Are EVs really the answer in the future? I do not think so.

[steve-45]

There have been many posts in this thread which is now over 200 posts long that contain no political comment !

[COLVERT]

Originally Posted by SideValve

Have to say that I'm getting close to giving up the Rover & buying a Nissan Leaf

Looked at the figures today. The Rover costs me around 22p/mile in fuel and has averaged almost £50 pm in maintenance (blummin cambelts). Tax is £265 pa

2017 Leaf from my local Nissan dealer about £11k with 6k on the clock. Fuel prices should be about 5p/mile, maintenance should be minimal, zero tax. The batteries are guaranteed for 100k but I'd expect range to reduce over time.

Currently 90% of my usage is just commuting 20 miles a day so a 100 mile range is no problem and in five years time if say the range had dropped to 80 miles it wouldn't be a problem. We could use the better half's Yaris for longer journeys if necessary.

So all in all, even with depreciation I'd be saving enough to make the small inconvenience worthwhile. Thankfully I could charge it up at home so to balance the inconvenience of having longer stops if I ever used it for longer runs, on most months I'd never have to "fill up" at a station at all.

Finally - because no post about cars is complete with a political comment - I'm keen to batten down the hatches financially as far as I possibly can. If that chump Johnson gets in and bangs us out of the EU (if he sticks to his word, which will be a first, we'll end up with no deal) our economy will be in deep poo for the foreseeable future. I'd be tempted to emigrate but when we lose our freedom of movement in Europe where could I go?

Do you mean WITHOUT a political comment ????

[sworks]

2000 miles in with our Hyundai IONIQ HEV and absolutely love it

[SideValve]

Originally Posted by COLVERT

Do you mean WITHOUT a political comment ????

I did - sorry.

[steve-45]

And Tesla is now working on a battery pack that they claim will last 1,000,000 miles !

[Mike Noc]

Well if they also have a decent range and fast charging rate then they will have cracked it.

Electric cars have been around since the 1850s, and the battery technology has been the only thing over the years to hold them back.

[Avulon]

Originally Posted by Mike Noc

Well if they also have a decent range and fast charging rate then they will have cracked it.

Electric cars have been around since the 1850s, and the battery technology has been the only thing over the years to hold them back.

If by 'cracked it' you mean an average hatchback will cost £50,000 instead of less than £10,000....



'Battery technology' continues to hold 'them' back. Still not learning the lessons of ubiquitous products. E.g petrol / diesel only two fuels used in 99% of road going vehicles (ok now complicating by adding Ethanol etc). But I was more thinking of the nightmare of mobile phone chargers - remember before they standardised on the charging voltage and connector? Rechargeable battery packs should be swappable and fit many vehicles. Imagine the 'recharge' speed if you could swap out some (or all) of your batteries for ready charged ones? and simultaneously charge the 'fixed' batteries (if any) at the same time. The two problems that affect electric cars from a user perspective is range between recharges when coupled with recharge times, and the weight of the vehicle (battery weight).


Currently it's 1:45 each way to visit my Mum and just over 80 miles meaning I'd have to stop twice to 50% recharge (at least) in a Nissan leaf That would either mean having to stop at my Mum's for 13 hours to charge from a normal household plug, or two 30 minute stops mid journey each way for rapid charging. So now my 3 hour round trip is 4 hours - an hour of it spent somewhere I don't want to be?



Here's another - Currently planning next years tour of the highlands - it's well over 300 miles to Inverness from home. that's 8-9 hours driving with one good lunch stop. In an electric vehicle I'd need a 200mile range and a rapid charger at very close to the halfway point. But continuing on around the top of Scotland for another 1000 miles in 4 more days? I don't fancy my chances at the moment.

[Mike Noc]

Originally Posted by Avulon

If by 'cracked it' you mean an average hatchback will cost £50,000 instead of less than £10,000....

Only if you buy a Tesla.

Yes the battery technology isn't at a stage where I would buy an electric car, as I also drive long distance sometimes for work, but it is improving, as is the charging infrastructure.

[Avulon]

Originally Posted by Mike Noc

Only if you buy a Tesla.

Yes the battery technology isn't at a stage where I would buy an electric car, as I also drive long distance sometimes for work, but it is improving, as is the charging infrastructure.

Ok, true - but the fact is that you still pay a hefty premium for EV cars. Look at the leaf - if it were £11k new then it might be better value (if it had 3 times the range...).


I've no doubt that there's further progress to be made in all areas with electric cars. And many applicable uses. Whether they'll be able to be competitive with the utility of an ICE powered car by 2040 I doubt. On the subject of cost I can only see that going up while the batteries continue to require rare minerals in their manufacture.

[BigRuss]

I notice nobody mentions the effects of cold weather on the battery packs of EV's

Reduced range, and not recommended to charge lithium ion batteries under 0 degrees.

That's going to cause all sorts of problems in very cold weather.

Russ