Are EVs the way forward?

There's a lot of going backwards and forwards on this, and without anyone falling out on this, lets just say climate change is happening, Ev's in their current form are not the silver bullet to save us all. They are a very small part of the process of change required to halt ( if possible) a climate catastrophe, and we will all need to make changes to our lives to address this, if not for us, for our kids and generations to come.

All this from a guy who drives a Transporter, that said, I've had the week off and it's remained on the drive and I've walked, cycled, train, and the family car, which next year will be an EV. But the Transporter will remain until there is a viable cleaner alternative, whenever that may be.
 
Lubrown said:
If we are to believe a UK fire service that records incidents, the Swiss Civil Contingencies Agency reviewing available recorded data and a big insurer…

Then EV fires are more rare than ICE fires. By quite some way.

I dare say these people who fight fires, plan for emergencies and keeping the public safe, or want to avoid having to pay out for things like vehicle fires probably have a bit more experience on the subject than someone on YouTube looking for clicks to supplement their financial gain.

Here’s a snippet from Autotrader:
“
EV fires aren't a common occurrence. According to Honeywell Safety and Productivity Solutions, 239 fires recorded in the UK from July 2022 to June 2023 were linked to EVs.
While this is an 83% increase year on year, it’s important to note the number has increased along with the increasing presence of EVs on our roads.



Meanwhile, according to Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, some 1898 fires in 2019 were from petrol and diesel vehicles and 54 were from EVs.
Another study by the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency found that EVs are 20 times less likely to catch fire than ICE cars.
An additional study by that agency and an American insurer found that just 25 out of 100,000 EVs suffer fire damage.
By comparison, 1530 per 100,000 ICE cars experience fire, and hybrid vehicles suffer a much higher risk of 3475 per 100,000.”

Of course, doubters and vloggers will only ever tell you that 83% figure and provide no other context.

And here is one link on the subject: Link

Anyone can google ‘number of EV fires vs ICE fires’.
You just need an open mind. Doubters will just google ‘EV fires’ and get a one sided view.
Click to expand...
I might have to move over there then.
 
Graham Jones said:
Yesterday, in a suburb in Melbourne, Oz....House badly damaged and 2 cars in the garage, destroyed by fire while charging. Maybe just a coincidence, but happening too often over here.
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Caused by brake or throttle failure? Or a charging fire?
 
Graham Jones said:
Car was on charge.
Click to expand...
Ah, ok. Not unsurprising, just like fires from other electrical devices while charging. Although the consequences may be more severe. Would be interesting to know the facts rather than just the headlines. Is it truly a fault with the vehicle or another issue such as an overloaded socket, use of damaged cables, lack of ventilation etc. Anyhow, my comments were about throttle/brake issues but in a similar manner the focus seems to be on the fact it happened to an EV ignoring the fact it happens elsewhere too.
 
Graham Jones said:
I might have to move over there then.
Click to expand...
Which one - Switzerland, the UK or America? They are all reporting lower EV fires vs ICE.

I dare say the same is actually true of Aus but, as the article points out, ICE fires don’t make news anymore while the odd EV one does due to it being rarer and being able to grab headlines because people are divided in their opinions on EVs.
 
The Flying Scotsman said:
Nobody has mentioned the several cases of electric cars failing to respond. Basically driving themselves with the driver having no control. Accelerating to 90mph with no control or no brakes is pretty scary stuff.
Another issue that EVs have that’s never been a problem with ICE powered cars.
Here’s an example I found after a quick search
www.standard.co.uk

Driver tells of horror as electric car 'goes on rogue 90mph drive with no brakes'

Nathan Owen says he was trapped in his car for 35 minutes driving at high speed as police tried to help him slow down
www.standard.co.uk www.standard.co.uk
Click to expand...
This was false. He was arrested for dangerous driving and blamed the car. Correct me if I'm wrong.
 
It has been a proglem with ICE cars.

Over my years in the feds I've known petrol cars to get stuck in cruise or for the throttle to stick wide open, or for the car to shut down at speed on the motorway leaving the hapless driver wjth minimal brakes or steering.

It even happens to lorries.

Cars ignoring the driver and doing what they want instead is not something unique to electric propulsion.
 
It all comes down to quote I posted earlier in this thread "A lie can travel half way around the world before the truth can get its boots on".

There's a significant chunk of the press that's just desperate for any anti-EV story they can find because there's a significant chunk of the population that just lap that stuff up. Like the fire on the car container ship a few months ago that initial reports claimed was started by an EV, or the garage fire example on the thread just now, or the runaway car one, it just goes on and on...

This stuff just gets pumped out there in the media, faithfully regurgitated onto twitter/forums/etc and by the time the facts become better known it barely matters because no one is really interested, the original story is pasted all over the internet and they've just jumped onto the next headline.

I admire the people that fact check this stuff, but it really is like holding back the tide...
 
I'm now investigating this story about Haitians eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, US... definitely sound like aliens but currently can't even find the planet Hiatus even though it's supposed to be near Uranus?
The frightening thing with clickbait is the way it could easily influence the outcome of something as important as an election.:sneaky::whistle:
 
This is the sort of thing I have been waiting for

www.myenergi.com

Power to the people: myenergi starts work on new V2G EV charger | myenergi GB

British smart home energy technology manufacturer, myenergi has started development on what it believes is likely to be the UK’s first mass-market
www.myenergi.com www.myenergi.com

From midnight until about 6am tomorrow I am being paid to take electric.
It would be nice to be driving with no cost fuel, and even if you don`t fancy driving an ev it would be good to be paid to take electric, then use it at home.
 
Sasquatch said:
It has been a proglem with ICE cars.

Over my years in the feds I've known petrol cars to get stuck in cruise or for the throttle to stick wide open, or for the car to shut down at speed on the motorway leaving the hapless driver wjth minimal brakes or steering.

It even happens to lorries.

Cars ignoring the driver and doing what they want instead is not something unique to electric propulsion.
Click to expand...
Happens too often in the Peugeot patrol cars. I know ATM six are in the garage for major repairs… out of the six new cars received from Peugeot this year!

One, as you’ve mentioned, completely failing on a live dual carriageway while making.

These are pure petrol cars, not hybrid. The Astras fair a bit better but not without issues. Brakes being a common complaint. The Ford Kuga actually does alright but isn’t liked a) for the looks and b) because it’s high, wide, heavy and a little slower for it.

They get a hard life but completely failing, with talk of new engines, at six months old? Nobody would expect that.
 
Running with the above post @Neil Nicholls would it be worth buying a couple of write off Tesla Model 3s @ £10k a pop and declaring them SORNed but use them as vehicle to grid stores?
 
Stay Frosty said:
Running with the above post would it be worth buying a couple of write off Tesla Model 3s @ £10k a pop and declaring them SORNed but use them as vehicle to grid stores?
Click to expand...
I think several people, much cleverer than I, have done just that from various battery cars.
I like the idea of plug and play, and the ability to drive it too
 
Neil Nicholls said:
This is the sort of thing I have been waiting for

www.myenergi.com

Power to the people: myenergi starts work on new V2G EV charger | myenergi GB

British smart home energy technology manufacturer, myenergi has started development on what it believes is likely to be the UK’s first mass-market
www.myenergi.com www.myenergi.com

From midnight until about 6am tomorrow I am being paid to take electric.
It would be nice to be driving with no cost fuel, and even if you don`t fancy driving an ev it would be good to be paid to take electric, then use it at home.
Click to expand...
There is money to be had in helping balance the grid. It’s been going on quite a while with things like supermarket fridges and some large pumps - turning on if/when there is an excess in the grid whether they are needed or not and turning off when the grid is struggling to provide power (obviously you only sign up and assign assets where you can accept this random running - fridges are generally OK as they are well insulated, plus there are safeguards to ensure they can still turn on if necessary). This was more profitable before every man and his dog started installing large battery banks connected to the grid, but it still happens. Power stations can’t simply turn on and off as they please, not quickly.

Good to see it being expanded.
 
Yeah, vehicle to grid is cool. We’re paying something like 7p/kWh overnight and 28p or whatever peak rates so time shifting power using something that’s sitting on the drive much of the time anyway is an obvious win.
 
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