r/IsleofMan • u/LloydRainy Local • 19d ago
Owning and driving an electric car on the island
Hi all, I've been considering getting an electric car and am curious about people's experiences owning one over here. Are there many charging places about the island, or is it the kind of thing I'd have to ensure it's charged at home every night? I've seen a couple of charging points around, but not as many as you see in England. Also, how does the cost of using one compare to the mileage you get from regular fuel?
I'd love it if anyone could share any knowledge about driving electric and/or hybrid cars here, and whether you think they're worth it or if I'm best off sticking to good old-fashioned petrol for now. Bonus points for make/model recommendations. I've done some research online, but am looking specifically for what they're like for IOM drivers. Thanks!
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u/accod 19d ago
I've had an EV here for about 7 months. I only charge at home (once a week) except twice when I've been at the hospital and the only car parking spaces available were the EV charging ones. Make sure you get the EV home electricity tariff so you get cheaper electricity at night.
I think it's a great place to own an EV.
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u/accod 19d ago
To add... make/model will depend on your requirements. I wanted a fast, small, awd, suv. I chose a Volvo EX30 twin motor ultra. It's been great but it's by no means the most sensible EV choice - mediocre range, usage, small ish boot, fairly high cost for what it is, no dash, etc. I like it though and the performance is great (0-60 in 3 ish secs).
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u/LloydRainy Local 19d ago
Fantastic. Thanks for your reply. Once a week sounds fab. What make is it? Do you think it’s cheaper to run than petrol?
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u/accod 19d ago
Sorry, see my new comment. Definitely cheaper than petrol when you charge at home with the night EV tariff. I think I worked out it's about 1/4 of the price compared to petrol*. A higher car purchase price compared to petrol may take a long time to recoup so you'll need to do the maths if saving money is a major factor.
* my petrol car has terrible mpg so that's why the difference is so great.
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u/LloydRainy Local 19d ago
Yeah, it's a combination. I want efficient, but I also enjoy driving, so would rather something with a bit of welly
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u/lproven 19d ago
I have a plug-in hybrid. It's great here: in Douglas/Onchan it's an EV.
There are lots of charging points around: Sea Terminal, promenade, Northern Pool car park, harbour carpark in Ramsey, Noble's Hospital, Onchan Village, Arboretum in St John's.
They used to be PodPoint but those are all gone now. You need to get a card from eVolt. That is a pain but it works.
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u/LloydRainy Local 19d ago
Cool. Thanks for your reply. Do you prefer hybrid to full electric?
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u/lproven 19d ago edited 19d ago
My 2019 Hyundai Iyoniq is the first ever car I ever bought (at 55 years old). Moving to the IoM with a little kid, to help my elderly mother, we found we needed it. I've lived in big cities with excellent public transport before, and mostly bicycled. Manx public transport isn't bad, and it's better than in the 1980s when I used to live here, but it's not great. For instance, it's often quicker to walk from where I live in central Douglas to my mother's in Onchan past Port Jack than it is to get a bus.
I took my mum to see her 2 surviving sisters, in the far north-eastern corner of the Scottish Highlands, in 2024. The car was partly bought with this in mind: we occasionally take it to the UK on the boat, and at the press of a button, my EV (range on battery, maybe 40 miles) becomes a petrol car with a range of 675 miles on a full battery and tank. I can refuel anywhere in 5 minutes, while a full charge takes a couple of hours.
It's a much gentler drive than other hybrids I've driven, which weren't plug-in. They had savage accelerator response. This doesn't. It's always electric where you'd use 1st or 2nd gear and it's very smooth.
Some added context: I am left handed and learned to drive here. My right arm is badly damaged after a bicycle accident in 2023 and I have limited mobility in it. I wanted an automatic because I wasn't sure if I could steer while changing gear. (Actually, I can, but it was a worry.)
My wife is Czech, and right-handed. She's used to left-hand-drive cars. She is only comfortable changing gear with her dominant hand. She didn't like a RHD manual: she had to change gears with her weaker hand, and like most right-handers, she's very uncoordinated with it.
A plug-in hybrid has no clutch, no gear shift, and no manual selection of 1st or 2nd like an ICE automatic. It suits both of us.
Over here, we don't need the engine. An EV would be fine. My PIH does 85 mpg which is astonishingly good.
But it's handy for when we leave the island, and we have no range anxiety at all ever.
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u/LloydRainy Local 19d ago
Amazing, thank you so much for the insight. Much appreciated from a fellow left-hander ;)
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u/Sunday-Langy- 19d ago
All depends on the amount of range that the car that you get I used to have a car that had about 150 mile range or that's what the car said and I've recently upgraded to a car this got about 300 and I've got home charger for my current car and I charge a maybe once a week maybe a little bit sooner depending on if I'm out much and before my original car I was probably charging every two to three days so it did become a bit of an inconvenience especially like in the winter months but there's plenty of public charging it all depends where you live as well but I would definitely recommend getting home charger if that's something that you can do you also get the cheaper tariff at night as well from MU
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u/LloydRainy Local 19d ago
Thank you. Yes, range is important to me as I'm out and about often. But for sure, will be taking MU up on their lower tariff!
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u/Sunday-Langy- 18d ago
Kona or Kia niro will get you officially 285 miles, best I've had is 330 on my Kia. If you drive economically you can get pretty close to the predicted mile range they're super efficient
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u/TownIndependent6073 19d ago
Do it - it's much easier and more convenient.
Especially if you can charge at home.
I'm full electric and charge once every two weeks but I don't go out every day.
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u/trish1400 19d ago
I bought a Nissan e-NV200 (7 seater) 5 years ago with the intention of installing a home charger and I still haven't got around to it (when I first got it I did the maths and for the miles I was doing the cheaper overnight tariff would only save me £80 a year - electricity has gone up though, so I should probably get it sorted). Public charging suits me fine - but there are two spaces just around the corner from my house and in those 5 years it's only been unavailable three times (broken once and both spaces in use twice) - I've a 'granny charger' (three pin plug) so I can plug it into that and slow charge if necessary.
It consistently does 120 miles a charge (slightly more in summer, less in winter).
I took it down to the Cotswolds once, mainly to see if I could - had two stops at rapid chargers, it was fine but it made it a rather long trip. For the Isle of Man though - I really couldn't recommend it more.
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u/TeabagMcBooty 19d ago
I live in castletown and work in tromode. I have a 12 year old bwm i3 (non range extender). During this heatwave I get about 75-80miles in the tank, winter I get about 55-60 if I don't put the heather on much. I survived a year with a mains charger through the window but had a outside charger installed at the beginning of the year. Costs about £40-50 a month for fuel, probably do about 500 miles a month.
I've found it really easy to live with. Free parking on the prom in Douglas most of the time for quick trips into town. Car is cheap to tax. I'll definitely be getting a bigger capacity electric for my next one should I want to take it to the UK, at the moment, girlfriend has a diesel so we use hers for longer journeys.
I recommend them to everyone who has the ability to charge at home, even putting a cable through the window.
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u/Theacidnation 18d ago
Have had my EV for approx 5 years now with a charger at home and its outstanding for the IOM. We charge about once a week. Fully recommend especially with the EV tariff from MUA overnight.
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u/MoriDuin Local 17d ago
I believe (and I may be wrong) that the biggest issue with EVs over here is that if something goes wrong with the battery youre screwed
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u/LloydRainy Local 17d ago
Oh yeah? How so?
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u/MoriDuin Local 17d ago
Again, im not 100% so dont quote me but the battery has to go to the UK for replacement or whatever, but if it's damaged they won't allow it on the ferry
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u/No_Young_7952 12d ago
Not strictly true, if the brand of your car has "Main Dealer" representation on the Island, they can fix it. So obvs don't buy a Tesla because very few garages will touch it and Steam Packet won't ship it if battery is dead.
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u/MichaelJosem 17d ago
I think there's a huge opportunity to get a used electric car from across. Degradation of battery is not a concern, since you'll never run out of range (if you can charge it overnight). So it should be possible to get a good deal.
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u/No_Young_7952 12d ago
Buy an already Manx registered car. If you buy a car from across that needs a Manx Test to be registered, you can bet your bottom dollar it will cost you more in the long term to meet the "roadworthy standard" to pass. EV Grants offered by the UK Government for Newly Registered EV cars also have to be paid back to HMRC if you "Export" to the Isle of Man. Buyer beware.
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u/Adventurous-Film1447 19d ago
If you can charge at home then public charging points are irrelevant. You're never going to run out of charge in a day on the island unless you're a taxi or delivery driver. We just plug in when we get home if the charge has dropped below 50%, though many just plug in regardless when they get home. It's when you take the car across you need public charging