Am I getting old??

[Ashley James]

Man’s natural instincts are to build things and nurture them in a way that mothers do their infants. We derive enormous satisfaction from simple acts such as squirting oil on to a mechanism and thus prolonging its life.

Old cars are dreadful by modern standards and always have something that needs some sort of care, repair or restoration and we enjoy all this along with a bit of nostalgia for an age we remember with rose tinted spectacles.

Therefore I can understand anyone buying a new electric car if it functions more economically and fits in with his requirements, but I can’t for the life of me understand why anyone would rip the heart out of an old classic car and fit an electric motor to it. Unless he was the type that makes virtue statements.

I was thinking a Royal marriage where his highness plugged Jaguar’s electric conversion of an E Type. I believe that the half Indian, half Chinese car company’s most profitable venture in the U.K. is building new E Types, electric E Types, Series 1 Land Rovers and early Range Rover from wrecks.

For me the only reason to own a Jaguar is for the fantastic XK engine.

[Lightweight_911]

... but I can’t for the life of me understand why anyone would rip the heart out of an old classic car and fit an electric motor to it.

For me the only reason to own a Jaguar is for the fantastic XK engine.

Agree entirely ...

.

[911hillclimber]

Agree, but why dismiss anyone who fancies doing it, a private person or a corporation?

If someone does do an electric E Type then you don't have to approve of it, the owner did, so his choice, and that is fine.

What happened to " it's your car, do what you want" ?

There are lots of E Types/ others around, good, bad, and evil, so hardly a criminal offence, just someone using one as a base for their dream.
It doesn't matter of course, we are simply expressing our views which are very predictable.

Long live individuality and freedom of choice.

I watched the Ed Balls program last night about the effect on the car industry in the UK and Brexit (What Britain buys and sells in a day) . So interesting, and the electric content even more so.

Away from the minuscule issue of an electric classic, the EV revolution is stampeding towards us, an 'irresistible force' I would suggest.

Anyway, I feel very grumpy night now!

[stichill99]

Moving on from electric cars,how do you think the haulage industry will change. Imagine the battery power needed to haul 44 tons up the motorway. Can you imagine the effect on business of a just in time manufacturer. Errr Sorry I am sitting in the services waiting on the truck charging. Moving on to Agricultural tractors John Deere had an electric tractor but the only thing was it had a cable attached from the farmyard! Now that's going to work really well isn't it!

[Ashley James]

Tesla have been promoting an electric truck.

[Nine One One]

Or just keep to petrol and one of these...........
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new- ... completion

[wildtexas]

Moving on from electric cars,how do you think the haulage industry will change. Imagine the battery power needed to haul 44 tons up the motorway. Can you imagine the effect on business of a just in time manufacturer. Errr Sorry I am sitting in the services waiting on the truck charging. Moving on to Agricultural tractors John Deere had an electric tractor but the only thing was it had a cable attached from the farmyard! Now that's going to work really well isn't it!

Put it all back on the railways and let the haulage companies do the local deliveries from depot to customer. Revitalise the rail networks and free up the road network for people driving their EV E-types.

Simples.

[911hillclimber]

JCB have in production an electric mini digger.

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j ... crVU5a9obz

[Jonny Hart]

Emotional arguments aside, electric motors are just better for transport propulsion compared to ICE. So whatever happens, electricity is what will turn the motor. That’s why the EV drivetrain technology being created now is not wasted effort.

So yes, you can moan about recharging, range and environmental impact of Lithium Ion technology. This is the current solution but is only a stepping stone in my view.

The power source issue will be solved. Probably by a bloke in a shed like this guy...

https://www.metalectrique.com/

[stichill99]

Maybe I am being too much of a sceptic but when you read on JCB website that it can do a whole days work subject to what kind of work it is, doesn't fill me with confidence. We all know how batteries deteriorate in a phone. I have a 20 year old tractor that works everyday on feed mixer wagon and it virtually costs me nothing to run. Filters are cheap because it is pre common rail. Our latest tractor which has just had it's first service which was only 2 fuel filters( It has 3) and engine oil filter and oil cost over £400 for filters and oil. I dread to think what a big service will be when all hydraulic and fuel have to be changed. I don't know what the answer is but new machines costs are frightening!

[911hillclimber]

Ref: The man in his garage..

Sounds really good, Alum is the most plentiful metal in the ground (bauxite) but smelting it to a reasonable quality takes a lot of energy.

I did my apprenticeship at Alcan Aluminium in the late 60's and to see the energy to re-melt the ingots and then to purify the melt was awesome.

So, we have the non-green smelting issue.
This is readily solved to a very large degree on smelting and processing using hydro electricity but this source is not abundant, that is, certainly not available in huge quantities in many countries.

Back to the old stumbling block with the EV concept, it is great if you ignore the very generation of charging electricity in the first place.

I do wish the inventor well, but if it was really 'gods-gift' then the Big Players would have snapped him up way before a little TV article was transmitted?
There is no mention of disposal of the spent aluminium or the manufacture of the electrolyte and it's needs.

Poor article and leaves very big questions un-asked let alone answered.

I think Jonny is correct. The prize to make the whole emissions equation balance is worth just so much with a massive demand, there will be a final solution soon, next 10 years and lithium batteries will be stacked high somewhere.

As to the few million (billion?) potentially scrap fossil cars around what to do with them?

Well, you could put an EV motor and energy pack into them and keep the chassis running just re-melting the drive train and eventually over 10/20 years the old cars, fossil and early EV's will be history.

A lot of this toil would be reduced if transport miles were rationed to each licence holder across the planet.

Instead of being able to 'drive till you drop', each driver would be licenced to have, say, 6,000 miles / year for private use transport such as a car or a motorcycle etc.

That would kill a huge level of pollution what ever fuel you are consuming....what a change to society that would be, just imagine!

Before any scream for my blood, it happened far more acutely in WW2 (fuel rations) when the planet was fighting a dictator, here we are fighting to save the very planet we stand on assuming we have not screwed it already.

[Jonny Hart]

^. The tech and businesses already exist but are not widely reported in the mainstream media....

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.ft.c ... 9ef1626294

https://www.greencarreports.com/news/11 ... d-clunkers

[Sam]

I don't know what the answer is but new machines costs are frightening!

They’ll get cheaper.

And in the meantime those who can afford it and think it’s a good thing to do will pay the extra.

We’ve switched almost all our cars to electric at work. They’re not quite as cheap as diesel or petrol, but it won’t bankrupt us.

The value of early Zoes, Leafs, C0s etc is actually rising as awareness and demand increases.

[gridgway]

We are within sight of the end of our Zoe PCP so are looking around at what next. It seems that the pace of change especially with regard to range is astonishingly slow.

I don't think there will be an equivalent with better range to choose from. So I expect we'll keep it which is disappointing.

Graham

[Sam]

ID3 next year.