Everything Electric London 2025 – NEW Tesla Model Y Juniper, Volvo EX30 POV EV Test Drives

In April, I took myself to London to visit the Everything Electric show at the Excel Exhibition Centre. As the title suggests, this event showcases everything electric, from EV charging, air source heat pumps and solar charging, to electrification of vehicles both old and new, as well as other forms of electric transport from scooters to e-bikes.

The show floor had many stands, with many companies, large and small, showing off their latest technology, and alongside it, you had a number of car brands showcasing their electric vehicles, with a few UK debuts being revealed also. Test drives for a number of EVs could be booked, and this was a great way for curious customers looking to own their first electric car to sample some of the best out there.

With brands such as Tesla, Volvo, BYD, MG, Renault, Hyundai, Ford, Lotus, Porsche, and Omoda, which is a new brand to me, there were plenty of chances to get behind the wheel and test drive some EVs. So I took this opportunity to drive the newest Tesla Model Y and an EV I had my personal eye on, the Volvo EX30.

So without further ado, let’s jump into my first test drive.

Tesla Model Y 2025 Edition Test Drive

From: £44,990 (RWD Edition) | Tested: £51,990 Launch Edition (£570.38 p/m Leaseloco)

With the 2025 Model Y facelift edition not being publicly available in the UK until June, it was a privilege to be able to test drive Tesla’s latest electric SUV a few months before its release on UK roads.

Jumping in the car, everything felt very familiar to the Model 3 Highland that I test drove last month, with a few exceptions being a little better quality interior feel, and the all important indicator stalk on the left side of the wheel. The large screen, the dash and central console all felt pretty much the same as the M3.

Setting off the MY felt more grounded and heavier on the wheel than the M3. Being an SUV type of car, the MY is packing a lot more weight, and for me, it feels better for it. Getting up to speed and taking on some of the many London roundabouts, I was surprised how less roll the MY had. It looks like it would be, but the feel felt tight and it was overall a fun car to drive.

Inside, the car didn’t feel as gigantic as the exterior makes you think. I was thinking, I could live with this, but without CarPlay on its giant main display, that would be a problem with my current carrier. Just like the M3, the MY has the same parge touchscreen display that controls pretty much everything through it. Voice input on the wheel helps reduce some friction but it all takes some time to dive into menus to get to what you want. Even drive and reverse selection is still on screen, but I didn’t know until the Tesla rep pointed out to me that these drive modes were also available up by the rear view mirror too.

Being dual motor and all wheel drive, this Tesla MY had a lot of power and it delivers it effortlessly and instantly also. Put your foot down and you’re given a punch in the back as it accelerates away. It’s every bit as fun as the M3 I drove a few weeks prior. It is a lot of fun, probably too much for a car this shape and size.

Design wise, I feel the new MY looks a little nicer than its earlier design. It’s more of a facelift than the M3 was given. The front full with light bar is something many Chinese brands a adopting, and at first glance, it does look a little space age but not so much that I feel it will date so much over time. It’s rear interior and boot is cavernous, plenty for rear adult passengers each with full size luggage—this MY will take it all, and then some.

Things I didn’t like. Well, everything through one screen is a learning curve and reliance on the voice control is the only way to control deep and buried controls without being hazardous on the road. This becomes less of a problem if you’re using its assistive driving controls on motorways, but sadly full automation is still not fully available in the UK.

I got used to the onscreen drive mode selector and the speedometer being on screen also. I preferred the darker interior to the white seated M3 I drove earlier, and all the materials and general feel of the car did seem premium to me. I still find its interface to be just a little tad too small. Icons are tiny for driving with and it took a while to find my way back to navigation midway through my drive, whilst using voice had no help during this stressful time whilst being caught on some busy London roads.

The model I test drove retails for £51,990 OTR in the UK, and lease costs are currently high at £570.38 p/m on leaseloco.com for a new facelift model, yet for the money, you are getting a lot of car and technology within it. I liked the default base grey colour. I think it looks much better than white and black colours.

If it weren’t for its lack of CarPlay, I would consider the Model Y for my next lease. But until pigs start to fly, I’ll have to pass on this one, sadly.

Volvo EX30 Test Drive

From: £42,360 (Core Edition) | Tested: £44,860 Twin Moter Ultra Edition (£539.41 p/m Leaseloco)

The Volvo EX30 was high on my shortlist for my first EV. All though I wasn’t fan of the SUV shape, its short c-class segment footprint and clean Swedish lines, did make me heavily consider it. Sadly, though, at the time of purchasing an EV, the EX30 was freshly off the forecourts and priced a little out of my monthly leasing budget. Today was the first time I could drive one, and see if I was right to leave it behind, purely based on cost alone—and to be honest, also the rear space.

Although I had sat in an EX30 before at a motor show last year. It didn’t have much experience in other cars. Now six months on, I have driven quite a few, and now sitting in this Twin Motor with Ultra spec, I was a little disappointed. Maybe this is because I was just in the new MY some 10 mins before, but my immediate thought was that I found the central screen to be a little too small now. Especially when, like a Tesla, most of the controls are carried out through this central display.

Setting off on my test route, the EX30 handled the road and the speed bumps around London very well. It was a comfortable drive. The seats were comfortable, and the interior was clear and minimal, like my the MY drive before it. Because of this it was lacking some features I thought it needed. Physical controls is one for climate and other common major functions of the car. Even the passenger glove box requires a button!

The middle window control location through me off a little, but you’ll get used to that. I was surprised the elbow cushion area didn’t lift to reveal any storage. Instead, below beside your inner shin, is an awkward to get to storage area, when the car’s party trick slide out cup holder bar is extended outwards. Made worse is its split flap cover, which makes it hard to use when you’re using this same surface to place things onto. This design doesn’t quite work for me and it feels like a token afterthought to strengthen this car’s storage options.

Being a twin motor edition, this car does shift. But not to Tesla standards and also had this weird feeling of the car still running away from me when I lifted off the accelerator pedal. It was more than simply non-regen run off, I could only describe it as feeling more like accelerator lag. It was very odd and I didn’t feel I had full control during this period before the car started to slow down.

Another disappointing area was its bings and bongs, even though I felt I was paying any less attention to the road than normal. In addition to this was its indicator noise. I can only describe this as a pen hitting the side of an empty glass bottle. It was grinding to my ears and I had to question why this sound went all the way through production without anyone questioning it. I don’t know if this can be changed through the car system, but I thought it was a little bit odd compared to all the other cars I’ve driven so far.

So then my drive I concluded that selecting my born for my first EV was the right thing to do. Looking at both vehicles, I wouldn’t hand over my Cupra Born for a Volvo EX30. There are quite a few things that they would have to address in a facelift model before I would probably even consider it. Namely the rear passenger space. They simply aren’t any and the narrow entry into the rear seats is also fairly cramped too.

The Volvo EX 30 I drove currently retails for £44,860 OTR in the UK and its current lease price is £539.41 p/m in leaseloco.com. Which still would be out of my budget and I would need to have another test drive to see if I could live with any of its flaws that I encountered throughout this initial test drive.

Overall, I enjoyed the show. Although I had a media pass, the ticket prices weren’t too expensive and having spent a good few hours at the event, there was lots to see and do there, and it was great to see a few familiar faces from their YouTube channel.

The Everything Electric show travels around the world to various locations throughout the year. So if it’s anywhere near you, and you’re curious to learn more about everything electric for your car to your home, then definitely get yourself to one of their shows.