Could you go electric ?

[bungeejumper]

According to the news this morning, 14 year olds can drive this.

Most of the 14 year olds I know are hoping to be 15 years old one day.

At last, a worthy successor to the recumbent bike in the urban mortality stakes. So how would you reckon its visibility around the front end of a 44 tonner at the traffic lights? I mean, unlike a cyclist, you can't even jump off if it starts to look dangerous.

BJ

[UncleIan]

Battery life and cost.....

Well I'm sorry that's the killer. You need to think about it like buying all your fuel every 8-10 years and lump the battery cost in with the electricity to do a fair comparison. A new battery for a leaf is of the order of £6k. I believe most owners lease at aprox £70pcm.

£840 a year is over 150 gallons of fuel (and was 180 gallons not too long ago). That's at least 6000 miles in most small cars (more if it is a diesel).

So once you hit that level, you're about at break even if you charge on free sources, or with another £120 on electricity (2p per mile for 6000 miles) which would get the infernal combustion car another 860 miles so nearly 7000 miles pa for financial breakeven on fuel costs.

There's an irony then, it appears I don't do enough miles for an electric car, or it's breakeven. So you need to do enough for the battery cost to work out less than petrol cost, but not so many that you start worrying about range...hmmm.

[Urbandreamer]

There's an irony then, it appears I don't do enough miles for an electric car, or it's breakeven. So you need to do enough for the battery cost to work out less than petrol cost, but not so many that you start worrying about range...hmmm.

It is indeed an irony. Although there may be other reasons than financial for decisions. I have, for example, heared of people using battery vehicles because of the distance to the nearest petrol station. Others would pay a penalty (congestion charge) for a IC car. Yet others wish to use the electricity produced by their PV rather than sell it to the grid.

BTW this months E&T mag is using "The car of the future" as a theme. Lot's of interesting stuff.
https://eandt.theiet.org/

In particular
https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articl ... s-of-2017/

I should also let you all know that a battery car finished the paris-dakar.
https://electrek.co/2017/01/16/all-elec ... y-acciona/

[DrFfybes]

I should also let you all know that a battery car finished the paris-dakar.
https://electrek.co/2017/01/16/all-elec ... y-acciona/

That is an amazing achievement, and probably an interesting read.

Unfortunately the first 2 paragraphs put me off the article and by the time I'd got to the term "gas guzzling" in line 5 I realised it was going to be written with huge bias and agenda so didn't read any further.

Paul