Hi from the Republic of Ireland

[Eirona]

I've hung around here long enough, since January 2024 when I bought my SEAT Arona SE+ early 2023 model in silver. I added a few bits and pieces to it over the 2.5 years I owned it, and it's coming up to its first roadworthiness test in January 2027.
So I headed for the dealer to book it in for its last prepaid service, only to tun into a magpie and be attracted by shiny things.

I signed on the dotted line and soon will take delivery of a July 2023 registration Cupra Born V2 77kWh with e-boost in Aurora Blue.

Originally, I looked at a 53kWh V1, but wanted time to think about it. The sales guy had the following day off, so the day after I went back to put down a deposit, but he told be another sales guy had sold it while he was off!

But perhaps it was meant to be. It does need prepping as it had only just arrived as a PX, but I could see through the dirt and grime and he promised to refurb all 4 wheels, fit 4 new tyres, repair the small dent on the passenger rear door and replace one of the battery packs that was weeping coolant. A two-year warranty tops off the deal. It's one of only two like it in Ireland. Reason; it was just a fraction over the €50,000 list price that negated it from getting the government EV grant. So you only bought one if it is precisely the one you wanted, not because you were getting a rebate. Of course most opted for the V2 without e-boost, or V1 with, or the smaller battery, but the V2 with the bigger battery + e-boost pushed it out of the Grant.

Spec seems good. It's all a bit confusing as Irish cars are always a bit all over the place spec-wise. We didn't even get the VZ option as far as the 2022 brochure suggests. I will find out exactly what its got when we take delivery this coming week. I know it has top-view camera, self-parking and 19" alloys, but that's all I saw! I know it has 56,000 km on it (35k miles) and the battery is at 98.4% health. A BG Sync home charge point is being fitted in two-weeks time, but he will deliver with a full charge, I have a Granny Charger in the boot and there are public chargers locally just in case.

We're both looking forward to our first EV!

 

[Syphon]

Hi and welcome! You're going to love the born. Glad you could join us!

Cheers,

Scott

 

[Tell]

Welcome. I eyeball EV charging locations when travelling through Ireland. Getting better. Annual jog into Ireland.

Ireland has a push on home charging as I understand it with free equipment or something. The person I know couldn't get it since the installation people found the ground earth was no good. Rural living and the delivery of the power. Engineers out. Line checked. Installation requested again. They came. Rejected the earth again. So installation scrubbed no cheap installation... not that they have an EV but thought a charger would increase the resale value of the property. Drew a blank on that.

 

[Eirona]

Welcome. I eyeball EV charging locations when travelling through Ireland. Getting better. Annual jog into Ireland.

Ireland has a push on home charging as I understand it with free equipment or something. The person I know couldn't get it since the installation people found the ground earth was no good. Rural living and the delivery of the power. Engineers out. Line checked. Installation requested again. They came. Rejected the earth again. So installation scrubbed no cheap installation... not that they have an EV but thought a charger would increase the resale value of the property. Drew a blank on that.

It's not a free thing, but we are currently getting €300 grant towards the fitting of a home EV charger. But as with most of these Grants, they need to be supplied and fitted by a government approved fitter, and as a result of that, the prices are going through the roof as they think they can basically take the €300! In October, we have the Budget, and it's expected that the meagre €3500 EV Grant will reduce again and the charger Grant will follow, probably to €150 or indeed disappear altogether.
Luckily our house was built new in 2017 and I built it with my own fair hands, so I know the electrics are all top notch, heavily over-specced and with all the latest Smart Meters and cabling systems. If they find something wrong with it I will find and fit my own and to hell with the Grant. I'm only not doing that now because I'm somewhat lazy now the house is finished, I'm done with all that now!

What is a bit of a pain is the cost of electricity in Ireland. Commonly known as Europe's most expensive, through years of under-investment and a ban on nuclear power that, even if overturned now like they are considering, would not see any real improvement for a good 25 years or so. Interconnects are slow coming and expensive, but at least it is helping keep up with all the Brexiteers flooding Ireland (I'm one of them!) We fitted 4.56kWh of solarPV, without batteries but with an immersion diverter, but oddly we get more ¢ exporting our excess power than we pay to buy at Night and EV rates! As a result, figuring out when to charge the EV is not straightforward as using "free" daytime power actually deprives us of 20c/kWh FIT against our night rate of 18.5c dropping to 11c between 2am and 4am.......but yes, only 2 hours at the ultra-low rate, a total of 14.8kWh each night.

Anyway, I'm waffling, but it might have been of passing interest!

 

[Tell]

Octopus they get 7.5p kwh for 5 hours or there about for EV charging but pay a higher rate during the day. Then there is a whole sequence of different rates with different export tariffs. The good thing is the smart meter network if you have your api key you can get access to your data and put it in to assorted apps which tell you how you are doing on that tariff and alternatives.

Octopus also have a free box that takes your smart meter data in real time for analysis in their apps and other people's. That I tell people about here. Some have issues with the electricity provider turning on car charging. Others find it ends early. I've pinned user solution on that... don't have an EV but do have the panels. Rule of thumb is to charge cheap overnight and sell solar in the day.... or Eddi in your case.

On Octopus dynamic pricing Agile where on windy days get paid to use electricity. Always satisfying but no good when the sun is out you loose the sales income.

 

[Eirona]

Octopus they get 7.5p kwh for 5 hours or there about for EV charging but pay a higher rate during the day. Then there is a whole sequence of different rates with different export tariffs. The good thing is the smart meter network if you have your api key you can get access to your data and put it in to assorted apps which tell you how you are doing on that tariff and alternatives.

Octopus also have a free box that takes your smart meter data in real time for analysis in their apps and other people's. That I tell people about here. Some have issues with the electricity provider turning on car charging. Others find it ends early. I've pinned user solution on that... don't have an EV but do have the panels. Rule of thumb is to charge cheap overnight and sell solar in the day.... or Eddi in your case.

On Octopus dynamic pricing Agile where on windy days get paid to use electricity. Always satisfying but no good when the sun is out you loose the sales income.

There are a couple of websites here that we can upload RAW data to and they tell us what the best rates are based on current (or proposed) usage. We get the data directly from ESB who controls the supply for the entire country and it takes everything into consideration including export quantity and time of use. It's useful, but doesn't alter the fact electricity is expensive here. We can hook the chargers to the tariffs, but in most cases the tariffs don't "pull through" to the app with any accuracy, so I will be using scheduling instead, in my case 2am to 4am each for both the car and hot water, that's a given. We're oil-fired boiler here so at the moment 11c/kWh is cheaper that the equivalent kWh rate the boiler will burn at in the summer. Of course all that changes in the winter, but I've yet to work out the cheapest method for my given mileage as I have a feeling I will want to drive the Born more than I'm driving the Arona currently!

Just had the dealer call, I collect the car 10am Friday.....hurrah!

 

[Tell]

Similar here with the oil. You move the litre all price by one decimal price to get the equivalent kw price, takes account boiler efficiency, rule of thumb. Yes we now keep it running in the summer as well for hot water. Took three years to do that. The previous owner left a note saying use the immersion heater in the summer... no. Delivery driver that said think you will find oil cheaper. Our C02 pollution blows towards England . Heating the tank is complete within hour. Summer timer slot for that although with those paid to use days on electricity switch it off. Fun.

 

[Eirona]

We used to use the boiler in the summer for hot water, well, last summer as oil was cheaper than electricity as you said, but this overnight 2 hours at 11c (inc VAT) is better than oil which is currently sitting at the equivalent of 13.6c/kWh. The thing is my oil tank is small (650l) and is almost full with pre US/Iran fallout as I ordered it the day before Trump made that stupid decision, but that's my heat for the winter and want to try to keep it!
As you say; fun!

 

[Tell]

Ours is 1300 or so litres. Double bonded. The silly people before left the cover off so it got water in the safety gap. The delivery driver diagnosed that it was full of water. It ballooned out when the tank was filled. He said get a drill bit pump and pumps it out. That is what we did. Gallons of water coming out. Slip a pipe down the side. They use the pumps on pools and stuff. Learn something everyday.