Is electric really the answer?

[Kimbers]

36 minutes ago, ChrisJ said:

What @Kimbers has been saying.

 

Thanks Chris. Yes, absolutely. What he didn't mention when he quoted his settlement of £64,000 against the value of £30,000 is that he had already lost over £60,000 in less than 3 years (Bought for £120,000).

He's right. They are disposable like a phone. So expect to lose virtually all your money! Gone are the days where your car is the deposit for the next! Unless you buy an ICE for Diesel!

[ramjet]

What about if someone made a hydro-electric car?

That could fill up at either hydrgoen or electric outlets.

I'm a solver. There is no charge.

<also posted in the hydrogen thread>

[exeterjeep]

1 hour ago, ChrisJ said:

What @Kimbers has been saying.

In negative equity with it, not surprised typical Porsche owner?   What a long video repetitive and extended until he gets to any real points. 

At least he says DO NOT BUY AN EV..........not just Porsche.

[mdavies]

Breathe easier?  (In a few years.)  Volvo is placing a bet on it:

https://www.hl.co.uk/news/volvo-invests-in-taps-breathe-battery-tech-for-30-faster-ev-charging?utm_campaign=Newsroom&utm_source=AdobeCampaign&utm_medium=email&theSource=EONRM&e_cti=481268&e_ct=T&Override=1&deliveryName=DM159826

[Kimbers]

30% saving on charge time. (doesn't mention there are fewer than 3% of super fast chargers in the UK, most won't charge that speed) so instead of 45 minutes its 30 minutes. Still far too long when you can fill a normal car in 1 minute.

Edited March 12 by Bibs

[Sparky]

53 minutes ago, Kimbers said:

you can fill a normal car in 1 minute

Ever been to the US?  Time enough to clean your screen, take a leak, get a coffee and discover the cashier's life history.

[pete]

[Escape]

13 hours ago, ramjet said:

What about if someone made a hydro-electric car?

That could fill up at either hydrgoen or electric outlets.

I'm a solver. There is no charge.

<also posted in the hydrogen thread>

You could have a plug-in hybrid with a hydrogen fuel cell as a range extender. It's not even that far fetched, as the hydrogen fuel cell will produce electricity, used to drive an electric motor. And to cater for short power burst, a battery is typically provided to assist the fuel cell. This battery is later recharged by that same fuel cell when power demand is low. Increase the battery size so you have a somewhat useful range et voila, a hydrogen hybrid. I don't know of any in existence though, at least not commercially available. It was considered as an option for trains running on partly electrified lines. But they've recently all moved away from hydrogen, in favor of huge batteries (with limited range and prohibitive charging times). 

[ramjet]

I was thinking more along the lines of people would be able to say:

"I've got to stop and fill up the dam car again." (get it?)

Why doesn't someone make all horizontal surfaces from efficient solar cells. Since cars can be made with airflow through the body of the car, why not funnel the moving air past fans connected to small motors that assist with electricity to the battery.

Instead of the souless front end that you see on cars like Teslas, have a grill again and have the air serve two purposes. 1) Again, like the airflow through the car, through fans in the now functional grill area to assist with charging. 2) Airflow across the battery or drive motors to keep them cool. 

You've already got regenerative braking. I presume that functions on declines as well, where the cruise control slows the vehicle so that it doesn't speed?

Induction panels built into the roads at traffic lights. A system that functions like an automatic toll road hoozywotsit and you get a bill at the end of each month with your charge amount. You have the ability to EASILY turn the function off though if you do not need to use it. i.e Nipping down to the shops and then home again. If an iPhone can charge wirelessly, I'm quite certain it could be done with cars. May not even have to be buried in the road. Build it into freeway barriers and your car charges as it passes through a zone. I'm just not sure of the effect on your health from travelling through induction fields.

[LotusLeftLotusRight]

Yeah, I often wonder why a hybrid or electric car cannot top up its charge via the sun. Either solar cells in the roof of the vehicle or just a portable solar charger for when your car is parked outside. When not in use, my hybrid just sits on the driveway. In the summer it gets roasting hot inside, so must be exposed to plenty of solar energy. I am sure it sunnier climates, it would make even more sense. It might not charge a battery to 300 miles range, but maybe enough to fill a hybrid battery or get you to and from work for free.

[Kimbers]

Solar cells just aren't efficient enough to put any meaningful charge in, though they could "keep a charge" like a trickle charger whilst standing. But then you have to contend with additional weight, disipating the heat they create on the roof of the car etc.

My neighbour has his Charger linked to a battery linked to his solar panels. I thought that was a great idea! Free electric! Till he told me it Costs £8400 as a package (the price of a decent ICE car) and that he only gets one full charge a week out of the battery.....at most. 

[webfoot]

The Fisker Ocean does have solar panels.  Some details in this video @ 3:25

 

Doesn't really seem worth it (in this country).

[C8RKH]

16 hours ago, webfoot said:

The Fisker Ocean does have solar panels

Only on the top of the range model and good luck getting your car insurance to cover that if it gets damage. Many car insurance policies already do not cover glass roofs in their "glass cover". Fisker estimates that if you park it in the sun, and live in California, you might get 1200 miles of solar power each year.

[C8RKH]

On 12/03/2024 at 10:55, DarrylV8 said:

we’ve lost a fair few coal power stations locally dare I say thanks too Mrs Thatcher

I think you'll find that Mr. Scargill did a lot more damage than Mrs. Thatcher. Scargill, the trumped up "socialist" who tried to claim ownership and exclusive use of a London Apartment paid for by the subscriptions of miners, even years after he had been kicked out. Pure scum in my irrelevant opinion.

Thatcher was no angel, but she had the guts to try to drive through much needed changes during a period when the country was being held to ransom, and condemned to some of the worst productivity stats, especially in the nationalised industries and public sector, by the then all powerful and militant "super" unions.

[ChrisJ]

16 hours ago, webfoot said:

The Fisker Ocean does have solar panels

You better hurry if you want one

https://invezz.com/news/2024/03/13/fisker-stock-crashed-on-bankruptcy-news/

 

[Kimbers]

And another company claiming EV is the way to go....... goes.

[C8RKH]

There's going to be several more I predict.

The economic model, the market conditions, and customer enthusiasm are all bit headwinds.

[Kimbers]

Just seen KIA and Peugeot have finally admitted defeat. Peugeot are dropping their prices on EV's and bringing out a Hydrogen Van and Kia have gone down a different route and offering their EV6 at £320pm (down from £550).

But it doesn't change the underlying fact that they are still more expensive to buy and run than an ICE car and less useable day to day.

[ramjet]

What could this mean for Lotus after having gone down the all EV path as well?

[Escape]

Let's hope this plan forced on by their 'saviours' doesn't do Lotus more harm than good. Maybe they'll see the light and we'll get at least one more generation of ICE sports cars. I can't deny I'm still hoping for/ dreaming of a new Esprit.

[DarrylV8]

V10 powered Evija anyone?

[Bibs]

As EV's fall out of favour, Lotus like any other OEM can adjust their course to the next trend. Cars have finite lifetimes to recoup the investment and turn a profit and I'm sure EV's will be around long enough for that with Lotus, then onto the next government led environmental fad.

[C8RKH]

It's not easy to pivot, especially a second time, with something as large as this. Let's be honest, the pivot to Electric has cost Lotus (well, Geely to be exact) several hundred million, if not more,and has taken 5 years.

To pivot back could cost the same, and take the same amount of time, again.

When you look at the corporate level, the time, focus and cost to Geely of an incorrect strategy at Polestar, Lotus etc could be the end. 

It was a hasty and dumb strategy to kill off three cars, replace them with one, and then "hope" that electric was the right way to go. They probably paid a big 6 management accountancy/consultancy firm a huge fee for that "strategy". 🤔

[DarrylV8]

But at what cost to the British taxpayer, one knee jerk reaction onto the next one, to quote an old saying (I’m sure the younger generation on here will have a trendier saying) “couldn’t organise a pi*s up in a brewery if they owned the brewery”.

[Bibs]

Most OEM's will be doing the same, following whichever trends are current or planned. We used to all drive saloons then hatchbacks became a things, there were once MPV's and now it's SUV's. We, the consumers end up paying of course and while those changes were market led and today's are more policy led it's not an industry that stands still for long when their competitors accept the changes.