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Electric cars?

Would you buy an electric car?

  • Already own one

    Votes: 10 5.1%

  • Yes - would definitely buy

    Votes: 43 21.7%

  • Yes - preferred over petrol car if price/power/convenience similar

    Votes: 78 39.4%

  • Maybe - preference for neither, only concerned with costs etc

    Votes: 38 19.2%

  • No - prefer petrol car even if electric car has same price, power and convenience

    Votes: 25 12.6%

  • No - would never buy one

    Votes: 14 7.1%
  • Total voters
    198
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I was in Joondalup yesterday sp and you could quite easily live there without a car.
 
Humid said:
I was in Joondalup yesterday sp and you could quite easily live there without a car.
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I haven't been up there for years, but I guess it is a lot like these satellite centers, they are designed to supply everything. Train/bus interchange, retail, commercial and residential, it is a good idea really.
In those sort of areas, as you say, a car is really a luxury. You could probably manage with an electric bicycle or taxi, for any medium distance travel, the money you would save would be quite considerable.
 
SirRumpole said:
Good on her.

I might be tempted to take a portable generator and a few jerry cans of fuel if I did that trip though.
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Doubt that you would need to, unless you were truly off road and away from civilization.
Back on topic, I was reading various announcement over the past few months and every major car manufacturer was now adding extra billions (not millions) to ramp up their EV capacity. So I had a "gentleman's bet" with my friend that any car he bought after 2023 would be electric as he's a dyed in the wool old fashioned petrol head and needs a long range vehicle. When I pointed out he has a "rest break" after a few hours anyway his only response was "what if I don't take a break". ....give me a break.
 
2023 is a bit ambitious IMO.
 
sptrawler said:
2023 is a bit ambitious IMO.
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Had to start a conversation and 2025 seemed too gettable.
So my rationale was simple.
Manufacturing investment will be to optimise EV sales, which means these new models will not be hampered by legacy technology in ICE vehicles. Given that all major manufacturers propose to have a range of EVs available before 2023, what will hit the streets is likely to outshine ICE offerings.
I also looked at how EV costs have come down as scale increases, and the rate of decline in costs is likely to follow the path of PV solar panel costs, meaning cheaper for a lot longer to come.
 
I don't think, in Australia, the charging infrastructure will be adequate by 2023.
Therefore range anxiety, will still be a major issue.
Just my opinion.
 
sptrawler said:
I don't think, in Australia, the charging infrastructure will be adequate by 2023.
Therefore range anxiety, will still be a major issue.
Just my opinion.
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I did say "after 2023" so there is almost 5 years to see how this pans out.
I don't know how much it will cost to put in place a charging infrastructure.
However, cars which have parked up after they have filled their tanks at major highway service stations, and are now tucking into meals, coffees, etc., are already accommodated. Rejigging parking lots to add charging points won't present a problem. I would also think food outlets at these service centres might change their offerings as drivers won't feel in a hurry to head off: maybe less fast food and more decent meal servings.
On range anxiety I noticed that manufacturers were already segmenting markets and products to suit. Japan's market for short range Leaf models seems to be holding up well.
Tesla's technology simply guides drivers to the nearest charging points, and I imagine in years to come all EVs will have technology ensuring they don't get caught short.
 
My next car will be electric and I'm already putting off replacing my trusty Corolla while I wait for an appropriate EV to come on the market.

Hearing in the last couple of weeks that new car sales were down last year, I wonder how many people are, like me, delaying their purchase until an electric model is available. If it's a significant number then the bottleneck might turn out to be vehicle supply and dealer awareness rather than charging infrastructure.

People who have EVs now don't seem to be any more concerned about range than ICE vehicle owners. I think the anxiety will fade away as EVs become more common at the same time as the charging network grows.
 
That's just beautiful.
 
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