Electric cars and the incentive scheme.

Joey the lips

I await with baited breath for information on the new electric car scheme. But in the back of my mind I worry...

For example what will be the coverage of the scheme.Will it be initially like the mobile phone coverage and only cover the dublin area meaning the use is limited. What happens when one wants to visit or indeed go home. Its an awful expensive purchase to have lying up like a trophy.

Then there is the AA/RAC and the likes. I have not seen on there websites or heard any procedure for them handleing breakdowns. Like lets be honest most breakdowns on cars are things like fuel running out or flat tyres or indeed flat batteries.... What is the implications of a flat battery in an electric car... How long will it take to charge you... Does the AA/RAC vehicle have the technology.

My fears are that this is going to be like the e voteing machines.... A bit of a dream.... Lets face it... the population of dublin is the population of rural towns abroad and the population of ireland is very scattered and no where near the population of most european cities...

What is your opinion of the electric car scheme... Will it be a white elephant. Will it be viable outside dublin in cities like drogheda athlone and waterford. most importantly the initial out lay costs.....

Would the govt not be better off concentrating on better park and ride facilities for the city improving public transport, reducing greehhouse gas and all the benefits that come with it...

After all. I live in duleek which is half an hour from dublin city and I can only get 4-6 buses a day.... For people like me the risk assocated with electric cars just is not worth it...

Seth Brundle

I would imagine that many forecourts will jump on the bandwagon as time progresses but it will be a while before there is a decent rollout.
Its possible that the manufacturers will also subsidise charging points as if there are too few then so will their sales

Seth Brundle

Have a read of this also:
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/motors/2010/0407/1224267823218.html

congo_90

hmmm. Well it's a start I guess in the "right direction". Personally I don't see elec. cars making it out of the major cities and towns across Ireland.

I would also hope the limited range would be fixed before they roll out electric ambulances etc with lots of flashing lights on the roof and obviously the urgent matter of a patient!

To be honest. I'd rather buy a petrol car. Cheaper in many ways and taxed the same so why not? I know that's not the solution and I'm all up for alternative "green fuels". I just don't think electricity from a coal supplied grid is the way forward just yet.

Joey the lips

kbannon wrote: »

Have a read of this also:
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/motors/2010/0407/1224267823218.html

A good article.... However I imagine unless companies jump on the fast charge we will all be queing to get home. Especially on the 6 hour charge.:D

JHMEG

kbannon wrote: »

Have a read of this also:
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/motors/2010/0407/1224267823218.html

You really have to question the overall quality of an article on electric cars when the author gets even the simplest of details wrong. i.e. mains in Ireland is 220v, not 240v. I stopped reading when I got to that klanger.

2 Espressi

PaddyC wrote:

Compare this to a standard petrol supermini. A 1.2-litre Fiat Punto will cost €50 to fill and has a range of about 700km so 19,000km will cost €1,350 in petrol. This makes the iMiev 3.75 times cheaper to run per year, but you could have three Puntos for the price of the iMiev.

Says it all, really...

JHMEG wrote:

You really have to question the overall quality of an article on electric cars when the author gets even the simplest of details wrong. i.e. mains in Ireland is 220v, not 240v. I stopped reading when I got to that klanger.

Ah here, 220V vs 240V is hardly a clanger, it's not as though he says it was 110V...

Joey the lips

JHMEG wrote: »

You really have to question the overall quality of an article on electric cars when the author gets even the simplest of details wrong. i.e. mains in Ireland is 220v, not 240v. I stopped reading when I got to that klanger.

Thats just being a slight bit padantic dont you think. Please read the article. I would appreciate your input.. Thanks..

Gophur

JHMEG wrote: »

You really have to question the overall quality of an article on electric cars when the author gets even the simplest of details wrong. i.e. mains in Ireland is 220v, not 240v. I stopped reading when I got to that klanger.

And one has to wonder about the knowledge of some posters when the actual mains voltage in ROI is 230V, not 220V, or 240V :D:D:D:D:D

robtri

Gophur wrote: »

And one has to wonder about the knowledge of some posters when the actual mains voltage in ROI is 230V, not 220V, or 240V :D:D:D:D:D

yeah it is :D

from the ESB themselves

For electricity supplied at Low Voltage by ESB Networks, the nominal standard is 230/400 Volts, 50Hz.. ESB Networks undertakes to deliver single phase electricity within a voltage range of 207 Volts to 253 Volts. This is in accordance with European Standard EN50160

cianof

will help offset the cost of expensive electric batteries

Not sure what that means....

Hopefully the incentive will be as generous as the UK's £5000 back on the purchase of an EV.

McSpud

Scheme launched by the state with ESB, Renault & Nissan includes 5k grant & exemption from VRT. We will get Nissan Leaf & Renault Kangoo Z.E as well as some trial Fluences. 3,500 charge points by end of 2011.

BoredNaMoaner

Doubt this will go very far. How did the ambitious E85 heralded as the next great deal for Irish motorists by previous Government ministers fare out? Not too well.

http://www.petrolworld.com/europe-headlines/ireland-maxol-calls-for-biofuel-review.html

E85 is a far more robust technology for motoring than electricity yet it got nowhere. Also how can these electric vehicles be called clean with the appalling transmission losses associated with supplying electricity from a fossil fuel based generating station? It would be a better green investment to use the grants from the department to better insulate homes.

Thoie

I can see an electric car suiting my parents as a second car. They have a garage with electric sockets where they could park and charge it, and they have room for two cars. One of the cars currently only goes on trips of 8-30 kilometers, which the electric car could manage fine. For longer trips they usually take the other car anyway. If you lived in a house, it would make sense to install an outdoor socket. People living in apartments are currently screwed.

Given that the motor tax is the same as many small cars, even with the €5k discount, you'd need to keep the car a long time in order for it to pay for itself. Using the running costs from that article, if you buy a 2008 1.4litre for €7k, versus say €20k for a new electric car (that includes the €5k, no VRT), you'd need to keep the electric car 13 years to break even with the second hand petrol. If you get rid of the annual motor tax for the electric, it would still take 12 years to break even. The only way to break even in year 1 is if your alternative was a brand new car that cost the same as the electric.

Seth Brundle

JHMEG wrote: »

You really have to question the overall quality of an article on electric cars when the author gets even the simplest of details wrong. i.e. mains in Ireland is 220v, not 240v. I stopped reading when I got to that klanger.

In fairness, it was a better article than most of the promotional articles that I've read so far

Anyhow, see this also: http://www.breakingnews.ie/text/ireland/eyojmhojidsn/ and http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055881533