Electric cars.

[Retired]

Hi,

Just a quick message to say Bron and I are keeping our Skoda Yeti SE L 2.0L diesel as long as possible unless it starts to cost a lot in repairs; we love our Yeti.

This is funny just now but give it ten years?

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[Silentrunning]

I don’t know how it is in the UK but here in the USA if every family bought an electric car, our electric grid would be so overwhelmed it would probably collapse. Also, those cars are extremely limited in extreme weather conditions.

 

[Retired]

Hi,

Thanks Doug. It's just the same here in the UK. It's all getting so silly; if we have a severe winter we have power cuts so how could we ever cope with millions of electric cars plugging into the national grid; during prolonged power cuts how can the average electric car be charged up. I believe a while ago some owners of Tesla cars were locked out of their car because of a problem at Tesla.

Here in the UK we have a top speed limit of 70 mph so why are car manufacturers still making cars that will do 200mph with huge engines; surely putting a limit on engine size would make a big difference without all the complications of battery power;.

Electric cars are expensive and it appears these cars will now have a shelf life because when the battery finally dies it won't be economical to replace the battery because a new battery assuming if available will cost more than the car is worth. Cars are now going the same way as white goods; our previous washing machine had its circuit board fail; cost of new circuit board £100 + £35 fitting charge; brand new washing machine £190 (BEKO). We bought the new washing machine. Cars will soon be regarded as disposable items which is great for the environment. (NOT).

We watched a YouTube video where a guy had a ten year old Nissan Leaf electric car; fully charged its range was around 18 miles; it reminds me of the old dairy electric milk floats limping back to depot after deliveries at snail pace.

I'm now 74 so aren't worried too much about going electric; we'll hang on to our diesel Skoda Yeti unless it starts to cost a great deal in repairs but having said this the Yeti will be six years old in April and to trade in now against a similar spec car we'd have to pay around £17,000 cash; an whole lot of spares can be bought for this amount and as a bonus our Yeti now costs less each passing year in depreciation in fact I can see a point when it starts to increase in value as a classic car because Yeti owners tend to love their car as we do. I no longer touch our car for servicing or repairs just leaving it to the main dealer; I owned my own garage business in my early twenties and could take a car to bits with a handful of spanners; the only electronic kit I ever owned at the time was a Dwell meter for the points and a Stroboscope to set the timing; now everything is electronic I daren't touch the car regards maintenance and it's getting worse each coming year as more electronic gizmos are added to cars.

I do like electric motors and must be one of very few to have physically handled over one million motors of all sizes in my last job of 24 years at an electric motor manufacturing company; I like the simplicity of electric motors compared to an internal combustion engine but I detest aything relying totally upon a battery even a torch annoys me because of the number of times I've needed to use a torch to find its battery discharged.

Our UK coal mines closed years ago so now what are we faced with;

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-59939879

If people do switch to electric cars then how will the government rip the motorist off in order to replace fuel tax; charge so much per mile?

Why can't we go back to keeping it simple?

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[Silentrunning]

During the summer I drive my 1993 Ford F-250. During the winter I drive my 2000 Jeep Cherokee. I don’t drive my Ford during the winter because it is in pristine condition and I want to keep it that way. If you properly maintain a vehicle there is no reason for it not to go 500,000 miles. My Jeep has 215,000 miles and runs perfectly.
For some reason our government is hell bent on converting to electric vehicles. They plan in a few years to not allow banks to finance petrol cars. They will still be available but you will have to pay cash.
I know when I go out on a fire call I want to know my truck will have all the power I need for as long as I need it.

 

[Retired]

Hi,

WOW Doug that's some Tonka Toy; you must spend all day just polishing it. Thanks for the picture.

I fully agree with you Doug; maintain a vehicle correctly and it's going to last and be a pleasure to own and drive. Our cars are now main dealer looked after; they have all the up to date information and proper tooling as well as genuine parts. Modern vehicles are too technical to mess around with and to do this could result in huge repair bills.

You've got some decent motors in your Ford & Jeep; fuel over here is very expensive indeed compared to what you pay in America; our 2.0L diesel Yeti easily does 50mpg but once warmed up will do over 60mpg; it's cheap to run but it's the best car we've ever owned; it's a keeper. It's now covered 28,500 happy miles.

When it warms up this year and the Yeti completely dries out I'm going to do as much rust proofing as I can including insides of doors and cills. I wash and polish it on a regular basis and I ensure all drain holes are clear; normally I go around with the oil can oiling hinges but I've just bought three spray cans of lubricant with a fine tube so these should make oiling easier and more thorough. At the last service the Yeti had the cambelt and water pump replaced together with full service and MOT at a cost of over £800 but having paid this we can enjoy it for another year. The only other expenditure has been a set of Michelin Cross Climate tyres at £600; the original summer tyres were fine so I sold these; it's very hilly living here so good tyres are a must; also the battery was replaced at a cost of over £280; this is expensive for a car battery but our Yeti has the automatic stop/start function so a special battery is needed and the battery needs coding to the car; for every journey I switch off the stop/start function it being the only thing I dislike; as I say it's pays to let the main dealer look after it; I've played around with cars enough and prefer to do other things these days like learning to play my violins.

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[He who knows]

If people do switch to electric cars then how will the government rip the motorist off in order to replace fuel tax; charge so much per mile?

They could do that.

Or...

Think about what one they-don't-talk-about-that reason for wanting people to have smart meters is. They aren't putting all that effort into getting people to have them so that the people too thick to already know to turn off things they aren't using will be prompted to turn them off. No - as well as giving suppliers much more fine-grained control over power cuts (i.e. rationing) they introduce the potential for meters to know what appliances are being used, and what they are using,and it becomes very simple to charge more for EV-charging electricity than lighting.

 

[He who knows]

I fully agree with you Doug; maintain a vehicle correctly and it's going to last and be a pleasure to own and drive.

Before my current car I had two Renault Scenics - both from new, both properly and professionally serviced, neither abused.

Neither made it to 100K before (auto) gearbox failure.

 

[Retired]

Hi,
Thanks He who knows. Whichever way the government rips we motorist off we'll lose out as usual; a few years ago the government wanted motorists in diesel cars because these were better for the environment; lots of motorists swapped to diesel cars then the government changed their mind; perhaps they'll also change their mind when electricity runs out; it's going to take more than a DeWalt petrol generator to supply power for millions of cars. Electricity needs to be generated and the only reliable free energy is tidal?

We often drive out and see lots of the wind turbines decorating the landscape just sitting there doing nothing. We won't have solar panels on our roof; all we want on our roof are tiles and flashing.

Automatic gearbox failure on two Scenics; I think after the first failure I'd have dumped Renault; it's over 45 years since I last drove an automatic it being a big Jag; my late father years ago owned a Daimler with fluid flywheel which took a bit of getting used to. Did you part with the Renaults or carry on running them and apart from gearbox falure were both in good condition?

Modern cars though are generally much better than the cars of say the sixties at least their body doesn't drop off due to rust. Our Yeti is manual gearbox but only has 28,500 miles on it so it should last for many years to come; we bought the Yeti brand new so know it hasn't been abused or suffered any major faults; we'd like another brand new Yeti if ever they get reintroduced but possibly be put off by Skoda building in even more electronics we don't need. Cars aren't just transport these days they are mission control; our Yeti has functions on it that I'm not even aware of; just trying to read the "Infotainment" instructions puts me to sleep and I never use it; I don't even agree with phones being used in cars whether hands free or not.

There are many differing opinions on YouTube regarding EV's.

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[He who knows]

1st one was a company car, which I bought from the leasing company when I was made redundant, as the price was good, and it was a simple way to keep on motoring. Gearbox went bad on my watch - got it repaired by an independent auto-box specialist, but he warned that it wouldn't last indefinitely. Predictably the "we should change the car" had got no further than the "we should change the car" stage a year or two later when the fault returned. I could not in all conscience sell it privately, so I traded it at one of those places that were doing the (popular at the time) thing of buying cars to UK spec from dealers in France, Belgium, etc, where they were a lot cheaper than in the UK, shipping them over and selling them on. They neither asked about faults nor test drove it, just eyeballed it (and it was in good condition and I had given it a really good valet-level clean that morning), checked the service record and made me an offer. I haggled a little bit, so as not to look suspicious, and the deal was done.

We really liked the Scenic, so we got another one, assuming that we'd just been unlucky the first time. When the same fault developed (it started with a very occasional happening, which gradually got more frequent) we didn't hang about, but got shot. Again traded, but for a used E-Class estate.

Interestingly, the first Scenic was my first auto, and I got that for the simple reason that I found when I'd got the seat where I wanted it I had to lean forwards very slightly to reach the gear lever, and I thought "I can see that giving me backache after a while", so I got the auto. Almost all my driving is urban or motorway, hardly any hustling down twisty, open country roads, and I can't see myself ever wanting a manual again.

 

[Retired]

Hi,

Many thanks for enlightning me regards the two Scenics He who knows; I can understand you getting a second same type of car if you liked the first one so much; by the sound of it though you're better out of it with Scenics.

I wonder where it will end with this massive dash to swap over to electric vehicles; I can't stand batteries at all; I've just been practicing violin playing in the studio; I have an electronic violin tuner permanently attached to by violin; this is battery powered and in order not to waste battery power it automatically switches off after about five minutes playing; just a small thing but increasingly annoying as I'm concentrating hard playing whilst using this tuner to get the notes in tune only for it to die. I just dislike batteries so unless there is absolutely no other option we won't be buying an electric car.

It's very important to be comfortable whilst driving a car so you adopted automatics which suits you; I like manual and our Yeti suits me. Many years ago I used to own a Vauxhall Viva and one day as I changed gear I ended up with the complete gear lever in my hand; it had broken at the gearbox; a visit to a local auto breakers had it quickly sorted at very little cost unlike now when anything car is expensive.

I find these intersting but unfortunately they are battery powered;

Ideally I'd like a brand new Skoda Yeti but without electronics installed; just a basic car that is comfortable meant as transport only and either diesel or petrol; I don't mind electronic ignition or electronic indicators which are easy and cheap to fix; the Dacia Duster comes near but I'm not into french cars. Cars are much too complicated these days and as such could well end up scrapped before they are worn out.

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[MarineBob]

Electric car transition is interesting. Aside from a zillion power issues, no one talks about how the government will replace diminished gas tax.

 

[Retired]

Hi,

The government won't lose out MarineBob; when enough have changed over to electric cars the batteery chargers will be adjusted to an higher price for elecricity in fact the way we're heading with energy prices many won't even afford to buy an old banger let alone an EV
Years ago petrol was the enemy with the government wanting motorists in diesel cars so what happened; diesel is now the enemy and costs more than petrol.

We're keeping our diesel Yeti and perhaps in a few years things will come full circle once again; I detest batteries of all kinds so we won't be buying an EV although we can afford one.

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[AC Power]

As the owner of an electrical company, the current that class II and III chargers (here in CAN and US) draw an immense amount of current.

Most normal houses don't have the power for a class III at all, only class II at the most. And multi-family dwellings (condo's and appartments)...well, I am dealing with several proposals now to building owners (condo managers) that they are not too happy to hear.

This is NOT a green alternative anyways: Sure, your household may not be spewing out airborne toxins (CO) as a gasoline car does, but the generators across that nations (section of the nation, US and CAN) must produce more AC power, thus, more pollution. Too, where do all those AGM, flooded, or deep cycle batteries go when that are dead? This "electric car" thing is not all its made out to be.

 

[Retired]

Hi,

Well said AC Power I couldn't agree more.

No problem in repairing dead batteries as seen in the video; guy's like this will probably buy packs of AA batteries for repairing EV batteries.

Our government has thought it all through so we've really nothing to worry about; live for today and don't worry about the future by which time the government will have another party in power who can blame the previous party. Nothing changes.

I won't be dashing out anytime soon to buy an EV; I'm just annoyed at Skoda for dropping the Yeti production; we love our diesel Yeti and will keep it as long as we can; in ten years time diesel cars might be highly sought after once the EV honeymoon period is over?

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[MarineBob]

As the owner of an electrical company, the current that class II and III chargers (here in CAN and US) draw an immense amount of current.

Most normal houses don't have the power for a class III at all, only class II at the most. And multi-family dwellings (condo's and appartments)...well, I am dealing with several proposals now to building owners (condo managers) that they are not too happy to hear.

This is NOT a green alternative anyways: Sure, your household may not be spewing out airborne toxins (CO) as a gasoline car does, but the generators across that nations (section of the nation, US and CAN) must produce more AC power, thus, more pollution. Too, where do all those AGM, flooded, or deep cycle batteries go when that are dead? This "electric car" thing is not all its made out to be.

The batteries and electronics end up in India where folks there melt them down in the pots they later cook in. Yummie!

 

[AC Power]

I am also understanding that these electric cars have a hard time keeping the interior heat comfortable when its quite cold, that is, below -15degC (5defF). Unlike a gasoline/diesel engine (whose heat is drawn from the engine via coolant), I am not sure where an electric car gets its heat from? The only thing I can think of is electric heating....but that's going to kill the battery pretty quick! As we know, electric heat is heavy on batteries.

 

[MarineBob]

Nothing fundamentally wrong with electric cars, but the nation is 2-3 decades away. Time for America to wake up

 

[Retired]

Hi,

Electric cars are badly flawed; they are by nature battery powered and it's the battery which is the weakness. When the sun shines and it's warm here in Yorkshire which is rare then an EV will drive further on a full charge but during our nine month winter, headlights; heating; defrosting and running the mission control then the driving range plummets; this is aggravated further by battery deteriorarion over the years.

Good luck to those wanting to save the planet for today spending high prices for an EV only to find if they keep the EV ten years it will be like driving an old Expresso Dairy milk float with very limited mileage; a good example is the Nissan Leaf EV at ten years old with a fully charged battery only travelling 18 miles before needing recharging so what's going to happen to the car and battery whilst petrol & diesel vehicles are still very useable at this age; our Skoda Yeti is approaching six years old and is still like brand new with 29K miles on it's clock so I think it's about nicely run in and the only real expense is guess? Yes the battery which was recently replaced; it being the start/stop function car it needed a special battery at £286 so I shudder to think what's ahead for EV owners; now aged 74 I think there will be supplies of diesel to see me out. We won't have an EV and won't have an hybrid which is neither petrol or electric but has plenty of added complications to go wrong.

Power stations aren't battery powered?

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[He who knows]

Sure, your household may not be spewing out airborne toxins (CO) as a gasoline car does

They don't, any more. Catalytic converters turn the CO that engines used to emit into CO2.

 

[He who knows]

I'm not trying to pretend that domestic EV charging is not a real infrastructure challenge, but for most people most of the time a top-up charge to replenish that day's use can be done at a low rate over several hours overnight.