Electric cars, a different view?

[sworks]

Originally Posted by topman

Do keep us informed. That and the kia look like they may clear up at that size and price.

Do you test drive a demo car?

I’ve driven a lot of IONIQ’s since launch, I work for a Hyundai dealer and i’m our EV tech

[davros]

My wife drives a Nissan Leaf, we are on to her second one now and I can honestly say they have both been absolutely superb cars to own and without question they are the future.


Quite how the electric motor is powered of course is up for debate. Perhaps it will be fuel cells or perhaps we will see new battery technology that will be smaller, lighter and faster to charge, who knows!? Lithium will run out of course but there are plenty of other technologies in development using graphene or sodium etc.



What I will say though is that for the vast majority of people the technology is already good enough. Her commute is a 40 mile round trip so she could probably do it 3 times on one charge but she is in the routine of plugging it in when she gets home and it charges overnight on eco 7. Cars are stationery 95% of the time so if we could just figure out an easy way to provide trickle charging when at work or parked up somewhere, most people would never need a 400+ mile range anyway.



Granted we do of course still have an internal combustion car for longer journeys but it is not often we MUST use it.



Infrastructure will need to evolve if everyone were suddenly to buy an electric car but in all honesty what I think will likely happen in the next 30-50 years is that private car ownership will decline massively. We will likely just hail an autonomous electric 'pod' from our mobile phone that will come to our location and deposit us wherever we want to be then it will go off and plug itself in to charge up.

[vacuman]

Can't help but think that some (winter's) day there will be a a snow storm and the motorway's will be blocked and drivers trapped in their cars. No problem, keep the engine running and stay warm until rescued.

But not the poor driver in the electric car faced with the dilema - heater on or keep enough power to be able to get home ................

[topman]

Originally Posted by vacuman

Can't help but think that some (winter's) day there will be a a snow storm and the motorway's will be blocked and drivers trapped in their cars. No problem, keep the engine running and stay warm until rescued.

But not the poor driver in the electric car faced with the dilema - heater on or keep enough power to be able to get home ................

People who drive often with the fuel light on will be in the same boat!

[topman]

Originally Posted by sworks

I’ve driven a lot of IONIQ’s since launch, I work for a Hyundai dealer and i’m our EV tech

What are they like to drive?

[davros]

Originally Posted by vacuman

Can't help but think that some (winter's) day there will be a a snow storm and the motorway's will be blocked and drivers trapped in their cars. No problem, keep the engine running and stay warm until rescued.

But not the poor driver in the electric car faced with the dilema - heater on or keep enough power to be able to get home ................

Most now have a heat pump to keep you warm and are pretty efficient.

[sworks]

Originally Posted by topman

What are they like to drive?

Extremely good, I’ve wanted one since launch but my heart went with the MG last year. Really looking forward to it arriving. This is the 2020 model that launches next month, really worth having a go in one.
https://youtu.be/0xmXICsnACs

[Dallas]

Originally Posted by topman

People who drive often with the fuel light on will be in the same boat!

Its still possible to go fetch fuel in a can yourself for an instant start and go option, or even send for someone to bring you fuel.

The AA have already seen an increase in electric car callouts, more so over the winter months.

[andymc]

Originally Posted by Mike Noc

Whenever traversing Australia by truck is mentioned I always think something more like this:







An electric version would be impressive.

No image showing for me - got a link to it?

Originally Posted by vacuman

Can't help but think that some (winter's) day there will be a a snow storm and the motorway's will be blocked and drivers trapped in their cars. No problem, keep the engine running and stay warm until rescued.

But not the poor driver in the electric car faced with the dilema - heater on or keep enough power to be able to get home ................

IIRC, heating an EV can take roughly 2 to 3% of battery per hour in a smaller battery car like the previous Nissan Leaf or the outgoing Hyundai Ioniq. So even if you were down below a quarter capacity to start off with, you'd still be alright for warmth if you ended up stuck for a good 9-12 hours. More recent EVs have bigger batteries than those, so as said above it's more akin to being caught out in a snowstorm with the fuel light on - if you can't or won't look at the forecast and prepare for the possibility of getting stuck, it's your own fault!

In any case, most if not all current EVs have the option of heated seats and steering wheels, which use a significantly lower amount of juice than heating the air inside the cabin. Meaning this is really another "sky falling in" non-issue to be added to the list in the youtube video a few posts back.

[topman]

Originally Posted by sworks

Extremely good, I’ve wanted one since launch but my heart went with the MG last year. Really looking forward to it arriving. This is the 2020 model that launches next month, really worth having a go in one.
https://youtu.be/0xmXICsnACs

Looks good, let us know how you get on.