Electric cars.

[gavroche]

I was talking to a mechanic I know well, about electric cars. He said they are very fast on take off, faster than conventional cars , but as time goes by, the efficiency of the battery decreases by increments of 1 mile on the range. A new replacement battery cost £5000 apparently so I can't see those cars having a good second hand value. In my view, electric cars are not a viable option. I think Honda has got it right with hydrogen and manufacturers should concentrate more on that but the snag is that there is no money for the oil industry and governments with hydrogen so they won't back it. Never mind ecology, money will always come first, won't it?

 

[ianrauk]

The BBC did a piece about Hydrogen powered cars a few days ago

 

[welsh dragon]

With a lot of manufacturers, although you buy the car, you don't own the battery. You lease it only, and it can cost anywhere from £120 to £200 per month. That is a whole lot of money every month considering the amount you have to pay for the car in the first place. I don't think I'll bother.

 

[MacB]

Have a second hand Nissan Leaf and it's been great but only if your driving/mileage needs are compatible

 

[stephec]

With a lot of manufacturers, although you buy the car, you don't own the battery. You lease it only, and it can cost anywhere from £120 to £200 per month. That is a whole lot of money every month considering the amount you have to pay for the car in the first place. I don't think I'll bother.

That's only because electrickery's not reached your part of the world yet.

 

[welsh dragon]

That's only because electrickery's not reached your part of the world yet.

Idiot.

 

[stephec]

Idiot.

Don't shoot the messenger.

 

[stephec]

There maybe negatives, but being batteries there will be positives as well.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

It's a good job that none of you charge for your puns....

Meanwhile, I get the impression that battery technology is still advancing apace, though I don't know what the implications are for rare metal resources. I wonder whether this advance makes the tipping point for a changeover always somewhere in the future.

 

[tyred]

I can see many advantages to electric cars but they will neevr sound as nice as a V8 on full song.

 

[Markymark]

I read that the disposal of old batteries is an environmental nightmare and they need changing more often than people think. Not sure if that's still the case though.

 

[Drago]

Battery efficiency doesn't drop off in that manner. Even when new a d apparently full they're really only 80% or so charged, so as Capacity decreases the effect is less apparent to the range of the vehicle, which was never using that final degree of capacity in the first place.

 

[fossyant]

Hybrids aren't as good on fuel as you think either. Many petrol and especially diesels are catching up on efficiency and the cost difference on purchase isn't worth it.

The Leaf is a seriously ugly car. You can get them for about £15k plus a monthly rental of the battery. Unless you have a long commute there aren't viable. Add on the hidden environmental cost of the battery production.