Going on holiday in the UK with an EV. Sounds simple, right? Well, you won’t believe the number of people that still have range anxiety or think that EVs can’t go the distance. So, with some simple planning, we took a 400-mile ev staycation with a CUPRA Born.
It all came about when Dorset Cottage Holidays pinged our inbox asking if we’d be interested in staying in one of their properties with an EV charger installed. Great idea. 7kW wall boxes at your holiday destination.
And what better EV to take than the CUPRA Born, the first real performance-orientated EV hatch. Or is it an EV hot hatch? Maybe warm. But we’ll get to that.
CUPRA Born real-world range
Now, all EVs suffer from False Advertised Range Syndrome (FARS). Where the actual WLTP figure isn’t quite what you receive. Born is no different. Our Born V2 e-Boost had ‘up to 261 miles range’. However, after a full charge on an average autumnal morning, we had 189 miles. That’s a 38% decrease in the advertised ‘up to’ range.
Just stop. Don’t do it. You give EVs a bad name from the very start. Imagine how annoyed you’d be thinking you had a car with 261 miles of range, yet rarely getting above 200 in the real world.
I know it’s been done for years with MPG, but it’s different with EVs. They’re a ‘new’ product, and when overpromising and underdelivering on something new, you’re never going to form a good opinion.
Anyway.
The journey begins
Setting off on the 148-mile jaunt from Buckinghamshire to Dorset, there was plenty of watts to get us there with ease. Some torrid rain on the way down quickly showed a glaring omission from VW Group.
During the design/production of the ID4 (which Born is based on), they didn’t swap the wipers over from left-hand drive to right. This means the passenger side is swept first and quicker than the driver’s side. Leaving you with 2-3 seconds of just water in front of your face on every wipe cycle.
Not great in driving rain on a motorway.
Born packs plenty of torque, 310 Nm to be precise, and accelerates from 0-62 in 6.6 seconds. So let’s say warm hatch quick. But even when up to speed at 60 mph, there’s still plenty of shove to despatch overtakes efficiently.
It’s not Tesla levels of torque punch, but it’s nearly there. And a damn sight better than the likes of the pathetic Citroen eC4.
Making it to The Blue Pool, we had 43 miles of range left, with 12 to get to our holiday cottage.
Over the three-hour drive down, Born’s range stayed true. There was no massive dip, even when cruising at 70 mph or above. It gave me plenty of confidence to trust it for the rest of the weekend.
Spending the afternoon exploring the other-worldly Winspit Quarry and marvelling at the power of the sea below. The three-mile Smugglers Ways’ circular walk is well worth the leg work.
Charging with Dorset Holiday Cottages
Arriving at the incredibly spacious ‘Daisy’s’ in a quiet Swanage close. We opened the gates to the courtyard area to give Born some much-needed rest. Plugging in was easy, using a supplied RFID card.
Just tap and hold, hear the first beep, wait for the second, and the charge starts.
Staying at a place with an #EVCharger really helps on an #EVStaycation
Forward thinking by @DorsetCottages ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/9WLcYNxk13
— (@car_witter) March 17, 2023
Now you do have to pay £25 for the ability to charge while you stay with Dorset Holiday Cottages. But this will cover unlimited charging, so if you think a Born will take 58 kWh at the current fixed rate of 33p a kWh, a single charge from 0-100% is £19.14. Making £25 for a week’s worth of charging a bargain.
Plugging in at 17:20, we’d hit 80% at 23:16. Born suggests limiting the charge to 80% to ‘conserve battery life’ for everyday use. Perfectly fine for some pootling around Dorset.
As for ‘Daisy’s’, it’s not what you’d traditionally think of as a ‘holiday cottage’ in Dorset, with it being a relatively modern house. But it felt like a home from home nonetheless. Spotlessly clean with an eclectic mix of antique and modern furniture, there was the choice of three bedrooms, all with en-suits.
It can cater for six, and there’s also a pull-out sofa bed in the living room. Making it ideal for larger families.
Waking up the following morning, Born was happily sitting at 80% charge and ready for the day ahead. But that only involved a 20-minute drive before we headed off to explore Brownsea Island. Which isn’t a place for cars, even if they are all-electric.
So Born was relegated to a car park ornament while we took a boat across to the island and did much exploring. Unfortunately, only seeing two of the famed red squirrels in the process.
CUPRA Born augmented reality HUD
On the way back to base that evening, the augmented reality Head Up Display really stood out in the dim darkness. I’ve seen many head-up displays, most of which have the next sat-nav direction projected alongside your speed.
But on the CUPRA Born, you actually get arrows that hover in front of you, where you need to turn. As you get closer, they get bigger and bigger, then vanish as you turn the corner.
Over 400 miles in Born, I don’t think I looked at the actual infotainment screen once. It’s a superb system, and every HUD should be like this. It takes distraction-free driving to another level.
Back on charge at ‘Daisy’s’ and this time, I changed the Born to fully charge to 100%, ready for the long journey home the next day.
Settling down for the evening, the living room, with its colossal sofa, made for the perfect reading spot with a cup of tea in hand.
There were also plenty of games, books, and even a Playsation with some awesome automotive-themed retro titles from my childhood – they must have known we were coming.
The drive home
Up early, packed, tidied and ready to leave for the check-out time of 10am. Saying goodbye to ‘Daisy’s’, we reflected on how easy the whole thing had been. From checking in to not worrying about finding a charger ‘in the wild’ and having somewhere so homey and snug to call base for the last two nights.
But we weren’t heading home quite yet. A little detour on the way back saw us stop off for breakfast at Corfe Castle, before heading to Clouds Hill, the National Trust-owned property home to T.E. Lawrence. This was followed by another quick detour to find his grave in the nearby village of Moreton.
Range on the CUPRA Born showed a healthy 175 miles. We had 147 to go until home.
Sitting at 70 mph or just above for most of the journey, the range started to dip slightly. We still would have made it, but the consistently higher speeds were sapping the watts a bit quicker than I’d have liked. Backing off for the final 30/40 miles saw us home with 26 miles to spare.
EV Staycation Conclusion
While you still find plenty of naysayers regarding electric vehicles, how they’re a fad, they aren’t the answer, etc., using one in 2023 as an everyday, normal car is perfectly possible.
Driving over 400 miles in most petrol or diesel vehicles would have required a petrol station fill-up. But choosing the right destination and charging where you’re staying just feels so much more convenient. Wake up every morning, and you’re refuelled and ready to go. All while emitting zero emissions when driving.
In terms of cost, by my estimation, a 38 MPG petrol guzzler would cost roughly £72 for our 400-mile journey.
The CUPRA Born cost us £25 for all the charging with Dorset Cottage Holidays and £16.51 to recharge with 50kW when we arrived back home, for a total of £41.51, which is 43% less than the petrol car.
Showing that you can significantly reduce your cost per mile by going electric. Which means…more weekend adventures! Or yet another EV staycation?
A huge thanks to CUPRA UK for the press loan and, of course, for Dorset Cottage Holidays for the two-night stay.
