Leo switched from a petrol to electric car to cover the rising cost of his home loan.
Leo doesn't just drive his EV for getting around town on the weekends. He’s an Uber driver, proudly electric. His brother Budiman also drives for Uber in a petrol-electric hybrid. The brothers are well placed to offer firsthand feedback.
The money he saved on petrol more than met his increasing mortgage rates. It was a decision he took without a lot of research, but his intuition ultimately paid off.
According to Leo, there’s a lack of user-friendly guidance to help people make informed choices on their household budgets – especially when it comes to the contribution a change in driving habits can make. He’s learned a lot along the way on his EV journey.
"It costs Budiman around $80 to fill his petrol tank every 400 kilometres, which is just a bit more than the average distance of a single one-day shift."
Leo spends between $6 and $10 on electricity to achieve the same range. That averages to around $70 better off each day.
Working six days a week, give or take, that equates to $400 saved compared to his brother. Its substantial.
“My day starts usually with a fare into the city, followed by CBD runs, but I’ll accept long distance travel because I can rely on PlugShare to find me the nearest available charger if I’m getting low” he said.
“These days Ampol and BP also provide recharging options beyond public charging stations.”
Leo has owned two electric cars – a BYD Atto3 and only two months ago he traded up to a BYD Sealion7.
"If I’d had access to clear, simple information earlier, perhaps I would have converted to electric earlier."
One of the struggle points was that his home does not have off street parking. His decision to go electric was made more appealing by an increase of charging stations nearby in Sydney’s Lane Cove.
“There are three council car parks in the vicinity with charging stations, readily available, and when I first went electric, free.”
A lot has changed since Leo went electric.
“A slow charge which tops up at a rate of around 10 watts per hours can cost around 22 cents per watt, depending on the time of day” Leo said.
“A fast DC charge can top up fifteen times faster, but it costs three times per watt more. The lowest rate for slow charging is off-peak.”
Leo takes full advantage by recharging at night. There’s a commonly held belief that charging stations are stacked with queues of frustrated EV drivers waiting for their turn on a slow-charger, or worse still turned away by malfunctioning machines.
That’s not been Leo’s experience. He says there’s an unwritten etiquette amongst EV owners.
“I’ll put my car on late at night, but I’ll always be sure to collect it early the next morning, otherwise there will be people getting upset” he said. “Plan your recharging time to avoid peak periods of demand. About 90 percent do the right thing, but there’s still 10 percent getting grumpy.”
Resale value was another concern.
Leo watched the market and pounced on a hot deal.
“BYD were offering their latest model, the Sealion 7, at a great price and with an even greater finance package” he said.
“I traded the Atto3 and got $25,000 back in cash, equivalent to trade-in values for internal combustion engine vehicles, then bought the new car on 1.88 percent finance over three years with no bubble payment at the end.”
Leo thinks it’s unlikely he’ll retain the Sealion 7 past its three-year purchase period as he has a strong belief that EV technology is rapidly changing.
“It’s like the mobile phone, there’ll always be an upgrade you’ll want to have. The technology is getting better and better.”