they're finally here!!!! :)

[TonyN]

its not a bad idea, you asked, others replied.

On the issue, no one with half a brain can bury their head in the sand and say Humans have screwed/are screwing up the planet. Personally I'm not proud of it but you have to be realistic with what you can achieve and still live your life.

Electric cars are a stop gap, and are pushing towards a solution, which is good and to encouraged, but they arn't the answer, and shouldn't be forced upon people when it dosn't work, no one looks long term enough to see what things really cost, like others have said the original build price and disposal cost of this generation of electric vehicles is very envorimentally unfriendly.

people fight against change, its human nature, tell them they can't use somethnig and they will want to even more, give them a working alternative and things will go better.

Right now, there is no alternative to what we have, but there does need to be soon IMHO.

I don't have kids, so not really interested in leaving anything for future generations. But the planet dosn't need to messed like govnerments are doing.

The sooner we get off this rock and out into space the better, this planet is to small now to live how people want to.

[tintin]

I read somewhere that 0ne plane journey (long distance) would cause more environmental damage than my car could in it's lifetime!!

Then i saw the governments ad on tv that says cars are far more polluting than planes!!!!

That for me sums up the whole green debate, Just not enough truthfull information!!

In the meantime, i'll do what i can to make the planet less bolloxed for when my 4 kids will pass it on to thiers..........

Alan

[Predictable Bob]

In the meantime, i'll do what i can to make the planet less bolloxed for when my 4 kids will pass it on to thiers..........

Alan

If that means you're going to shoot a few politicians then I'll happily carry the ammo for you !

[tintin]

If that means you're going to shoot a few politicians then I'll happily carry the ammo for you !

[surrey-surfer]

Just a quick spanner in the works for those who were arguing the point about the batteries of the Telsa car.....They do not have to make new factories etc to make them. They are allready being produced in the Billions. They use laptop batteries.
And recent studies have proven that even if they were to get the power from fosil fuel powerpalnts, they would still be more economical than an avergae car.
Oh and he is talking about Clarkson at the end of the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJW5d...ature=featured

[Surf01]

To build the elecric car using resources which produce CO2. At the end of the life of the electric car it is very difficult to recycle the batteris which are the main component in the car. A Surf will outlast an electric car and is more environmentally friendly to recycle.
Global warming is a total myth as proved over and over again except that it si an addiotnal tax, but squandering our resources and recycling is not.

[puddlesurfer]

In my opinion electric cars don't work because you drive them for 2 hours then need to recharge them for 12! Did anyone see the hydrogen car on top gear a while back? It seems a better idea to me

[guysturg1]

dunno how safe the new lithium batteries are in the cars but if you look around not so long ago laptops were recalled due to batteries catching fire, radio control car battery manf also sell fireproof bags for charging the batteries in, does it say something about them?? will insurance companys still insure against fire??

[Dixie.t]

i know i have seen people playing with compressed air and water but i cant find the links.

[cabbage]

i bet yer the internal combustion engine will still be around in over 100 years, maybe not on the road for the average Joe public but industry will still have millions of them.

electricity is all well and good but what are you going to drive your generators when the main power stops?? What's the size to power ratio of a hydrogen power cell compared to a industrial diesel?? Plus like has been said, what's your drive chain then?

Hydrogen cell > motor > generator
or
Diesel engine > generator

What's the overall cost to industry in building new facilities to then build hydrogen power cells (or whatever), training millions in how to operate and maintain the new technology, fitting said new equipment on sites. Do you really think this can happen in 10years? How long did it take for efficient diesel engines to go from prototypes to mass production?

In my line of work we have V8 diesel as starter motors for larger engines and >30 Litre diesel engines providing life saving services. The best and most reliable systems are the ones with the least electronics and add ons, just engine directly connected to the pump/compressor/generator.

[Apache]

Hydrogen fuel cells are not new technology, and they are essentially very simple technology too.

I am fairly sure one of the reasons they aren't in current use is because of the huge profits made by the fossil fuel industry.

Fuel cells are a solution, stored charge (batteries, whatever technology they use) are not. Lithium batteries have a finite lifetime of a few hundred charges at best before serious loss of capacity. It will be interesting to see how users feel when their car has a range of 20 miles between charges after a couple of years, or how they feel when hit with a bill of half the original cost of the car to replace the battery pack. Lithium Polymer / Litium Ion dont come cheap!

[blakarm]

The sooner we get off this rock and out into space the better, this planet is to small now to live how people want to.

Sorry mate, but ive gota say I hope it never happens.

We've f####d everything, and the thought of us getting out there and doing the same to anywhere else (and we would) is just too much to bear.
The concrete spreads ever further every day, the other species on this planet have nowhere to go, and they're droping like flies. We have no right.
Im gona keep driving my thirsty lump, do my bit towards killing us off, so nature can start again.

[cabbage]

Im gona keep driving my thirsty lump, do my bit towards killing us off, so nature can start again.

I'm using that excuse the next time someone has moan about my carbon footprint!

[surrey-surfer]

In my opinion electric cars don't work because you drive them for 2 hours then need to recharge them for 12! Did anyone see the hydrogen car on top gear a while back? It seems a better idea to me

Did you not watch the video?????? lol

[surrey-surfer]

Hydrogen fuel cells are not new technology, and they are essentially very simple technology too.

I am fairly sure one of the reasons they aren't in current use is because of the huge profits made by the fossil fuel industry.
Spot on mate!

Fuel cells are a solution, stored charge (batteries, whatever technology they use) are not. Lithium batteries have a finite lifetime of a few hundred charges at best before serious loss of capacity. It will be interesting to see how users feel when their car has a range of 20 miles between charges after a couple of years, or how they feel when hit with a bill of half the original cost of the car to replace the battery pack. Lithium Polymer / Litium Ion dont come cheap!

Yeah i hear what your saying about the batteries but like he said in the video, it wont be long untill these guys play around with the technology more and it wouldnt surprise me if the next generation of batteries will last a lifetime or something silly like that.
I'd buy one just for the novel factor of only have 2 gears. backwards and forwards and the different sensation of driving it.