Steve Walker

Hello. My name’s Steve Walker and I’m DrivingElectric’s website editor. As group web editor for Autovia, I also oversee the websites of DrivingElectric’s sister brands Auto Express, Carbuyer and evo. I’ve been a motoring journalist and editor since 2002 and over that time i’ve covered cars and the automotive industry for many titles including The Yorkshire Post, The Scotsman, AutoTrader, MSN, Yahoo! and the Wall Street Journal. 

DrivingElectric’s mission - helping people understand and make the switch to electric cars - is one I’m fully on board with. There’s a lot of uncertainty about EV technology so it’s great to be able to cut through the confusion and provide clear, dispassionate advice on the big issues and the latest products. We’ve come a very long way in a very short space of time but there’s a long way still to go and watching how the market develops in the coming years is an exciting prospect.

Steve Walker’s expertise and interests

• Electric cars
• Sustainability in the car industry
• Social media
• Website user experience and design

Steve’s electric car Q&A

What’s the best thing about electric cars?

"I think there’s always going to be some push-back against any new technology and change generally and we’ve certainly seen that with EVs. For a lot of motorists, however, electric cars aren’t only going to be greener, they’ll be more pleasurable to drive as well. If you’re stepping out of a petrol hatchback into an electric one, that EV is going to feel easier, quieter and probably a lot faster.

“Those who really value sharp handling and that feeling of connection with their car on the road will continue to favour performance-focused internal combustion engined vehicles and those who do really high mileages will continue to worry about charging but they aren’t the majority of UK motorists. EVs are a step up from the ordinary family ICE cars most of us drive every day.”

What was your first electric car experience?

“I remember testing the original Nissan Leaf around the time of its launch in 2010. I struggled to get much more than 60 miles from a full charge and when i warily plugged it in using a three-pin plug it tripped the main circuit board for my house. It wasn’t an auspicious introduction to the world of EVs but The Leaf was a solid start and it feels like we’ve progressed in leaps and bounds since.” 

What one piece of advice would you give to electric car buyers?

“You’ll hear a lot of talk about range when it comes to electric cars but before you get caught up in seeking out the top range figures from cars with big, heavy batteries, just carefully consider how much range you’re really going to need. You might be surprised at how rarely you drive more than 200 miles in a day. Buy your electric car for your normal use pattern rather than the exceptions. Charging stops on occasional long journeys aren’t the end of the world.”   

Steve on social media and e-mail

• e-mail: Steve Walker
• Twitter: steve_cars
• Instagram: steve_cars
• LinkedIn: Steve Walker