antnee
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Registered: 30th Dec 07
Location: Cov Drives: Clio 197
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Why do the press constantly bang on about the range of electric cars not being enough? The majority of them now can do over 100 miles on a single charge, which is enough to cover the majority of the public's daily mileage. I am working 50 miles away from home, so an electric car would be fine, as I would be able to persuade my company to install charging points in the car park if I needed a top up and it could be charged over night, just like my phone. A lot of people would be able to do about half a week on a single charge with no problems.
So why do they keep banging on about it not being enough?
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Dave
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Registered: 26th Feb 01
Location: Lancs
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Because some people might want to do a journey of more than 100miles? Also range isn't the only factor to consider with electric cars. The batteries only have a finite lifespan for a start.
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tom130691
Premium Member
Registered: 13th Sep 08
Location: Daventry
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look at phones and laptops, battery life deteriorates with use, just some thing else to consider.
people dont like change
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antnee
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Registered: 30th Dec 07
Location: Cov Drives: Clio 197
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For the 1 or 2 times a year when most people do more than 100 miles, you could rent a car for that trip.
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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What if you find out suddenly you have to drive somewhere?
There have been a couple of threads about this recently. In 90% of cases it makes no financial sense.
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tom130691
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Registered: 13th Sep 08
Location: Daventry
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misses lives 55miles away planning my life around my cars charging time plan is not how i want to live.
renting a car would add extra cost that isnt needed if you already had a fuel burning vehicle.
hyrdrogen, ethanol. bio fuels are the way forward
2 stroke engines running ethanol are supposedly 30% more efficient and more powerful than a petrol equivalent,
hybrid using a small 2 stoke to power an electrical system would be an interesting combination
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Ben G
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Registered: 12th Jan 07
Location: Essex
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quote:
Originally posted by antnee
For the 1 or 2 times a year when most people do more than 100 miles, you could rent a car for that trip.
What about people who drive for a living? I'm 99% sure most of those will be doing more than that mileage each day. I'm sure theres a few on here with company cars doing that kind of mileage.
The fact is the range is too small and the charging points are not upto the job. If the batteries could be re-charged the same amount of time it takes to fill a conventional vehicle with fuel then they'd obviously be the vehicle of choice.
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Munchie
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Registered: 17th Jul 01
Location: I swap goats for mobile phones
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Saw an estate agents in London before with 3 of them electric Renaults. Perfect if you ask me...
Good for businesses like that but useless for anything else really. Couldn't even use one for takeaway deliverys etc
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LeeM
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Registered: 26th Sep 05
Location: Liverpool
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say you go to work and back then someone suggests you go for a trip somewhere nice for tea. in this example, its a girl you quite fancy and this trip could lead to a bang.
"sorry love, car needs a charge how about another time"
shit times.
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antnee
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Registered: 30th Dec 07
Location: Cov Drives: Clio 197
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I'm not saying they will suit every one, but the majority of people could have one and never have any major issues.
Full electric cars will be the future, its the main thing all manufactures are developing, diesels will start to decrease over the next few years, replaced by high efficiency petrols/hybrids
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Kyle T
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Registered: 11th Sep 04
Location: Selby, North Yorkshire
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We've got a couple at work (power station) and make ideal site cars, but they're still not right for the consumer.
First off, the 100mile range is optimistic as we found. We used to have people take them off site on small trips (good PR exercise for a powerstation trying to go green) but with AC and maybe the radio on, we had to rescue people stuck in a hard shoulder with not enough power for hazard lights a few times 
Next up is the price, too high. I think they're about 30k with a government "incentive" refund of £5k.
That final £25k is top end hatch or 3series money, and the trim level you get in £25k worth of electric car is on a level with the likes of a VW Up! or something like that.
The Up! In contrast is about £8k right? Their wee engines are apparently good for 60mpg but let's allow for 40mpg to give you some generous rounding in favour of the electric car...
12k miles a year (33miles a day ish) in a 40mpg car is around £1900 a year... I think.
That means you would need to run an electric car for NINE YEARS before it paid for itself vs an UP. Alright I'm not including road tax, but I promise you servicing and battery changes/rental will cost a hell of a lot more than the tax and servicing on an Up.
Nobody keeps a cheap car like an Up for 9 years nowadays, so the electric car just isn't viable.
Lotus Elise 111R
Impreza WRX STi
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deano87
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Registered: 21st Oct 06
Location: Bedfordshire Drives: Ford Fiesta
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quote:
Originally posted by tom130691
hybrid using a small 2 stoke to power an electrical system would be an interesting combination
Check out the Vauxhall Ampera. It is like a Prius, except the petrol engine does not drive the wheels. It powers/recharges the battery so essentially the car is 100% electric with its own power/recharging station. imho this is the way forward to extend the resource of fossil fuels but one day we will run out.
Incidentally this theory is the same as they did on Top Gear with the Eagle iThrust or what ever it was called
And I don't think electric will work. Not sure I could run a cable across the residential road to the layby where my car is parked over night
The government is contradictory in terms of their affordable housing policy as most end up apartments or flats, with communal parking and a distinct lack of ability to charge electric cars.
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SXIBrad
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Registered: 7th Mar 13
Location: South Yorkshire
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Can you still wheelspin in an electric car or a Prius?
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tom130691
Premium Member
Registered: 13th Sep 08
Location: Daventry
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quote:
Originally posted by deano87
And I don't think electric will work. Not sure I could run a cable across the residential road to the layby where my car is parked over night
The government is contradictory in terms of their affordable housing policy as most end up apartments or flats, with communal parking and a distinct lack of ability to charge electric cars.
very good point here,
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LeeM
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Registered: 26th Sep 05
Location: Liverpool
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time and money should have been spent developing a synthesisable eco friendly diesel fuel.
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JonnyJ
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Registered: 23rd Sep 05
Location: Scotchland
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What happened to the development on Hydrogen cars? Think they had a prototype on TG ages ago. Too expensive to make? Would be much better than electric.
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Daveskater
Premium Member
Registered: 29th Apr 08
Location: Oxford, UK Drives: Jap wagon
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Iirc the problem with hydrogren cars was the storage of the hydrogen at fuel stations. I agree though, that seemed like a much better alternative to all this other rubbish that seems to be coming out at the moment.
Numberwang!
Originally posted by AlunJ
I like you Dave, you are a man of men
Originally Whatapp'd by Neo
Dave's maybe capable of a drive-by cuddle
Look at my pictures
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RichR
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Registered: 17th Oct 01
Location: Waterhouses, Staffordshire
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quote:
Originally posted by JonnyJ
What happened to the development on Hydrogen cars? Think they had a prototype on TG ages ago. Too expensive to make? Would be much better than electric.
http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/hyundai/ix35/first-drives/hyundai-ix35-fuel-cell-first-drive-review
Hyundai have recently released the first Hydrogen Hybrid IX35 on general sale; there was a big article in the Sunday Times at the weekend
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Daveskater
Premium Member
Registered: 29th Apr 08
Location: Oxford, UK Drives: Jap wagon
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Just found this, it seems there are petrol stations with hydrogen points already, but as usual there's nothing even remotely near Oxford
http://www.netinform.net/H2/H2Stations/H2Stations.aspx?Continent=EU&StationID=-1
Numberwang!
Originally posted by AlunJ
I like you Dave, you are a man of men
Originally Whatapp'd by Neo
Dave's maybe capable of a drive-by cuddle
Look at my pictures
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Baskey
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Registered: 31st May 06
User status: Offline
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I don't really understand, why would anyone pay the best part of 30k to drive a shit car?
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Kyle T
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Registered: 11th Sep 04
Location: Selby, North Yorkshire
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quote:
Originally posted by Baskey
I don't really understand, why would anyone pay the best part of 30k to drive a shit car?
My point exactly. They're only good for PR exercises and a fad for the wealthy who are trying to make a statement.
Real people have got zero incentive to purchase and use one, and money talks motherfuckers.
Lotus Elise 111R
Impreza WRX STi
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Baskey
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Registered: 31st May 06
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Yea I'm interested in the technology but if you were tight on cash and wanted a new car you would just buy a diesel corsa with a lifetime warrantee and pocket 20k for fuel.
I can't see how they are viable to the man on the street at present
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Robin
Premium Member
Registered: 7th Jan 04
Location: Northants Drives: Clio 182 Cup
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Bear in mind that when technology becomes mainstream it becomes affordable.
When it first came out, the model T Ford was $21k in today's money, ten years later it was the equivalent of $7k and had better spec.
I know electric cars aren't a new thing but they're becoming more commonplace. The pioneering ones will be expensive but they will come down in price and the range will increase over time.
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gazza808
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Registered: 30th Jun 08
Location: Peterborough
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Petrol engines could be made to be super efficient but having to have a cat means they cant produce super lean burn engines as they melt from the exhaust gas temps.
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Sly_SRi
Premium Member
Registered: 9th Apr 04
Location: Reading, UK Drives: Corsa C
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But motoring will never get cheaper. It's not in the governments interest to have us spending less..
So if and when electric cars start becoming more popular, more taxes will have to be introduced to make up for what they aren't making at the fuel pumps.
[Edited on 17-07-2013 by Sly_SRi]
Corsa C Z20Let
Black Sleeper Turbo Project
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