Just bought an Orange EV3, under £40k so no jealousy tax. It's a fantastic car. It's not designed to be chucked down a country lane, it is Fabulously comfortable, economical and well specced. Great car.
@@TheLisarazou In the United Kingdom, any car whose list price is over £40,000 pays a high value surcharge on the Road Fund Licence, an annual tax to keep your car on the road. The surcharge is quite a lot too, at least double the standard rate which you still have to pay. At the moment EVs are exempt though that is changing in April 2025.
Will get my ev3 next week. 35700 Euros post incentives. EV3 Air, big battery, premium color. Even better deal for me than the previous best deal in the sub 40k category which was the model 3. Glad that the EV3 came along and I don't have to buy a stupid Tesla now :-)
It's just unfortunate that the EV3 doesn't get as much range, or charges as fast. I really hate that other manufacturers haven't caught up yet. You can't beat the Model 3 LR RWD. It's like 45K euro for a 700+ km WLTP car.
I'd take either the Skoda or the Kia, both look good, with good range. The Mini no thanks, never liked the interiors, over priced. That circular screen is a waste of space.
Remember that the Elroq is rear drive, while the EV3 is front drive. Rear-wheel drive means an excellent turning circle and very good manoeuvrability. Otherwise, it's probably mostly about the design, right. It'll come down to which one you like better, because both are good choices.
@peterhollings309. When you don't like any of these 3 electric cars, which do you prefer?? It might be interesting to hear. Maybe the rest of us could get some good input!!
The Kia looks good on paper, especially with the 7yr. warranty. However, Kia wriggle out of everything they choose to. So I’d take the Skoda and you’d be able to see the HVAC, without having to sit in the middle rear seat.
@@mikadavies660 I predict there will be a lot of sales before April then after a short break the cost of cars will be adjusted with the best sellers being £39,999! (I'd not be surprised to see the base spec EV3 Air with the bigger battery - or a GT Line S with the smaller pack!)
When buying a new EV about 2.5 years ago now, I was definitely tempted by the Enyaq. However, what totally put me off was the sheer cost of paying for equipment in Skoda's option packs that came as standard on the EV6. Plus the EV6 had a much less dull design. Looks like the same applies here - for me, the EV3 would win every time. And that Mini is just a disaster.
The EV6 is class by itself ... beautiful and very capable but it is also way more expensive, though I totally agree that any car based on VW will be like driving an old "dumb" car unless you sink another few thousand into extras in order to have some basic comfort the South Koreans offer in the lowest trim. Even BMW sells a powerful EV for more than some 80.000€ and it doesn't even come with heated seats and adaptive cruise control🙄and you have to pay extra for connectivity services and separate for updates!!! No wonder no smart person buys german cars anymore. They still believe with their image they can sell you crap for ridiculous prices, no wonder they have reduced their gain to 50% this year, vs. the last one.
It makes me laugh when people who have no clue and have never driven a Kia, Volkswagen, or BMW make such posts. If you want to compare features, Kia has the worst equipment, and the quality of that equipment is terrible. Take something simple as an example - the lights. Matrix lights in Volkswagen are top-notch, while matrix lights in Kia are garbage. This applies to every feature on board. Just because Kia claims to have something doesn’t mean it works anywhere near as well as in Volkswagen or BMW. That’s why the price is what it is. @@n1vca
It's so tedious to hear motoring journalists say Mini is British. There's nothing British about this Mini. The Aceman was developed and is produced by Spotlight Automotive, a joint venture between BMW Group and Great Wall Motor, at a manufacturing plant in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu, China. It only trades on an old British car name. It's a Sino-German car whose LHD markets are far far more important to the people who make it than its RHD markets. Also when you say it's designed with "Europe" in mind I think you mean LHD markets, notably China. What is the UK if it's not a European market? The UK is a RHD European market.
How so? Oliver Heilmer, head of Mini design since 2017, is from Munich. Any design choices at Mini are okayed by him, including signing off the Aceman. BMW, who owns the Mini name, attributes the design to him. When a film is produced by an American production company it’s American. It could be a French script based on a French novel set and filmed in France with French actors. It’s still American. If this were applied to car manufacturing then whoever provides the investment claims the origin. And this is a car green-lit, designed, developed and manufactured in China by BMW for the design, and by Great Wall for the tech. That makes it Sino-German. And we’re to believe it’s British because one of its settings shows stylised Union Flags in the tail lights? Please… 🤦🏻♂️
Who pays silly money for a watch, or a holiday in Timbuktu? Everyone is different. What might seem a complete waste of money to you, might be fine with someone else... Your choices aren't always going to be the same as the next person's.
We test drove the aceman and really liked it ,so much so we’ve ordered an se sport , I agree they are to much money for the range capacity but had a great demo and really enjoyed driving it , and found the opposite to you , we liked the ride the quietness the interior as well , this will be our 7th mini and with a really good dealer 10 minutes away from home plus the great deal we had we went for it , luckily for us we can and will only charge from home and do around 120 miles a week , hopefully it will work for us , this will be our first ev , with a vw buzz cargo van to follow, can’t believe we made the ev switch, but we both love the smoothness of driving an ev
Brilliant long form review. The best yet as very fair and very very comprehensive in information. Keep it up!. Very relevant cars and a good use scenario, certainly not best case for EV's. The Kia's offer V2L etc. Will be very interesting what these and other manufacturers do with the £40k ECS barrier. The top spec models will be dead ducks. They HAVE to lower the RRPs or lobby the government to raise the ECS threshold. But as the UK is cash strapped I am not sure the government will consider lowering it, even though that would be a fair and sensible thing to do. 20 years ago, a £40k+ car could be considered a "luxury car" but what with inflation , I think the ECS threshold should be £50-£60k. I would consider a EV3 GT-lIne "S" to replace my Ioniq 5 next year but no way would I pay £2k extra in "tax" for a HUD and electronic tail gate!
Who on earth cares about V2L? Never once felt the need to plug in a hedge trimmer. It’s just a gimmick we’re supposedly missing out on, but in reality it’s just utter nonsense.
I don't think they're surprised that it's less, more at _how much less_ range it is than advertised. E.g. with an ICE car, it's very easy to get _below_ the lowest advertised mpg in heavy traffic.
I was thinking the same! They are always taking EVs for a long journeys 🤣 And they are so surprised. Instead using them as everyone else, around town, commuting and school runs.
@@xmarcika I agree, a pointless test that proves nothing except to bang on about range over and over again when most people simply don’t need 200+ miles. I do at most 40 miles a day, so the mini works for me and I’m not paying for a large battery that I don’t need
@henryviiifake8244 My last ICE had a combined mpg of 62, supposedly 75 or something in ideal conditions. I never saw more than low 50s on a run and the long term average was low 40s.
I think this is a great review: Well-scripted and filmed, I like all the attention to detail such as when you showed inside the Elroq when shutting the boot with the pine tree in it, showing that the tailgate did not hit the pine tree. I like how you call it a front boot, not a froot. Seems like the Mini is on a dead-end road really, I mean they increased the size of the car soo much from the original but it still must appear small-looking so it's just too small to compete in this class. My Mini traveller had huge door bins, one of the hallmarks of the original mini which have been lost.
A serious talk about the assessment of these 3 cars without unnecessary talk!! Brilliant!! Do you notice that the volume on the microphones is not so high, especially when you are sitting inside the cars, is this something you can regulate in the future..?
@@idparkinson 08:14 A mere 173 miles of range at 100% charge is simply *not acceptable* in this day and age. This isn't Nissan launching the Gen 1 Leaf all over again.
@@henryviiifake8244it'll do 200 easy in non-motorway exclusive journeys, easily good enough for 90% of journeys made. It's not an SUV, it's an alternative to the hatch and will be used for commuting and shopping, like the other cars which are oversized for their needs.
I like this kind of real world test of BEV's. 👍 I would just have switched the Mini with the Renault Scenic, which has a bit the same kind of price/value like the Skoda and the Kia. Just a reminder: the legal speed limit in Belgium is 120 km/h, not 130. 😊 In France it's 130, but keep in mind the areas around big cities. Like around Dunkirk where you passed, it goes down to 90 and even 70. And the flashing machines standing permanently in the middle have a very limited margin of 5 km/h.
In my opinion, the Scenic is more of a rival to the Enyaq and EV6. It's a big enough car as it is. The Ford Explorer would be a better competitor for those two.
How mad is it that all 3 of these incur the luxury car tax. They really need to move the 40k threshold up because you can’t get many good new cars for under 30k now
Great to see you report the actual efficiency (actual miles vs actual energy) and the real world mileage which as you say is almost worst case given the winter temperature and motorway speed. You also mention the different charging options (public, home, overnight if you have it) and the comparison to an ICE. For me this is really good motoring journalism, brilliant review, thanks What Car
Your reviews are some of the best on youtube now. I would have either the skoda or the kia quite happily if i were in the market. May get a second hand Enyaq, seems like it will be very cheap to run and battery degradation is way less than some people would have you believe.
The Skoda Elroq is so similar to the Enyaq because it shares both side doors with it, so from the A pillar, to the start of the C pillar, they are the same car. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. It's obviously an attempt to streamline production and keep costs under control. The important thing is that the result looks good.
rumour is that the shuttle train to France from U.K. will have dedicated cars (bogies) for EVs only . . . so that you can re-charge your EVs as you cross the English Channel . . .
I'm amazed to hear so much journalists saying how they end up preferring the Skoda Enyaq/Elroq. Where does it even comes from? 4 years ago the MEB platform was so meeeeeh.
The EV3 is designed to be smaller as Kia will be bringing out the EV5 next year and this is in between the EV9 and EV3. So they have designed these cars for the relevant consumer. Plus non of you guys mentioned the vehicle to load feature. Which is an excellent feature to have. Especially in a power cut or should you decide to go camping or hiking etc. I also believe Kia are also looking to implement vehicle to home/grid. The boot cover has a gap as I believe the EV3 GTLineS does have reclining rear seats as it does in the EV6 and EV9. Also please note that Kia/Hyundai do have a large buffer in the battery. Whether this is good to have or not is debatable. But good review all round.
Loved this video - this team is on a roll, especially Will. Just one technical issue: the audio levels on this video drop significantly when the guys are inside the cars discussing the interiors and are not level with the rest of the video.
If you were being fair, the actual range of the Mini was ~69% of claimed, the EV3 67% and the Skoda 69%, so the Mini range was just no worse compared to claimed than the other two.
@@robertarmstrong3478 exactly, another biased report. They never mentioned the % for the other cars as that would not support their point of view. Same with the specs, they mentioned the lack of ACC on the mini but not the things it had above the others like the HUD, Harmon Kardon sound, panoramic sun roof, heat pump as standard, automatic parking etc.
@ yes, that is exactly what it is. It works perfectly, it’s clear, in the correct position and disappears when not required. It shows navigation info as well from both the internal sat nav and CarPlay. It is fully adjustable and very high definition
These tests are just a jolly really, I mean Brugge is not that far, could easily have just driven to Manchester and produced a result that would be meaningful in UK conditions.
Insightful video. We've got a latest gen Hyundai Kona EV on salary sacrifice and was looking at it's replacement in a few years. Love the fact that the range has increased. We like the design of both the EV3 and Elroq and think that both are viable replacements. RWD on the Elroq might sway it for me and the fact that you get a factory fit towbar as an option. That being said, a fully spec'd Korean car with all the bells and whistles makes for some ridiculously underrated creature comforts. I never knew that the surround view camera and adaptive cruise control could be so useful. Makes my mid-spec E70 X5 seem rather spartan by comparison. Definitely will be looking at the 300 mile + range on a larger battery to make it a worthwhile replacement and to be able to do eurotrips without breaking a sweat.
The annoying thing they don't show enough on these videos is the charging performance. They only briefly covered charging the mini so they could get some drama about charging possibly not working!! (And it wasn't even the charger being broken). Unsurprisingly, the mini doesn't charge well either. 20 minutes for 45% of a small battery.. I would have loved to see how well the Skoda charged. But we know that the Kia and all EGMP cars charge brilliantly, which ends up mattering A LOT more on road trips than range by itself.
@@Cyrribrae Exactly - integrated total area under the curve vs peak charging will be more meaningful for people. That being said, whilst the peak charging is lower on the Hyundai Kona vs the Smart #1 I was also considering, it was still quicker for me to charge from 20 - 60 at Reading services than it took for me to order a Greggs. For some people, however, charging performance is equally as critical as battery range.
Yet again reviewers have criticised the small 5” climate control screen position but have not realised that the “+” symbol on the top RH corner of the small screen opens full controls on the larger and visible infotainment screen. The “+” becomes an “x” that can be used to close the controls after adjustments are made.
Great vide but a shame you didn't mention the charging speeds especially the real life ones since that is just as important as the battery size in real life
Amazingly, the mini cubby box opens the other way in LHD cars! So it's a deliberate choice. And you can get Adaptive Cruise, you just have to 'subscribe'...
I have watched many EV range test videos, and I appreciate what car reviewers have been doing to help potential buyers estimate the actual range of each electric vehicle. Besides that, I also realise that most buyers would only feel the trouble of not having enough range when they intentionally skip electric chargers along the route. It's now the end of 2024, and most developed countries already established their practical EV fast charger networks. With the help of external EV trip planning apps, such as PlugShare, and the onboard navigation with a built-in charging schedule function, all EV owners can avoid being stalled on the highway due to a drained battery. Given that many people (or most people in some countries/states/provinces) can charge their electric vehicles at home, there will never be as many EV chargers as petrol pumps.
@acde9355 I was intrigued by your point that there will never be as many EV chargers as petrol pumps. When I was young, one of the most unsuccessful cars of the time, the Skoda 100, of which over a million were made, had a 32 litre petrol tank. With that, depending on who was driving and how they were driving, you could get 300-500 kilometres. In those days there wasn't a petrol station in every other village and they were all closed at the weekend. So as far as electric car chargers go, I already feel better with them today than I did with petrol back then. There's no reason there can't be a charger in every village. I believe it's just a matter of time.
According to Statista in the UK there were 8,353 petrol pumps up to December 2023. There has been a steady decline so I expect that to be less now. According to Zap Map, as of November 2024, there are 72,594 "devices", with approx. 1,200 a month coming on stream. "Never" was passed a long time ago. The Govt. target of 300,000 by 2030 is considered to be on track.
I think it would be good to time your charging stops and compare length spent charging as a metric. Same journey distance. Some cars with smaller batteries but faster charging can be appealing
Loved your work and the things you covered in this video review, thanks! Some suggestion for future comparisons: - About the cars picked: I think the Renault Scenic would have been much more interesting to compare with EV3 and Elroq. The only reason to buy a Mini is the badge honestly, they’re too pricey, unpractical and with a small range. Also I would like you to test cars with similar specs, and see how the prices compare then. - Hard plastics are found also in cars that cost 200k. Don’t think is necessary to talk about them in every video. - Having a young kid, it would be interesting to know if there is enough width to fit 2 adults and 1 car seat in the back of the car. On a different note, I don’t personally like how the VW group cars have a lot of specs that you have to add on in packages to have a decently specd car. It makes really hard for someone looking to buy a new car to figure the final price without using their simulator, and it’s even harder when you look into used cars to know what kits are actually included. Maybe it’s just me but I find it really misleading and deceiving.
6:41 I'm surprised the Euro Tunnel doesn't have EV charging. Even 6-9 spots for 11Kw charging stations on the train could be very useful as your just sitting about for the ride :D I think there is a ferry from the UK to Ireland and that has 6 x 7KW chargers. Maybe there is very good reasons that they don't want to implement it for th Chunnel 🤔
@@whatcar Oh my bad, I didn't know. I watched up to around halfway when I left that comment 😆 I tried to look on the LeShuttle website but I didn't see anything about chargers on the train. If anyone sees something please point in the right direction
TBH all the real world range figures compared to the official ranges are shocking. there needs to be a complete rethink of how ranges are quoted for cars
It's better then it was before with NEDC, but WLTP is what you get in summer as it specifies "20C ambient". The american EPA range is actually based in reality and representative.
@@databeestje EPA is actually worse, because it uses a mathematic formula that varies depending on the test cycle (3 vs 5 cycle tests) and is subject to manufacturer's discretion to a certain extent (as the producer can choose a lower number), so while the numbers are closer the real world range, you cannot use them to compare between cars.
As I actually own an EV3 GT Line S, so I can confirm the cold and fast motorway driving is a big factor. It is cold in the UK at the moment, but I don't drive on the motorway at the legal limit. My daily trip is around 80% motorway and 20% urban. Getting between 3.7 and 4.7mi/kwh, at around 60mph. (lower figure is a morning drive at around 6.00am). Current 100% charge level is around the 330 mile mark. But that will improve when the weather gets warmer. In the summer I predict between 380 to 400 miles. My old e-Niro got up to 360 miles of range in the summer. Way over the 282 WLTP.
Match the spec on the Elroq to the EV3 and you see the Elroq is insanely expensive. When do reporters learn to compare the spec of the tester cars. That GT-Line is a fully specced car and Elroq costs like 5.000 euros more equaly specced.
I don't think its that cut and dry when you almost completly load it the elroq is 3k more expensive but is bigger, more horsepower RWD, 3 zone climate, adaptive suspension and has adaptive Matrix LED Headlights...so more expensive for more stuff. I think they are very comparable.
@ is not. Rear legspace is only thing that Elroq haa more. Less space in front. 10litres more truck, but has no frunk which EV3 has 25litres. Actually Elroq has less combined cargo space and only slightly more space in the back where most ppl never have any tall adults so the space is seldomly needed. Elroq is in comparable battery sizes always more expencive and with 5 years shorter warranty. Kia has also made EVs over twice as long as Skoda. EV is 100% sure a better car.
@@Harhawink I think what really puts the space in to perspective is if you look at the maximum cargospace with folded seats 1580 vs. 1251l which is a lot of difference and makes it that you might get something in that you cant in the KIA. Also the trunk of the elroq looks a lot bigger in vidoes which could be just illusion but what I think is that it really shows that the Kia has just deeper wells beneath the trunk floor which isn't as practical as a big square space but that also might just be personal preference. I also prefere a tighter turning circle instead of a tiny frunk, espically that the elroq has a pretty good solution for the chraging cable. The imo more important battery warranty is actually a little bit better with skoda. Also I heard some problems with KIA partners in Germany at least. A lot of them closed and it is hard to get service appointments and if you get just slightly above the kilometers or time requirments for the service the warranty will just be terminated. The argument with KIA has more experince with electric is just misleading doesn't mean its a better EV. Skoda is along way longer than KIA does that mean skoda is in general better in producing cars? I think that the MEB platform is even a little bit more efficient if you consider that the Elroq is a heavier and bigger car but has about the same consumption. The EV3 is certainly not a better car they are very similar but I would give the edge to the elroq.
Nice review and good to see you making use of the Eurotunnel chargers on the way back. Regarding the point on hotel chargers, of course you are not obliged to use AC chargers at the hotel, you could use chargers nearby. A quick look on Electroverse shows that there are plenty of car parks with EV chargers in Brugges, so this could have made destination charging possible. Also you could have done some of the pieces to camera eg interior evaluation whilst charging at the Tesla supercharger. It gets a little tiresome when experienced car reviewers insist on driving EV's in unrealistic ways, on a long journey like that you'd need to stop anyway so just charge when you're stopped, don't wait till you've got less than 10% of battery remaining and then stop to charge... It gives a much better representation on how EV's are used in real life.
Fabelhafter, ausführlicher Vergleich mit unterschiedlichen Perspektiven. Ein paar mehr Eindrücke von Brügge wären schön gewesen ;)... Danke für den Test.
Interesting video but I'm not sure that your test can be described as "worst case" conditions. While the speed limit in France is 130 kmh, that's only in the dry and the section between Calais and Belgium has signifcant sections of 110 and 90 limits and of course the motorway limit in Belgium is 120 kmh. As for the weather, it's 5 degrees today in Brugge and in Belgium it's not unusual to have days below 0 (although the -22 in 2009 was unusual). Looking forward and thinking of costs I'm curious to know what governments will do to get back the huge hydocarbon taxes on petrol and diesel if people transition to electric..... not to mention the discounts some countries currently give on road tax for electirc cars.
When all 3 of you are doing tests like this testing family cars could you also do a test having all 3 of you in the back seats together seeing how comfortable it is. Having 3 kids who are constantly growing this is one of the biggest things I look out for which is hard to tell just looking at pics or videos without all 3 seats being occupied.
Thats worth knowing. I'd maybe even be prepared to stump up the envy tax (kicks in April 2025 ) in that case. I wouldn't pay the envy tax for any of these.
Excellent test as always. I was a bit confused by the comment that an electric tailgate is 'useful'. I was in a VW showroom with my other half recently and the car she was looking at had one, which I assume is the same as the Skoda as they are from the same group. She asked me what it did, and, never having had one myself but having seen many many road tests of cars with them, I excitedly started to explain that if she came to the car with armfuls of shopping, she could wave her foot at the car and the tailgate would open. Brilliant, she said, just as the salesman corrected me, it doesn't have the foot waving thing. So how is it useful?
To compare the efficiency of the cars it would be good to know whether they had similar tyres/inches and in general at what speed the cars were driven.
The badge does give you resale value. I’d reckon if you were the kind of person to change your car regularly that’ll count for something. I mean it’s kinda distinctive looking too in a ‘love it or hate it’ kinda way. The Elroq could be mistaken for a diesel hatchback by the way it looks.
love these videos the comparisons are the best, you should lean in more on the day to day, family SUV makes me thing going on holiday to llandudno, you should do these tests with a full load as well so its realisitic for big families they can get a sense of knowing.
I have been finding the same issue with hotels and chargers. In the UK I really wish the Gov would require (and reduce/remove regulation to facilitate) that they have a % of spaces with chargers, don't need to be more than 7.4kW, i.e. home charger level.
Wife has a 2023 Countrymen JCW the interior with leather is outstanding, it has adaptive dampers and rides very well, it’s quick with 300bhp plus , secure with 4x4 the new Mini seems a real step back In quality..
Very good, thanks a lot. How long will it be before Mini realises that it is hamstrung by all those absurd l;egacy styling features. First to go should be the central circular instrument panel. Then the lights. I would say the EV3 is the way to go for something a little different but the Skoda is the best logical choice.
In Korea there are 3 Trim Levels to which things can be added. My wife has been to Korea and driven an Air trim, but fitted with the (UK GT-Line S) options such as Heated/Cooled seats, HUD Phone Key and Electric Boot Door. No unnecessary things like HK Stereo, Dinner Table or Sunroof. Now that would be a great spec to be offered over here to come in below the "luxury" car tax level next year. Also why does the UK only offer orange (!!!!!!!) as base colour,- they did the same for the latest Niro, then dropped it PDQ.
Hello! A very entertaining test, with lots of important information! What I was missing was the usability of all the functions, the switches, buttons and displays, especially the range of functions for navigation. The latter is a very important point when planning routes and loading! So, how well does the vehicle software work?
You could also not bother with the Level 2 pack as it adds only the sunroof and Harmon Kardon speakers, that would drop the price by £2000. Again you pick the wrong spec for a fair comparison.
Whilst your point is valid, I think it just comes down to whatever car was available to be loaned to them by the manufacturer during the date of filming. Had they been able to spec like-for-like during testing they probably would have.
@@idparkinson not at all..even with the level 2 pack the mini does not even have ACC. My 33K MG4 luxury has that for heavens sake. The other two cars has upgrade packs with even more equipment then the mini and they are still crushing the mini on range. the level 1 trim is not even close to what the skoda and kia has so to be fair it should have the lvl 3 pack.
Good honest review, with extra merit for highlighting the extra you’d pay for a hotel touting chargers; and recognising that said chargers may not be available. Also, the reality in a country with more public chargers than the UK but still having the hassle of always holding a reserve range, just in case your first and maybe second charge either doesn’t work or is unavailable. Kia’s design of having the HVAC screen, that can only be seen by rear middle seater or front passenger… who signed-off on that idiocy, Zaphod Beeblebrox? The Aceman is the underdog here. I feel the smallest battery pack, would suit people who live in one small city/large town and never drive outside its limits. Or reasonable in city shopping trolley. However, this test has proved with planning and providing you weren’t in a hurry, it would be theoretically possible to live with the smallest pack and still go tripping. I’m not saying I’d like to - life’s too short to stuff a mushroom. But it could be possible. As to riding on the forks of a tractor - not convinced that’s a good idea. Got to wonder if the guy was just crossing the road and got scoop up. Or maybe the passenger’s Aceman, is simply immobile at a charger.
Just wanted to say the Aceman does have dynamic cruise control as standard. You just have to know how to turn it on. Hint: it’s the mode button on the steering wheel!
Pleased to see you 3 moving towards a more balanced view of EV's compared to previous fare and that you are prepared to take on board suggestions and criticism, kudos to you. Can I suggest one more change? As the majority of EV owners currently charge from home, I strongly suspect that most of those also charge at cheaper over night rates. So rather than lead with the very misleading SVT cap day rate and only mention cheaper ones as an after thought, it would be more "real world" to use the former and only mention the latter as a worst case and least likely. I look forward to the next review.
Why do manufacturers put a space for charging cables at the bottom of the boot, because if you have suitcases etc in there, you have to keep removing items in order to charge...?
interesting car video... i'm looking at the ev3 but i was also considering the mini - ive kinda ruled out the mini as the battery just doesnt have the range. I'm also looking at the mg3 and the hyundai inster....hmmm My only criticism on the video is whoever is incharge of sound hasnt done a good job... the volumn is so low and when youre in the car the back mic is really clear but the front ones are not
Great review. Mini have totally lost their way. In my mind it's a close call between the EV3 and the elroq. In my mind the EV3 pips it both on styling and the fact that they have 7 year warranty.
Very informative review. As regards the choice between the Elroq and EV3, they are both very good and the choice comes down to whether you prefer front wheel drive or rear wheel drive. l
Those PCP costs are insanity. How anybody could justify circa. £500 per month (+£4k up front) for any of those three cars is beyond me. The predicted depreciation on these cars must be huge for rates like that.
Having had a proper look at an EV3, if you have tall people up front, then there is very poor rear room behind and the front seats are very bulky with the odd hard back/coat hanger. This part of the front seats really intrudes in the rear passenger space.
Just driven Brussels, london,most of UK motorways seem limited to 50 mph, Calais to Belgium is not 130 kph with large stresses 90 or 110 kph. Belgium motorways are limited to 120 kph.
Brilliant review guys, great work. Sad to see the downgrading of the Mini - it was always the build quality that stood out over the competition and for me was one of the rewarding parts of ownership. All the iconic features like the row of toggle switches have been ditched or cheapened to the point where they just look crap. The moulding around the centre tunnel console thing is truly awful. I certainly won't be buying any more Minis. One thing I am interested in is the impact of load on range. We all know that towing has a catastrophic impact on how far an EV can go, but what about carrying passengers and their gear ? These are family cars and it would be good to see a range check with 4 people on board and some luggage. (maybe don't do it in the Mini !).
Love these long reviews. I don't think the Mini should be included here it is essentially a short range city car and is left standing by the Kia and Skoda. Put it up against the Renault 5 next year however and that may be a different story. I won't mention the 25 or so minutes ( no specific times mentioned) spent kicking your heals whilst waiting for the charge to be completed or the panic that sets in when looking for a charger when you should be concentrating on driving or the cost of service station snacks whilst waiting which pushes up the cost.
The comparative costs are a bit misleading- the Škoda has packages that you need to add on to bring it to the same level as the Kia. Some of these packages add £4-5k to the price. So the Škoda ends up more expensive. However, there is currently a £1,000 deposit contribution and zero percent interest on Škoda pcp deals making it more attractive than the Kia finance. But Škoda dealers don’t know if they can get get cars before the end of March. That means if you pay over £40k you end up paying the luxury car tax . So not an easy choice between the Škoda Elroq and the Kia EV3.
Thanks - I sensed a good deal of frustration from a dealer I spoke to about the way Škoda have marketed the car as though it’s on sale for delivery. Who is going to commit to buying. a car without driving it first? If you are right about delivery then the Škoda is going to cost a lot more than buying a pre April delivered EV3 due to the current tax issue.
What a surprise, testers always quoting the lowest “value” price to get attention, then test drive upgraded cars . Batteries , accessories etc , what nonsense.
I am guessing the aim is to find out which is the least worst EV? Which one would I buy if I was forced to at gunpoint? Which has the best less range than advertised? Which is the least tens of thousands of pounds more than an equivalent ICE hatchback? Critical consumer questions
Just bought an Orange EV3, under £40k so no jealousy tax. It's a fantastic car. It's not designed to be chucked down a country lane, it is Fabulously comfortable, economical and well specced. Great car.
It only kicks in for EVs for new EV cars bought from April 2025.
what charging rates (kW) are you getting at fast chargers here in wintertime?
pardon my ignorance since i am not a native english speaker, but what does "jeaolusy tax" mean?
@@TheLisarazou In the United Kingdom, any car whose list price is over £40,000 pays a high value surcharge on the Road Fund Licence, an annual tax to keep your car on the road. The surcharge is quite a lot too, at least double the standard rate which you still have to pay. At the moment EVs are exempt though that is changing in April 2025.
Will get my ev3 next week. 35700 Euros post incentives. EV3 Air, big battery, premium color. Even better deal for me than the previous best deal in the sub 40k category which was the model 3. Glad that the EV3 came along and I don't have to buy a stupid Tesla now :-)
It's just unfortunate that the EV3 doesn't get as much range, or charges as fast. I really hate that other manufacturers haven't caught up yet. You can't beat the Model 3 LR RWD. It's like 45K euro for a 700+ km WLTP car.
I'd take either the Skoda or the Kia, both look good, with good range. The Mini no thanks, never liked the interiors, over priced. That circular screen is a waste of space.
@@peterhollings309 the screen is brilliant
@@idparkinsonso it's a safety hazard in the dark? 😅
Remember that the Elroq is rear drive, while the EV3 is front drive. Rear-wheel drive means an excellent turning circle and very good manoeuvrability. Otherwise, it's probably mostly about the design, right. It'll come down to which one you like better, because both are good choices.
@peterhollings309. When you don't like any of these 3 electric cars, which do you prefer?? It might be interesting to hear. Maybe the rest of us could get some good input!!
The Kia looks good on paper, especially with the 7yr. warranty. However, Kia wriggle out of everything they choose to. So I’d take the Skoda and you’d be able to see the HVAC, without having to sit in the middle rear seat.
With this group of cars NOT going over £40,000 rrp is very important.... Paying "luxury car tax" on a small family car, is taking the piss.
Although it's very very easy to blow past £40k with all of them.
@@mikadavies660 I predict there will be a lot of sales before April then after a short break the cost of cars will be adjusted with the best sellers being £39,999! (I'd not be surprised to see the base spec EV3 Air with the bigger battery - or a GT Line S with the smaller pack!)
It was set years ago by the govt, and never changed while car prices and shot upwards. Another joke, it should be around 55k now
@@edm2632typical government strategy to claw yet more money from people.
Total bollocks isn't it. A car isn't "luxury" just because it has a large battery.
No mention of warranty or V2L or V2G
When buying a new EV about 2.5 years ago now, I was definitely tempted by the Enyaq. However, what totally put me off was the sheer cost of paying for equipment in Skoda's option packs that came as standard on the EV6. Plus the EV6 had a much less dull design. Looks like the same applies here - for me, the EV3 would win every time. And that Mini is just a disaster.
The EV6 is class by itself ... beautiful and very capable but it is also way more expensive, though I totally agree that any car based on VW will be like driving an old "dumb" car unless you sink another few thousand into extras in order to have some basic comfort the South Koreans offer in the lowest trim. Even BMW sells a powerful EV for more than some 80.000€ and it doesn't even come with heated seats and adaptive cruise control🙄and you have to pay extra for connectivity services and separate for updates!!! No wonder no smart person buys german cars anymore. They still believe with their image they can sell you crap for ridiculous prices, no wonder they have reduced their gain to 50% this year, vs. the last one.
It makes me laugh when people who have no clue and have never driven a Kia, Volkswagen, or BMW make such posts. If you want to compare features, Kia has the worst equipment, and the quality of that equipment is terrible. Take something simple as an example - the lights. Matrix lights in Volkswagen are top-notch, while matrix lights in Kia are garbage. This applies to every feature on board. Just because Kia claims to have something doesn’t mean it works anywhere near as well as in Volkswagen or BMW. That’s why the price is what it is.
@@n1vca
I couldn’t find a comfortable driving position in the Kia.
It's so tedious to hear motoring journalists say Mini is British. There's nothing British about this Mini. The Aceman was developed and is produced by Spotlight Automotive, a joint venture between BMW Group and Great Wall Motor, at a manufacturing plant in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu, China. It only trades on an old British car name. It's a Sino-German car whose LHD markets are far far more important to the people who make it than its RHD markets. Also when you say it's designed with "Europe" in mind I think you mean LHD markets, notably China. What is the UK if it's not a European market? The UK is a RHD European market.
@@thomash2806 it is a British design
How so? Oliver Heilmer, head of Mini design since 2017, is from Munich. Any design choices at Mini are okayed by him, including signing off the Aceman. BMW, who owns the Mini name, attributes the design to him.
When a film is produced by an American production company it’s American. It could be a French script based on a French novel set and filmed in France with French actors. It’s still American. If this were applied to car manufacturing then whoever provides the investment claims the origin.
And this is a car green-lit, designed, developed and manufactured in China by BMW for the design, and by Great Wall for the tech.
That makes it Sino-German.
And we’re to believe it’s British because one of its settings shows stylised Union Flags in the tail lights? Please… 🤦🏻♂️
Strong feelings…
Chicken Korma is British so why not a Chinese made car with Union Jacks all over it?
You could make the same argument for the Skoda too. 😂
You make no mention of the Kia's 7 year warranty, otherwise a very good review
We need to investigate the 7 year warranty before unlike Toyota 10 year if you have it serviced by Toyota the Kia warranty is not as good.
KIA warranty has several excludes and more year pass less part there are that is under warranty.
because on pcp in doesnt matter?
100K of milage or 7 years of warranty and you need to service your EV properly at the dealer.
@@sssssneakerOf course it does
I really donot know who would spend North of £40,000 for a Mini of any spec.
Someone with more money than sense who values perceived style and trendiness over functionality.
Who pays silly money for a watch, or a holiday in Timbuktu? Everyone is different. What might seem a complete waste of money to you, might be fine with someone else... Your choices aren't always going to be the same as the next person's.
@@Brian-om2hh well said
I will be getting a Cooper SE on a lease and it's over 40,000. Got a good deal and after test driving very fun. Aceman was also fun to drive.
We test drove the aceman and really liked it ,so much so we’ve ordered an se sport , I agree they are to much money for the range capacity but had a great demo and really enjoyed driving it , and found the opposite to you , we liked the ride the quietness the interior as well , this will be our 7th mini and with a really good dealer 10 minutes away from home plus the great deal we had we went for it , luckily for us we can and will only charge from home and do around 120 miles a week , hopefully it will work for us , this will be our first ev , with a vw buzz cargo van to follow, can’t believe we made the ev switch, but we both love the smoothness of driving an ev
Brilliant long form review. The best yet as very fair and very very comprehensive in information. Keep it up!. Very relevant cars and a good use scenario, certainly not best case for EV's. The Kia's offer V2L etc. Will be very interesting what these and other manufacturers do with the £40k ECS barrier. The top spec models will be dead ducks. They HAVE to lower the RRPs or lobby the government to raise the ECS threshold. But as the UK is cash strapped I am not sure the government will consider lowering it, even though that would be a fair and sensible thing to do. 20 years ago, a £40k+ car could be considered a "luxury car" but what with inflation , I think the ECS threshold should be £50-£60k. I would consider a EV3 GT-lIne "S" to replace my Ioniq 5 next year but no way would I pay £2k extra in "tax" for a HUD and electronic tail gate!
Who on earth cares about V2L? Never once felt the need to plug in a hedge trimmer. It’s just a gimmick we’re supposedly missing out on, but in reality it’s just utter nonsense.
These guys still AMAZED that the range is less than advertised when driving at 70 on the motorway.
It's a mystery! 🤯
I don't think they're surprised that it's less, more at _how much less_ range it is than advertised.
E.g. with an ICE car, it's very easy to get _below_ the lowest advertised mpg in heavy traffic.
I was thinking the same! They are always taking EVs for a long journeys 🤣 And they are so surprised. Instead using them as everyone else, around town, commuting and school runs.
@@xmarcika I agree, a pointless test that proves nothing except to bang on about range over and over again when most people simply don’t need 200+ miles. I do at most 40 miles a day, so the mini works for me and I’m not paying for a large battery that I don’t need
@henryviiifake8244 My last ICE had a combined mpg of 62, supposedly 75 or something in ideal conditions. I never saw more than low 50s on a run and the long term average was low 40s.
That umbrella hick up made my day 🤣
An indication of the 'quality' of the car's components...
I think this is a great review: Well-scripted and filmed, I like all the attention to detail such as when you showed inside the Elroq when shutting the boot with the pine tree in it, showing that the tailgate did not hit the pine tree. I like how you call it a front boot, not a froot. Seems like the Mini is on a dead-end road really, I mean they increased the size of the car soo much from the original but it still must appear small-looking so it's just too small to compete in this class. My Mini traveller had huge door bins, one of the hallmarks of the original mini which have been lost.
A serious talk about the assessment of these 3 cars without unnecessary talk!! Brilliant!!
Do you notice that the volume on the microphones is not so high, especially when you are sitting inside the cars, is this something you can regulate in the future..?
Christ that Mini is absolutely gopping. No-one will ever glance back at that with pride after they've parked it.
@@PhineasPhlob I do, it’s a great looking car and the welcome lights make me smile every time
@@idparkinson 08:14 A mere 173 miles of range at 100% charge is simply *not acceptable* in this day and age.
This isn't Nissan launching the Gen 1 Leaf all over again.
Mate, your nans gopping
@@henryviiifake8244it'll do 200 easy in non-motorway exclusive journeys, easily good enough for 90% of journeys made. It's not an SUV, it's an alternative to the hatch and will be used for commuting and shopping, like the other cars which are oversized for their needs.
Couldn't disagree more - really the looks of mini are the best thing about it.
I like this kind of real world test of BEV's. 👍
I would just have switched the Mini with the Renault Scenic, which has a bit the same kind of price/value like the Skoda and the Kia.
Just a reminder: the legal speed limit in Belgium is 120 km/h, not 130. 😊 In France it's 130, but keep in mind the areas around big cities. Like around Dunkirk where you passed, it goes down to 90 and even 70. And the flashing machines standing permanently in the middle have a very limited margin of 5 km/h.
Yep, Scenic in place of Mini would have been perfect three car test.
I agree with u Scenic would gave been far more sensible comparison here!
In my opinion, the Scenic is more of a rival to the Enyaq and EV6. It's a big enough car as it is. The Ford Explorer would be a better competitor for those two.
@@petrbasa5742 The Enyaq and EV6 are much longer than the Scenic.
How mad is it that all 3 of these incur the luxury car tax. They really need to move the 40k threshold up because you can’t get many good new cars for under 30k now
Inflation is a thing, and for cars and suppliers this appears to be very true.
@@AR-zr1om not yet they don’t , but they will in April
Thanks for covering efficiency. I think its not covered enough and the focus on range as a metric misses a key factor of TCO on an EV.
These are the best comparative reviews on the net.
Glad you like them!
Very good,fun,entertaining and comprehensive comparative review as usual.I love your videos,they're really useful and fun!
Great to see you report the actual efficiency (actual miles vs actual energy) and the real world mileage which as you say is almost worst case given the winter temperature and motorway speed. You also mention the different charging options (public, home, overnight if you have it) and the comparison to an ICE. For me this is really good motoring journalism, brilliant review, thanks What Car
Your reviews are some of the best on youtube now. I would have either the skoda or the kia quite happily if i were in the market. May get a second hand Enyaq, seems like it will be very cheap to run and battery degradation is way less than some people would have you believe.
Ordered the Elroq as changing from Karoq.
Nice video. I'm just missing the comparison of the charging speeds.
The Skoda Elroq is so similar to the Enyaq because it shares both side doors with it, so from the A pillar, to the start of the C pillar, they are the same car. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. It's obviously an attempt to streamline production and keep costs under control. The important thing is that the result looks good.
Definitely gonna get an EV3 for my next car (if the next gen Ceed doesn't have a hybrid option)
rumour is that the shuttle train to France from U.K. will have dedicated cars (bogies) for EVs only . . . so that you can re-charge your EVs as you cross the English Channel . . .
I'm sure any passenger will get charged a special rate.
I'm amazed to hear so much journalists saying how they end up preferring the Skoda Enyaq/Elroq. Where does it even comes from? 4 years ago the MEB platform was so meeeeeh.
The EV3 is designed to be smaller as Kia will be bringing out the EV5 next year and this is in between the EV9 and EV3. So they have designed these cars for the relevant consumer. Plus non of you guys mentioned the vehicle to load feature. Which is an excellent feature to have. Especially in a power cut or should you decide to go camping or hiking etc. I also believe Kia are also looking to implement vehicle to home/grid. The boot cover has a gap as I believe the EV3 GTLineS does have reclining rear seats as it does in the EV6 and EV9.
Also please note that Kia/Hyundai do have a large buffer in the battery. Whether this is good to have or not is debatable.
But good review all round.
There will also be a Kia EV2 at some point which will be smaller. The Kia Soul EV (second hand only now) is also smaller than the EV3.
Loved this video - this team is on a roll, especially Will. Just one technical issue: the audio levels on this video drop significantly when the guys are inside the cars discussing the interiors and are not level with the rest of the video.
If you were being fair, the actual range of the Mini was ~69% of claimed, the EV3 67% and the Skoda 69%, so the Mini range was just no worse compared to claimed than the other two.
@@robertarmstrong3478 exactly, another biased report. They never mentioned the % for the other cars as that would not support their point of view. Same with the specs, they mentioned the lack of ACC on the mini but not the things it had above the others like the HUD, Harmon Kardon sound, panoramic sun roof, heat pump as standard, automatic parking etc.
@@idparkinson You call this plastic screen a HUD? Seriously?
@ yes, that is exactly what it is. It works perfectly, it’s clear, in the correct position and disappears when not required. It shows navigation info as well from both the internal sat nav and CarPlay. It is fully adjustable and very high definition
The Elroq can also have an actual HUD (image on the windshield glass)
@@idparkinson It's also ugly as hell.
Great work , guys...I hope you appreciated Brugge. Us Belgians don't have a lot to be proud about but that is something😂
At 130kph and sub 10C, I'd say those 240 mile ranges are very good. In the UK you'd add at least 10% just due to be limited to 70mph.
These tests are just a jolly really, I mean Brugge is not that far, could easily have just driven to Manchester and produced a result that would be meaningful in UK conditions.
Driving at 60 mph would add about 30% extra to the range obtained.
Efficiency, as well as range available, is important.
Insightful video. We've got a latest gen Hyundai Kona EV on salary sacrifice and was looking at it's replacement in a few years. Love the fact that the range has increased. We like the design of both the EV3 and Elroq and think that both are viable replacements. RWD on the Elroq might sway it for me and the fact that you get a factory fit towbar as an option. That being said, a fully spec'd Korean car with all the bells and whistles makes for some ridiculously underrated creature comforts. I never knew that the surround view camera and adaptive cruise control could be so useful. Makes my mid-spec E70 X5 seem rather spartan by comparison. Definitely will be looking at the 300 mile + range on a larger battery to make it a worthwhile replacement and to be able to do eurotrips without breaking a sweat.
The annoying thing they don't show enough on these videos is the charging performance. They only briefly covered charging the mini so they could get some drama about charging possibly not working!! (And it wasn't even the charger being broken).
Unsurprisingly, the mini doesn't charge well either. 20 minutes for 45% of a small battery.. I would have loved to see how well the Skoda charged. But we know that the Kia and all EGMP cars charge brilliantly, which ends up mattering A LOT more on road trips than range by itself.
@Cyrribrae Škoda should be a little bit faster on both peak and avg. charging power.
@@Cyrribrae Exactly - integrated total area under the curve vs peak charging will be more meaningful for people. That being said, whilst the peak charging is lower on the Hyundai Kona vs the Smart #1 I was also considering, it was still quicker for me to charge from 20 - 60 at Reading services than it took for me to order a Greggs. For some people, however, charging performance is equally as critical as battery range.
@29:14 as a foreigner, one of the first things I learned is that umbrellas are useless in the UK 😂
Yet again reviewers have criticised the small 5” climate control screen position but have not realised that the “+” symbol on the top RH corner of the small screen opens full controls on the larger and visible infotainment screen. The “+” becomes an “x” that can be used to close the controls after adjustments are made.
Great vide but a shame you didn't mention the charging speeds especially the real life ones since that is just as important as the battery size in real life
I find these reviews really useful as you look at all areas including costs and finance. Thanks guys. Skoda is the one for me.
Loving your long-format like this reviews/trips!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed.
Amazingly, the mini cubby box opens the other way in LHD cars! So it's a deliberate choice. And you can get Adaptive Cruise, you just have to 'subscribe'...
I have watched many EV range test videos, and I appreciate what car reviewers have been doing to help potential buyers estimate the actual range of each electric vehicle. Besides that, I also realise that most buyers would only feel the trouble of not having enough range when they intentionally skip electric chargers along the route. It's now the end of 2024, and most developed countries already established their practical EV fast charger networks. With the help of external EV trip planning apps, such as PlugShare, and the onboard navigation with a built-in charging schedule function, all EV owners can avoid being stalled on the highway due to a drained battery.
Given that many people (or most people in some countries/states/provinces) can charge their electric vehicles at home, there will never be as many EV chargers as petrol pumps.
@acde9355 I was intrigued by your point that there will never be as many EV chargers as petrol pumps. When I was young, one of the most unsuccessful cars of the time, the Skoda 100, of which over a million were made, had a 32 litre petrol tank. With that, depending on who was driving and how they were driving, you could get 300-500 kilometres. In those days there wasn't a petrol station in every other village and they were all closed at the weekend. So as far as electric car chargers go, I already feel better with them today than I did with petrol back then. There's no reason there can't be a charger in every village. I believe it's just a matter of time.
According to Statista in the UK there were 8,353 petrol pumps up to December 2023. There has been a steady decline so I expect that to be less now. According to Zap Map, as of November 2024, there are 72,594 "devices", with approx. 1,200 a month coming on stream. "Never" was passed a long time ago. The Govt. target of 300,000 by 2030 is considered to be on track.
I think it would be good to time your charging stops and compare length spent charging as a metric. Same journey distance. Some cars with smaller batteries but faster charging can be appealing
This was the most entertaining road test I’ve viewed.
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed.
Loved your work and the things you covered in this video review, thanks! Some suggestion for future comparisons:
- About the cars picked: I think the Renault Scenic would have been much more interesting to compare with EV3 and Elroq. The only reason to buy a Mini is the badge honestly, they’re too pricey, unpractical and with a small range. Also I would like you to test cars with similar specs, and see how the prices compare then.
- Hard plastics are found also in cars that cost 200k. Don’t think is necessary to talk about them in every video.
- Having a young kid, it would be interesting to know if there is enough width to fit 2 adults and 1 car seat in the back of the car.
On a different note, I don’t personally like how the VW group cars have a lot of specs that you have to add on in packages to have a decently specd car. It makes really hard for someone looking to buy a new car to figure the final price without using their simulator, and it’s even harder when you look into used cars to know what kits are actually included. Maybe it’s just me but I find it really misleading and deceiving.
6:41 I'm surprised the Euro Tunnel doesn't have EV charging. Even 6-9 spots for 11Kw charging stations on the train could be very useful as your just sitting about for the ride :D
I think there is a ferry from the UK to Ireland and that has 6 x 7KW chargers.
Maybe there is very good reasons that they don't want to implement it for th Chunnel 🤔
LeShuttle does have EV chargers - both regular and Tesla Superchargers. We used them on the return journey - there wasn't time on the outward leg!
@@whatcar on the train
@@whatcar Oh my bad, I didn't know. I watched up to around halfway when I left that comment 😆
I tried to look on the LeShuttle website but I didn't see anything about chargers on the train. If anyone sees something please point in the right direction
TBH all the real world range figures compared to the official ranges are shocking. there needs to be a complete rethink of how ranges are quoted for cars
it's just much worse because as stated in the video of mostly highway driving and the colder weather
It’s not much different to the unachievable mpg figures quoted for ICE cars.
It's better then it was before with NEDC, but WLTP is what you get in summer as it specifies "20C ambient". The american EPA range is actually based in reality and representative.
@@databeestje EPA is actually worse, because it uses a mathematic formula that varies depending on the test cycle (3 vs 5 cycle tests) and is subject to manufacturer's discretion to a certain extent (as the producer can choose a lower number), so while the numbers are closer the real world range, you cannot use them to compare between cars.
As I actually own an EV3 GT Line S, so I can confirm the cold and fast motorway driving is a big factor. It is cold in the UK at the moment, but I don't drive on the motorway at the legal limit. My daily trip is around 80% motorway and 20% urban. Getting between 3.7 and 4.7mi/kwh, at around 60mph. (lower figure is a morning drive at around 6.00am). Current 100% charge level is around the 330 mile mark. But that will improve when the weather gets warmer. In the summer I predict between 380 to 400 miles. My old e-Niro got up to 360 miles of range in the summer. Way over the 282 WLTP.
This video was great! Love these comparison videos
Yes, a thoughtful and relatable look at electric cars.
Match the spec on the Elroq to the EV3 and you see the Elroq is insanely expensive. When do reporters learn to compare the spec of the tester cars. That GT-Line is a fully specced car and Elroq costs like 5.000 euros more equaly specced.
I don't think its that cut and dry when you almost completly load it the elroq is 3k more expensive but is bigger, more horsepower RWD, 3 zone climate, adaptive suspension and has adaptive Matrix LED Headlights...so more expensive for more stuff. I think they are very comparable.
The Elroq is much bigger than the EV3.
@ is not. Rear legspace is only thing that Elroq haa more. Less space in front. 10litres more truck, but has no frunk which EV3 has 25litres. Actually Elroq has less combined cargo space and only slightly more space in the back where most ppl never have any tall adults so the space is seldomly needed. Elroq is in comparable battery sizes always more expencive and with 5 years shorter warranty. Kia has also made EVs over twice as long as Skoda. EV is 100% sure a better car.
@@Harhawink I think what really puts the space in to perspective is if you look at the maximum cargospace with folded seats 1580 vs. 1251l which is a lot of difference and makes it that you might get something in that you cant in the KIA. Also the trunk of the elroq looks a lot bigger in vidoes which could be just illusion but what I think is that it really shows that the Kia has just deeper wells beneath the trunk floor which isn't as practical as a big square space but that also might just be personal preference. I also prefere a tighter turning circle instead of a tiny frunk, espically that the elroq has a pretty good solution for the chraging cable.
The imo more important battery warranty is actually a little bit better with skoda. Also I heard some problems with KIA partners in Germany at least. A lot of them closed and it is hard to get service appointments and if you get just slightly above the kilometers or time requirments for the service the warranty will just be terminated. The argument with KIA has more experince with electric is just misleading doesn't mean its a better EV. Skoda is along way longer than KIA does that mean skoda is in general better in producing cars? I think that the MEB platform is even a little bit more efficient if you consider that the Elroq is a heavier and bigger car but has about the same consumption.
The EV3 is certainly not a better car they are very similar but I would give the edge to the elroq.
@@Harhawink KIA warranty look good on paper but with closer look it isn't so good. And when you need part for KIA those are expensive asf.
Could you comment on the warranty?
Nice review and good to see you making use of the Eurotunnel chargers on the way back. Regarding the point on hotel chargers, of course you are not obliged to use AC chargers at the hotel, you could use chargers nearby. A quick look on Electroverse shows that there are plenty of car parks with EV chargers in Brugges, so this could have made destination charging possible. Also you could have done some of the pieces to camera eg interior evaluation whilst charging at the Tesla supercharger. It gets a little tiresome when experienced car reviewers insist on driving EV's in unrealistic ways, on a long journey like that you'd need to stop anyway so just charge when you're stopped, don't wait till you've got less than 10% of battery remaining and then stop to charge... It gives a much better representation on how EV's are used in real life.
Fabelhafter, ausführlicher Vergleich mit unterschiedlichen Perspektiven. Ein paar mehr Eindrücke von Brügge wären schön gewesen ;)... Danke für den Test.
Interesting video but I'm not sure that your test can be described as "worst case" conditions. While the speed limit in France is 130 kmh, that's only in the dry and the section between Calais and Belgium has signifcant sections of 110 and 90 limits and of course the motorway limit in Belgium is 120 kmh.
As for the weather, it's 5 degrees today in Brugge and in Belgium it's not unusual to have days below 0 (although the -22 in 2009 was unusual).
Looking forward and thinking of costs I'm curious to know what governments will do to get back the huge hydocarbon taxes on petrol and diesel if people transition to electric..... not to mention the discounts some countries currently give on road tax for electirc cars.
When all 3 of you are doing tests like this testing family cars could you also do a test having all 3 of you in the back seats together seeing how comfortable it is. Having 3 kids who are constantly growing this is one of the biggest things I look out for which is hard to tell just looking at pics or videos without all 3 seats being occupied.
FYI you can get the model Y duel motor on lease for cheaper that any of these in the uk 👍
Thats worth knowing. I'd maybe even be prepared to stump up the envy tax (kicks in April 2025 ) in that case. I wouldn't pay the envy tax for any of these.
Excellent test as always. I was a bit confused by the comment that an electric tailgate is 'useful'. I was in a VW showroom with my other half recently and the car she was looking at had one, which I assume is the same as the Skoda as they are from the same group. She asked me what it did, and, never having had one myself but having seen many many road tests of cars with them, I excitedly started to explain that if she came to the car with armfuls of shopping, she could wave her foot at the car and the tailgate would open. Brilliant, she said, just as the salesman corrected me, it doesn't have the foot waving thing. So how is it useful?
To compare the efficiency of the cars it would be good to know whether they had similar tyres/inches and in general at what speed the cars were driven.
Why would you pay for 100 miles less range in the mini than the other 2 for around same price as others. Pay for a badge .
Because buying a car solely on range doesn’t make a lot of sense. People] might just prefer the other options.
@@ThrottleBodyindeed, but the Mini's range make it an unusable family car. Unless you only need it as a second car for the school run.
The badge does give you resale value. I’d reckon if you were the kind of person to change your car regularly that’ll count for something. I mean it’s kinda distinctive looking too in a ‘love it or hate it’ kinda way. The Elroq could be mistaken for a diesel hatchback by the way it looks.
@@ThrottleBody I mean it's missing a lot more than just range.
@ it may be, but it seems that everyone bases EVs solely on range and it’s dumb.
🎉 great review EV3 & Elroq would be considered 🥂👍🏻
love these videos the comparisons are the best, you should lean in more on the day to day, family SUV makes me thing going on holiday to llandudno, you should do these tests with a full load as well so its realisitic for big families they can get a sense of knowing.
Hahahaha, very good video as usual. I also love your sense of humor.
Greetings from Spain
Glad you enjoyed!
I have been finding the same issue with hotels and chargers. In the UK I really wish the Gov would require (and reduce/remove regulation to facilitate) that they have a % of spaces with chargers, don't need to be more than 7.4kW, i.e. home charger level.
Is it true with new LED lights it's no longer a requirement to alter headlights when going to Europe? Were these cars adapted?
Wife has a 2023 Countrymen JCW the interior with leather is outstanding, it has adaptive dampers and rides very well, it’s quick with 300bhp plus , secure with 4x4 the new Mini seems a real step back In quality..
Very good, thanks a lot. How long will it be before Mini realises that it is hamstrung by all those absurd l;egacy styling features. First to go should be the central circular instrument panel. Then the lights. I would say the EV3 is the way to go for something a little different but the Skoda is the best logical choice.
In Korea there are 3 Trim Levels to which things can be added. My wife has been to Korea and driven an Air trim, but fitted with the (UK GT-Line S) options such as Heated/Cooled seats, HUD Phone Key and Electric Boot Door. No unnecessary things like HK Stereo, Dinner Table or Sunroof. Now that would be a great spec to be offered over here to come in below the "luxury" car tax level next year. Also why does the UK only offer orange (!!!!!!!) as base colour,- they did the same for the latest Niro, then dropped it PDQ.
Their stated range for that EV3 is wrong. Range with the 19 nch wheels is 349 miles not 369 miles .
Hello! A very entertaining test, with lots of important information!
What I was missing was the usability of all the functions, the switches, buttons and displays, especially the range of functions for navigation. The latter is a very important point when planning routes and loading! So, how well does the vehicle software work?
I believe you should have compared the ev3 and elroq with the hyundai kona N Line , which was introduced earlier this year. Nice review as always tho!
Why did the first Paceman charger not work? This type of issue is a big negative fir EV uptake
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Exactly right!
Basicly for those prices might as well buy a xpeng g6 or model3 or seal.
Not sure the aceman is comparable to the ev3 or elroq, would the countryman not be the similar size vehicle class?
I’m not sure why they put the Elroq in this test.
The big wheels on the Skoda are a disadvantage because of the maintance costs and also the guarantee
You tested against the wrong Mini. You should have tested the Mini Countryman E with Level 1 trim at £42k and a range of 280 miles and more space.
You could also not bother with the Level 2 pack as it adds only the sunroof and Harmon Kardon speakers, that would drop the price by £2000. Again you pick the wrong spec for a fair comparison.
The Mini Aceman SE Classic with Level 1 trim and standard silver paint costs £36,300. Far cheaper than the others and a more similar spec to them.
Whilst your point is valid, I think it just comes down to whatever car was available to be loaned to them by the manufacturer during the date of filming. Had they been able to spec like-for-like during testing they probably would have.
@@idparkinson not at all..even with the level 2 pack the mini does not even have ACC. My 33K MG4 luxury has that for heavens sake. The other two cars has upgrade packs with even more equipment then the mini and they are still crushing the mini on range. the level 1 trim is not even close to what the skoda and kia has so to be fair it should have the lvl 3 pack.
@@idparkinson The EV3 with base battery (58kWh) is still larger and probaby quite a bit cheaper.
Good review, useful information. Hotels with overnight charging are clearly a total rip-off....
You could just stay at a "regular" hotel and charge at a nearby public charger, its not rocket science.
Good honest review, with extra merit for highlighting the extra you’d pay for a hotel touting chargers; and recognising that said chargers may not be available. Also, the reality in a country with more public chargers than the UK but still having the hassle of always holding a reserve range, just in case your first and maybe second charge either doesn’t work or is unavailable.
Kia’s design of having the HVAC screen, that can only be seen by rear middle seater or front passenger… who signed-off on that idiocy, Zaphod Beeblebrox?
The Aceman is the underdog here. I feel the smallest battery pack, would suit people who live in one small city/large town and never drive outside its limits. Or reasonable in city shopping trolley. However, this test has proved with planning and providing you weren’t in a hurry, it would be theoretically possible to live with the smallest pack and still go tripping. I’m not saying I’d like to - life’s too short to stuff a mushroom. But it could be possible.
As to riding on the forks of a tractor - not convinced that’s a good idea. Got to wonder if the guy was just crossing the road and got scoop up. Or maybe the passenger’s Aceman, is simply immobile at a charger.
Just wanted to say the Aceman does have dynamic cruise control as standard. You just have to know how to turn it on. Hint: it’s the mode button on the steering wheel!
If you are going long distance get the big battery options.
Quite a good review. On the photos Mini looked much more promising than it proved to be in reality. No way I would waste my money on this car
Very good. What has happened to Mini? I could see you all felt quite sad about that. Deary me
Pleased to see you 3 moving towards a more balanced view of EV's compared to previous fare and that you are prepared to take on board suggestions and criticism, kudos to you. Can I suggest one more change? As the majority of EV owners currently charge from home, I strongly suspect that most of those also charge at cheaper over night rates. So rather than lead with the very misleading SVT cap day rate and only mention cheaper ones as an after thought, it would be more "real world" to use the former and only mention the latter as a worst case and least likely. I look forward to the next review.
Why do manufacturers put a space for charging cables at the bottom of the boot, because if you have suitcases etc in there, you have to keep removing items in order to charge...?
interesting car video... i'm looking at the ev3 but i was also considering the mini - ive kinda ruled out the mini as the battery just doesnt have the range. I'm also looking at the mg3 and the hyundai inster....hmmm
My only criticism on the video is whoever is incharge of sound hasnt done a good job... the volumn is so low and when youre in the car the back mic is really clear but the front ones are not
how often you change the climate Control? yes you can't see in the EV3 but the most change is the temps so you have buttons for this.
DC charges are including the losses. Only AC is excluding OBC losses. So the kWh/100 is less.
What you didn't mention was warrenty, that has a factor in price!
Great review. Mini have totally lost their way. In my mind it's a close call between the EV3 and the elroq. In my mind the EV3 pips it both on styling and the fact that they have 7 year warranty.
Very informative review. As regards the choice between the Elroq and EV3, they are both very good and the choice comes down to whether you prefer front wheel drive or rear wheel drive. l
Correction: Both cars have a front motor.
Great video as always, I love this series that show how these cars are in the real world. Production is also great❤
Those PCP costs are insanity. How anybody could justify circa. £500 per month (+£4k up front) for any of those three cars is beyond me. The predicted depreciation on these cars must be huge for rates like that.
Having had a proper look at an EV3, if you have tall people up front, then there is very poor rear room behind and the front seats are very bulky with the odd hard back/coat hanger. This part of the front seats really intrudes in the rear passenger space.
I like your road trip reviews . It's travel vlog + Car review . It's pleasing to watch .
I like Mini
Just driven Brussels, london,most of UK motorways seem limited to 50 mph, Calais to Belgium is not 130 kph with large stresses 90 or 110 kph. Belgium motorways are limited to 120 kph.
Great review guys. The Elroy does it for me
Brilliant review guys, great work. Sad to see the downgrading of the Mini - it was always the build quality that stood out over the competition and for me was one of the rewarding parts of ownership. All the iconic features like the row of toggle switches have been ditched or cheapened to the point where they just look crap. The moulding around the centre tunnel console thing is truly awful. I certainly won't be buying any more Minis. One thing I am interested in is the impact of load on range. We all know that towing has a catastrophic impact on how far an EV can go, but what about carrying passengers and their gear ? These are family cars and it would be good to see a range check with 4 people on board and some luggage. (maybe don't do it in the Mini !).
Love these long reviews. I don't think the Mini should be included here it is essentially a short range city car and is left standing by the Kia and Skoda. Put it up against the Renault 5 next year however and that may be a different story. I won't mention the 25 or so minutes ( no specific times mentioned) spent kicking your heals whilst waiting for the charge to be completed or the panic that sets in when looking for a charger when you should be concentrating on driving or the cost of service station snacks whilst waiting which pushes up the cost.
The number of tabs on that browser when discussing at 11:56 😂 I thought I was bad!
The comparative costs are a bit misleading- the Škoda has packages that you need to add on to bring it to the same level as the Kia. Some of these packages add £4-5k to the price. So the Škoda ends up more expensive. However, there is currently a £1,000 deposit contribution and zero percent interest on Škoda pcp deals making it more attractive than the Kia finance.
But Škoda dealers don’t know if they can get get cars before the end of March. That means if you pay over £40k you end up paying the luxury car tax . So not an easy choice between the Škoda Elroq and the Kia EV3.
According to my local Skoda dealer they are not even getting the demo car until late Feb and not a chance of customers cars before April.
Thanks - I sensed a good deal of frustration from a dealer I spoke to about the way Škoda have marketed the car as though it’s on sale for delivery. Who is going to commit to buying. a car without driving it first?
If you are right about delivery then the Škoda is going to cost a lot more than buying a pre April delivered EV3 due to the current tax issue.
Yep, the Elroq isn’t really in the same class
@@stevieguk8014 I bought Enyaq 80x without driving it.
What a surprise, testers always quoting the lowest “value” price to get attention, then test drive upgraded cars . Batteries , accessories etc , what nonsense.
Seriously thinking of getting a sportline 85 using a work salary sacrifice scheme, all in £462 a month plus free charging at work.
I am guessing the aim is to find out which is the least worst EV? Which one would I buy if I was forced to at gunpoint? Which has the best less range than advertised? Which is the least tens of thousands of pounds more than an equivalent ICE hatchback? Critical consumer questions
Why even watch the video then? 😂