Is an EV right for you? Get a straight answer.
An electric car suits most UK drivers who can charge at home or close to it, and who rarely drive more than 150 miles in a day. Whether that's you depends on your driving, not the average.
I'm Clive. I've been fixing cars for years and I'm not selling you one. Answer six questions and I'll tell you straight.
Two minutes, six questions
No sign-up, no averages, and I'll say no if the answer is no.
How it works
1. Tell me how you drive
Six questions about where the car sleeps, how far you go and what it has to carry. About two minutes. No sign-up, and no exact address unless the chargers near you matter.
2. Get a straight answer
Whether an EV suits you, how often you'd be charging, and what to watch out for. In plain words.
3. Check my working
See how every answer counted, and change any of them.
Why Clive is different
Your numbers, not averages
The answer comes from your driving, your parking and the chargers near you. The national average doesn't drive your car.
We show our working
Every verdict comes with the reasons behind it, and you can change any answer.
We'll say no when it's no
If an EV doesn't suit you yet, I'll say so, and tell you what would change it. Even though that earns us nothing.
Questions people ask first
Straight answers, whether or not you ever use the check.
- How do I know if I'm ready for an electric car?
- Three things decide it: where you can charge, how often you drive more than about 150 miles in a day, and how many miles you do a year. If you can charge at home or close to it and long days are rare, an EV will almost certainly suit you.
- Can I have an EV without a driveway?
- Often, yes. It works well when there are public chargers a short walk from home or at work. It costs more than charging at home, so the savings are smaller. If there's nowhere nearby to charge, I'd say not yet.The whole answer: owning an EV without a driveway
- What does the check ask?
- Six questions: where the car sleeps, where it sits during the day, how many miles you do, how often you drive 150 miles or more, anything it has to handle like towing or seven seats, and how you'd pay for it. If you've nowhere of your own to charge, I'll ask for your postcode too, so I can count the chargers near you.
- Do I have to give you my email?
- No. You get your answer on the screen whether or not you leave an address. If you do want it emailed, I'll send it, then write only when something changes the answer for drivers like you. One email at most a week, and you can unsubscribe with one click.
- What do you do with my postcode?
- I only ask for it when you've nowhere of your own to charge, to count the public chargers within three miles of you. It isn't shared. It's kept with your answers so I can see how the check is used, and if you ask for your results by email, only the first half goes with them.
- Does Clive earn money if I switch to an EV?
- Not from this check. It earns us nothing whether the answer is yes or no. Where we do earn a fee elsewhere on the site, we say so next to the link, and it never changes the order or the advice.