I am an EV advocate. It is not a paid position, I just think they are a better option for our planet right now. I have friends I wouldn’t suggest an EV for, based on their driving patterns or patience/skill levels. However, there are friends and family who would be EV compatible but who haven’t tried one yet. As an EV owner, you can be there to answer people’s questions. This can be your friends or just the EV curious who see your car and come up and ask - a relatively common occurrence in my experience.
I believe it to be one of the key decisions we can make as an individual to contribute to keeping the one habitable planet we know of still habitable. There are other reasons, but this first one is reason enough given the last IPCC report. The super-short version of which boils down to “Stop burning stuff or suffer the consequences”.
So why would this champion of electric motoring go out and buy a new vehicle which burns not one but two fossil fuels? Isn’t this just rank hypocrisy? “Do as I say, not as I do”. Greenwashing of the worst kind? I must admit it sits ill with me, but obviously not enough to stop me from doing it. The vehicle in question is a camper van. It runs on diesel in a typically unsubtle, commercial vehicle fashion. It has a propane tank to run the cooktop and heat the vehicle when there is no hook-up for the electricity. I got seriously interested in them a few years ago when I went to a photographer’s meet-up where it seemed everyone had one. I got a bad case of van envy from that point and it appears there is no cure short of purchase.
My inner eco-warrior did not go down without a fight. I looked into EV vans and I looked into what I could tow behind the I-PACE. Jaguar were tentative about towing with the I-PACE. At first, it wasn’t clear you could - then you could, but the limit was only 750kg. That is the weight smallest, lightest caravans available in the UK with nothing in them. A few EV’s do better now, but the I-PACE lease has a few more years to go. Electric vans are running few years behind cars. Most of the ones that exist are aimed at “final mile” delivery. This is short-distance multi-drops in areas with congestion zones or air quality restrictions. They have short-range and are not ideal as a basis for a camper van. I’m not going full overlander, but I am likely to follow the road less traveled.
A little context behind my buying decision might be helpful here. In Europe, camper vans (as opposed to coach-built motorhomes) come in two types. The smaller vans are dominated by the VW Transporter - like VW’s own in-house, California model. It’s under 5m long with a pop-top and rock and roll bed in the back - a small kitchen, but no bathroom. The second type is based on a larger van. Some companies use a VW Crafter or Mercedes Sprinter as a starting point, but the dominant player in Europe is the Fiat Ducato. It’s also the most popular chassis for smaller, coach-built motor homes.
My camper van at a site in Pistyll, North West Wales
It also happens to be the starting point for my van, converted by a German company called Knaus. You have a choice of 5.4m, 6m or 6.3m, but I went for the smallest one for general usability. It still manages to fit in a fixed bed, kitchen, bathroom and 4 travel seats into that space.
It just so happens Fiat has just released the full EV Ducato the same month mine arrived. I know this as the Facebook algorithm decided an EV van would be so attractive to me that I would need reminding it existed every half an hour or so. So did I just get my timing spectacularly wrong?
It is not quite that simple. For a commercial EV, the E-Ducato has a good range in the big (79KWh) battery version. But “good for a van” is still only 175 miles at best. I am still on my first tank of “dinosaur juice” and at 400miles and counting. In most of the main UK campsites, you get your electric “shore power” as part of the site fee. They are designed to let you plug in a kettle or a hairdryer in your van, but really they’d prefer you not to do that at the same time. I can’t see the sites being happy about you guzzling 70kWh with the built-in 11kW AC charger!
Most camper vans of this class have a maximum weight of 3,500kg loaded. It keeps them drivable in the UK on a basic license. The battery versions will be heavier for the same length, so you take a hit to the payload. There are a few exceptions made for EVs, but I am not sure they would apply to campers yet. It is also about 10% down on power and torque compared to my van and is limited to 62mph. The real kicker though is the price. A standard E-Ducato panel van with the big battery costs more than my fully-converted camper. That’s even if you can persuade the UK Government to part with its most generous incentive. The reason for the Ducato’s dominance as a base vehicle is down to its price and the number of variants. The German rivals are more refined, but pricier. Will this more expensive E-Ducato variant find its way into a camper van? I am sure we will see something turn up in the trade shows, but will it be more than a concept? The Ducato is an old design, so will they have shoved batteries in all the spaces the converters like to mount things?
Hyundai Ioniq 5 powering a vintage Arcade Game at Fully Charged Live!
I really, really want the manufacturers to try. Not just to clear my internal conflict. Not even to just stop burning stuff. I just think an electric van would be a better van. In the idyllic dream, the photographer/van owner has of getting out of the van to that perfect location, with the perfect light. The soundtrack to that dream is calling birds or crashing waves or wind in the trees. It is not the noise of an idling Diesel engine or fumes from the exhausts. I grew up in a village that had no access to mains gas, so I have real trust issues with it. In an ideal world, I would not have to sleep over the top of two big bottles of gas or have to cook with it. I have two big 95ah AGM leisure batteries, but this is just a fraction of what is in an EV power pack. We have seen vehicles like some of the new EV Pickups and Hyundai Ioniq 5 with vehicle-to-load capabilities. Basically, having an in-built inverter with can run mains AC devices.
I don’t think we will see the leap to viable base vans until we see the camper/RV builders being able to buy in commercial EV “skateboards” just like they get rolling chassis from the like of Fiat and VW now. That will happen in time. We are likely to see smaller camper vans based on vehicles like the Mercedes EQV and Citroen eSpaceTourer.
Mercedes EQV ©Mercedes-Benz Cars UK Limited
I like to think I have been pragmatic. If I am going to make follow my dream to get to know my own country better and record my travels while I’m still young enough to do so (maybe travel a little further down the line) - then now’s the time. I think a viable, affordable equivalent to my vehicle is at least 2-3 years off. I could try and wait but, if the pandemic has taught us anything, it is the fragility of our windows of opportunity. If you want to call me a hypocrite then I won’t defend myself. I am fully aware that I am putting my own wishes ahead of what I believe to be best for everyone else. We can’t all do that, and there is nothing unique or special about my dreams. I need to get a bit of experience under my belt first, but I will be looking for ways I can lessen my climate impact. I hope to share what I discover.
Watching the sunset from the cab of my camper van
PS: After I wrote this article, the UK suffered a fuel shortage. Whether real supply chain issue or the result of panic buying - it was real enough at the pump. Diesel seems to be particularly difficult to get hold of. I decided not to compete with those that rely on their diesel vehicles for more important reasons when I had an EV to fall back on. If this turns out to be an extended issue, I wonder how it will impact people’s buying decisions in the future.