring in a TD when he accepted the manager's job. Whilst he might have acknowledged that he would benefit from the support of someone with experience of the Scottish game, I wonder if he would have preferred to have the option of picking that someone.

MacPherson is poised for an emotional return to Paisley. Aye, there will certainly be a fair bit of emotion if he does indeed return. Not sure how much of it will be displayed by MacPherson, however.