Bloody Hell! Fuel Economy Of Australian Cars Has Been Getting Worse Since 2015!

Australian vehicle fuel efficiency

We urgently need to reduce emissions of CO2 and particulates. But car efficiency in Australia is getting worse. WTAF?

I’ve got some bad news about vehicle efficiency in Australia.  It’s going backwards.  And I don’t mean cars are now driving in reverse, sucking up smog and spitting out petrol.  Despite the fact that we urgently need to slash our emissions, the average fuel efficiency of Australian vehicles has been getting worse. [Read more…]

How Vehicle Fuel Efficiency Standards Work: They Save Lives & Money & You Can Still Buy A Ute

Vehicle fuel efficiency standards explained

A month ago Federal Labor announced that, if elected, they would introduce fuel efficiency standards for light vehicles that would be phased in by 2025.  As a direct result some people completely lost their shit.  [Read more…]

Tesla Reveals Model Y Electric Car And — Surprisingly — Elon Musk Doesn’t Promise The Moon

Model Y

Tesla Reveals Model Y Electric Car — It Looks Very S3XY

At this moment it is 1:15 on an Adelaide Friday afternoon and I am in the SolarQuotes office waiting for the Tesla Model Y car reveal to begin.  [Read more…]

China’s “Cheapest Electric Car” — The ORA-R1 — May Cost Around $28,000

ora-r1

Does this electric car really cost less than $13,000? Err, unfortunately no.

Great Wall Motors has has released the electric ORA R1 passenger car in China.  Or at least I think they have. [Read more…]

Ronald Checks Out Electric Cars Part 2 — Range, Charging, And Trivia

Electric cars - range and charging

Nine days ago I attended the Charge Together electric car event in Adelaide and scored some sweet electric rides.  Last week I wrote about 5 specific electric cars and today I’ll describe what I learned about driving electric cars in general from their owners.  I’ll cover range anxiety and how it’s not really a problem provided you get an electric car that suits your needs.  I cover charging at home, at public charging stations, and even what to do when out-the-back-of-Burke and desperately seeking a charge.  I’ll even cover a little bit of electric car history. [Read more…]

Ronald Checks Out 5 Electric Cars On The Streets Of Adelaide

Electric car review - Charge Together

Ronald attended the Charge Together electric vehicle event In Adelaide. Here’s what happened…

I attended an electric car event here in Adelaide on Sunday.  I thought it was a reasonable thing to do as I’d recently written about how electric cars don’t result in more CO2 emissions than the typical petrol car. Because some people have made apples to oranges comparisons between the greenhouse gas emissions produced by, lower performance petrol cars and larger, higher performance electric cars when charged from the grid, it seemed like a good idea to see with my own eyes that these people aren’t being fair dinkum. [Read more…]

Should Electric Cars Be Subsidised?

Electric car subsidies

Nope! But We Should Make Cars Pay For Pollution.

So far this year there has been a fair bit of debate over whether electric cars should receive subsidies in Australia.  The Greens are in favor and SA Labor were planning to make electric cars exempt from registration fees up to the point they were defeated in savage hand-to-hand voting.  Our Federal Minister for the Environment and Energy, Josh “build me a fleet of new coal power stations” Frydenberg has come out of closet, or possibly coal bunker, as a fan of electric cars.  Probably because they can be charged with coal power.  [Read more…]

Craig Kelly Is Wrong: Electric Cars Are Better For The Environment Than Petrol Ones

Craig Kelly on electric cars

Craig Kelly Is Either Illiterate, Incompetent, or Machiavellian.  But I’m pretty sure it’s the middle one.

Toyota Prius Beats Nissan Leaf And Tesla S On CO2 Emissions In Australia

It has become clear to me there is some confusion over whether electric cars offer an environmental benefit in this country.  Craig Kelly, who is an extremely honorable Member of Parliament, has told the nation they result in more greenhouse emissions than conventional petrol cars.

If you are standing up while reading this you may want to sit down due to your shock when I tell you Craig Kelly is actually wrong on this. [Read more…]

Gas Lamps And Electric Cars: Dr. Alan Finkel

Defending electric cars in Australia - Dr. Alan Finkel

Image: Left – Public Domain | Right – Blomst

Australia’s Chief Scientist Dr. Alan Finkel has defended electric vehicles and taken on the naysayers, saying that instead of focusing on the current challenges, we should look at the potential of EVs. [Read more…]

Elon Musk Says Tesla’s Electric Truck Will Beat Diesels On Total Cost – He May Be Telling The Truth

Elon Musk presentation

Elon Musk with a semi.

Elon Musk’s Latest Announcement Is A Big Trucking Deal [Read more…]

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