Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Petrol cars to Subsidise EV?

They do so already. There is a subsidy on leccy cars and there are taxes on petrol and diesel cars that are way in excess of the costs of roads etc.

The governments failure is that they not only believe in markets but they assume that markets left to themselves will solve the problem. So they do not have a strategy for the charging facilities which is the key to the issue. Most drivers couldnt care a damn how the car is powered - sexist maybe but I suspect many women dont have any interestin the technology at all. So if leccy cars are as cheap to run ( they currently are cheaper) and easy to refuel there is no issue.

Theres a quick solution, diesel powered generators on every street corner as they do when the grid fails currently.......

Recently converted offices into 143 small flats near Tower bridge, we included 24 fast car chargers, the charges were about £1k each but the new upgraded sub-station to supply them came in at about £1/4 million.

Surely you'd need at least 143 chargers?

My street is a mixture of those who have paid to have a dropped kerb, and those that park on the road. There is at least one car, often two per household. To my right, there are about 15 cars parked on the road, the three houses to the left also have offroad parking, but we usually get a car squeezed in the gap between the dropped kerbs.

Other streets in the area are terraced houses with no front garden/drive (door opens straight onto the pavement). Often there is only parking allowed on one side of the street due to access.

I really can't see how they are going to get these charged once the 'new world' is introduced!

Well that's a good perspective on it !! I guess it will not be quite that way on every occasion but it is good for a laugh.

And, I appreciate that the infrastructure is not there yet, but lets imagine in time, it matches that of convential fuel.

Often, at busy times, I'll pull up to a petrol station and I'm in a queue. I often have to wait about 5 minutes for each car in front to fill up and pay. It might take me a few minutes to get a full tank.

Imagine if you're third in a queue for a 30 minute fast charge - it's going to be a long wait before you can continue your journey.

I appreciate that the need may be less - every EV will potentially start every journey with a full tank - but range of the average petrol/diesel car far exceeds that of your average EV at the moment.

Motoring is one hell of a big cash cow for the Treasury. Always has been. Similar to other sectors such as booze and tobacco.
They are easy targets to generate cash to fund other demands and, often cynically, use eco/health claims to bolster and justify the tax hikes. I worked in the cigar industry and dealt with HMC&E re duty. MASSIVE quarterly cheques paid over. We had on site Customs offices at one point, regular audits, one-off visits. Annual Treasury tax income was rising until it reached about £14billion ( if my memory is correct). This was a plateau and has since fallen. This loss of income had to be replaced. These days the knee-jerk justification for tax rises is eco and climate change based. We are about to face many more tax hikes to pay for the Covid spend. It is just a matter of when EV charging will attract tax.
As for EV for private owners it is expensive to buy into despite the incentives. The cars are significantly more expensive than equivalent ice versions. Why? When I look at the specs I ask myself what is the need for all the extra high tech toys? If a car comes onto the market with just the basics (and I mean basics) it would be cheaper and possibly entice more sales.
Dacia sell basic and cheap vehicles. Not refined but doing a job of A-to- B transport. Badge shame?
As for the existing subsidy on purchase price, how real is that? How are car manufacturers deciding on their price knowing there is a subsidy to include? Cynically I think it being used to inflate the up front price with a dangling carrot of “look, you are getting a discount”. Typical sales tactic to paint a good bargain deal.

It's inevitable that recharging will be charged at some point. Free journeys? There has to be a tipping point.

It's the price that will probably prevent me from ever entering the world of EV ownership. Don't get me wrong, if you gave me one, I'd be more than happy to use it, as it would be perfect for my 50mile journey to work each day and the odd trip to the shops or search for car/bike parts.

I change my car every two to three years, and spend a maximum of £1000. It has to be economical, and have room to shove a bike engine in the back. My current 1.2l Corsa does about 45mpg, and can carry a fair amount of stuff. Before that, I had a 1.0l Fiesta which cost me £500.

I can't ever see an EV becoming available in that price bracket, unless it requires a complete battery replacement!

Re starting each journey with a full tank......not so fast. I have clients who tell me that unless the car is on charge all the time it runs down the battery even if it doesn't go anywhere. So it's no good charging it Monday night then not using it till Thursday or you're in for range shock.

250k substations every 50 properties?

It's a shame really because since covid we hardly go anywhere and could easily run an electric car and just use petrol a few times a year. Could even just have electric and hire a proper (!) car when needed.
Nick