Are we still convinced that electric vehicles are the best way forward?

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
So people can tell me again that forcing EVs on us is just about global warming and not greed :-(

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Joey (BS) Biden today signed the “Inflation Reduction Act” that will raise taxes on the middle class, skyrocket inflation even further, and hire 87,000 armed IRS agents to shake down Americans.

But, if you buy an electric vehicle averaging $62,893, you MAY be eligible for a tax credit of up to $7,500 until the year 2032.

$62,893 is the average price of vehicles sold only through dealerships and does not account for direct-to-consumer sales of more expensive electric vehicles. This number also accounts for all-electric vehicle transactions, both new and used.

Under the Inflation Reduction Act which received Senate approval on Sunday and is expected to clear the House this week, a tax credit worth up to $7,500 for buyers of new all-electric cars and hybrid plug-ins would be extended through 2032. The bill would also create a separate tax credit worth a maximum $4,000 for used versions of these vehicles.

“First, in order to qualify, there are price and income restrictions,” said Seth Goldstein, a senior equity analyst at Morningstar
For new vehicles, the manufacturer’s suggested retail price for sedans would need to be below $55,000 to be eligible for the tax credit.

For SUVs, trucks and vans, that price cap would be $80,000.

Additionally, the credit would be unavailable to single tax filers with modified adjusted gross income above $150,000.
For married couples filing jointly, that income limit would be $300,000, and for individuals who file as head of household, $225,000

Compared to the average price of all vehicles, which is $47,198, this tax credit for an EV if you even qualify won’t save you sh*t.

An hour later, Ford also announced a price increase of up to $8,500 for their electric vehicles.
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
Bank Australia wants to force what their customers drive to reduce carbon emissions, even as the price of EVs climbs around the world as manufacturers look to profit from government incentives to get drivers to dump their gas models.

“We think that the responsible thing for us to do next, is to ensure that our vehicle lending doesn’t lock our customers in to higher carbon emissions and increasingly expensive running costs in the years ahead,” Bank of Australia Chief Impact Officer Sasha Courville said in a statement

“Ultimately, our announcement today is the beginning of a conversation with our customers and a signal to the wider market that if you’re considering buying a new car, you should think seriously about an electric vehicle – both for its impact on the climate and for its lifetime cost savings.”

Bank Australia, which also recently set a target date of 2032 to achieve net-zero emissions, said it will still offer loans only for second hand gas cars “until there is a viable and thriving market for electric vehicles.”

While we will cease car loans for new fossil fuel cars from 2024,
we are deeply aware that we need to support people not yet able to afford an electric vehicle while the market grows,” Courville said.

Notice they kept stating cars (ie, we the public), and not vehicles big business have,
 

Chuffer

CCCUK Member
One thing I am convinced about is that EV`s are pug ugly , be they daily drivers of Hyper cars like the McMerty Speiling seen at Silverstone Classic this weekend . It looks like a cast off from an old FlashDSC_0971.JPG Gordon movie !
 

Yellowshark

Well-known user
Interesting subject. With 2030 in mind I had a look last year, at the new Fiat 500e and the MINIe, both vastly inflated prices over the petrol versions. Why would anyone want/indeed afford to spend such a large premium apart from the top 10%, I have no idea if TODAY it is cheaper to fuel a car with electricity rather than petrol. I have no idea when us mortals will be able to buy an E car that has a mileage range that means you can actually drive somewhere without worrying all the time. With my C5 I can.

I see little in the press about how much a new battery would cost. I doubt there is anything in my C5 that would cost anything near an E battery cost. Lots of E chargers in my local town centre car park, i.e. 4. What happens when we are all driving electric – no need to worry about poor mileage range if you cannot get any electricity into your battery.

Do I contribute to the planet? Yes, before I retired I paid higher tax rate for many years and top whack of NI, I never claimed a benefit and so the Government coffers have done well from my contribution. Am I going to continue to contribute? Yes I just bought a 2nd hand MINI Cooper S Works as my daily driver which has a better mpg than the C5. My strategy is based on the assumption that before they stop selling petrol I will have departed the planet
 

Roscobbc

Moderator
There's an article in the Telegraph this weekend with the headline "electric cars will cost more than petrol to run" - haven't read it so can't comment on the content.
Logic tells me that with our every increasing energy costs (electric) that even with the very best best supply 'deals' the cost advantage of running an electric vehicle will be eroded in future years, perhaps significantly.
I was looking at the spec's of the new MG4 - at between £25K and £30K with its supposed 271 mile range it makes an interesting comparision with similar car priced perhaps £10/£15K more.......and the Chinese are rapidly improving their quality............but there I have to stop and look at the prices of not just electric, but ICE vehicles.....and they are simply crazy unless you are a higher mileage, every day user. I'm sure that people ultimately will except that a electric car, any electric car will in future be a £25K + item.
ICE cars are so good now in terms of reliability, quality and useful life (a 15 to 20 year economic life isn't unusual) it makes running an older car for many lower mileage users a logical plan. And here's where the battery issue with electric vehicles falls down.....if we presume that an electric car needs a battery replacement at, say 10 years, and that battery cost is perhaps between £7K and £10K.......when it is time to sell your 10 year old electric vehicle do you sell it with a knackered battery? - or do you replace the battery before selling? - and will you recoup the cost of the new battery?. Its a bit like selling, for example a 10 year old VW Golf and deciding whether to replace the engine (at whatever cost) or sell it as is. A mute point perhaps as the VW is unlikely to have a worn-out engine at that age whereas the electric car is almost certainly likely to need a replacement...........but it shows the potential future problems selling a used electric vehicle.
 
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Yellowshark

Well-known user
Some good points there Roscobbc, I think we are pretty much on the same page. The problem is though trying to predict the future is a thankless task. The purchase of the MINI was an specific choice given circumstances but a normal choice is a change of the family car which is maybe imminent. I am strongly toying with the idea of changing my wife's 2 litre BMW. Getting on now and if no other eason than due to spiralling fuel costs would be good to swap to something cheaper to to run. So do I buy electric now? Nope. Do I run the BMW for another 5 years and then maybe with a clearer understanding of the future make a decision? Uncertain, I find the pull of new petrol car with better consumption and more reliability due to newness to be strong. Do I buy a new petrol car now? I think so. Funnily enough have this brief conversation is helping me focus on this almost intractable subject that I am sure many people are going through. Two things I am certain of - 1. will the entire UK driving popu[ation be able to shell out £25k+ by 2030? No. 2. Will there be plenty of petrol cars on the road by 2030? Due to 1, then yes. Unless of course the Government gets serious and spends something of Furloughing proportions to compensate all non E drivers so they can write off their cars and buy an E car
 

Roscobbc

Moderator
Complicated choices. I wonder whether HMG will move Euro compliancy figures for existing vehicles relating to emission/ULEZ/congestion charges. There are increasingly fewer petrol vehicles that are NOT compliant - being as most petrol vehicles built after 2005 are compliant......remembering that they could be (like my own daily) 17/18 years old. Diesels are the issue needing to be 2015 manufactured or later.......so no cheap compliant runarounds there!
Perhaps not an issue (one might think) if you life in the provinces.......but with larger UK cities copying London.....perhaps a matter of time.
The Tesla Model S owners have the best deal........free Supercharging for life of vehicle.........have you seen the used prices of Model S's?
I'm concerned about HMG moving 'goalposts' relating to compliancy and vehicles perhaps costing 10's of thousands of pounds falling foul of moving emission targets.
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
It’s no stretch to say that the USA's limited network of charging stations probably discourages many prospective buyers.
The USA will need to install 500 EV charging units EVERY DAY for the next eight years at a cost of $43B to meet demand for 1.2M public ports by 2030
And that's not counting the 48M needed in homes

In response, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) provides $7.5 billion to develop the country’s EV-charging infrastructure.
The goal is to install 500,000 public chargers publicly accessible charging stations compatible with all vehicles and technologies nationwide by 2030.
However, even the addition of half a million public chargers could be far from enough.
In a scenario in which half of all vehicles sold are zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) by 2030 in line with federal targets we estimate that America would require 1.2 million public EV chargers and
28 million private EV chargers by that year. All told, the country would need almost 20 times more chargers than it has now.

Merely setting up more charging stations isn’t all that matters.
The BIL highlights equity, to name one specific priority. Electricity purchased at a public charger can cost five to ten times more than electricity at a private one.
To keep EVs powered up, public charging stations will probably need to be economical, equitably distributed, appealing to use, and wired to a robust power grid.
They will also probably have to present a viable business opportunity for the companies expected to install and operate them.
States and businesses could better fulfill America’s need for public charging by taking such considerations into account in their planning efforts.

In a scenario in which the nation reaches the federal ZEV sales target, we estimate that the country’s fleet of EVs would grow from less than three million today to more than 48 million in 2030
about 15 percent of all vehicles on the road in the United States.
Passenger cars alone could number more than 44 million; the rest of the EV fleet would consist of buses, light commercial vehicles, and trucks

So in the UK, cannot be any different from over here but how will you do that when now in the UK

Brits Winter Heat
 
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Roscobbc

Moderator
The real problem Jon for us here in the UK is both the political structure and the commercial structure that are largely dominated by the 'old boy' network. You have the same thing in the USA - People who have the 'connections', the money, the influence, the ability to effectively 'blackmail' or buy their childrens education and future path into commerce. Not for them going up through the ranks and learning the ropes - just like with the military if you have the right family, go to the correct public school the 'old boy network' looks after them. And they won't be able to do a thing wrong in life.......they can make big mistakes, cost people millions of dollars or pounds and these people don't get hung out to dry.........no, they actually get better jobs after things have quietened down. Its these people who will do every thing they can to hold back the ordinary working man from earning a decent living. Its these people who 'feather their own nests' at the cost of our countries future prosperity. Its these people who sell off our manufacturing companies, electrical generating stations, gas producing and water companies to Chinese, French, German, Spanish, anyone in fact who will slip a huge 'consultancy' payment and annual percentage to a member of the 'old boy network'. And now we have the scenario where France has 'capped' their own countries energy costs at a seemingly sensible level.........and us Brits are effectively subsidising the French nation. We need to forceably 'buy-back' our own assets and take control of our own country. Brexit was the first step..........
I look at UK and USA politics, events in Russia, Ukraine, here in the UK, anywhere in fact.......and they are all totally inept and as uncontrolled as a classroom full of kids when the teacher pops out of the classroom to take a leak...............
 

Roscobbc

Moderator
Does she know of your plans? I'm amused at the thought of the look on her face when her car goes missing and in its spot is a random newer car :ROFLMAO:
Some ladies get very attached to their cars and are unwilling to go through the performance of learning all the oddities and foibles of a new one.
Are you 100% confident of her attachment to you.......?
 

CaptainK

CCCUK Member
Some ladies get very attached to their cars and are unwilling to go through the performance of learning all the oddities and foibles of a new one.
Are you 100% confident of her attachment to you.......?
With me? Or with Yellowshark? Because I can tell you now I don't know Yellowshark's wife :ROFLMAO:

But yeah, my mum won't change her car - 2002 Pug 206 - as she loves it and is happy with it. If I changed my wife's car on a whim, there'd be hell to pay - 1) because its her car I just got rid of, and 2) because I'm the skint one in the relationship, and she's the money one. So she'd be wondering how I "stole" her money to buy the car :ROFLMAO:
 

Chuffer

CCCUK Member
Some ladies get very attached to their cars and are unwilling to go through the performance of learning all the oddities and foibles of a new one.
Are you 100% confident of her attachment to you.......?
Once they give them names you know it`s a keeper . My wife called her Toyota MR2 ` Beanie ` ( don`t ask !! ) and kept it for 15 years . It was a cracking little car though .
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
California's Wet Dream, HaHaHa :)

Add just another new million EVs and now crank up those 50 amp vehicle chargers and turn off the A/C !

Just days after passing a law banning new sales of gasoline powered cars by 2032, California is urging residents to avoid charging their electric vehicles during peak hours in the coming week to help ward off blackouts during an expected heatwave.

“During a Flex Alert, consumers are urged to reduce energy use from 4-9 p.m. when the system is most stressed because demand for electricity remains high and there is less solar energy available.
The top three conservation actions are to set thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, avoid using large appliances and charging electric vehicles, and turn off unnecessary lights.

The California Independent System Operator that manages the electric grid for about 80 percent of the Golden State warns the power system is expected to come under strain as homeowners and businesses crank up their air conditioning units. Weather forecasters expect temperatures to climb on Wednesday and intensify through the start of next week.

Peak load for electricity is currently projected to exceed 48,000 megawatts on Labor Day, the highest of the year, said the system operator, known as the California ISO for short, in a heat bulletin released late Tuesday. For perspective, 48,000 MW is about 14 percent higher than Tuesday’s peak.

…”If weather or grid conditions worsen,” the ISO bulletin said, the grid manager “may issue a series of emergency notifications to access additional resources and prepare market participants and the public for potential energy shortages and the need to conserve.”

That could well mean issuing a Flex Alert, a statewide request for customers to voluntarily reduce energy consumption from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Those are the hours when California’s grid is under the most pressure because production from solar decreases and eventually disappears in the evening hours but the weather is still hot, and energy demand remains high because people are still consuming electricity.

California’s electric vehicle mandate will be phased in, according to Cal Matters:

“Automakers will have to gradually electrify their fleet of new vehicles, beginning with 35% of 2026 models sold, increasing to 68% in 2030 and 100% for 2032 models. As of this year, about 16% of all new car sales in California are zero-emission vehicles, twice the share in 2020.”

HEAT BULLETIN
Aug. 31, 2022
Contact: ISOMedia@caiso.com

Excessive heat starting tomorrow will stress energy grid

Consumer conservation, likely needed this weekend to avert power outages

FOLSOM, Calif. – Starting tomorrow through Tuesday, California and the West are expecting extreme heat that is likely to strain the grid with increased energy demands, especially over the holiday weekend.

Temperatures are forecast to begin rising Wednesday, August 31, intensifying through the holiday weekend and extending to early next week. In many areas of the West, temperatures are forecasted to hit triple digits and break records.

In what’s likely to be the most extensive heat wave in the West so far this year, temperatures in Northern California are expected to be 10-20 degrees warmer than normal through Tuesday, Sept. 6. In Southern California, temperatures are expected to be 10-18 degrees warmer than normal.

The ISO is taking measures to bring all available resources online. Restricted Maintenance Operations (RMO) have been issued for Wednesday, Aug. 31, through Tuesday, Sept. 6 from noon to 10 p.m. each day, due to high loads and temperatures across the state. During the RMO, market participants are ordered to avoid scheduled maintenance to ensure all available generation and transmission lines are in service.

The peak load for electricity is currently projected to exceed 48,000 megawatts (MW) on Monday, the highest of the year.

If weather or grid conditions worsen, the ISO may issue a series of emergency notifications to access additional resources and prepare market participants and the public for potential energy shortages and the need to conserve.

The power grid operator expects to call on Californians for voluntary energy conservation via Flex alerts over the long weekend.

During a Flex Alert, consumers are urged to reduce energy use from 4-9 p.m. when the system is most stressed because demand for electricity remains high and there is less solar energy available. The top three conservation actions are to set thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, avoid using large appliances and charging electric vehicles, and turn off unnecessary lights. Lowering electricity use during that time will ease strain on the system, and prevent more drastic measures, including rotating power outages.
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
Today, Newsom's plea to limit charging of electric vehicles during a fearsome heatwave has been met with mockery on Twitter, days after the state passed a ban on gas-powered vehicles to take effect by 2032.

The state's top energy regulator has warned Californians to avoid charging their EVs between peak hours of 4pm to 9pm through Tuesday, and to crank their thermostats up to 78F in a bid to avoid blackouts.

In response to soaring power demands, California Governor Gavin Newsom also declared a state of emergency that temporarily removes pollution controls on fossil fuel power plants to allow them to generate more electricity.

The unusual combination of circumstances, as triple-digit temps strain California's aging power grid, was seen by some as proof the state had not thought through its green agenda.
 
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