the main problem with mass production of all such technology is that there is obsolescence after x number of years. So there will eventually be a mountain of solar panels/wind turbines. We should have been building more nuclear power stations years ago. France has so many and our successive governments have been conveniently ignoring this issue. Germany have been going crazy for renewables because they decommissioned so much nuclear as a knee-jerk after the Fukushima tragedy. Even though Germany has near zero seismic risk.
If governments focused on nuclear instead of demonising cars we would reach net zero far more efficiently and secure our long term energy needs. The issue of nuclear waste is something that can be addressed far more easily than the huge long term environmental impact of the alternatives.
If I felt so strongly about an issue that I called what other people post or say about the topic “crap”, I wouldn’t take part in the discussion in the first place. I’ll turn 70 shortly. So I was around when air quality used to be worse all over Western Europe but it was nowhere as bad as in the Bitterfeld region where I was forced to work for three years. It was so poor that white laundry would turn grey within hours when hung out in the open air. It was one of the most toxic places in Europe and it took West Germany tens of years and billions to decontaminate it. I got chronically ill as a result of being exposed to the toxins.
The other side of the equation you seem to forget is the cost of relying on fossil fuels and sourcing power from them. The hazards of metal extraction are not exclusive to EV manufacturing – all portable electronic devices contribute to this as does powering batteries.
A traditional car needs mining every day, needs mining every time it’s used. It needs the whole extraction complex of fossil fuels in order to power it. Other costs include oil spills, the illnesses and preventable deaths caused by pollution from fossil fuels. Last but not least, the costs incurred by an unbearable dependency on oil-producing regimes in Eastern Europe and elsewhere.
Most battery suppliers are basically rip-off merchants. I’ve just fitted a new 4yr one into my wife’s Suzuki and it cost me £33.47 delivered from GSF Car Parts. It was delivered the next day by UPS and I cannot fault GSF’s service to its customers. The original lasted 9yrs before it started to lose charge over 3-4 days.
Nearly all main stream batteries are made by just a couple of manufactures and then labeled as to which brand name it is to be sold under. Over the year, I save a fortune by buying parts via GSF👍
What do you mean by saying EVs are forced on the population? Is that so in the UK?
I understand hydrogen might be a solution, but not sure of the environmental cost of that either.
As for fuel cell cars, they haven’t gained acceptance and aren’t likely to do so in the foreseeable future because they are hopelessly overpriced (80,000 quid on average) , there’s virtually no infrastructure for them, hydrogen is more costly than electricity and the cars need lots of it, and their efficiency is far too low. The big players are not interested in them. It’s the chicken and egg problem again like we’ve seen with EVs: no infrastructure without sufficient demand or no demand due to a lack of infrastructure .
Assuming you could recharge it somewhere, an EV would be ideal for you. It would take you quietly to those places since range would be no issue.
Have you actually ever driven an EV or been given a lift in them? You would never want to return to a traditional car.
Go for the bZ4X . I remember you like it.
The Australian government is offering loans to buy electric vehicles worth less than $55,000 at interest rates up to 5 percentage points lower than standard.
The government claims that could save EV buyers more than $8,000 on a $40,000 loan.
You can expect a lot of EVs to be offered at $54,999.95 now.
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 is now offered with an 84KWh battery giving it a 570km range (still not as much as my 3lt turbo diesel which has a range of a touch under 700km). Mind you, it costs a lot more than $55,000
Thanks for your recommendation Dachs…but I think I’ll pass on that one. Being a long distance driver an Electric Vehicle would be no good to me. I’ve spent a life working on and understanding the internal combustion engine, even today’s more advanced engines still use the basic model and even though I have roadside assistance I could probably get myself out of a situation unless it was a major failure.
Also, my last diesel engine clocked up over 300,000 miles during my time as a courier. And my 2 litre diesel Qashqai lasted over 13 years with only a £60 battery replacement after 10 years…How many EV’s will perform to those standards, bearing in mind at 74 years old my latest vehicle, a 2022 Citroen 1.5 litre diesel Aircross will almost definitely be my last vehicle…
When we talk about pollution from industry I suspect there are lots more chemicals introduced into the atmosphere than just CO2 and CO4. We had a problem with coal fires and smog in the 50’s and 60’s but the main respiratory problems were asthma.
There is a problem with air quality in cities from the accumulation of too many vehicles, so perhaps the banning of polluting vehicles, or vehicles in general, cities were not designed to handle the volumes of traffic they now endure. This is a problem, that as cars continue to multiply, will even affect suburban areas.
The talk is about 2035 and it would mark the end of the production of new cars only. This means that these can still be bought as young used cars and will be around for another twenty years until 2055. We don’t know if the generations living then will consider EVs to be forced on them.
That’s the worst case scenario anyway. Right now there’s a trend to shift that deadline further into the future. I can’t see any real pressure.
Does this mean I’ll be forced to use a battery torch instead of my trusty Oil Lamp?
Tyres have been found to be a source of pollution. It seems there might be no ‘good’ car whether it be petrol, diesel or electric. We’re all doomed anyway.
Sorry I was confused as the deadline used to be 2030. The last government moved it back to 2035 as they just don’t have the infrastructure in place. I’m not sure what the current government have said on the subject.
There are other targets such as phasing out new gas boilers (which was 2025 but may have moved to 2030. With all gas boilers being phased out I think by 2050). But there are no real alternatives other than electric and our grid just cannot support this idea because we don’t have sufficient nuclear power stations with decommissioning of our current nuclear capacity round about now. Heat pumps are for the rich. There was some talk of smaller nuclear power sites made by Rolls Royce but not sure whether that just frittered out.
So they keep moving the goalposts when it comes to dates when successive governments realise it’s just a pipe dream without the infrastructure required.
There is something called the “gravy train” whenever the government announces big projects in the UK. It makes the cost of any changes prohibitive and a piecemeal approach ensues, with half finished ideas and then a new government scraps them.
They certainly are trying to phase out ICE cars, but that trend has sent work to part of my family’s investment of refurbishing/rebuilding petrol engine cars. That side of the business is growing quicker than they can cope with. Absolutely new petrol only cars are becming as scarse as hen’s teeth🐔
That’s a good business because we will end up the way Malta or Cuba used to be and petrol cars will become a sought-after luxury. I would love to find a good garage to make my Ford purr. it seems impossible to find anyone within the M25 these days. Unfortunately Ford seem to make cars that obsolesce in 10 years.
It is better than many so called rebuilders as they make parts from scratch if parts are not easily found. They work alongsibe a British castings foundry, so anything metal can be made from moulds. You would be surprised how many owners have very deep pockets where price is no barrier to keeping their beloved car running.
Which Ford is it and what year?
Just briefly here: I’m sure you know that those recommendation were tongue-in-cheek, Bob. We both recall that you introduced that car as the ugliest car you’ve ever seen.
It would take you quietly to those places since range would be no issue.
