I’ve always wanted one, and it’s bloody exciting It’s really a toy I use for a few thousand miles a year and I love it. No turbos, no EPAS, RWD with a proper differential… we will not see it’s like again.
Most people, most of the time, don’t buy cars; they lease or PCP them. Regarding battery life - it’s good now and it’ll get better. Tesla have been selling the Model S for 7 years, and there’s good data to show that after ~200,000kms the battery retains >85% of it’s original capacity.
So yes, the electric cars will last at least as long as others - possibly longer as they are much more simple mechanically. By means of example, I worry that my V8 may spin the crankshaft because of a failed big end shell, or some 911 owners worry that the flat-6 will seize because of intermediate shaft failure. None of those parts exist in an electric motor. There’s no oil to change, no spark plugs…
Your experiences with a TV don’t seem relevant. The cars will get recycled when they’re no longer suitable for use as cars - indeed the battery packs are often reused for home energy storage. All products are becoming increasingly software defined, cars are no exception.
Apologies for the slight drift, but is this true? I’ve only ever bought, my parents have only ever bought, of all my friends I only know one on a PCP deal… I thought they (leasing, PCPs) were still the minority?
From 2017: “In the 12 months to March, 86.5 percent of new private cars were bought by consumers using finance supplied by members of the Finance and Leasing Association (FLA), up from 82.7 percent in the same period in 2016, the industry group said.”
that is obvious - but if you read @MattB’s comments he indicates that the cost of electricity to manufacture fuel for ICE is equal to that required for of a electric car.
the over budget costs of power plants is not linked to the electric car market
There are only 6 operational oil refineries in the UK as far as I can see, and I can’t see them using electricity to those suggested levels. It is worth remembering that crude oil is used for all manner of things not just fuel products, so even doing away with the fuel fractions which will still exist, unless we come up with some cheap wonder materials for bottles, food tubs/pots/packaging, phone casings, tablet casings, laptop casings, car interiors (unless we want to use wood and animal materials) and all the other things we have got used to, they will still run, so not creating the gap in electricity usage suggested. But it’s OK we can just dump or burn the lighter fractions we could use for fuel in countries that don’t matter, like all the other stuff we chuck away … out of sight is out of mind eh?
Perhaps not, but the costs have to be supported by the provider / construction company - the other main point was the rather large differential in pricing per unit:
…prices for new wind power delivered by 2025 were set at prices as low as £40 per megawatt hour. By comparison, power from Hinkley Point C is expected to cost £92.50 per megawatt hour.
Weren’t the financiers of Hinckley promised an OTT price to get them to cough up?
Mind you no worse than the billions given for windmill building.
Still a better generator in terms of physical footprint per MWh than windmills.
Not really, I see all the power generation / distribution / storage as linked to EVs. For example, compared to switching on another generator somewhere when everyone puts on the kettle in the advert break for Corrie, having thousands of high-drawing current EV cars charging early evening will be a very different situation.
It’s really a toy I use for a few thousand miles a year and I love it. No turbos, no EPAS, RWD with a proper differential… we will not see it’s like again.