The EV fact thread

[ALFAitalia]

Exactly that.....they made four different colour cars (red, green, yellow and blue)...then switched the panels over....The base car colour being the C pillar and sills colour. Yellow was the odd one out as at the time you could not buy a yellow Polo in the UK....the other three colours where standard Polo colours.

 

[baxlin]

Totally unscientific survey, but….

Yesterday I drove from Milton Keynes to Nottingham and back, via the M1. As a game, we counted the vehicles displaying a green flashed number plate. We saw 5 going North with us,, and 4 southbound coming back, two of which were 24 plates.

Ok, I dare say there were other EVs without the green flash, but on the basis that I don’t know any EV drivers who don’t make that fact well known, probably not that many.

What does this say? M-ways and EVs don’t mix was my first thought, but I may be wrong…

 

[Trickythemerc]

My mate did Manchester to London and back in his BMW X3 fully electric thing. Set off fully juiced up, stopped at MK to charge with 51 miles of charge left. Struggled to find a charger that wasn't either in use or out of service. despite using his various apps he had to ring me for assistance to find a charger. I found him one tucked away behind a Harvester pub near some coach hub, he went for a brew and a buttie and was charged 50p to go for a wee. Needless to say his relationship with EV's is not good, the charging added nearly 4 hours to the journey time.

 

[190]

What does this say? M-ways and EVs don’t mix was my first thought, but I may be wrong…

There is a simple if expensive answer to EV trucks using the motorway. I had to check the date to make sure it wasn't the 1st of April. Apparently there are currently several trials ongoing, one in Germany and one in the US and would you believe it there was going to be one on the M180 in Scunthorpe although I don't know if it actually took place.

Three Experiments Could Help Electrify Big Trucks

 

[baxlin]

There is a simple if expensive answer to EV trucks using the motorway. I had to check the date to make sure it wasn't the 1st of April. Apparently there are currently several trials ongoing, one in Germany and one in the US and would you believe it there was going to be one on the M180 in Scunthorpe although I don't know if it actually took place.

Three Experiments Could Help Electrify Big Trucks



View attachment 155183

Bring back trolley buses!

 

[PXW]

Totally unscientific survey, but….

Yesterday I drove from Milton Keynes to Nottingham and back, via the M1. As a game, we counted the vehicles displaying a green flashed number plate. We saw 5 going North with us,, and 4 southbound coming back, two of which were 24 plates.

Ok, I dare say there were other EVs without the green flash, but on the basis that I don’t know any EV drivers who don’t make that fact well known, probably not that many.

What does this say? M-ways and EVs don’t mix was my first thought, but I may be wrong…

Loads of EV drivers don’t have the green flash - me included. It’s becoming more prevalent as dealers are seemingly starting to fit them as standard on new EVs. But I see many, many more EVs than that on even a short motorway run (perhaps because as an EV driver I’m more attuned to them - in the same way that when you get a new model of car you start seeing them everywhere).

 

[Dryce]

There is a simple if expensive answer to EV trucks using the motorway.

If the number quoted of $2.7 million per mile is a realistic cost then that would be about 10% of the cost per mile of building new dual carriage way in the UK.

They overhead wires look ugly - but I think this approach makes sense in the UK.

 

[ChipChop]

A solution to a problem that does not exist. There are no pollution issues on motorways.

 

[ALFAitalia]

EVs are not being built to lower pollution, that's just a benefit...especially if you live in a town or ULEZ area....the reason they are banning new sales of ICE and making EVs mandatory from 2035is for carbon/output and climate change....that happens no matter what road you are on.

 

[ChipChop]

EVs are not being built to lower pollution, that's just a benefit...especially if you live in a town or ULEZ area....the reason they are banning new sales of ICE and making EVs mandatory from 2035is for carbon/output and climate change....that happens no matter what road you are on.

I was commenting on the ridiculousness of powering Heavy Goods Vehicles by electricity. Think payload.

As for the reason EV's are being pushed that is to facilitate Chinas take over of the global automotive industry. But feel free to imagine it has something to do with lowering global CO2 levels or something called climate change, nee global warming, nee acid rain, etc, etc.

 

[baxlin]

Loads of EV drivers don’t have the green flash - me included. It’s becoming more prevalent as dealers are seemingly starting to fit them as standard on new EVs. But I see many, many more EVs than that on even a short motorway run (perhaps because as an EV driver I’m more attuned to them - in the same way that when you get a new model of car you start seeing them everywhere).

A short motorway run I can understand, but I wouldn’t have liked to do my yesterday’s run in an EV - would you? I only quoted the M-way chunk, I had 3/4 hour drive before and after I got to MK. My petrol car cost me £33 in fuel, which tbh I’m happy with, with no range anxiety.

But having said that, I’d be open to an EV as a second car, for short runs - if only Mrs B would be happy driving my car, but that’s another point to be addressed!

 

[markjay]

While we're on it - as you knew about these things, "back in the day" - how did they actually make them?

Did they send plain colours down the line and then switch doors, bonnets and boots?

Or did the over-paint with the Harlequin colours?

(I really must get out more)

From:

History of the Harlekin

History of the VW Polo Harlekin

poloharlekin.com

 

[markjay]

Exactly that.....they made four different colour cars (red, green, yellow and blue)...then switched the panels over....The base car colour being the C pillar and sills colour. Yellow was the odd one out as at the time you could not buy a yellow Polo in the UK....the other three colours where standard Polo colours.

View attachment 155144

So basically if you're really OCD, you could buy 4 Polo Harlequins, one in each colour scheme, then reassemble the cars in the correct order..........?

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

So basically if you're really OCD, you could buy 4 Polo Harlequins, one in each colour scheme, then reassemble the cars in the correct order..........?

The “Professor T” in me rules out that “OCD” idea

(Snaps latex gloves, thoughtfully)

 

[markjay]

The “Professor T” in me would rule out that “OCD” idea

Alternatively, you could buy 4 standard Polos in their standard colours, then make 4 Harlequins out of them?

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

Alternatively, you could buy 4 standard Polos in their standard colours, then make 4 Harlequins out of them?

Better…

 

[ALFAitalia]

Except they didn't make a yellow one....so you would have to choose a different 4th colour!!!!

 

[clk320x]

My mate did Manchester to London and back in his BMW X3 fully electric thing. Set off fully juiced up, stopped at MK to charge with 51 miles of charge left. Struggled to find a charger that wasn't either in use or out of service. despite using his various apps he had to ring me for assistance to find a charger. I found him one tucked away behind a Harvester pub near some coach hub, he went for a brew and a buttie and was charged 50p to go for a wee. Needless to say his relationship with EV's is not good, the charging added nearly 4 hours to the journey time.

No offence but your mate hasn’t got a clue then, MK Coachway has so many chargers including Ionity & BP rapids. Newport Pagnell on the M1 has plenty of brand new applegreen units he could have used, Toddington also has new chargers installed… He could have even used the Tesla V4s at Luton that are open to other marques.

Does BMW not have automatic routing through charge points? ‘Using an app’ to find one seems prehistoric and makes me appreciate the Tesla’s even more.

 

[markjay]

Except they didn't make a yellow one....so you would have to choose a different 4th colour!!!!

You could find a yellow one, if you find someone who did what I suggested in #3993 above

 

[PXW]

A short motorway run I can understand, but I wouldn’t have liked to do my yesterday’s run in an EV - would you? I only quoted the M-way chunk, I had 3/4 hour drive before and after I got to MK. My petrol car cost me £33 in fuel, which tbh I’m happy with, with no range anxiety.

I would have been perfectly happy to do it - and have done many way longer journeys in the EV without range anxiety. But maybe it’s only me it works for…