18 minutes ago, mjt said:

Also to be fair I don't think they ever said vaccinations would prevent transmission.

 

They didn't, hence all the debacle about the introduction of 'covid passports' was just a total nonsense...

Covid debate here 🤣

 

That was intended to try and prevent the unvaccinated from catching it.

Yes, I knew there was a specific thread but since people have had such strong opinions on the subject I declined to put my oar in there.

A friend of mine with a family of 3 kids, and a wife, just had an MOT failure in their old Vauxhall Zafira. Repairs were not economically viable, so today they bought their 'new' Zafira, great condition and only £800.  They use the car everyday as they are an active family with lots of places to go.

They are far from unique. Both parents working, but certainly not well off. Can't help wondering how such families will cope when the days of a 'cheap' car comes to an end thanks to the 'net zero' brainwashed government...

1 hour ago, StephenFord said:

Can't help wondering how such families will cope when the days of a 'cheap' car comes to an end

Nobody seems to want to answer that question, Stephen. Last time I checked, there were only half a dozen or so EVs under £32k, and most seem to start £10k over that.

My Mrs and I now have a little ritual where one of us says " look, an ad for another new EV - guess the price" and the other says "£42k".😀

Worryingly, of the "cheap" EVs, quite a few (e.g. MG) originate in China (where MINI are also switching EV production), not to mention where most of the batteries come from. This does not tie in with Government stated aims of making the UK a leader in EV production, nor of weaning ourselves off dependence on regimes with, shall we say, somewhat dubious records on democratic values.

It's official - the whole world's gone mad! 

EU approves ban on proper cars from 2035...

22 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

It's official - the whole world's gone mad! 

EU approves ban on proper cars from 2035...

Thought they'd already done that - full ICE from 2030, hybrid from 2035. Or was that just us?

It's still not mad enough for Greenpeace, though, according to the article there!

Might be slightly better news on the Euro 7 front, though. Many manufacturers, notably Stellantis, have argued that this is a waste of resource better employed in developing low carbon vehicles. It looks like they may have succeeded and it could mean some affordable ICE cars survive a few more years.

https://www.autoevolution.com/news/euro-7-emissions-norms-are-being-watered-down-and-environmentalists-are-not-happy-202096.html#:~:text=Euro 7 Emissions Norms Are Being Watered Down,the European Commission has not determined their confines.

I Would say the future, but it's here and now. 🤣🤣🤣 Coming to a town near you. 

19 minutes ago, iantt said:

I Would say the future, but it's here and now. 🤣🤣🤣 Coming to a town near you. 

For that sort of application, EVs make a lot of sense. Much better than leaving diesel engines chugging away while they run up and down driveways to drop parcels. (Or, more likely, knock with a feather duster before running away and leaving a card so you have to go to the depot to collect!😀)

8 minutes ago, Eric Bloodaxe said:

For that sort of application, EVs make a lot of sense. Much better than leaving diesel engines chugging away while they run up and down driveways to drop parcels...

Indeed, actually it would also be ideal for local delivery of something like, say... milk. Oh, wait a minute...

3 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

Indeed, actually it would also be ideal for local delivery of something like, say... milk. Oh, wait a minute...

I'd never seen an electric milk float until I moved to town.  We lived so far out in the stix they all had to be diesel!!  

DPD have been using EV's here for over 3 years.  Some tiny ones for small, but urgent deliveries, and now most of the larger vans are EV as well.  Amazon vans are mostly EV around here now too.  Horses for courses...

6 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

I'd never seen an electric milk float until I moved to town.  We lived so far out in the stix they all had to be diesel!!  

And there of course, lies the whole fundamental argument on why EVs are a poor substitute for the millions of us who live in rural areas, whereas the 'law makers' all live in solid urban areas with plenty of public transport who haven't a clue how other people live...

8 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

And there of course, lies the whole fundamental argument on why EVs are a poor substitute for the millions of us who live in rural areas, whereas the 'law makers' all live in solid urban areas with plenty of public transport who haven't a clue how other people live...

Battery tech has come on a long way since then.  There are now plenty of EV cars in the village where I used to live.  One of my relatives has a company EV van down there as well.  It does require a different thought process of course, but people living out in villages are much more likely to have driveway and garage space next to their properties allowing for easy EV charging.  There was just one petrol station 2 miles away from my village...and when that was shut, the next closest was 10 miles away...range anxiety was a real issue on ICE cars as well! 

People forget just how inconvenient it is having to drive out of your way to fill up an ICE car because they've grown up with it.  Plugging in EV's at home, for those that can, is a much better idea.  Especially for people who live in rural villages and generally do very short trips, never entering a large town.

2 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

..range anxiety was a real issue on ICE cars as well!

Although, very easily overcome LOL

Just now, StephenFord said:

Although, very easily overcome LOL

True, if you like wasting boot space and carrying flammable fluids in the cabin permanently.  (We've been over this before, I know that doesn't bother you lol.)

With battery tech still improving, you will be able to carry an EV booster pack soon.  Roadside rescue companies already do. 

2 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

True, if you like wasting boot space and carrying flammable fluids in the cabin permanently.  (We've been over this before, I know that doesn't bother you lol.)

The fact is, that with my 'explo safe' can, you can put a lit match on the open funnel, and nothing will happen, it is full of extruded aluminium, which is also the same tech as racing cars use in their fuel tanks. Yes, I feel perfectly safe popping down to Tesco with it in boot, which is so big, I can carry can, as well as shopping! 

11 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

The fact is, that with my 'explo safe' can, you can put a lit match on the open funnel, and nothing will happen, it is full of extruded aluminium, which is also the same tech as racing cars use in their fuel tanks. Yes, I feel perfectly safe popping down to Tesco with it in boot, which is so big, I can carry can, as well as shopping! 

Seems like a very expensive addition you had to buy to safely remove range anxiety from ICE cars...  

1 hour ago, StephenFord said:

Indeed, actually it would also be ideal for local delivery of something like, say... milk. Oh, wait a minute...

When I was working for the Utilities we used to cover the rural areas and found that a lot of farms were actually set up to sell dairy from their own premises.

18 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Seems like a very expensive addition you had to buy to safely remove range anxiety from ICE cars...  

It was bought in 1979, and I doubt I paid more than £5 for it. Though in those days, that would have been 6 months wages 

2 hours ago, Wino said:

When I was working for the Utilities we used to cover the rural areas and found that a lot of farms were actually set up to sell dairy from their own premises.

I buy milk , eggs and farm dairy made ice cream from a local farm on my way home from work.  So much nicer but a bit more expensive. 

And now, I haven done an ice  vehicle today, all electric or plug in hybrid.  🤣🤣

 

3 minutes ago, iantt said:

And now 🤣🤣

I find it quite sinister the way all these delivery companies have converted to EV, thinking that their customers will think more of them because of it. No one clicking their daily fix of Amazon Prime is doing it because the van is electric! Nothing more than a bit of 'virtue signalling' as plainly seen by them all using the side of the vehicle to show off to Greta how wonderful they are...

17 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

I find it quite sinister the way all these delivery companies have converted to EV, thinking that their customers will think more of them because of it

There will be a hidden agenda and that's for sure !!

I bet there is some government grant/tax incentive or other 'Special' thing going on behind the scene that gives big cooperates a financial boost to their already over stuffed coffers for using electric vehicles 🤔

56 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

I find it quite sinister the way all these delivery companies have converted to EV, thinking that their customers will think more of them because of it.

I'm not impressed by that, I'd get a better impression if they turned up when promised!

Some pros and cons here (which might not be fully up to date), but I can see cost/maintenance advantages in these sort of applications, particularly in urban areas subject to ULEZ etc. Not so good in rural areas with big distances between drops - I've yet to see an electric van in the upper Yorkshire Dales, for instance. 

https://www.admiral.com/magazine/guides/van/pros-and-cons-of-running-an-electric-van#:~:text=Electric vans are considerably cheaper to run than,– that’s less than £2 per 40 miles.

 

 

16 hours ago, unofix said:

There will be a hidden agenda and that's for sure !!

I bet there is some government grant/tax incentive or other 'Special' thing going on behind the scene that gives big cooperates a financial boost to their already over stuffed coffers for using electric vehicles 🤔

Yup, it's all down to the corporate sustainability programme.