Electric cars

[John Ratsey]

Glad I went for a hybrid!

An EV makes sense for commuters who do a regular fairly low mileage that can be replenished by charging at home each night using cheap electricity and also for those with less regular but low to medium distance drives and have surplus power from solar panels.

For those with longer journeys or with no home charging then the hybrid drivetrain provides both better efficiency from the engine and many of the driving benefits of an EV. The hybrid also avoids the EV's range anxiety problem. I reckon that some more tweaking (in particular addressing the cold weather problem) and a bigger battery could further improve the efficiency.

Last week I went away for a few days holiday. I worked out the total distance in advance which, at about 470 miles, was well within the range of my Crosstar (my best distance between refills is 550 miles with several litres still in the tank) so I started with a full tank and refilled when I got home and no need to spend time topping up during the holiday. One thing Honda got right with the Mk. 4 Jazz was not shrinking the fuel tank.

[Kenneve]

Totally agree with your sentiments John.

[Lord Voltermore]

I wonder if battery technology will ever  reach the point  where those able to charge at home  (and there are many who cant)  would be able to charge a home based storage battery 24/7  using solar panels . This battery could then charge the car   without having to pay anything to windfall tax dodgers. 

Or universal batteries where you literally   plug in a new one  at any filling station on an exchange basis, leaving one behind for recharging. Like a calor gas cylinder. 
 

I did read  a while ago of a portable battery that could give EV's a few extra miles of range.  But IIRC it was only about 20 miles or so, and it was the size of a suitcase.  And cost thousands  - they were trying to market them on a  leasing deal. . They did exist,  but probably  never a viable idea. At least with todays battery technology.

Lots of reasons why not.   Perhaps I shall go and invent one, and let some of my wealth trickle down to the minions.       If I inspire you to make your fortune, remember you heard it from me first and I dont mind being generously trickled on. 

[Wilmo]

There is a Sweden car maker who has exactly that system, can't remember the name.
When the battery gets low you go to their facility and an automatic system drops out the old battery pack and loads a fully charged replacement in a matter of minutes.
No waiting for hours at expense charge points to top up if you can find one.

My first electric car came from Scalextric the next will be the hearse.

[Jocko]

I wonder if battery technology will ever  reach the point  where those able to charge at home  (and there are many who cant)  would be able to charge a home based storage battery 24/7  using solar panels . This battery could then charge the car   without having to pay anything to windfall tax dodgers. 

That has been on the go for a while. I remember Robert Llewellyn on the "Fully Charged" site with his Tesla Powerwall battery system fed by solar panels to keep the car charged and provide energy when required for the house.

[Jocko]

[John Ratsey]

I did read  a while ago of a portable battery that could give EV's a few extra miles of range.  But IIRC it was only about 20 miles or so, and it was the size of a suitcase.  And cost thousands  - they were trying to market them on a  leasing deal. . They did exist,  but probably  never a viable idea. At least with todays battery technology.

The battery pack in the Mk 4 Jazz is in that size range but only holds 1 kWh of charge. I think much of the bulk is due to the thermal management measures to keep the battery cells at a comfortable temperature. However, this problem is probably exacerbated by having a high kW rating with a low kWh capacity. If the kWh is doubled (which would give the Jazz several miles of extra range on battery) then, for the same kW, the demands on each cell will be halved and the overall thermal management problem is unchanged.

[Neil Ives]

.... I dont mind being generously trickled on.

[Lord Voltermore]

Did anyone watch "electric cars - which one should you buy"  on channel 5 the other night?  (available as catch up on my5) 

I didnt like the format  , usual emphasis on £1 million super cars , £150K mercedes, prototype extreme off roader etc.  But it did feature a couple of family EV's and the Honda E. Albeit the E was put through a childish obstacle course.   The presenter was very impressed with the E. 

[embee]

Yes, unfortunately it was the now usual childish OMG superficial popcorn trivia that we can now expect of popular media......... otherwise an OK prog.
Again they simply quoted manufacturers range figures rather than actually doing any tests, and totally ignored energy usage (miles/kWh) and effective emissions resulting from power generation (gas fired power stations, CO2). It is generally implied that EVs are totally "clean".
The technology is improving rapidly, but the upfront cost is still eye-watering.
They did briefly broach the topic of manufacturers possibly producing low cost basic spec EV city cars, properly basic transport. That would interest me. Trouble is the profit margins are small so little incentive.

[Jocko]

They did briefly broach the topic of manufacturers possibly producing low cost basic spec EV city cars, properly basic transport. That would interest me. Trouble is the profit margins are small so little incentive.

What we need is the EV version of the Ford Popular. These cheap, no-frills cars worked once and will probably come into their own again. If China can sell them for £8K why cannot we get them?

[Lord Voltermore]

Tata Tiago EV    $10,000  (I'd convert it to £'s but is there any point?  )  .     Only available in India
range only 250 km (155 miles) or 315 km (195 miles) with larger battery option.   

As the video says the Tiago has  "lots of Gismos to play around with ".   Some economies have been made, such as steel wheels with plastic hub caps, and possibly some things that are a legal requirement in Europe.

But its shows that EV prices could drop if european  buyers had an option to do with out some unecessary 'luxuries'. 

[Jocko]

possibly some things that are a legal requirement in Europe.

I wonder just how much rear seat belts and a rear fog lamp cost to add on.

[John Ratsey]

Tata Tiago EV    $10,000  (I'd convert it to £'s but is there any point?  )  .     Only available in India
range only 250 km (155 miles) or 315 km (195 miles) with larger battery option.   

Successor to the Tata Nano which didn't sell as well as expected despite the very attractive price tag https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tata_Nano ?

[madasafish]

Almost certainly would not meet EU safety standards.