Is The Penny Dropping......?

[ToraToraTora]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98dzyy850jo

are people finally realising that electric cars are not viable for most? They are great if you live near work and never go very far but the infrastructure is still a joke if you are proper road user.

Have we reached the point where those that were ever going to buy in have now done so?

[brainiac]

They're useless in large countries like the USA.  Imagine if you wanted to drive from Houston to San Fransisco, or similar long journey

[ToraToraTora]

they are pretty useless in small countries too.

[youngmafbog]

The battery tech n4eds to be much better - and cheaper.

As I have said before this whole thing needs to be a 50 year project so we can bring all along for the ride.  excluding the poor is not acceptable.

[Old_Geezer]

They are an attempt to try to be seen to do something despite it not being a reasonable alternative. They aren't great in all sorts of ways. The sooner they find an alternative strategy, the better.

[youngmafbog]

I think they could be, but its no good chrging down the road until you know the direction.  At the  moment we just have the NTSC and we need the PAL.

[10ClarionSt]

EV's are just for posers and show-boaters. They're useless.

[youngmafbog]

One of my SiL (Young man of 30) has one - a Mustang. He has to travel a fair bit and its useless, he pinches my daughters KUGA. 

He wont be buying another apparenty.

[Canary42]

I think your saturation point remark is indeed quite plausible. A major technological breakthrough is required before the markets boom. 

Perhaps a recharge on the move with cables (or whatever) in the road (similar to the old steam locomotives picking up water from mid-track troughs) is an answer, but this of course would require major changes to the road infrastructure (similar to the original telephone cable upheaval to footpaths).  

[Atheist]

Parhaps downhill runs or deceleration/braking could be used to recharge batteries on the run. That probably happens already, I suppose.

[ToraToraTora]

I'm glad you used the railway example canary because I think we will end up with car versions of the deisel electric trains. Not deisel of course but a small petrol engine on board that only charges the batteries when needed. That way things like "range anxiety" can be eased and more people will be confident in using them. They can charge when the opportunity arises and won't be totally useless when there is no opportunity.

[Atheist]

In other words, hybrid cars.

[barry1010]

Talking of electric vehicles I blame the current government for this

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy8n3n62wq4o

[barry1010]

Some friends of mine live on an electric powered narrowboat, that uses a similar system to that, TTT.  It has a diesel powered generator that charges the batteries when necessary.

[ToraToraTora]

16:26 yes but it's important to distinguish that these are NOT hybrid as they are known mostly now. The engine does not drive the wheels there is no drive train or gearbox.

[Tilly2]

I love my Ev Mokka. I just pootle from place to place in it and charge it up once a week/fortnight when it needs it. It's quiet, easy to drive and suits me down to the ground. This is our second EV and the next one will also be an EV. we have a charger installed at home so the 'infrastructure' doesn't bother me at all.

[barry1010]

What's the furthest you have driven it, Tilly?

[Tilly2]

10 miles?

[rockyracoon]

I'm not interested until, at the very least, they invent a portable battery that I can take out and plug indoors when in needs charging. And, it'll need rapid charging capabilities

[ToraToraTora]

EVs are perfect for what you are doing tilly but try and drive a few hundred miles and you are in a world of pain believe me.

[New Judge]

The trouble is, the government does not properly recognise the problem, let along have a proper solution (which is o ditch the targets, forget the imposition of "fines" on companies just going about their business, and let the market decide whether they are popular or not. This demonstrates what I mean:

"There are flexibilities in the system, allowing manufacturers who can’t meet the targets to buy "credits" from those that can."

No, no no. Car manufacturers do not want to get involved in a ridiculous scheme which involves buying permission to sell their products. They just want to make cars that people want. And there are large numbers of people who, at least at present, simply do not want an electric car. 

If the government insists on continuing their journey to "net zero" (and there are plenty of reasons why they should not)  the only reason for it can be so that they can strut their stuff on the world stage, crowing about their achievements. There is no other reason because, as is often said, the UK could reduce its emissions to absolute zero tomorrow and it would not make the slightest difference to any climate problems the world is said to face. 

The argument that we must "set an example" is shot. We've probably set one of the best examples in the world and the big hitters are still hitting big with no signs of doing anything else.

During the Brexit campaign (and ever since) it was constantly bleated that no country should deliberately make itself  and its citizens poorer. That's precisely what this mania for net zero is doing and it will make any losses incurred as a result of Brexit seem like a walk in the park.

If the government wants the country to help it to achieve its  somewhat pointless goal it needs to take them along with it and not antagonise them. They need to make the use of electric cars more attractive and this means installing more infrastructure because, as it stands at present, it is hopelessly inadequate.