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It’s Love MK Day!
On this Love MK Day we wanted to take the time to explain exactly what it is that has made us fall in love with this town we at the EVEC call home.
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Charging, then and now
In a period in which many of our EV’s are standing dormant, it is important to look back on the last few years, and realise how far we have come as an EV community.
Back in 2018, we celebrated the advent of 1000 rapid charging locations nationwide around this time in April. The data curated by Zap-Map also specified that this consisted of 1,484 devices, meaning many locations consisted of more than one rapid charger.
Now, in 2020, this number of rapid charging locations has more than doubled to 2168, and with 3133 devices we are still seeing installations that can facilitate multi-car charging.
So where are we going? If we apply the growth of the last two years, we expect to see as many as 4700 locations by the end of 2022!
With every rapid charge point installed, the achievable range of EV’s grows even further, so what will your next destination be once you return to the road? Wherever it is, make sure it’s electrifying.
(Data taken from Zap Map website and represent approximate predictions of growth in EV infrastructure, sourced here: https://www.zap-map.com/statistics/ – Zap-Map is the UK’s leading charging point platform. The charging point map, available on the desktop and iOS/Android apps, helps electric vehicle (EV) drivers locate available charge points, plan routes and share updates with the community.)
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Happy Benefit in Kind day!
Happy 0% benefit-in-kind day! From today (06/04/2020) Benefit in kind for electric vehicles drops to 0%, while in 2019, BIK worked out at 16%, this adjustment to 0% represents a massive saving. This accompanies changes across the board favouring lower emission vehicles.
Below is some more information about benefit in kind and how it can help you as a company car driver, as well as a non-company car driver considering making the switch.
But what is benefit in Kind?
When you engage in any form of salary sacrifice scheme on a car through your business, you will often find that the government taxes this perceived benefit, through a system called Benefit in Kind (BIK).
Often, this BIK is measured against the value to you of your car, accounting for things like the car’s value, as well as fuel type.
The value of this can be reduced in cases such as; you use it part-time, you make a contribution towards the cost, you receive fuel contributions or, as is most important to this article: It has low CO2 emissions.
What does it mean to me as a company car driver?
The savings can run up to £1300 a year as shown on our chalkboard we advertised in our centre very recently!
Across your company car catalogue, it can mean that an electric car represents a massive saving when compared to other combustion models in class, meaning you can operate an electric car in a higher class than normal, or run a similar class to your existing vehicle at a massive saving to your fuel costs, and with the complete removal of BIK tax.
Additionally, with the transition of emissions testing moving from NEDC testing to WLTP, some high CO2 combustion vehicles may well see their BIK taxation increase, in line with the government’s green fleet targets.
What can it mean to me as a non-company car driver?
If your company is offering a salary sacrifice scheme this can represent a much more attractive offering than previously.
Normally on salary sacrifice schemes, you would pay a monthly fee for the car and a benefit in kind figure as a form of tax, with the movement to 0% benefit in kind an electric company car can represent a surprisingly low salary sacrifice, as well as a vast decline in maintenance and fuel costs when compared to your current combustion vehicle.
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EVEC – COVID-19
During the on-going COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, the safety and welfare of our team is our priority, but we are also taking steps to ensure that we protect our customers and suppliers. We want to reassure you that we are monitoring the latest government advice on the appropriate level of action and encourage our customers to do so as well. Therefore, we have made the decision to temporarily close the Electric Vehicle Experience Centre with immediate effect.
Given the social distancing restrictions and safety concerns to both the EVEC staff and members of the public it is not possible to continue to run the centre effectively. The Milton Keynes Council and BP Chargemaster support our decision to close the site and we will be in contact regarding the reopening of the centre.
Please see below for additional information regarding test drive bookings.
I have a long-term test drive booked – what should I do?
If you have an upcoming test drive booked with the EV Experience centre, a member of the EVEC team will be in contact to discuss rescheduling or to arrange a full refund. If you haven’t been contacted, please email us at enquiries@evexperiencecentre.co.uk with your contact number and a member of the team will be in touch.
How can I contact the EV Experience Centre if I have a question?
The best way to contact us while we are temporarily closed is to email us at enquiries@evexperiencecentre.co.uk and someone will respond as soon as possible. We will also still be manning our social media channels on Twitter and Facebook, so please feel free to contact us on there as well.
When will the centre reopen?
This is unfortunately unclear at this time; we will continue to follow Government advice to ensure the safety of our staff and members of the public but will keep all our customers updated via our social media channels (Twitter and Facebook)
I had a test drive experience and have since bought an electric vehicle, can I still get the refund?
If a customer goes on to purchase an electric vehicle after previously having a long-term test drive with us, we offer a full refund of the test drive cost as a thank you for becoming an EV driver. This can be redeemed up to 18 months after the test drive.
Unfortunately, whilst our team are not at the EV Experience Centre we are unable to process any payments, however please email us at enquiries@evexperiencentre.co.uk and you will be refunded as soon as we are able to reopen the centre.
We will make sure to update our customers via social media regarding the reopening of the EV Experience Centre but in the meantime please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have a question or concern.
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MINI Electric on display now!
In the early hours of this morning, the EV Experience Centre received a rather large care package from our partners at MINI. With a delivery of a Level 1 display model, the entry-level car can now be viewed at the experience centre for the coming weeks.
On top of this, we have also received a cut-away model of the MINI Electric, allowing full view of how MINI has enabled their cooper to keep it’s revolutionary shape, while adapting to house an entirely new drivetrain.
By the numbers, we expect the MINI Electric to be achieving a real-world range of at least 120 miles with its 33kWh battery. For speed numbers, the MINI Electric achieves 0-37mph in 3.9 seconds, and 0-62 in 7.3, with its 184bhp motor.
We hope to be able to offer test drives in the near future, however, our demonstrator cars remain in transit, watch this space!
In the time being, enquire about our MINI Countryman PHEV experience drives, available on both a short term, and long term experience basis!
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The New Volkswagen e-Up joins the EVEC
Three new 2020 Volkswagen e-ups join the EV Experience Centre test drive fleet, available now on both short, and long term experiences!
Last revised in 2017 with a real-world range of around 60 miles, the 2020 model doubles this to a real-world 125 miles. For those of you who enjoy your numbers, the e-Up! now carries a 36kWh (32kWh usable) battery, giving it a WLTP tested range of 162 miles.
It achieves an output of 82hp, with an impressive rapid level of performance, leaning the car closer to its GTI counterpart than many would expect.
The new e-up! and other similar models from Volkswagen Auto Group’s other manufacturing arms now represent one of the best entry-level electric vehicles in the market if you are targeting exclusively low costs, starting out at just inside £20k.
Starting from today, one e-up will become a permanent short term test drive car, while the others will be available for long term experiences, starting out at £50 for 4-day experiences, moving up to £75 for 7-days, subject to our usual terms and conditions!
We hope to see you up! here soon, for your Electric Vehicle Experience.
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EVEC BECOMES MKFM PRINCIPAL PARTNER
There is no better day than World Radio Day to announce our new principal partnership with MKFM, Milton Keynes’ local radio station. After over a year of working with MKFM in promoting the uptake of electric cars and the EV Experience Centre, we decided to take our relationship to the next level!
Our new partnership mean more features around electric cars, as well as facts and figures on driving electric and making the switch. Our EV gurus will also be making featured appearances on the airways, and at various business events, such as ‘The Meet of MK’, in the near future.
It has never been easier to keep up to date with the latest news from the EVEC; our biggest announcements will now be broadcast across Milton Keynes, as well as featured on our social media channels and MKFM’s social media platform.
The electric revolution has arrived, and is now being broadcast directly to your car radio. Tune into MKFM at 106.3 to learn more about us and the electric vehicle experience!
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It’s BMW takeover week
It’s BMW takeover week, come and visit the centre to get up and close with the BMW i3, BMW 330e and the phenomenon that is the BMW i8 Roadster. The BMW takeover runs from Monday 10th February 2020 until Sunday 16th February 2020.
BMW has made new strides into electrification, with nearly half of their catalogue now available in Plug-In Hybrid form, with the BMW 330, 530, 730, 225x, X1, X3 and X5 available as 20-30 mile plug in hybrids, there are options at every tier of BMW’s extensive portfolio.
Moving from the mainstream into the extreme, the BMW i8 has been re-invented as a 2-seater drop-top roadster. With a souped-up 1.5L in the rear, coupled with its a front-mounted electric motor, the two team-up to produce 374HP, which when shovelled into its 1.5-tonne frame produces a 0-60 time of 4.6 seconds.
Rounding out the takeover at our faithful BMW i3, the 120Ah (43kWh to us normal folk) brings the i3 to a real-world range of 150 miles. The BMW i3 remains one of our favourite cars to showcase to visitors, with its space-age design, and extremes of performance and regeneration, it showcases what it means to go electric in an unmistakable manner.
Having been a segment front-runner over the last half-decade, we are excited to see what the next instalment will bring from BMWi, as the battle for the best electric hatch is only getting fiercer.
The BMW takeover runs from 10/02/20 on to 16/02/20, showcasing the BMW i3, i3s, 330e, and the i8 Roadster, most of whom you won’t normally see within our showroom. So come on down, and Plug Into Something Bold, with BMW & EVEC. Experience electric for yourself, with our free 20-minute test drives in the BMW i3.
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Green Friday Special Offer 2019
Green Friday is here, and the Electric Vehicle Experience Centre has a special offer for our 4-day EV Experiences!
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New Renault ZOE visits the EV Experience Centre
Following a successful UK Tour at Renault dealerships across the country, the latest Renault ZOE model will be joining the EVEC team from today until the end of December.