I've just realised...

[mjb]

I was laughing at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12923112 - "Driving the electric Rolls Royce". Thought to myself 5 tons of electric vehicle... that's a FORKLIFT!!!


Then I googled it and found out it wasn't a joke

[FarmerPug]

Now snobs can be smug.
I think electric cars are not all that bad, how many of us do more than 120 miles a day, i only do about 10 a day, an electric car would be a handy thing for saving a bit of money.
But i like the 406.

[sirwiggum]

Electric cars only have a point if your power is coming from a nuclear plant.

With the Japanese tragedy, the greens will be against nuclear.

So essentially your electric rolls will be coal fired.

[FarmerPug]

There is wind, solar, or tide power.
Or even wood power, thats how the mushroom farm is heated, fuel bills are much smaller, and you can use words like sustainable, and clean.

Here is an idea i have:
A 4 seater car with bicycle pedals at each passengers seat, the more they cycle the more the battery gets topped up.

[steve_earwig]

Unfortunatly that's an idea that lots of other people have had before you.

Remember the pedal-powered Porch?
DugCH-UrF9c

I strongly believe that without massive investment (I'm talking space race money) there is no future in battery powered cars, it's a technological blind alley. Using electric power to produce fuel perhaps, rather than have the battery in the car you use the electricity to produce the fuel that can be stored in a more useful manner. Anyway, 5 tonnes? Going how fast? And that's ecologically sound? You're having a laugh

[FarmerPug]

thats cycling to directly move the car, im on about cycling to charge a battery. Which probably is easier.

[sirwiggum]

There is wind, solar, or tide power.
Or even wood power, thats how the mushroom farm is heated, fuel bills are much smaller, and you can use words like sustainable, and clean.

Wind power wont really work on a calm day.
Solar power wont really work on a dull day.
Tidal power wont really work if the water is calm.

The problem with electricity generation is that it needs to be more or less regular. That's why nuclear, oil, gas and coal are useful as they can be regulated.
Whereas the others depend on what the weather is doing on a particular day.
Useful maybe for a single house or business so use and have the electric supply as a backup and can sell back excess power, but for powering a national grid, mostly useless.

Here is an idea i have:
A 4 seater car with bicycle pedals at each passengers seat, the more they cycle the more the battery gets topped up.

That'd be fun with elderly passengers, or trying to get up some of the hills
Sounds similar to those pedal things you get in holiday resorts

[FarmerPug]

tidal power
the tide comes in and out every day.

[sirwiggum]

tidal power
the tide comes in and out every day.

You can power on your TV twice a day

[mjb]

I think electric cars are not all that bad, how many of us do more than 120 miles a day, i only do about 10 a day, an electric car would be a handy thing for saving a bit of money.

What if you do want to drive more than 120 miles in a day? Just the odd day I mean. You've either got to faff around hiring a car (pricey if you want a decent sized one to go on holiday with!) or keep a fossil-fuelled car at your house, along with the inconvenience of tax, mot, insurance, maintenance (rust will be a problem, as will keeping the battery in shape, the rapid tyre degradation from not moving it, aircon seals leaking, etc)

[FarmerPug]

One person in the house drives an electric the other drives a normal car.

[highlander]

In my household, that won't wash. I'm the only driver. I also have a need for occasionally driving a helluva long way (I was in Inverness yesterday, which is more than 100 miles from Aberdeen, meaning at least 200 miles for a round trip).

The only way electric cars will work is if you ditch the idea of relying on batteries, and embrace hydrogen fuel as the means for generating your electricity. For example, the Honda FCX Clarity, which has a range of about 240 miles on a full tank of hydrogen (around 4 KG of pressurized Hydrogen). It also performs like a regular car (130-ish HP and 190 ft/lbs of torque), and is a zero-emissions device as the only by-product of hydrogen fuel consumption is water - regular old H20.

Also not a bad-looking car (not great, but not bad):


The only issue with hydrogen fuel cell vehicles is the present lack of infrastructure and industry for producing, distributing, and selling hydrogen on the same scale as they currently produce petrol and diesel. 240 miles of range is pretty decent - if every petrol station in the UK supplied hydrogen, we'd have a real alternative at last.

[sirwiggum]

I second highlander's call for a push for Hydrogen fuelled cars.

Unfortunately there is less profit in Hydrogen for the oil companies.

[FarmerPug]

can they make an engine run on hydrogen, you would still have a bit of the niceness of the internal combustion engine.

[sirwiggum]

can they make an engine run on hydrogen, you would still have a bit of the niceness of the internal combustion engine.

Technically possible, as hydrogen is flammable.

Only problem I can see would be leaks. Gas leak in the fuel line + hot exhaust = 40Hindenberg. Although they manage it for LPG without blowing stuff up.

Electrically propelled cars would give you constant torque, a bit like a turbodiesel which is constantly in the "zone". Less oily bits, just a big electric motor, so should hopefully be reliable.

That Honda looks nice and is a great concept. And I'm not just saying that as a fanboy