On the road with electric car users

Electric car owners share their experiences

Adam Vaughan
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 15 April 2009 22.05 BST

John Harpur, works in industrial electronics and lives in Derby
"I was the first person to have an electric car [an Aixam Mega City] in Derby, which may explain why pedestrians often walk out in front of me - they don't expect electric cars here. I recharge it overnight on a green Economy 7 tariff, but haven't noticed any increase on my electricity bill."
Caroline Marx, owner of a trimming shop in London
"I'm very lucky because I have off-street parking and an electrician put an outdoor plug on my house in Kensington, so I always recharge my G-Wiz AC Drive overnight. I pay £350 for two services each year - the engineers come to my house - but I love being able to park anywhere in Westminster for free."
Michael Robinson, works at the Guardian and lives in Crouch End, London
"I had a relatively gentle crash in my G-Wiz DC drive involving a white van at 20mph, which left the car as a write-off. I'm totally in favour of electric cars and I would have replaced it with a new G-Wiz if the City of London hadn't withdrawn its free parking for electric vehicles - without that incentive, the numbers don't add up."
Jon Ole Siggerud, navy officer in Oslo, Norway
"Since 2002, I've driven over 100,000 kilometres in the old version of the TH!NK City. I charge it overnight in my garage at home, at my work place and on the streets and car parks of Oslo - although there are other electric car owners in town I've never had a problem finding a charging bay. I once almost ran out of power with the old TH!NK, but managed to recharge it a petrol station."
Antony Buck, co-founder of REN Skincare and G-Wiz owner, lives in London
"Unlike a petrol car, you let people go, you let people pull out, it's a much less aggressive thing to be sitting in than a car - so you end up smiling. Other drivers' reactions vary: most are patient with you. But I did have a cab driver once scream at me: 'get yourself a proper f**king car!' And I thought 'what, like a taxi?' "