I've got a very long extension lead for my charger!On one charge?
The problem with E-bikes in the UK.
- Thread starter kingsknight
- Start date
Remember when the Galaxy note first appeared? everyone laughed at the idea of holding a phone with a 5.3 inch screen to your face. 7 years later and it's become the industry standard. It's almost impossible now to find a phone with a screen size smaller that 5 inches.
It was the same with the automatic transmission. People hated the idea of it and convinced themselves it was lazy but the ones driving the big BMW's and Mercs in the 90's/early 00's knew they'd probably never go back to manual and this would be the future...the number of cars sold with automatic has risen over 70% since in the last 10 years
History is repeating itself with the Ebike. Those of us fortunate enough to have one know this isn't just a phase...its an evolution in biking!
7 years from now when the technology improves and the cost of manufacturing drops making it even more accessible to the masses I can guarantee every other bike will be electric in some way. I'd even go as far as to say the traditional road bike will eventually become somewhat obsolete (a niche product for the purists.)
I wouldn't worry about the hate, they'll all convert eventually. Just be happy knowing you're 7 years ahead of the curve.
It was the same with the automatic transmission. People hated the idea of it and convinced themselves it was lazy but the ones driving the big BMW's and Mercs in the 90's/early 00's knew they'd probably never go back to manual and this would be the future...the number of cars sold with automatic has risen over 70% since in the last 10 years
History is repeating itself with the Ebike. Those of us fortunate enough to have one know this isn't just a phase...its an evolution in biking!
7 years from now when the technology improves and the cost of manufacturing drops making it even more accessible to the masses I can guarantee every other bike will be electric in some way. I'd even go as far as to say the traditional road bike will eventually become somewhat obsolete (a niche product for the purists.)
I wouldn't worry about the hate, they'll all convert eventually. Just be happy knowing you're 7 years ahead of the curve.
I must remember that one, many thanks. Mine will have to be in Kilometers though!!
Most such rude people are simply jealous....and lazy!!
regards
Andy
Even in two years of ebiking I have yet to be told I am cheating. I sometimes think so myself as I still also use a conventional bike when that is what I want.
If this is cheating so what, it is certainly a "brighter" thing to do for at least most of my riding. Maybe "they" have not twigged that?
If this is cheating so what, it is certainly a "brighter" thing to do for at least most of my riding. Maybe "they" have not twigged that?
couple of years back In Sheringham I was approached by a bloke of approx 45 yrs of age,,,25 plus stone and wheezing like a steam train while puffing on a roll up....''Thats not proper cycling thats cheating '' he said....''So you do lot of cycling do you?'' I replied ....He walked away looking very sheepish !!
couple of years back In Sheringham I was approached by a bloke of approx 45 yrs of age,,,25 plus stone and wheezing like a steam train while puffing on a roll up....''Thats not proper cycling thats cheating '' he said....''So you do lot of cycling do you?'' I replied ....He walked away looking very sheepish !!
Come to think of it.. I dont see many cyclists of any persuasion stopped for a fag, whereas I see motorcyclists aplenty puffing away. A friend from work used to say he was sneaking outside to clear his lungs and after a few puffs and a really good cough he would red facedly say better out than in!
But those of us with electric cars have smugly done away with the need for a gear changing box. That's the future.
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I agree with you completely, that will be the future for cars, but it is not the present.But those of us with electric cars have smugly done away with the need for a gear changing box. That's the future.
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The few buying them are really the "testers", as most of the electric cars today, even for me as a pensioner, are useless as the distance covered per charge is still not enough and the heating in winter empties the battery too quickly, and the manufacturers don't tell you that.
The Air Conditioning does the same in summer...
The life and cost of the batteries is too short and too expensive. A car over 5 years old MAY need a battery replacement, that costs more than the car is worth at 5 years, if you are unlucky!
The present carbon footprint for the construction and usage, assuming oil and electricity, makes them still environmentally a bad choice. Some countries, Germany for example, are stopping Nuclear electricity generation, which to me is just plain stupid. I would not be surprised if they reverse themselves on that point!
Some very potent chemicals are in the cars, and the battery can explode or burn in an accident situation. Our e-bike batteries are similar, but they are far smaller and we are "ON" not "IN" and the speeds are far, far lower...
Today, a good hybrid gives range and comparatively cheaper costs overall, plus a plug in hybrid can be recharged for short journeys, saving on fuel costs.
But it is as you say, the electric car is the future.
regards to all
Andy
I agree with much of what you've posted, particularly on nuclear generation. However I think you are not fully up to speed with the latest cars so add these comments.
The "on the run" 160 miles Summer and 130 miles winter from my 2018 Leaf is not only plenty for my purposes and for a huge proportion of drivers. In the crowded south east where I live it can often mean over four hours driving! Many never make a journey anywhere near those distances, especially in the numerous two car families where one never goes very far. Next year's Leaf has an over 50% battery increase enabling a true 240 miles, enough to look after the majority.
After six months with the Leaf my only car, I've yet to use a public charging point, all charges from my home point.
Not true now, heat pumps have transformed that. Most of my range loss in cold weather is due to my version not having active battery temperature control, the cold battery not performing quite as well. My car gets an overnight parked 4 degrees up to 21 degrees in minutes within a half mile at 1.5 kW consumption rate per hour and then maintains the 21 degrees using about 260 watts per hour. I can get all that dynamic consumption per item up on the info screen and the lowest forecast I've seen is a 9 miles range reduction on the forecast range, a real world reduction of 7 miles from the actual range. Those figures are peanuts from the 40 kWh battery and next years upgrade is to 63 kWh.
Again not up to date, my battery warranty like most now is 8 years and I'll be using it beyond that knowing my own circumstances, which will be true for many others.
In London my Leaf for a commuter into town is a no-brainer. The cost of the congestion charge over the 8 years for a five day week plus holidays worker is £24,000, the price of a new Leaf. No VED (road tax) and the fuel cost saving more than pays for insurance. There's even free charging points and free parking places in town. So it's a completely free car to add to one's i.c car which can be kept for the odd long run.
Not really, one can offset that as I do using a supplier who only buys renewables, Bulb Energy in my case. That encourages the expansion of such generation
This is just not an issue. The batteries are in the base between front and rear wheels, protected by all the built in crumpability. Almost all i.c cars are far more dangerous with fuel tanks at the rear and vulnerable to crash damage. The crash fire burnouts they suffer bear witness to that and many i.c. cars are also destroyed by their own small battery fires.
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Possibly, my Giant road-E + 1 when using eco mode and pedalling well on flat roads will only use 1% of battery per mile.On one charge?
Great and interesting reply, but I need a minimum of 1,000 miles before a recharge that takes longer than a fill up.
My wife needs cold in the summer and heat in the winter, especially on long runs....
A recent 2018 article in a german newspaper quoted an electric car needs to run well over 100,000 miles before it is "cleaner" than a modern diesel! Taking manufacturing in the loop as well.....and some well over 200,000 miles before it came to actual payback time. I was shocked. The article was in the Bild am Sonntag in spring.....Very revealing....
Regards
Andy
Come on! You can do overnight charges and you're not doing 1000 miles a day! I bet 90% of drivers never need more than a 240 mile range and that's increasingly available.
She's like me then, I have Raynaud's syndrome, losing all circulation in fingers, toes and ears in low temperatures, and that's got worse over the years. It can happen as high as 15 degrees now. This was the final decider in my buyimg the Leaf, the misery of coping with a freezing car last winter. As I've shown, no Winter problem now and in one of the hottest days this summer I was enjoying a constant climate controlled 20 degrees with 162 miles on one long run.
Finland has the highest proportion of e-car sales now, over 50% of registrations, and that's a very cold country. Denmark is on their heels and it's nippy there too
I've read similar before, but frankly think the argument loaded. Remember, theirs was the industry that led in fiddling the pollution and consumption figures. Germany is very dependent on it's car industry which is well behind the curve on electric cars. They are catching up slowly now, so I bet we'll see this story changing over time!
Anyway, I'm a very happy user and like so many e-car users, I won't be going back to i.c. and losing all the many current benefits.
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Seeing as how this thread has been hijacked a bit Flec, what's you view on low usage? As a low user I don't contribute much in the way of exhaust gasses but suffer massive depreciation if measured by the mile..
Current car is just 2 years old with 9000 on the clock with just four long runs of 400+ miles.
Current car is just 2 years old with 9000 on the clock with just four long runs of 400+ miles.
I'm a very low user in retirement, 8000 miles in seven years on my last car, so obviously an e-car isn't an economic choice. As I posted to Andy, the instant heating, a pre-heating timer, heated steering wheel and heated seats were important factors for me, making the Leaf a comfort choice. Depreciation isn't a problem since it could well be my final car that I run all the way out.
The environmental issue far less important since it scarcely exists for me, but from previously trying the Leaf's twice and a Chloe there are other things I wanted. I like the relative silence, like a Rolls at a tenth of the price, but most of all the way they are to drive in the sort of heavy traffic I have in the south east. It's difficult to exactly define, but the silky smooth controllability can actually make heavy traffic and stop-start driving more enjoyable. And this car has had a marked effect on the speeds I drive at, I'm no longer pushing at the higher speeds I usually drove at, enjoying much more the refinement instead. How much I like the Leaf is shown by the usage, in the first seven weeks I equalled the whole of last year's mileage!
None of those benefits justified the cost of circa £29,000, including getting electricity laid on to my garage for a charge point. But I could afford it and at 82 I might as well conclude my driving days in the most likeable and comfortable way.
I have an insanely jealous ex RAF pilot brother in law now. Although a sports car and motorbike enthusiast who does track days, he loves electric cars having driven a few, but can't afford one.
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Just to throw in an on topic hint. I have a friend who takes his emtb on a towball mounted carrier to trial centres and the like and whist browsing for a new e.v. he asked can you fit a towing bracket? This question wasnt received well and he got the distinct impression that e.v's weren't for towing with.
That's correct, towing is out and no towbars are made for them. It's a matter of design for load and weight with a single gear covering the whole speed range. With their immense torque from zero revs they can definitely tow easily, but at the huge cost of rapid battery drain during the much slower acceleration phase towing a heavy weight. The much wider "throttle opening" to pull the weight off the mark presents a near dead short though the motor windings at low revs, not only draining the battery rapidly but overheating the motor.
Pulling a caravan on mixed roads my 160 mile range would drop to a third or quarter of that.
In an e-car future there will be no caravans, replaced by electric motor caravans designed for the load. Electric pickups, vans and estate cars probably doing away with car trailers too.
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