Most liked posts in thread: UK Energy Needs

Your charging time is where it all starts to fall down, it’s totally impractical. I’ve got a 2020 BMW 320d and does about 40mpg but vast amount of that is city driving. Of course you will beat me on cost per mile. My argument is initial cost, practicality and servicing. Most of the EV purchase prices are pricing people out. The practical side, takes 3 mins to fill my car up, takes hours and hours for an EV, the infrastructure is not readily available and is slow. Servicing, you’re not telling me with the amount of torque an electric car has that you won’t be ripping through tyres for fun? Oh and forgot more costs, the insane insurance quotes. Look to get a Tesla in a fairly nice part of Leeds, just under a grand. My beemer is £410. I’d say in five years it might start to be more affordable and more practical for the normal working person, but at the moment it’s still very much work in progress and expensive.

 

First service due after two years, UNLIMITED mileage Cost £170
Brakes one check at 150,000 miles
I have my own 7.2kw charger on my drive, I don’t need to queue and it charges when I’m asleep. So ZERO inconvenience.
My car has covered 7k miles and worn less than 1mm tread.
On board technology prevents wheel spin, I haven’t spun it once. And I drive faster than most.
It cost LESS to insure than my 18 plate TRoC did costing £10k LESS. ( Too many automatic safety systems on board )
It isn’t a Tesla, which is an overpriced US car and poorly built

All your comments, born out assumptions and mis-information, clearly, negated with facts.

 

I have had a plug in hybrid for nearly 3 years now. It's ok. Claims 41 miles on a full charge and most I have ever managed is 20 driving with the touch of a butterfly. The transition between the 2 drive modes can be clunky and unpleasant. Not sure which way I will go next. It has always surprised me no one has made an EV with a tiny supplementary petrol engine, say 300cc and 40mph. Just enough to rake away the anxiety of being stranded out of charge.
However if you haven't already done so google Trevor Jackson and his aluminium ion batteries. When I last heard him on the radio he reckoned his technology was about ready but the contractual obligations of the big car companies to the lithium battery manufacturers was holding him back. Tbh I don't know how close it is to reality but see if you can find the vudeo of him drinking the electrolyte out of one of his batteries to prove it's safe

 

Ditto

 

I'm guessing something may have changed in the last week or so, but a couple of weeks ago the CEO of Quadrilla was on the radio saying that despite what some ministers and others were saying in the media, his company had received no contact whatsoever and were still under directive to cap the existing wells

 

Haven't they just had the deadline for capping extended rather than uncap anything? The moratorium on actually using them is still in place

 

and I've now learned Quadrilla is spelled Cuadrilla

 

Without seeing the footage my guess would be that he is referring to the 3 current wells but the ban on extraction etc is still in place.

 

The principle for this is bang on. Unfortunately the only ones who benefit from it are either the companies rich enough to be able to invest in it or individuals with enough exposeable income to buy into it over the long term. These wind turbines are gold mines for investment companies, I know someone involved with the installation of them and the profits they make for those lucky enough to be involved are fantastic. Shame that low cost energy is not passed down the chain to those desperately in need of it. It's a cleaner energy for the planet but we as energy users don't see the benefit.

 

I haven't been to Sotland in about 8 years but what do they actually do with this?

I'd kind of assumed that they just had their windfarms in their vast open spaces but do they actually have them inner city?

 

Apparently so:

"Dr David Toke, from the University of Aberdeen, said: “As you go from England to Scotland by road or rail you will notice a definite increase in the use of land close to transport corridors for windfarms. "

 

I read that bit but is it actually true or just his opinion? Anybody been to Scotland and noticed a difference or have any photos of what they do?

Would thise travel corridors class as brownfield sites anyway?

 

I think they're talking about the kind of, often run down, industrial areas that often border rail lines etc. I'd have thought they are the epitome of what is meant by a brownfield site.

 

Possibly. It would be interesting - and probably crucial to the debate - to find out if that is the reality.

 

What makes you doubt it?

 

Because I've never seen any reference to it previously except in this one singular quote and can't find anything to substantiate it, either online or from a person who has seen a noticeable difference on that journey.

I agree with you. It sounds a good idea in theory but would like to know more actual details on how it works in practice.

 

I once worked on a farmhouse refurb in York and two airsource pumps were fitted with underfloor heating throughout, the insulation on the house cost circa £50,000 to make it viable. Plus it needed a plant room to house manifolds etc for the heating zones