Other vehicles have never had a problem with batteries exploding have they........................oh, hang on
I'd say technology has got it right at the moment, but there continues to be a lot of pushback from interested parties such as the oil producers and car manufacturers. By most measures, electric cars are better than petrol/diesel ICE vehicles. They have been around long enough to confirm they are: - 70% less lifetime emissions (i.e. including manufacturing) - they are more reliable than ICE vehicles - they cost less to service (~30-50%) - digging for rare earth minerals generates far less CO2 than existing oil fields. - they are, as of 2026, cheaper to purchase than ICE vehicles. - they burn really well, but they burn far less often than ICE vehicles - they accelerate phenomenally well There are negatives depending on your circumstances (home owner, distances travelled, etc). The downsides are weil-known, and several but not all will be overcome in the next 10 years: - range - charging time - ability to charge from home excludes many people - their excess weight damages the roads more - when they go wrong, the cost can be disproportionately large (30-50% more than ICE) - currently there's not enough space in a normal motorbike to make them viable (i.e. 200 mile range) - they sound as dull as ditchwater You can thank the EU and a few other forward-looking countries/regions for sticking to their guns and forcing the issue to make EVs successful.
Yup, I saw that. It doesn't change the stats dial much, though: https://factually.co/fact-checks/science/uk-fires-ev-vs-ice-vehicle-per-100000-a58de7 The thermal runaway of an electric car battery burning is certainly more exciting though, especially when it spreads across multiple cars. A burning petrol car isn't newsworthy.
I see conspiracy theories have started. New legislation in China to make EV batteries (even) safer coming in to force in July Andy
Not really, used to it by now. I notice the cars were parked together away from anything else in the middle of the car park - a risk assessment in case these EVs should catch fire. Nobody is surprised by it any more. Propaganda - kind if used to that as well. More electric cars to be imported to push for Net Zero - and only China can produce cheaply at scale. So good bye Western manufacturing and welcome China. Incidentally the climate hysteria peaked in 2021 and there is a slowdown of clime hysteria stories in the media - a bit past it now as there are other things - a few wars and data centers. These will need massive expenditures of energy that is not going to come from solar/wind at least not in the quantities required for what comes next. I think peak climate hysteria has happened and it has already been rolled back in the real world.
