What's next?

[Blitzen]

I would rather pull my finger nails out with my Leatherman then buy an electric car....

[gareth_oau]

i think its important that people buy electric cars

then theres more petrol left for me to consume

[firdausasri]

No brainer, gotta be 135i coupe and chipped. Definitely giving E62 M3 something to think about.

[mikepologti]

i think i read somewhere that the most viable renewable energy sourse for the future (currently) is hydrogen fuel cells.bmw , gm,and honda have all created cars backing this concept.so i guess one really has to ask which renewable energy source will be used in the future. because buying an electric car (without hydrogen fuel cells) might be just as suicidally viable, should another solution present itself. sure youll still be able to use it cos you will always have a power point , but why buy a inferior electric car when you can still have high performance with hydrogen. my point being sure fossil fuels will all but disapear sometime within the next 20 to 30 years, but long before the cars that depend on these fuels go the way of the dodo, there will be a long slow transition before alternative energy cars become prodominant.ie you wont have anything to worry about for atleast the next 10 years.

[pologti18t]

Electric cars will always be limited by battery capacity and technology. Guess what, there is no big improvements in battery capacity on the near horizon.

GM killed the EV-1 because it cost too much to build and it was bleeding them dry. The lease cost per month was $500+ to the users. Hugely expensive back in the mid 1990s. If GM could make money out of the EV1 they would have continued to build them,

The funny thing is that government regs in California that pushed GM to produce the EV-1 indirectly stunted the development of hybrid cars by the US manufacturers. California regs pushed for zero emission cars that eliminated hybrids. The clinton administration had pushed for more economical cars from the "big three" manufacturers. They had come up with cars that were every bit as advanced as the later Prius. But the late 90s boom and falling "gas" prices also put an end to these cars leaving Toyota to reap the benefits 5-10yrs later.


>>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PNGV

[RhysQ]

anyone see top gear last night with the Tesla (the electric 'performance' car). Basic facts:

- it has a claim of 200 miles until flat battery, but it lasted 55 miles on their test track.....not good for the spirited driver.
- from flat, the battery takes 16 hours to charge! that's gotta hurt your electricity bill....oh, and the environment! (remember where power comes from)
- they broke down ALOT!
- the battery pack weighs HALF A TONNE, and throws the weight proportionment right out, giving it shocking handling.
- it costs 95,000 pounds....

Ignoring my earlier post, I reckon hydrogen is the only way of the future, and with the Honda FCX Clarity they showed last night, all i can say is wow! I've been waiting for a Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicle to be produced and here it is, and Top Gear were quite impressed with it. 136bhp, takes the same amount of time to fill up as a normal fuel car, emits WATER, all at about the same cost as a family sedan (well, soon anyway), it slots right in. Now they just need hydrogen stations in a few more places than just California .

[Sharkie]

Don't give a hoot about alternative fuel cars. Somebody will have to pry me away (by force) from a car with a good old internal combustion engine.

I do my bit to conserve the environment in many other ways and will not be considering taking away the enjoyment of driving a performance car as I please.

Not that Top Gear is THE definitive automotive authority but so far they have proven that a v8 M3 uses less fuel than a Prius around their track at the Prius' max pace and that a Tesla Roadster can only do 55miles before needing a 16hr recharge ..... (providing it doesn't overheat and breakdown 1st)

In reality true then alternative fuel cars with acceptable performance is many many years away from being an afforable alternative.

So stop with this nonsense and get back on topic .... what is the next car you will drive/own after your Polo.

[pogo_55]

A DeLorean???

[Markybhoy]

Apparently that Tesla breakdown was faked. Tesla weren't very happy about it when they got their cars back as neither had run out of charge and they could not find any faults with them. When asked about it, a Topgear 'spokesperson' said that 'the show was trying to show what would have happened if the car had run out of battery power'. Total BS on TG's part, which, let's be honest, isn't actually uncommon.

p.s. I could go looking for a link for the above story, but that would involve work and I am lazy!

[RhysQ]

here's the story here - http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008...a-electric-car

just went to google and typed in - 'top gear tesla'

it was the first result!

[Markybhoy]

here's the story here - http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008...a-electric-car

just went to google and typed in - 'top gear tesla'

it was the first result!

Yep, that's the one! lol. Thanks!

[Flaps]

"At no time did we claim that the cars ran out of charge," said a BBC spokeswoman.

"When the car began to lose power we included a voiceover which stated: 'And if it does run out it's not a quick job to charge it up again.' Top Gear stands by the findings in this film and is content that it offers a fair representation of the Tesla's performance on the day it was tested."

/discussion

[oliverconnell]

isn't the issue with hydrogen though that its limited by how much it can be compressed (distance possible) and that apparently it uses more energy to produce to the required form. I think the ratio i herd was 4:1. personally i like the idea of electric but it has alot of negatives especially for performance cars with weight and balance.

With tesla though the 16 hours charge time is with the standard wall socket isnt it? There is another one you get installed when you get the car which charges alot quicker.

[mozzzy_2000]

The hydrogen fuel cell has been around for many years and I think its technology that has been held back by the big oil companies. But thats a whole other debate.
In Perth we have got several public transport buses that have been running on fuel cells for years. Its about time for this tech to be available in the mainstream and long overdue. But I too am also a 'purest' & I will always enjoy the growl of an IC engine. Electrics just don't get the bood pumping for me.

[PeterHBne]

Nothing on my horizon.

When someone creates a new hot hatch around the 900-1000 (preferably less) kg mark, 120-140kw, **** hot handling, brakes and steering (couldn't care what it looks like) I'll be tempted.

Yes - I do LOVE Lotus Elise's