Would you have an electric car if you had the money for a new car and were in the market for one?

[Slenver]

I'm deffo having an EV next as the tax giveaway here is gargantuan

I think I'll wait until they're good enough that the government doesn't have to bribe me (with my own money) to buy one.

Did you also refuse to buy your kids clothes and shoes because of the government no-VAT bribe?

[Dodgy]

I'm deffo having an EV next as the tax giveaway here is gargantuan

Out of interest, if they're that encouraging, what's the charging infrastructure like? Can't imagine there's much in between the cities once you go west a bit!

It's OK on major routes. But like most Aussies, 95% of our driving is in one metro area. So 400km range is totally fine for that. We only have one car at the moment and that's not worth much so would probably keep it for longer distance stuff/holidays anyway, and just use the EV for city

[Dodgy]

I'm deffo having an EV next as the tax giveaway here is gargantuan

I think I'll wait until they're good enough that the government doesn't have to bribe me (with my own money) to buy one.

If it was only a small saving I probably wouldn't bother, but it's ludicrously generous (and therefore won't last). No VAT, plus can buy through my business and write the lot off (including a generous running costs allowance) as a business cost without having to account for % personal use, which I currently struggle to get higher than 20% (with allowable expenses pro-rata'ed on that basis).

[Saga Lout]

Did you also refuse to buy your kids clothes and shoes because of the government no-VAT bribe?

The government NOT taking your money is not the same as the government GIVING you money.

[Slenver]

Did you also refuse to buy your kids clothes and shoes because of the government no-VAT bribe?

The government NOT taking your money is not the same as the government GIVING you money.

When do they give you money? Confused now.

And wouldn't the moral situation be exactly the same anyway?

[ZRX61]

AV Scanner News - Page
·
Transit Alert
Tomorrow, the AVTA will suspend all transportation services using MCI D45 battery-electric commuter coaches. The AVTA will reimburse riders for this month’s commuter passes.
The advisory is in effect beginning:
April 9
Affected areas include:
Commuter services to downtown Los Angeles, Century City, San Fernando Valley and the TRANSporter to Santa Clarita. This includes routes 785, 786, 787 and 790.
The suspension does not affect AVTA’s local service or the agency’s use of any BYD zero-emission battery electric buses.
AVTA prioritizes the safety of its passengers and employees and assures commuters that service will resume as soon as possible.
Please contact AVTA customer service at 661/945-9445 or check AVTA’s website at https://www.avta.com for updates.

I guess they finally figured out it was time to investigate why the damn things keep catching fire on the local freeway...

[Taipan]

I see Mercedes have decided to continue with ICE production due to slowing demand for EV vehicles.

STUTTGART, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Mercedes-Benz on Thursday delayed its electrification goal by five years and assured investors it would keep sprucing up its combustion engine models, becoming the latest carmaker to flag a weaker-than-expected appetite for battery-powered cars.
The company now expects sales of electrified vehicles, including hybrids, to account for up to 50% of the total by 2030 - five years later than its forecast from 2021, when it aimed to hit the 50% milestone by 2025 with mostly all-electric cars.
Kaellenius said Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE), opens new tab wanted customers and investors to know it was well-positioned to carry on producing combustion engine cars and was ready to update the technology well into next decade.
Its current plans for updates mean "it is almost like we will have a new lineup in 2027 that will take us well into the 2030s," Kaellenius said.
Shares in the luxury carmaker were up 5.9% following the news, also supported by a 3 billion euro ($3.3 billion) share buyback programme unveiled late on Wednesday.

[Mr. Dazzle]

EV sales in UK were at a record high last month and showed the second biggest year-on-year growth of any fuel type (biggest being hybrids). Diesel deffo out of favour though.

S'like I said before - slowing down from crazy levels of growth to merely strong/pretty good is somehow being considered a failure

https://www.smmt.co.uk/2024/04/march-ne ... ed-demand/

[ZRX61]

https://www.breitbart.com/economy/2024/ ... -vehicles/

The latest polling from Gallup shows that public support for transitioning to electric vehicles (EVs) has dropped by quite a lot since 2023.

Normal People are not surprised by this.

“Seven percent of Americans, up from 4% a year ago, report that they own an electric vehicle,” reports Gallup.

BUT.

“That increase is matched by an equal decline in the percentage saying they are seriously considering buying one, from 12% to 9%.”

“Meanwhile, fewer Americans — 35%, down from 43% in 2023 — say they might consider buying an EV in the future,” the report adds. “Thus, even as some people have moved ahead with their intent to buy an EV in the past year, public demand for the cars has contracted.”

And here’s where things get really ugly…

“Less than half of adults, 44%, now say they are either seriously considering or might consider buying an EV … down from 55% in 2023[.]”

Those who never intend to buy an EV jumped from 41 to 48 percent.

This fairly dramatic change occurred over a single year. Generally, a movement of this size occurs over several years, not one.

So what changed?

Well, the idea of owning an EV is much more appealing than the reality. With the help of the corrupt corporate media, the Biden administration put the pedal to the metal to create a bandwagon effect around the EV, mainly as a way to distract people from Biden’s sky-high gas prices. For a while, it worked. Everyone gave the EV serious thought. This increased purchases and interest. What likely happened from there, between 2023 and 2024, is that people began to research EVs and discovered the truth about how impractical they are.

First, there’s the upfront cost to purchase an EV. Maintenance can cost a lot more if you need a repair. The weight of an EV eats through tires faster, and tires are not cheap. Finally, there’s the risk and inconvenience. You always have to worry about finding a charging station, then you have to worry if the station is operable, then you have to worry if there’s a line, then you have to wait around for about an hour for your vehicle to charge.

What is the upside?

Personally, I don’t see it.

If you have the money, an EV is a nice status symbol.

No one will be surprised that something else Gallup found is that EVs are more attractive to those who make six-figure incomes.

If you have a regular commute that doesn’t deviate, an EV might make sense because you know you will make it back home to plug back in before you run out of juice.

Nevertheless, and by design, my life is as routine as it gets, but over the weekend, I had to drive seven hours to and fro for an appearance on Timcast IRL. The drive was exhausting enough without having to worry about finding a charging station. The drive was long enough without having to wait for a charge.

EVs make no sense to me, and I don’t see how they help the environment when most of the electricity used to charge them comes from burning fossil fuels—not that I believe the whole Climate Change argument.

The EV sales boom is tapering off because pretty much everyone who wanted an EV purchased one. I don’t see the EV becoming mainstream until charging is as fast and convenient as gassing up.

[Mr. Dazzle]

https://www.breitbart.com/economy/2024/ ... -vehicles/
With the help of the corrupt corporate media, the Biden administration put the pedal to the metal to create a bandwagon effect around the EV, mainly as a way to distract people from Biden’s sky-high gas prices.

Pretty smart of Biden to start doing that before he was even president, even more impressive that he was able to do it in China and the EU.

The needle once again swings away from "senile old fool" and back into "master conspirator".

[Taipan]

EV sales in UK were at a record high last month and showed the second biggest year-on-year growth of any fuel type (biggest being hybrids). Diesel deffo out of favour though.

S'like I said before - slowing down from crazy levels of growth to merely strong/pretty good is somehow being considered a failure

https://www.smmt.co.uk/2024/04/march-ne ... ed-demand/

It must be a significant enough trend for Mercedes to change their policies and plans!! That amount of change for a major manufacturer will not be a decision taken lightly or without enough evidence to support it! I note BMW are also not committing to a deadline for ICE now. I suspect the current sales are based on the trend to switch but I think its faltering because of the lack of infrastructure and the non achievement of manufacturers claims and declining residuals. Time will tell...

[Mr. Dazzle]

They haven't really changed their plans though...they always said they'd be only electric "where market conditions allow". Continuing production of ICE cars costs them very little.

This announcement is just designed to reassure share holders that, yes, we are going to keep selling profit making cars to keep them dividends rolling.

Meanwhile they're still spending billions every year on EV development. You don't do that if you think they're not going to sell.

Rival firm BMW announced today they're partnering with Rimac on EV tech.

[Horse]

It must be a significant enough trend for Mercedes to change their policies and plans!! That amount of change for a major manufacturer ...

.

STUTTGART, Feb 22 (Reuters) - keep sprucing up its combustion engine models,

'Sprucing up' is vastly different to the massive investment and effort of launching a new model.

[Taipan]

It must be a significant enough trend for Mercedes to change their policies and plans!! That amount of change for a major manufacturer ...

.

STUTTGART, Feb 22 (Reuters) - keep sprucing up its combustion engine models,

'Sprucing up' is vastly different to the massive investment and effort of launching a new model.

Putting a v8 back into a c63 works for me! 4 pot c63

[Mussels]

It must be a significant enough trend for Mercedes to change their policies and plans!! That amount of change for a major manufacturer ...

.

'Sprucing up' is vastly different to the massive investment and effort of launching a new model.

Putting a v8 back into a c63 works for me! 4 pot c63

I was thinking about what to buy next and decided it's either going to be a non-turbo manual V8 or something cheap that runs on fossil fuels, possibly a mild hybrid. The TD Jag has taught me that fast can also be dull, on paper it's as good or better than the V8 Jeep I had but in the real world the Jeep was always better to drive.
If electric cars were good to drive then I could overlook many shortcomings but I've never heard anyone speak positively about them in that way.

[Horse]

The TD Jag has taught me that fast can also be dull, on paper it's as good or better than the V8 Jeep I had but in the real world the Jeep was always better to drive.

I never had 'fast' (as in 'sports') bikes. Half the fun for me was in riding something inappropriate quickly [Others' definitions of quick might not have applied to me. I rarely went into 3 figures]

If electric cars were good to drive then I could overlook many shortcomings but I've never heard anyone speak positively about them in that way.

Try a couple?

The only ones I've driven were a Leaf (meh) and Ampera hybrid. The Ampera was ok for taking 3 of us on a 2 day work trip, including one colleague working in the back (laptop), then sleeping. But that's not your criteria ...

[Taipan]

'Sprucing up' is vastly different to the massive investment and effort of launching a new model.

Putting a v8 back into a c63 works for me! 4 pot c63

I was thinking about what to buy next and decided it's either going to be a non-turbo manual V8 or something cheap that runs on fossil fuels, possibly a mild hybrid. The TD Jag has taught me that fast can also be dull, on paper it's as good or better than the V8 Jeep I had but in the real world the Jeep was always better to drive.
If electric cars were good to drive then I could overlook many shortcomings but I've never heard anyone speak positively about them in that way.

I imagine they have good linear grunt and are pretty damn quick. But a n/a 6.2 V8 C63 is always going to have more feel to it!

[Saga Lout]

EV sales in UK were at a record high last month and showed the second biggest year-on-year growth of any fuel type (biggest being hybrids). Diesel deffo out of favour though.

S'like I said before - slowing down from crazy levels of growth to merely strong/pretty good is somehow being considered a failure

https://www.smmt.co.uk/2024/04/march-ne ... ed-demand/

You can spin the statistics several ways, here are two of them:.

#1 EV sales are at an all time high, up almost 4% year on year
#2 EV market share has fallen. Market increased 10%, EV sales only rose by 4%

Lies, damn lies... etc.

[Slenver]

If electric cars were good to drive then I could overlook many shortcomings but I've never heard anyone speak positively about them in that way.

Depends how you mean really. If you're comparing them to a traditional sports car then they lack the emotion of course, as much as anything down to lack of noise!

But I couldn't possibly say my wife's Q4 was not 'good to drive'... it's excellent to drive. It's just a mid-size SUV really, but handles a lot better than an ICE equivalent because the CoG is so low. Power/speed/torque is indecent for what it is, and noise levels and general refinement are well into high-end luxury car areas. I had people in the back the other day at 120 and was able to hold a conversation from front to back without raising my voice... below motorway speeds it's all but silent.

I'm an old-skool petrol head. My own car is a manual, RWD, N/A 911, so I kind of wanted to hate the Q4. I thought it'd be dull and sterile, and obviously it is compared to my car. But as an everyday thing to waft around in, there's no going back to ICE really. If you think of it like a little luxury SUV that happens to have the grunt of a massive V8 but in total silence and yet costs pennies to run, then what's not to like?

[Slenver]

I imagine they have good linear grunt and are pretty damn quick. But a n/a 6.2 V8 C63 is always going to have more feel to it!

Big time, and I'd choose the 6.2 V8 much of the time, money no object.

But the V8 will do 18mpg, whereas something electric with similar performance will cost the equivalent of maybe 200mpg. I know which I'd rather drive, but I also know which one I'd rather pay for