30-07-2017, 09:26 AM
At the moment, electric and hybrid cars are best suited to urban use. When I get my hybrid I reckon that a lot of journeys will be largely on the battery which has a claimed rnage of 25 or 30 miles (I'd need to look that up) with recharging at home. For longer distance I'd be primarily using the petrol engine with the electrics doing peak load levelling and power boost. For my purposes that's fine. Plus London C-charge exemption and I think free parking at certain places in central London. Doubt I'll use either of those very much.
The technology is only going to get better, as Craig said about Tesla. I wonder how Tesla's new affordable car will work in practice. https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/model3
The problems with supplies of copper, neodymium (for the magnets in the motors) will be worked out. Perhaps with some bumps in the prices but there's no absolute shortage so it's the commercial viability of opening new mines and refineries. Mining has always been a horribly cyclic business and this will be no exception. Look at the massive spikes and dips in the price of gold, oil, copper etc. It was always thus, will likely always be so and we'll recover from it just like we always have done before.
The technology is only going to get better, as Craig said about Tesla. I wonder how Tesla's new affordable car will work in practice. https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/model3
The problems with supplies of copper, neodymium (for the magnets in the motors) will be worked out. Perhaps with some bumps in the prices but there's no absolute shortage so it's the commercial viability of opening new mines and refineries. Mining has always been a horribly cyclic business and this will be no exception. Look at the massive spikes and dips in the price of gold, oil, copper etc. It was always thus, will likely always be so and we'll recover from it just like we always have done before.
www.borinsky.co.uk Jeffrey Borinsky www.becg.tv
