recharge – Pulpaddict

Luxury London hotel treat for electric car drivers

We put the Royal Lancaster’s ‘Plug In, Switch Off & Recharge’ package to the test…

If you’re planning a trip to the capital and you drive an electric vehicle, there’s a new way to make your stay greener and more restful.

The iconic Royal Lancaster London, which overlooks Hyde Park and is a short walk from Marble Arch and Oxford Street, has launched a new package called ‘Plug In, Switch Off & Recharge’.

The overnight stay with breakfast includes free car parking, free EV charging and complimentary access to the hotel’s bicycles to explore the city.

What’s more, the Royal Lancaster London will plant one tree for each night of your stay through the Hotels for Trees initiative to compensate for any CO2 impact of your journey.

We tried out the package for ourselves, driving up from Somerset in Ford’s flagship electric vehicle, the Mustang Mach-E GT.

Not only did we arrive in style, but we avoided paying the £15 per day London Congestion Charge because the zero emissions Mach-E is exempt.

After a greeting from the smart doorman (complete with bowler hat), we were ushered up to the towering 5-star hotel’s secure, private car park. There we connected the car to one of the free chargers available.

The 411 guest rooms and suites at Royal Lancaster London offer classic style and spectacular panoramic views of Hyde Park and the City skyline, making it the perfect place to relax – and recharge your batteries too.

Since opening its doors in 1967, the Royal Lancaster remained mostly unchanged until 2015, when the prestigious family-run property underwent a two-year, head-to-toe, £83 million renovation.

It reopened in 2017 and everything from the modern open-plan lobby area to the redesigned, redecorated rooms and suites have been finished to a high standard.

We stayed in a Park Suite, on the 14th floor, which included a spacious living area with sumptuous velvet sofas, a lavish marble bathroom with twin sinks, shower and bathtub, plus a separate bedroom with king-size bed.

Despite the luxury, it was the 180-degree vista of London’s famous skyline that was the biggest treat – especially a night.

Frankly, it was hard to fault our stay – from the superb service levels via the friendly staff, the attention to detail and overall cleanliness, to the excellent breakfast quality and choice.

After checkout the following morning we returned to our car with zero range anxiety for the journey ahead because the Mustang Mach-E GT was fully charged.

Not that range is a huge issue when the battery pack of the Mach-E GT has been topped up.

Like most EVs, it may fall short of its claimed range (up to 304 miles), but 250 miles upwards is more than enough for most getaways. If you do have to stop off, a rapid 150kW public charger can deliver around 73 miles in just 10 minutes.

We took a more scenic route home, turning off the A303 before Stonehenge and heading over Salisbury Plain – the perfect place to let a thoroughbred like the Mach-E GT stretch its legs.

Blisteringly fast in a straight line (0-62mph in 3.7 seconds), it’s also a refined cruiser and delivers an engaging ride.

Not quite as dynamic to drive as its looks suggest, the Mach-E GT has a couple of party pieces. First, it’s fitted with a noise generator which simulates a combustion engine. Second, more spirited drivers will enjoy unleashing the GT’s more playful side, because the rear-biased all-wheel-drive system allows you to kick out the tail, should you so wish.

The entry-level Mustang Mach-E is priced from £50,830. However, a GT will set you back £74,540. For that, you get a second 240bhp electric motor installed up front. Combined, the two motors deliver a whopping 480bhp of power and an equally beefy 860Nm of torque.

With room for five, plus a decent 402-litre boot capacity and space under the bonnet for cables, the Mach-E GT is one of the performance EVs on the market.

Did you know? Key scenes of the classic British crime caper, The Italian Job, were filmed at the Royal Lancaster in 1968 – not long after the hotel opened. Also, The Beatles held their Yellow Submarine film premiere after-party at the venue in the same year.

Get the lowdown on the Royal Lancaster London hotel’s Plug In, Switch Off & Recharge package.

Best beaches for electric car drivers

Gareth Herincx

2 days ago
Auto News

England’s Top 10 beaches for drivers to visit in an EV this summer have been revealed in a new study by Citroën UK.

Roker and Seaburn Beaches on the North East coast are the most EV-friendly location for drivers looking for a seaside getaway.

To rank the top 10 beaches in England for electric vehicle drivers, Citroën compared how close the highest-rated beaches on TripAdvisor were to the 10 most populated cities in the country, with the requirement that they can be reached using the 219-mile all-electric range of the Citroën ë-C4.

Additional points were awarded according to the number of public charging points within a two-mile area for each beach.

First place Roker and Seaburn beaches, in Tyne and Wear, can be reached from eight major cities using the 219-mile range of Citroën ë-C4, including Birmingham and Liverpool, while the local area contains 13 public electric vehicle chargers with speeds of up to 50kW.

For EV drivers based in London, second place Brighton beach is a short 53-mile drive away and offers more than 120 public chargers within a two-mile radius, including 20 fast chargers (7-22kW) and four rapid chargers (25kW and higher).

Third place Bournemouth Beach can be reached from six major cities and features the highest number of rapid chargers (five). With 100kW rapid charging capability, a 0-80% charge for Citroën ë-C4 can take as little as 30 minutes, while for those enjoying a whole day at the seaside, a full charge can be completed in 7.5 hours from a 7kW fast charger.

Thanks to lower running costs, Citroën UK claims ë-C4 EV drivers can enjoy an affordable seaside retreat, with the 400-mile round trip from Birmingham to Roker and Seaburn Beaches costing less than £30.

England’s Top 10 beaches for EV drivers

	Ranking	Cities accessible to beach within ë-C4’s 219-mile range	Total number of public chargers within 2 miles	Number of fast chargers (7-22kW) within 2 miles	Number of rapid chargers (25kW ) within 2 miles
Roker and Seaburn Beaches, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear	1^st	8	13	10	3
Brighton Beach, East Sussex	2^nd	5	123	20	4
Bournemouth Beach, Dorset	3^rd	6	11	4	5
Hunmanby Gap, North Yorkshire	4^th	8	1	1	0
Fistral Beach, Newquay, Cornwall	5^th	1	6	5	1
Whitby Beach, Yorkshire	Joint 6^th	8	0	0	0
Weymouth Beach, Dorset	Joint 6^th	6	3	2	1
Sandbanks Beach, Poole, Dorset	Joint 8^th	6	0	0	0
Porthminster Beach, St Ives, Cornwall	Joint 8^th	1	3	3	0
Tunnels Beaches, Ilfracombe, Devon	10^th	3	0	0	0

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Volvo XC60 review

We drive the updated version of this Swedish premium mid-sized SUV…

It’s been a while since I’ve driven an XC60. To be exact, it was 2017 when the current second-generation model was launched.

A lot has changed since then for Volvo, which has just enjoyed record sales in the first half of 2021, driven by demand for its electrified cars.

Every Volvo model currently on sale has some form of electrification, whether it’s mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid or all-electric.

Globally the ‘Recharge’ range of fully electric and plug-in hybrids account for 24.6% of sales and by 2030 Volvo is aiming to have a 100% pure electric line-up.

And the XC60 is a popular as ever. In fact, in the first half of 2021, it was the 10th biggest-selling plug-in hybrid on sale in the UK.

Despite its success, Volvo has decided to treat the XC60 to a refresh. It would be an exaggeration to say it’s radical, but then ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’.

Externally there’s a revamped front grille, sportier bumpers at the front and rear, hidden rear exhaust pipes, plus new colour choices and alloy wheel options.

Inside, there are improved graphics in the driver’s digital display, but the big change is that the large centre infotainment touchscreen is now powered by the brand’s Android-based software instead of the Sensus system of the past.

So now there’s access to Google Play apps and services like Google Assistant and Google Maps. It’s also capable of over-the-air updates, which means the car is constantly kept up to speed with the latest software. Volvo has also upped the XC60’s driver assistance and safety tech.

Starting from £42,485, the range consists of a mix of mild hybrids (petrol and diesel) badged B4, B5 or B6. There are also plug-in hybrids (T6 or T8). All versions have varying outputs and four-wheel drive, except the B5 petrol which is available with front or AWD.

In a nutshell, the mild-hybrid system utilises a small 48-volt battery to help reduce emissions and improve fuel consumption, while the PHEVs have a slightly larger 11.6kWh high-voltage battery, which also enables the car to travel up to 32 miles on electric power alone when fully charged.

I sampled the B6 (300hp) mild hybrid petrol, plus the T6 (340hp) and the T8 (390hp) plug-in hybrids which all have a four-cylinder 2.0-litre turbo engine in various stats of tune at their heart and a sweet-shifting eight-speed automatic gearbox.

All three can be recommended, though my choice would be the T6, because it offers the best balance between power and economy. However, to get maximum benefit it’s best to have a charger at home or work..

The B6 does the job, especially if you are unable to plug in at home, but the engine is a little harsher when it’s worked hard, while claimed fuel economy of 30-34mpg and CO2 emissions of 190-213g/km are not hugely impressive these days.

The T8 is effortlessly fast and sounds meaty in Power drive mode, but ultimately the cheaper T6 will do just fine.

Offering a potential 113mpg (if you keep your battery charged up and your journeys are modest) and CO2 emissions as low as 55g/km, like the T8, the T6 also delivers significant tax savings for business users.

If your commute is short or you just use your XC60 locally, your journeys to the petrol stations could be rare because a good deal of your motoring could be spent in 100% electric mode. On longer trips, we’d expect economy to be north of 50mpg.

In Hybrid mode the switch between electric and petrol propulsion is almost seamless, and there’s plenty of power (0-60mph in just 5.6 seconds).

Unless really pushed, the engine is refined and the ride comfortable, while grip is superb. The XC60 feels surprisingly agile for its size and weight, while more spirited drivers will find that body roll is well controlled on more challenging roads.

As before, there’s a real quality feel inside the cabin and plenty of Scandi chic if you choose the lighter wood trim options.

You sit high up, so visibility is excellent and there’s plenty of space in the back for passengers. Luggage capacity is a useful 468 litres, or 1,395 litres with the rear seats folded.

The battery can be recharged from home in as little as two and a half hours. There’s also regenerative braking which recovers kinetic energy otherwise lost during braking in order to reduce fuel consumption and emissions.

You can also boost the process going down hills, for instance, by flicking the gearshift to B mode.

Finally, a special mention for the Google Assistant feature, first seen in the XC40 Recharge. Simply say “Hey Google” to get started and ask it to change radio channel, call a contact or set a new destination – all without taking your hands off the wheel or your eyes off the road.

Verdict: Handsome, practical, classy, comfortable and sporting the latest safety and infotainment tech, the updated Volvo XC60 mid-sized SUV is better than ever.

Volvo Cars UK