OK, I am of an age where I associate EVs with milk floats. I was even a Saturday boy on a round (one of 3 jobs I did to earn pocket money (Cue, old Hovis TV ad music – Day Admin)) and we always had a mug of tea and a piece of cake waiting for at the nursing home (oooooh matron).
But it isn’t just that – I can’t see the logic in them. Economic? Not to buy. Even with a £2K subsidy they are darned expensive. Practical? Not if the battery (which is the size of D. Flabott’s backside) runs out leaving you stranded. Even if you reach a recharging station in time you’ll probably have to queue up and spend hours there. Range anxiety is still a real issue. Eco-friendly? Manufacturing new cars involves massive resources. And how exactly are 30 million EVs supposed to plug into the national grid? If we all go electric how will the power plants cope?
I have an old petrol car which will take me anywhere at any time in the safe knowledge that I can refill within 5 minutes. There is no better form of personal transport. Don’t talk to me about bloody bikes – I live 10 miles from the nearest lamppost. Four wheels for me thank you.
I can see some sense in hybrids but they will also be banned from manufacture in 2035 won’t they? And they aren’t really that good when you consider that the petrol engine is lugging a huge battery around or vice versa. It’s like carrying a spare engine in the boot.
The internal combustion engine had a century of evolution and reached a very high standard of efficiency with much lower emissions and far greater economy than even 10 or 20 years ago. I think ditching it will be a shame and that EVs will struggle to be a viable alternative.
Now if we could only harness the hot air which emits from politician’s mouths (Caroline Lucas especially) then we would have a great new and inexhaustible form of energy.
Nominated by: Lord Helpuss




