CONTEMPLATIONS

from Fleet Transport May 2022

FIRST DRIVE

As car manufacturers continue to roll out new all-electric models, one of the biggest incentives to make the switch from internal combustion engined vehicles is the escalating price of petrol and diesel. Not that anyone should be under any illusion that electric motoring means minimal fuel bills, with electricity prices also on a severe upward spiral. And if you decide to charge your EV at a public charging point, it pays to check the unit costs, with significant differences between providers, particularly those offering high speed charging facilities.

On the subject of public EV rapid chargers, while all the focus is rightly on increasing the number of stations around the country, little thought appears to be given to the design and layouts of these facilities. Much is made of the frustrations of having to wait while other users complete their charging, but that’s nothing compared to the annoyance of finding a charging station free but being unable to use it because design limitations mean you cannot connect your EV to the charge point.

Sometimes the issue is space, or lack of it; rapid charging points are located within existing refuelling stations where quite simply, there isn’t room to allow vehicles to park in a variety of angles. More commonly though, the problem is that many of the high speed charging units come with cables that are too short to reach the charge point of the car unless the vehicle is parked at a specific angle - which isn’t always possible particularly when adjacent charge points are being used.

In some cases, the cable won’t reach the car’s charge point even when optimally parked - evidenced by my own experience trying to charge the Ford Mustang Mach-E in the photo here. As the cable would not stretch to the front left flank where the charging point is located when parked within the allocated bay, the only option was to mount the grass verge alongside.

Vehicle manufacturers aren’t helping the situation, with a lack of consensus about where to locate the charging point. Unlike ICE vehicles where the refilling nozzle is either on the left or right rear flank of the car, EV charge points can variously be found on the front grille, any of the four corners of the bumpers, or on the front or rear flanks on either side of the vehicle.

Granted, the cables in question are heavy and awkward - they need to be to transfer many kWatts of power - so understandably charge point manufacturers prefer to keep them to a minimum length. That said, IONITY, which offers among the fastest charging facilities available, seems to be able to provide adequately long cables, so it’s fairly clear this isn’t a technical limitation.

As Ireland moves to an EV future, a public charging network to meet that demand is a necessity. Let’s not exacerbate the problem by building facilities that are not fit for purpose.

ADIEU MONDEO -

FORD’S FAMILY CAR IS NO MORE

We’ve known for some time it was coming, but it still felt like the end of an era when the news broke last month that the last Ford Mondeo had rolled off the production lines in Valencia, Spain. With no direct replacement in the offing, at least in Europe (a Chinese built new model will be sold in some Asian markets), it heralds another nail in the coffin of the traditional family car. The Mondeo follows its great rival the Toyota Avensis into the annals of history, while these days other competitors like the Volkswagen Passat and Peugeot 508 sell only a fraction of what they once did.

For Ford it brings to an end an extended period of success, not least in the fleet market, dating back to when the first Cortina was launched in 1962. Five generations of that car were followed by two generations of the Sierra and a further four generations of Mondeo. Despite the Mondeo offering an excellent driving experience, and practicality few cars could match, the rise of the crossover and the buying public’s increasing preference for premium badged rivals has finally drawn the curtains on the once ubiquitous best seller.