By Jo Nova
It’s just another day in the death of the early 21st Century EV bubble
The fantasy of battery powered vehicles that also fix the weather was foisted upon the people by Big Government. But all the regulatory wands in the world, and even billions in free gifts don’t make a market appear when the product is a dog.
EV’s are meant to be storming the market on their way to domination. But in the UK the market share of EV’s rose only 3.8% last month but the whole car market grew by 10% — so EV’s are in danger of becoming a shrinking part of the UK car fleet. Plug-in hybrids saw a 37% increase.
The EV experiment has gone so very wrong. Last year Ford was the number 2 EV brand in the US, but it was hit with the $4.5 billion dollar black hole of fiscal carnage, losing $38,000 on every single EV. Obviously, something had to change, and now months later, Ford is abandoning plans to bring in two new EV models, and retool their EV manufacturing plants. Instead, it is shifting to hybrid vehicles — copying the Toyota plan.
EVs have crashed into the hard reality that Americans just don’t want them
David Blackmom, The Telegraph
Something big is happening in the US market for battery electric vehicles (EVs), and it isn’t positive for the industry that makes them, or for the Biden administration’s subsidised dreams.
Ford suddenly puts the brakes on EV models, and factories, and is copying Toyota which was mocked and ridiculed for focusing on hybrids instead of the purist EV’s:
…on April 4, Ford Motor Company put the icing on this cake of electric carnage with an announcement that it is pulling back from plans to introduce two new EV models, an SUV and another pickup to tag along with the F-150 Lightning, and delaying major investments in building and “retooling” EV manufacturing plants in the US and Canada.
Ford says that after three years of making massive investments in new plant and equipment needed for the production of its F-150 Lightning and electric Mustang Mach E models, it will now focus on developing hybrid options across its entire model lineup. This places Ford on a strategic path similar to Japanese giant Toyota, which has become an object of scorn and ridicule from the climate alarmist left and globalist policymakers in the US and Europe for its stubborn, ongoing focus on making and successfully selling hybrids rather than pure EVs.
Meanwhile Fisker, a new EV startup, is pausing production for three weeks, and is on the verge of bankruptcy. Things are so desperate they have dropped the price of the “Ocean Extreme” from £58,000 to £44,000 in the hope of staving off the grim reaper. Not surprisingly, after sales support is “not guaranteed”.
Resistance is growing downunder
The Guardian is still giving free adverts for EVs and pretending its news. They report that there are now 180,000 EV’s in the Australian market, but don’t mention that that is a mere 1% of the total car fleet.
In Australia the EV market is in its infancy, but people already seem to realize “they catch fire” a lot. In the driest continent with the lowest population density and most expensive electricity on Earth, range anxiety and fear of fire is real thing. Far from being excited about being offered low emissions cars, there are signs from middle Australia that the people are unimpressed already.
Dissent is so strong, people in Strata-title buildings have to struggle for 12 months to even get one EV installer added to the building. And when they do succeed the charging spot is often placed in the furthest part of the carpark, out in the garden, lest it combust. One contractor has quoted to install an EV charging outlet on 100 buildings but only two have taken the job up. “Resistance is growing” he says:
The Battle for EV Charging in Strata Title Buildings Continues in Australia
It has taken somewhere near 12 months — 3 Body Corporate Committee meetings, dozens of emails, an Extraordinary General Meeting and an Annual General Meeting to get to this stage — a single 10amp GPO.
To date, he has quoted to install the electrical backbone infrastructure in over 100 buildings. It works out at roughly AU$1000 per parking bay. Only two buildings have taken up the quotes. He believes that body corporates are looking for more reasons to resist the change. “There appear to be more and more rules and regulations,” he says.
“In apartment blocks there are so many people to deal with: committees; on site management. I think the resistance is growing. Some are using fire risk as a means to stop installs. Quotes have become more expensive and more complex as I have had to add fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, fire blankets and a stop/start button. Safe EV training has to be provided for those responsible in the building. More work, more cost.”
And the unsold cars pile up in the US:
Unsold Ford Lightning EV’s stockpiled at Michigan Motor Speedway. Miscalculation born from a non-crisis of epic proportion. pic.twitter.com/15RN3QYdVL
— Mark Nantz (@BullseyeBanjo) April 2, 2024
My goodness, aren’t the Australian sheeple lucky that Bowen and Albo don’t read Jo Nova!
They will go right on flogging the dead horse until it bites them squarely in the ballot box!!
And I personally hope the sheeple take a VERY BIG BITE 🙂
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Don’t forget that this madness is also greens policy, and of all those supposed “independents” and the teal green duckies, and was started under Howard.
None of them are prepared to be honest or face reality or acknowledge that none of this has anything to do with “saving the planet” or “CO2 pollution” or “carbon”.
The whole lot of them need a good boot in the ballot box!
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Pretend conservative Howard did tremendous damage to Australia’s energy future, and in many other ways as well.
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Actually put into perspective the Howard Government attended the Kyoto Conference and signed the emissions target agreement in 1967 after being elected in 1996.
Many UN member nations were taken in by the hoax, Australia however managed to exceed the emissions target easily and was one of the few nations that did that.
The Howard Government introduced a trial renewable energy target of 3 per cent with no favourite targeted, meaning like wind and solar hybrid system the Labor RET 33 per cent with subsidy.
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Howard as Australia’s 2nd longest ever serving PM was a politically shrewd and smart politician. To not sign Kyoto back then was political suicide. That’s our fault not his. Remember Al Gore’s science fiction movie was released in 2006. One year before Howard lost his seat to a ex ABC media personality. She didn’t get reelected. The alternative to Howard was Kevin Rudd, elected as PM in 2007. Rudd’s ETS was rejected by the “Greens” because it wasn’t extreme enough. Two years later Rudd got caught swearing about the Chinese at Copenhagen. His Prime Ministership was terminal from that moment.
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I question the sanity of people who buy EV’s.Their MAX distance they can travel is around 300 kLM’s which in Australia would mean anything outside that radius would be beyond these very expensive toys.Anyone who thinks they are a good idea,has in idiot for a friend.
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Like 4-track hi-fi named “Quadraphonic” in the ’70s, electric vehicles will have their day but maybe in 25 years time. Quadraphonic required a new amp (+ speakers) and paying more for LPs so the average listener continued with standard quite adequate stereo. To-day we have digital streaming of multi-track info that is affordable but it took a generation for the tech to catch up with the “Quad” concept.
In time we will see:
better batteries that are cheap to manufacture;
low light bi-faced PV panels;
ultra-light commuter cars;
travelator motorways so drivers can turn their EVs off;
extensive E-trams in city suburbs;
small 4 cylinder diesels with an extra pair of wider low pressure expansion cylinders for the exhaust gasses;
SMR’s on ships to top up the winter grid in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide;
super capacitor banks in every wind turbine to smooth the variable flow of electrons;
“behind-the metre” micro-grids in homes to run standard loads like freezers, thus leaving the super grid to run industry and peaking loads and importantly,
a smaller population.
Perhaps our current problem is perspective. We are trying to apply infant technology to our old idea of electricity supply and use.
I’m very happy with my old diesel Landcruiser. To replace it with an EV is simply not possible. Towing an excavator on a trailer up a 1000ft hill would require me to also carry an extra 400kg of to-day’s batteries, thus exceeding my towing capacity for a Landcruiser. Perhaps, like the 1970s hi-fi engineers, motor engineers of 2024 are clever but not all that smart (and if politicians were smart they’d have got real jobs).
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Many years ago, back in the 70s I was told a story which may have been true, or perhaps it was apocryphal. It was about this Philips engineer involved in development of qaudra. He recently had gotten a new neighbour who turned out to be a biologist, a scientist studying animals. At a bbq that summer he talked about his work and some of its difficulties. The biologist asked a simple question. ‘If quadra is such a good idea why does a whale have only two ears?’ Basically pointing out that nature invests in signal processing instead of more detectors. It may have been a coincidence but a few months later Philips dropped quadra and went on to develop the compact disc.
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The supercapacitors don’t have to be in the windmills. They can be swappable in the road vehicles or the servos getting charged. Supercapacitors wouldn’t need swapping because they can be charged quickly, but they are still in the land of lunie economics.
It’s the lunie economics that is the problem, with the cost of batteries and non availability of recharging facilities and “renewable” power. It’s not hard to calculate. 1kg of fossil fuel = x kwh of electricity. All the tonnes of fossil fuels have to be replaced at that conversion rate. The number is not to be counted in $s or kwh. it’s to be counted in power stations.
I don’t know, but wouldn’t be surprised if battery aside, EVs might be cheaper to manufacture than ICEs.
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I remember watching a video of a road comparison test between a top of the line Tesla SUV and a Toyota Land Cruiser diesel towing identical medium size caravans from Penrith Western Sydney to Bathurst. Both handled the caravan comfortably but the Tesla was almost out of “fuel” when it entered Bathurst and the Land Cruiser had two thirds of a tank left.
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They don’t care. Most live in the inner city. For 300km they catch a plane. It’s only CO2.
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There is at least some sense in hybrid. The fuel saving in urban traffic should be good.
And if you do need to go further you still can. They also work ing winter.
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Try towing even a small caravan.That would be a real chore.
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Doesn’t have to be, the Toyota HiLux Hybrid is a 150kW/500Nm 2.8L turbo diesel
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If by fuel saving you actually mean saving money, don’t forget to factor in the higher purchase price, which can be significant. You should also consider longevity because even the batteries in hybrids have a finite life preceded by capacity degradation.
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Hybrids don’t have to use LiB’s They can use rapid charge capacitors which are light can charge in seconds but will typically only give 10-20 km range. However in stop start traffic with good regenerative breaking you can get upto 40% fuel saving. On the open road all you get is a power boost for a hill or overtaking.
ATM only Lamborghini use this system but their focus is track day performance boost.
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So much to ponder in the leadin graphic.
The poor EV.
The lightning strike or maybe a battery discharge?
The restrictive bubble.
The cloud, delaying a recharge and the chains perhaps offering a lift to the recharge terminal.
It all looks terminal.
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Those responsible belong in a cell
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One of my brothers bought a new F-150 this year as his previous one had reached age 17 and 300,000 miles, plus his teenage son had taken it over. He told me that when he went to go pick out a new one, they desperately tried to push the EV version on him. They had a lot full just sitting there, they can’t move. After it became clear that he had zero interest in the battery powered model, they then tried to get him interested the hybrid version. He told them no way on that either. He wanted the turbo V6 model but if they had a turbo v8 model that would be even better, even if it would cost him significantly more. They didn’t have any V8 powered models, because they were sold out. He settled on the twin turbo v6 model, which is what he wanted anyway. If that wasn’t available then he told them he would go with F-350 diesel, even though it cost more and was more truck than he needed. He told them if all they had were EV and hybrid models he would he would take his business to a Japanese manufacture.
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So, did he get what he wanted in the end, Dave?
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Yes, he got the turbocharged ICE model. It’s totally “connected” though. He was so happy that I decided not to mention the Orwellian privacy issues that come with that.
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If your brother has something to tow, then he dodged a bullet
https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/ford-f150-lightning-electric-truck-towing-test/
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From all reports if you are going to tow something with an EV it needs to be a trailer mounted diesel generator which also removes range problems.
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In the US there is now a large caravan available with battery pack and electric drive motors connected to the tow vehicle system like electric brakes are but controlling the power via the tow vehicle system.
A solution that costs a lot of money, and no doubt twice the recharging time.
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Evs are not only useless as tow vehicles due to range, they also pose big problems when recharging. Most, if not all, public charging stations do not provide space for a trailer, boat or caravan. This means you have to unhitch somewhere before heading to the charger, then hitch-up again once charged. This is obviously going to cease being fun pretty quickly but may also create opportunities for crooks to steal away with your boat while you p1ss around trying to charge your car.
Imagine the laughs you could have when, after parking up across the street and unhitching the caravan, you drive back to the charger only to find it isn’t working, or there’s now four cars ahead of you waiting to charge. This hilarity would be multiplied ten times if you have two or three bored and fractious kids in the back, wondering when the holiday is going to start 🙂
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Or phone connection weak or zero, so recharging app cannot connect.
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And while it is charging, someone steals the caravan.
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Wait until it encounters a mountain pass or a strong head wind or both.
And yes he does tow.
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95% of all EV’s sold are still on the road
The other 5% made it home
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An old Land Rover joke but very apt in this case.
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The media seems to very quiet on the large electric bus battery that went up in flames on the weekend in St Marys, NSW.
It was at the Denning manufacturing facility, and wasn’t attached to a bus.
12 hour, 250 meter exclusion zone from the fireys until it was deemed safe for the public.
Looks to be only a “factory fire” ….
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The media are doing what the media did during COVID. Then, they were not fully criticising the Federal/ State governments policies because they were the beneficiaries of all the crazy ads the state booked on TV and Radio etc. With the media, throw in the advertising industry as well. Every car ad on TV these days seems to be a slick, high quality EV ad for all the brands. So, it’s not in their best interests to publicise any BPV fires, otherwise they would lose advertising revenue. If it’s not slick EV/BPV car ads it’s some wanky energy company telling me how they’re transitioning to a renewable power future. Or purchase a mobile phone plan with this company because we’re carbon neutral.
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Perhaps even the sheeple are staring to wake up to these very expensive , dangerous TOXIC disasters, but why has it taken so long?
At least hybrids are a much more sensible purchase but I’d still prefer an ICE car when the need arises.
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Wake up little Bowen, wake up.
The battery is far too hot
You’ve given it your best shot
The EV is still a flop
Well, what are you gonna tell your party?
What are we gonna tell your voters?
What are we gonna tell all your WEF friends
When they say, ooh la la where’s my ICE car
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Fortunately in Australia we have the genius engineers PM Albanese and anti-Energy Minister Chrissy Bowen looking after our EV rollout.
Here, Chief Engineer and Prime Minister Albanese explains how solar panels will charge your EV at night for free:
https://youtu.be/vyS9uqRLbB8
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A possible scenario.
A plug-in hybrid with a bit of fuel in the tank, and connected at night to one of those solar batteries that are under recall.
What could possibly go wrong?
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Your bank account.
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Who would have thought? ABC and CSIRO spruiking Government BS again.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-10/csiro-most-australians-want-moderate-paced-energy-transition/103687808
Without declaring the various components “The CSIRO’s research has also consistently shown renewables are the lowest-cost form of energy while nuclear is the most expensive.”
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Now the Swiss court has agreed that their govt must do more to stop dangerous heatwaves that could kill more elderly Swiss women.
But the Swiss have always enjoyed very high life expectancy and increased from about 68 years in 1950 to over 84 years in 2024.
And Swiss co2 emissions are about 0.01% of global emissions, so definitely ZERO change for weather or climate even if they reduced their tiny co2 emissions to ZIP.
But don’t they just love their BS and FRAUD?
https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/annual-co2-emissions-per-country?country=OWID_WRL~CHE
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Interesting on the Toyota front. They’ve always gone down the hybrid path even with ads mocking the BPV’s. But now they’re selling a BPV RAV4 type vehicle. The ad with “ Barry” choosing the vehicle because it’s a Toyota. So, it would seem contrary to this story that something has changed at the Japanese manufacturer. Or maybe it’s toe in the water stuff?
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Try this article for an overview of the Toyota strategy
https://www.carsguide.com.au/car-news/helping-or-hindering-electric-cars-is-toyotas-ev-policy-actually-fair-for-most-australians
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Thanks, to me that’s Toyota having a bet both ways and probably being dragged kicking and screaming into the BPV market. But there was always the Toyota philosophy- they intended to have a high quality competitive vehicle in every sector of the automotive market. So why would EV’s be any different? Gee, how many Toyota ICE V8 Landcruisers do you see on the roads these days. In my area – heaps. So, no way are they going to cannibalise that market. Also, noted lately a lot of V8 Nissan Patrols, which must also be a sweet ride.
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https://www.toyota.com.au/bz4x-ev/prices
bZ4X
DRIVEAWAY FROM
$71,161
Also in the news recently:
https://www.polestar.com/au/polestar-3/configurator
Polestar 3
Price from: $110,818.18
(currently not available)
Both family-priced and I expect to see many of these in suburban garages soon (/sarc)
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Hot off the press, an article claiming the solid-state batteries Toyota has been working on are unsafe and unreliable. The claim is made by Dr Robin Zeng, CEO of CATL so it may just be a case of a rival trying to undermine a competitor, a bit of niggling between a Chinese and a Japanese company
https://www.drive.com.au/news/solid-state-batteries-unsafe-says-expert/?utm_campaign=syndication&utm_source=smh.com.au&utm_content=article_3&utm_medium=partner
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EVs are too inconvenient and too dangerous. On top of that are all the demands they put on owners …
– wait hours for recharge (and if the passengers don’t like it that’s your problem),
– don’t fast-charge too often or you’ll kill the battery
– plan your journey to minimise load on the battery (avoids hills, towing, head wind etc.)
– consider carefully the use of anything electric (air-conditioning etc.) because it will drain the battery
– accept the high-speed depreciation of the vehicle
– accept the high insurance costs
– accept the inconvenience if your battery goes flat
– accept that your journey could easily take twice as long by the time you stop to recharge (if you can find somewhere)
– accept the threat to personal safety if you are recharging late at night in a poorly lit area
– accept that you’ll need a working mobile phone with you to pay for a recharge
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In Australia, the motorist organisations such as NRMA, RACV have been thoroughly infiltrated by the Left and are fully woke.
They are no longer the motorist’s friend.
They will not stand up to government decrees to ban ICE vehicles.
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I recently did a ‘survey’ from the NRMA about EVs. They seemed to be pushing the line that I’d cheerfully buy one if only the re-educated me properly.
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Try emailing and criticising EV.
NRMA does not like that.
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RAC in WA too….
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I just changed from NRMA Insurance to GIO for my 4WD and the price of the policy was $400 less.
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A few years back the Rav4 hybrid was $2500 more expensive than the petrol model, and after a road test these guys reckon you worked that cost out over 100,000km in petrol savings. The 70kg weight difference, and a bit less space I expect, were offset by the quicker performance.
https://www.carexpert.com.au/car-comparisons/toyota-rav4-vs-toyota-rav4-hybrid-which-should-you-buy
I don’t know the price difference today, but I expect it pans out the same. I recently found out a Rav4 hybrid out-accelerates my little 1.6L sports saloon although its nearly twice the weight. I can usually make the most of the 50 to 100kph acceleration leaving town.
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The RAV 4 will likely follow other Toyota models where 80% of sales have been the hybrid versions
https://www.carexpert.com.au/car-news/popular-toyotas-go-hybrid-only-in-australia-pushing-base-price-into-new-territory
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Toyota have stated the logic behind their “ Hybrid “ philosophy, and it is a very simple, smart plan to ensure their future.
They believe there will be a crisis in materials sourcing for Batteries, such that large batteries (hence EVs) will become much more expensive and possibly difficult to produce.
However, Toyota know they can build 90 hybrid battery packs with the same amount of raw materials required for 1 large EV pack.
AND , those 90 hybrids will reduce the emmissions over a 15 year life, more than the one large EV pack can.
https://energyminute.ca/news/toyotas-1690-rule-the-case-for-hybrids/
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In Australia fire brigades are partly funded by insurance companies and/or levies on property owners.
Has anyone factored in the greatly increased expenditure required to fight EV and home battery fires plus having to secure the fire scene for possibly days before it can be declared safe?
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I would guess these expenditures are currently buried under the heading “Inflation” as Governments work hard to disguise the downsides of EV ownership.
It’s not until the general populace gets their collective face rubbed in reality that things will change, for now the majority are just vaguely aware of EV car fires.
An example:
My Mother and her eldest brother are tennis fanatics who play in various tournaments around the country, back in February it was in Hobart. The decision was taken to drive from Adelaide, and take the ferry across the Bass Strait. My Aunt and Uncle were surprised when time came to load the car and they were asked if it was an EV. I had clued in my mother prior to the trip, and she was able to explain about the fire risk. I assume they load EV’s somewhere near a hatch that can let them be shoved overboard….
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Never forget that even Biden’s clueless climate donkey Kerry has told the truth in some interviews.
Here’s a link to two comments he has made about co2 emissions that proves that even he understands that we are WASTING our TIME and MONEY.
That’s if you really BELIEVE that co2 is a dangerous trace gas, although deaths from extreme weather events have dropped by 98% over the last 100 years.
Simple logic and reason that proves we now live in the safest period of our Human existence.
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2021/04/25/john-kerry-bidens-climate-czar-admits-u-s-co2-emission-cuts-are-pointless/
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Kerry’s remarks are simply cretnous.
He wants to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This at a time when current CO2 levels are barely able to sustain plant life. He doesn’t realise the fulfilment of his ambition would kill the majority of life on Earth.
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The Australian Government’s chief propaganda arm, Their ABC now has a new Chair, Kim Williams.
Curiously, just like his predecessor, Ita Buttrose, of whom one of her first pronouncements was that she could see no Leftist bias in the organisation, he has also said there is no bias.
So Their ABC will continue to push the Official Narrative of catastrophic anthropogenic global warming and solar and wind insanity and pushing EVs.
I guess being blind to the undeniable Leftist bias of ABC is a prerequisite for the job.
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At least our politicians haven’t sunk to this level of intelligence. At least we’ve not discovered one yet. That doesn’t mean there isn’t one being hidden away until a really important portfolio comes along!!
This has got to be a real dummy!!!
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/spaced-out-sheila-jackson-lee-tells-texas-students-planet-moon-made-up-gases
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Only 24,165 EV Lightning sales vs 750,000 ICE Sales
Reuters
https://www.reuters.com › business › autos-transportation
23 Feb 2024 — Ford sold 24,165 F-150 Lightning trucks last year in the U.S., up 55% from 2022, out of about 750,000 total F-150 U.S. sales
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Lightnings were being sold to the wealthy woke and not to your typical pick-up truck buyer
The top two Lightning trims—Platinum and Lariat—accounted for 86% of the early used F-150 Lightnings, according to Cars.com. The first units to be delivered of any new vehicle tend to be the most expensive versions since auto companies like selling the cars with the highest potential profit margin first.
But Ford still lost $30,000 each on these luxury models
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This is what happens when a government tries to be the businessman forcing sales onto potential buyers with some financial sweet candy of subsidies and tax reductions with a bunch of propaganda mandates driving it but after a while the candy goes sour as the mounting problems of the EV’s fills up the newspapers and the internet which cools off the potential customers who has learned what a bad investment EV’s are thus going back to the tried and true ICE instead.
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A new 2024 study from Koutsoylannis tries to find a connection between increased Human co2 emissions and temperature. Here’s the study link and the abstract.
IOW we could be wasting our time and many more TRILLIONS of $ for many more decades into the future.
https://www.mdpi.com/2413-4155/6/1/17
“Abstract”
Recent studies have provided evidence, based on analyses of instrumental measurements of the last seven decades, for a unidirectional, potentially causal link between temperature as the cause and carbon dioxide concentration ([CO2]) as the effect. In the most recent study, this finding was supported by analysing the carbon cycle and showing that the natural [CO2] changes due to temperature rise are far larger (by a factor > 3) than human emissions, while the latter are no larger than 4% of the total. Here, we provide additional support for these findings by examining the signatures of the stable carbon isotopes, 12 and 13. Examining isotopic data in four important observation sites, we show that the standard metric δ13C is consistent with an input isotopic signature that is stable over the entire period of observations (>40 years), i.e., not affected by increases in human CO2 emissions. In addition, proxy data covering the period after 1500 AD also show stable behaviour. These findings confirm the major role of the biosphere in the carbon cycle and a non-discernible signature of humans”.
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Here’s Chris Morrison’s summary of the study from the Daily Sceptic.
https://dailysceptic.org/2024/04/08/fresh-science-challenges-unproven-claims-that-human-caused-carbon-dioxide-controls-climate/
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If not done already, could Jo cover this paper in a headline article. Every pollie and their advisers etc should read it, even if their limited grasp of science is beyond them.
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And yet other countries are going in the other direction, China, Thailand, India, Norway etc
America is not willing to invest in the state of the art production facilities, preferring to use older less efficient and more expensive methods
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Nonsense.
ICE vehicles are state of the art. They are the most efficient and safest they ever have been and have superior range and cost to EVs and can be quickly refueled.
I have no problems with the wealthy woke driving EVs if they want, just don’t force them on others. The market will decide.
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As Jo recently said about solar generally, presumed to be used to charge EVs, and the wealthy woke:
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The MP for Wentworth electorate, Sydney Eastern Suburbs, one of the Teal Party masquerading as independents, told media that she supported Range Rovers because voters in her electorate need them.
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Norway certainly isn’t Peter. In fact, it has realised that the EV subsidies amount is greater than the money it spends on roads upkeep, so has decided to start winding back some of its subsidies.
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Man walks into car dealership.
“Yes, good morning, I’m wanting to get hold of a new electric vehicle, as I understand that the Government is phasing out all internal combustion engined cars, and I thought I would get in early.”
“Nice one Sir, and a fine move on your part if I may say so. Here we have this latest electric vehicle, the Norwegian Blue, and at Sixty Five Thousand Dollars, it comes in very competitively in the market might I say and …..” blah blah for the next twenty minutes.
“Well, I guess I’m sold then. Umm, What sort of a trade in would give me for my two year old Camry here?”
“Oh, I’m sorry Sir, we don’t do trade ins, as your vehicle is totally useless to us, and we can’t sell it. You would have to get rid of that privately, and seriously, no one will take it anyway with this move to EVs now mandated. In fact, I’m pretty sure you’ll have to pay someone to dispose of it for you.”
“Whisky Tango Foxtrot!”
Umm, now imagine what the average punter has to look forwards to ….. shelling out for an expensive new EV, and owning a now worthless car, that they have to just, well, dump, really!
That’ll go down real well, eh!
Six days later.
“Hello, you sold me that Norwegian Blue six days ago.”
“Oh, yes Sir, how’s it going.”
“Well, it’s not. It just stopped on the side of the road half way home from work.”
“Ah, Sir, this is common with that model. It’s a small computer Glitch.”
“Does it have a real name then?”
“Oh yes Sir, it’s the ‘Pining for the Fjords’ glitch!!!!!”
Tony.
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Tesla’s pricey Cybertrucks were ‘rushed out’ and now malfunctioning at astounding rate: ‘Great for five minutes’
Elon Musk’s Cybertrucks have been panned by furious owners for breaking down at alarming rates just months after the futuristic vehicle hit the road.
Tales of the stainless steel Cybertrucks dying after traveling just 1 mile, randomly hard-braking on a wide-open road and already showing rust spots, among other gripes, were shared in the Tesla Owners’ Club forum.
In a thread titled “Worst delivery in my life (truck died in 5 minutes),” a Southern California-based owner wrote that after taking his truck for a spin the same day it was delivered last month, the vehicle “made it 1 mile down road, started getting steering error, flashing red screen, pulled off side of highway now the truck is dead and I’m waiting for a tow truck.”
“Dealer couldn’t do anything for me. It was great for 5 minutes. Tried everything, restarting, screen is stuck black and keeps beeping,” the user added in the thread, first reported on by automotive news site Jalopnik.
The owner received the vehicle, which starts at $80,000, one month after the highly-publicized trucks went on sale last December — two years behind schedule.
“Tesla really rushed these trucks out, what a nightmare,” the disappointed owner said.
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The Cybertruck has got to be one of the ugliest designs I have ever seen. On that basis alone I am astounded that people are willing to buy them.
190
Another brand-new E.V. fleet,
Whose tyres may never touch street,
As less buyers make deals,
On E.V. sets of wheels,
Preferring I.C.E. and vote with their feet.
170
It will be interesting to watch Volvo which is switching entirely to EVs. Some cool Swedish backtracking might be called for.
110
That would be interesting as VOLVO is Chinese owned
60
Tangentially connected is the need to provide renewable energy for these electricity guzzling machines. A farmer living next door to a proposed $750 million solar farm in Western Victoria raises several interesting and potentially ruinous dangers to farming. In common law a farmer who allows a fire to spread from his property to an adjacent property is responsible for making good any damage caused by the fire. To cover this possible cost he takes out insurance, usually for a cover of $20 million which has been shown to be enough. This farmer, who also represents a local group opposed to the solar farm, asks the question if a fire started by him, probably accidentally, got into the solar farm and destroyed it he would have to find that $750 million.which is quite beyond him. Even if an insurance company accepted the risk he would not be able to afford the premiums. Conversely if the solar farm causes a fire which destroys his crops will he be compensated ? As he said many of these solar farms are held by $2 dollar companies who would simply walk away from compensation as they will walk away from rehabilitation when the solar farm reaches the end of its productive life in 15 or so years.
Governments have not considered these questions in their mad rush to renewables. It will come back to bite them but in the meantime most W & S farms are in National electorates so do not worry the ALP and Green acolytes.
220
Just like all the other Labor five minute wonders! Pink batts, clash for clunkers, Juliar Gillard etc etc!
200
Lawrie, I have been telling them and they can’t see it! There is now a mechanism in place to put a dollar value on any fire. As carbon markets develop that value will increase, and farmers will be held negligent if any fire escapes his/her boundary, even if it was started by lightning.
Fire damage that used to be ignored will now be valued in squillions.
This will apply also to on farm sequestration schemes.
They believe it can be managed by insurance. Not possible! It will break the whole insurance industry.
20
The environment and pandemics driven by the United Nations is being used to subjugate every democracy. No other countries take any notice. And only in modern Left run democracies like the US and UK and France and Germany do they feel they can get away with dictatorial powers on health and commerce if they use the magic words. All invented by the UN and supported by the EU.
The UN/WHO is entirely responsible for millions of unnecessary deaths during the pandemic. “The virus is not infectious, person to person”. And the President of the UN is claiming the ‘oceans are boiling’ which is so absurd you have to ask why he thinks seriously he can get away with saying it without being laughed out of a job.
Democracies should not be dictatorships. Politicians are not scientists or doctors or accountants or businessmen. Failed lawyers at best. They have no business telling us what products to buy based on fantasies like man made CO2 driven Global Warming, rapid sea rise, boiling oceans, dead Polar bears and electric cars and pharmaceuticals. And laws on electricity and cars and farming and fishing and dams and water are pouring out of governments all with the same story. They are saving the planet and have the legal responsibility to do so.
That’s a lie.
Federal governments have responsibility only only for defence, currency, trade and that’s about it. Their grab to control of all energy decisions with Climate Change and all health decisions with pandemics and abortion is indefensible. The US Supreme Court agreed after 50 years that the Federal Roe vs Wade decision was illegal. Not right or wrong, illegal. Most of our Green laws are equally illegal. But they are not being challenged.
The Treaty of Paris was vague, aspirational, non binding and dependent entirely on assumptions which have proven to be completely wrong. But it is being used to argue governments can and should ban cheap, reliable, comfortable cars in favor of wrecking the entire transport sector. The same with electricity supply and distribution, decisions made on the opinions of people outside Australia and severely damaging to Australians.
No dams, no power stations, experimental drugs, no limits on migration, no banned drugs, no free speech and no actual concern for aboriginals. BLM in Australia? When did we have slaves? When was Australia invaded? Never. It’s a long list of absurd directions from hard left governments, all with the one aim. Wrecking a hated democracy. Communism killed hundreds of millions last century, a route to absolute power over everyone, nothing less.
Electric cars are another part of the wide attack on the quality of life and freedoms enjoyed and specifically elective spending by consumers. This is not at all the business of government. Intervention in the car market is precisely what you get when the ruling Labor/Green government are led by two lifelong avowed extremist Communists, Albanese and Bandt. Who are doing exactly what they want and none of it is good for Australia.
As for the Teals who put them in power, God only knows what they were thinking. Most of them would drive electric cars. Because they live in privileged world, subsidized by everyone else. Communism’s useful idiots.
The business of demanding everyone drive electric cars and banning everything else is part of an increasing dictatorship by leftist governments. The food you eat, the crops you grow, the places you go, even your right of travel and to where is being increasingly dictated by governments. They have no such right but as long as no one notices, the laws will flow until you are locked in your feeding pens.
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EVs should be renamed to Elitist Vehicle, as they are useless for anything other than virtue signalling.
170
The point is one of control. Of where you go, how you go, whether you go. Anywhere. It’s the slippery slope of total State control. To save the planet, of course. What else?
140
Then what clothes to wear, from what fabric. DEI clothes to hide gender, race, wealth. All justified by the government’s need to keep the peace and minimize damage to the environment. Where does this stop? Eating insects, not using fertilizer, 20% of the land fallow, no travel, 15 minute cities, electric cars. Oppression by stealth laws. The government have no business telling us what cars to drive. And using our money to subsidize other people’s lifestyle choices.
150
Since the Left use Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty Four as their operations manual, we can foresee two uniform choices as follows:
For the Youth League of Spies, which was the system of children spying on their parents:
For the Junior Anti-Sex League they wore much the same as the Proles, overalls but with a sash:
100
Leftists always back up defective business models with forced purchase, taxpayer-funded subsidies or other means.
(sarc) Make the poor pay! (/sarc).
Let’s hope the Biden Maladministration doesn’t hand over taxpayer money for this or have other devious plans.
100
I have a friend who is a body corporation manager and this has been on the radar for him for some time now . Its interesting how many buildings reject charging stations underneath buildings due to insurance increases alone . Too many people have seen EV battery fires now . Have to run an extension cord out to the kerb…..
120
Most ( if not all ) of the strata buildings constructed in the last 20 years in inner suburban Melbourne included underground car parks. The councils demand this, due to the shortage of on street parking. So, all of these buildings Body Corporates would be rejecting any underground BPV charging. But, the Vic government’s stupidity knows no bounds when it comes to appeasing the green gods. So, it’s possible they might overrule Body Corporates.
120
I posted this on the Weds thread, but realise it is better viewed here..
EV charging snag !
This is just being an issue in the UK, but the implication in Au is worth considering.
Public EV chargers are cashless, and further can only be accessed via the relavent charger app,…ON A MOBILE PHONE !
Now.. consider that both the cashless operation and the app on the phone require a “good” mobile network coverage at the charger location.
No problem in urban areas, but as any traveling aussie will know as soon as you venture off the highway, you chances of continuous mobile access are somwhat lower !
Effectively this means that EV charge points are only possible inareas with mobile coverage ( for all network providers ?)
It is all very well for Optus , Telstra , etc to say they cover 90+% of the population, but they certainly do not cover 90+% of the country, highway, roads, let alone remote country areas.
…And something tells me they never will !
So , just how widespread will the EV chargers ever be in Au ?
170
EV Charging Stations Still Riddled With Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities
As more electric vehicles are sold, the risk to compromised charging stations looms large alongside the potential for major cybersecurity exploits.
Charging stations face significant cybersecurity risks. “Issues include unprotected Internet connectivity, insufficient authentication and encryption, absence of network segmentation, unmanaged energy assets, and more,” wrote researchers from Check Point Software and SaiFlow, the latter a cybersecurity specialist in distributed energy solutions. Compromised stations could damage the power grid, for example, or result in stolen customer data. “Chargers have personal and payment information and run a variety of protocols that aren’t typically recognized by traditional firewalls,” says Check Point Software’s Aaron Rose, who works in the office of the CTO.
Shell patched a vulnerability last year in one database that could have exposed millions of charging logs from across its EV charging network.
Elias Bou-Harb is a computer scientist with the Louisiana State University who has long studied charging station security. He has found almost every charging product has major vulnerabilities, including well-known attack methods such as SQL injection and cross-site scripting. “What is particularly alarming is that some well-known protective measures haven’t been implemented by most of the vendors, and that few of them have taken steps to improve their security even after we identified these weaknesses.”
https://www.darkreading.com/ics-ot-security/ev-charging-stations-still-riddled-with-cybersecurity-vulnerabilities
I can see the future headlines and news already. 😉
100
Has anyone published the number of EV’S owned by government and their instrumentalities v. Private ownership?
60
Not exactly, but:
https://maps.finance.gov.au/news/2023/comcar-transitioning-its-fleet-electric-vehicle-technology
The Arcadis adoption report (not current):
https://images.connect.arcadis.com/Web/Arcadis/%7Bac0290b0-6745-42f9-9619-f1bb6b9c10ef%7D_Global-Electric-Vehicle-Catalyst-Index-2021-2nd-edition.pdf
Pollies with ev’s sitting in long charging queues?
Next you’ll be expecting them to eat bugs not juicy steaks.
60
Leasing firms have been granted incentives to promote EV to fleet operators.
Turnbull Government handed over $300 million shared between leasing firms.
40
Suppliers in the area are postponing investments
https://m.koreatimes.co.kr/pages/article.asp?newsIdx=372285
30
“… billions in free gifts don’t make a market appear when the product is a dog.”
Hey, that’s unfair to dogs.
Biden has a dog. It bites people. He as a sports car that guzzles gasoline. He wants everyone else to drive an electric car. If he gives me the sports car, I’ll take the dog too.
EVs are like white elephants. I wouldn’t accept one if given to me.
90
Caption from a cartoon where that dog is explaining its point of view to its psyc –
“CAN YOU BELIEVE I HAD TO BITE 24 SECRET SERVICE AGENTS BEFORE I COULD FINALLY GET
AWAY FROM THAT DEMENTED OLD GRIFTER?
I MEAN. WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO DO?…”
130
Medium level traffic this morning near Raymond Terrace NSW, North of Newcastle, and at one of my favourite EV recharging station observation in passing places surprisingly there was one EV on charge, more often than not none.
But who apart from woke inner city company leased EV drivers travels country roads in range challenged vehicles?
60
When can we expect to see the nationwide upgrading of the grid distribution network to cope with the heavy extra demand from EV recharging?
50
Dennis,
The “fastest” EV charging stations are only 250-300 kW, and there are not many of those .Most are 10-50 kW .
That is small beer compared to any serious industrial plant, and absolutely trivial compared to a shopping strip, high rise building, let alone a data storage center.!
31
I listened to a farmer from Victoria on Bolt Report and he explained that having a solar “farm” installed near his property has resulted in insurance price rising significantly, liability for damage to solar panels if a fire started on his farm and was his fault, machinery caught fire or whatever reason.
And insurance that would fully cover the solar neighbour risks were unaffordable.
70
Caption from a cartoon on a mugging –
“GIVE ME YOUR MONEY”
“I AM A POLITICIAN”
“THEN GIVE ME MY “MONEY”
60
“Some are using fire risk as a means to stop installs.”
Outrageous!! how dare they use lame issues like personal safety and insurance premiums. Dont they realize this is progress?
60
Electric cars are toys. Whichever party promises to end this Climate Con will walk into power.
Both parties promised not to have a Carbon tax. And they conspire to give us as many hidden carbon taxes as they can. Except they are all illegal theft, not taxes. Buried into third party charges, green certificates, tree certificates, subsidies.
And they support the craziest climate scams. National Parks, Whale migration routes, raptors, bats, vistas and peace of mind mean nothing to the Climate Crazies. And the money is flowing like a river to China while we are not even allowed use our own coal or gas?
And we have to buy Chinese electric cars and windmills and solar panels.
It has to stop. The social engineering flowing into the country is almost worse than the demolition of our own power self sufficiency. And then you get Snowy II which is already barely started and should have been finished and looks like being 10x the cost we were told.
When will it end? Why go nuclear when we have plenty of coal and gas. Certainly enough to export so others can do what we are not allowed to, burn the stuff?
There is no logic to this endless government oppression. Except greed. And promises mean nothing when both sides agree to lie to the people. The only question is when does this end? And how? There is no opposition in parliament. And as in the US, the press in most cases are 100% behind the theft. And the social engineering. If you dare speak out, you are silenced by the police no less!
130
The Libs might promise to curtail it in some way, at some point if it would get them elected, but I wouldn’t believe them.
60
Who was elected on a promise to make us all drive electric cars? What happened to a mandate?
What we need is someone like AGL to take one of these appalling laws to the High Court. Start with Renewable Energy(Electricity) 2001.
And who proved growing tree reduced CO2? No one. That’s the 2011 Carbon Farming Act and the 2023 Safeguard Mechanism which is utterly based around growing tree credits. Fake science. Illegal laws.
60
And Ford might be walking away and Hertz, but China is going flat out dumping electric cars around the world in specially built ships. And we will be pressured to buy them. Like we were pressured not to ask who created the Wuhan Flu.
Plus we cannot build windmills fast enough to power electric cars, so why are we being forced to buy them? Snowy II is not only insane financially, it is a battery. And you have to pay to charge it. Nothing is free in this new world. Certainly not Renewables.
70
Happening everywhere. Sales of battery cars in Germany are just over 28% down in the first quarter and their car industry is continuing to see jobs go as production is cut or shifted to cheaper locations within Europe. Even allowing for inflation it will be centuries before mankind wastes so much money and resources on such a stupid idea as Net Zero or anything related to global warming.
80
Perhaps the irony here is that a hundred years ago, Henry Ford offered any color you want as long as you want black. His sales tanked as a result. The government thinks it can say you can have any car you want as long as it is an electric. Toyota chose not to play along while US automakers made what Washington bureaucrats wanted.
EV’s likely make sense in an urban/suburban environment but not so much if the use is rural and you are driving long distances. Ford went all in on the Lightening pick-up truck but there just are than many urban pickup truck buyers. There have been successes stories with EV’s however. The Korean automakers are actually seeing their sales grow because they are making smaller vehicles that are more practical in the urban/suburban environment.
One good thing about this exercise, it’s taught the automakers who their customers are. Too bad it had to be a $5 billion lesson (per company).
30
A common quote, but not quite true…!
Ford never restricted the colours of the Model T, they were available in a variety of red,green, blue, etc as well as black.
But, black was a common color on all autos , as it was the fastest drying paint at the time, and as such helped manufacturing speeds.
Also , the Ford “T” sales never “tanked”,….it was the most popular car on the market and ford was always trying to keep up with demand. It was the biggest selling (15+m) model on the market.
Now, ..if you had compared the Ford Edsel !…….
That is a very different story, and a much better comparison to the Lightening.
00
Henry Ford offered any color you want as long as you want black. His sales tanked as a result.
Source
If there is one very constant thing, Henry Ford knew how to make and sell cars…not so good on cornering the rubber trade.
00