Following a near fatal car crash over 15 years ago and also realising just how dirty the oil industry is (in so many ways), I decided to stop driving and have avoided it ever since. Now though, I am being forced to change my position on that and am discovering a whole new world of electric cars that make the transition more enjoyable.
My memories of cars are mostly mixed in with stress - my dad was a car mechanic for his whole career and so I rode around in many, many different cars - though generally with the understanding there was something wrong with them that needed to be fixed. When I started driving aged 17, I mostly used my car for travelling to college, then university and then just for commuting to work in London and elsewhere. None of this was really much fun and so when I nearly died after being hit by a heavy truck at high speed on my way home from work - I was ready to look for alternatives.
Not long after that, I inherited a replacement car and ended up running several speed cameras in a short space of time, leading me to be threatened with 'losing my license'. This was around the time that I was learning about the legal/lawful system in Britain and how 'driving licenses' are just another scam that replaces an inherent right to travel with a controlled 'license' whereby your actual right is given away to someone else! I was not happy about this and considered my license to be a trap. However, I also knew that driving without a license, while possible if you know the intricacies and language of the 'legal system' is itself a stressful thing to do and I was not ready for that. In the end I 'cancelled' my license (which the government agency involved claimed could not be done) and that was that.
When I stopped driving I felt good at no longer being forced to pay into the oil industry and it's almost endless funding of war and just about everything that I want to remove from the Earth. So many problems begin and end with our unhealthy obsession with 'ancient dead life forms' (aka oil) that anything we can do to change the situation is of great help. Even just stopping driving a petrol car and using public transport is a step in the right direction.
Now though, I am informed that the bus service to my village may be stopped completely soon, forcing me to rethink my situation. Having now looked around at the range of electric cars that are available (totally electric), I am inspired to go ahead and buy one. Check out some of the benefits in Britain for electric car owners:
- No Road Tax To Pay For Electric Cars (the most efficient/clean ones).
- 'Fuel' is roughly 25% of the price per mile of petrol cars.
- No 'Congestion Charge' Fees For Drivers in Central London.
Plus, all the other benefits, such as zero pollution while driving, almost silent motors/running & quick acceleration.
The only downsides I am aware of are that the cars rely on charging points since they typically have a range of around 100 miles per charge (some more expensive cars can do over 400 miles per charge) and that the charging can take over 30 minutes.
Considering that we already have solar panels on our home, the possibility exists to essentially travel with zero fuel and tax costs! That's an evolutionary step I can't deny or ignore for long!
What cars are available?
Many of the well known car manufacturers already have electric models available - including a VW Golf, Tesla's awesome range of top end cars of various kinds, Nissan, BMW, Renault, Mitsubishi and even a Jaguar is soon to be released too.
- VW e-Golf
- Tesla Model X
- Nissan Leaf
The prices range from about £3000-4000 for a used car from the cheaper end of things - up to around £200,000 for a top end Tesla sports car (the fastest car on the road AFAIK).
This pretty much means that if you choose the cheapest option, it might end up costing no more than a bus pass to run your own car!
Where to charge your car?
Most charging occurs at home, so you would have a charging kit that you can leave on overnight or during peak sunshine hours if you run solar panels. Beyond that, for longer trips, an entire network of charging points already exists across Britain and much of our world.
Zap-Map provides an easy way to locate the various kinds of charging spots that exist, plus some cars have onboard computer systems that use GPS to plot your route for you to ensure you can always reach charging points when necessary.
Charging can take between 20 minutes and a couple of hours, depending on the parameters involved and the type of charger being used. Tesla cars can use Tesla's own Supercharger units that can be found across the country and which help support the longer range that Teslas are typically capable of.
Got Any Tips?
Do you own an all electric car? Got any tips for me and any one else thinking about buying one? I'd love to hear from you!
Wishing you well,
Ura Soul
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I never realized how interlinked the issue is. Of course, I was aware that cars are harmful to the environment, but that is pretty obvious. Thank you for going beyond the trivial and showing how much more damaging impact is linked to cars. Conscious decisions on what we choose to support and what not makes a difference.
Oh yes, there are definite paths for humanity, with one that supports life in general and one that destroys life in general. Their branches are all around and sadly the death option is more obvious at present.
I live in a very rural area of Wales where public transport is no longer an option. A car is a necessity.
We have relied on second hand petrol cars to date but with the two we have both nearing their 15 year old point the time to look for an alternative is rapidly approaching.
The vast majority (90%+) of our journeys are 30 miles or less. So an electric car will be a good fit.
Along with the forthcoming PV panels an electric car is one of our homestead goals for 2018.
A friend nearby has a Nissan Leaf that he is extremely happy with, and with the new extended range model coming out in the new year, that will likely be our chosen model. I'm not sure whether we will go for purchase or lease at present - that will depend on numbers.
Excellent! There's a big price jump between the Nissan Leaf range and the Renault Zoe I found that has a range of 250 Miles.. Most likely I would go for a low price one and then wait for technology to improve the range and cost in the next few years before getting something better. That said, I intend to be in a jungle somewhere in a few years anyway :)
A great post! Congratulations on writing about Electric Cars. The ICE is in its death throws...after 120 years or so, but humanity is NOT ready (yet). Or should I say the Military / Industrial Octopus that controls us has deemed us not ready. Are technology breakthrough's being hidden from humanity? What did Nikola Tesla know?
Of course early adopters like some on Steemit already know the benefits.
As a one time ICE motor car enthusiast, I have also been more interested in electric motors and batteries of late. The electric car drive train is so much less complicated that the contemporary ICE with so many moving parts that require oil! For obvious reasons it is time to quit driving oil burners.
Of course this will mean large scale disruption to the status quo, just like crypto-currency is going to be revolutionary with respect to banking and government taxation regimes.
Unfortunately batteries are the sticking point, but many are working on energy storage [perhaps a dense capacitor?] and no doubt, fast charging, range anxiety and high cost will be solved soon.
As Clif High recently predicted, we are about to see a repeat of the Roaring Twenties and it appears certain electric vehicles for the masses will be part of the landscape, notwithstanding all the disruption to the oil industry and motor manufacturers / repairers that will ensue.
Think of clean air in the large cities as an entrée to a new paradigm of the 2020's!
Thanks, yes, clean air in cities will be amazing! I studied with a couple of free energy groups a while ago and saw some tech there which looked genuine and which I rarely hear about that uses the earth's magnetic fields as energy sources. There's also the possibility of wireless electricity which could feed cars from cables next to major roads, so batteries might not be such a sticking point if we keep our minds open.
Hi @ura-soul, these are really lovely developments in our world today, eh? Many people have quarrels with the oil industry due to a lot of reasons, I myself have my own grievances with the oil industry, amongst other things I for one don't like the fact that nations who posses a lot of oil always have the tendency to be proud and powerful when all they've got is oil and nothing else. But I never thought of revolting against them by taking the bold step of self denial you took, you must have got guts, I really got to give you that.
Next, it's really lovely, the emergence of electric cars, it's beautiful! Gradually we would heal our world again from the evils of burning fuel and emission of poisonous carbon and other unlovable gasses. We will get there.
I wish I've got tips for you for the use of the electric cars but sorry, the electric cars haven't found their way into my country yet, but, man, why don't you carry your charging kit with you? I don't know, it might be too big?
That Tesla Model x is outright gorgeous - woo!
Oh yes, the Saudi Arabian group appears to be moving to attempt to robotise their land to survive post-oil .. That will not end well!
What I chose was not really a path of self denial, if anything it was a path of ending denial that said that no other options were available than driving a petrol car. I did travel less, but overall I felt better and that's most important for me.
I wonder what will occur when we realise we can use wireless electricity with these cars ;)
Really great, man.
i 100% agree your comment,thanks for sharing your AWESOME post.
While its not quite in the same league, I just bought a Toyota Prius-C....
Obviously I still need to use petrol, however consumption is massively low compared to most cars.
I'm averaging anywhere between 3.6 - 4.0 L/100km - which is unheard of.
I decided since I was going to start Uber-driving full time I was going to need something economical and would minimise my emissions.
I'd love an electric car, and is definitely on my wish list. But not for driving Uber - although I'm sure the tech will improve eventually.
Good to know, thanks - I will look into hybrids too as I go on with this, though am definitely wanting a pure electric instead. Who knows where the tech will be in a couple of years, it could be way further than most imagine!
Of all of the cars you mentioned, I'd go for Tesla it's just that it's too expensive. The things that are better to the environment and its people are just overpriced. Say for example organic, natural foods,building a solar system and cars that doesnt pollute the environment. On the third paragraph of your article, I just want to comment and this is my personal opinion. Having a driver's license is not a scam. Policies and guidelines and mandatory regulations are helpful to any system on that way it is not chaotic and people will not be abusive of their rights. And this is in any system for example the government. Why do they want you to have a license in driving? To me because they want to know if you are capable of driving safely. Speed limits are posted on the roads because it serves it purpose. Do not drink and drive, we always here this slogan because there is truth to it. The laws should protect us. Imagine yourself driving 100 miles per hour in a city and or residential road having a good time not noticing a young boy or a child just suddenly appear at the side of the road and or closer to your car or worst hit that child. And again, this is my personal point of view. Kind regards! But yeah, I would like to own a Tesla one day! Happy new year!
The idea that licenses produce safer roads might be valid if there were no alternative options - and there are. Regardless though, we have a common law right to travel that supersedes any statutory proclamation made in parliament. Having a license to drive is therefore, in a lawful sense, similar to having a license to eat - neither are valid in an ultimate sense if we are respecting free will. Does having a piece of paper mean that I will drive safely? Certainly not!
It's very important to always be aware of when freedom is being lost in the name of 'safety' - otherwise we end up with an authoritarian nightmare which only those who desire real freedom will ever fully recognise, while the rest don't even notice how controlled they are and just call it 'normal' :/
It would be interesting to test your claimed common law right to travel with the the UK courts? especially since UK law is all common law based?
Where I live a MDL is often cancelled as a punishment for not paying a fine, eg you did not vote!!!! - most times you do not even know your license is cancelled. When Police stop you, using smart number plate recognition, they charge you for driving without a license - a more serious offence. Then you have to re-sit your drivers license with all the newbies, maybe waiting list of 10 weeks or so + expensive fees. This is how absurd being "free" is in a so called western democarcy!
UK courts operate a hgg hmm 'hybrid' system whereby they will attempt to NOT use common law at every opportunity and will switch to the revenue generation method of statutes and acts whenever possible. Only those who realise this and use the correct language will get the courts to honor common law and those do not typically include lawyers.
Switching the courts to the older jurisdiction is done though and you can see videos of it on youtube (filmed 'illegally' according to the courts). As I recall, the language is 'traveling in a conveyance' rather than 'driving a motor vehicle/car'. ;)
I never lived in a parliamentary type of government otherwise you have a strong argument and basic points. A piece of paper will not mean they can drive safely but probably can give you the slightest idea if this person has a knowledge of driving or not. There is a written, eye test and actual test that tells you if the person is capable or not but it will not tell you if the person will drive erratically or what's going on their minds at the time of driving. And freedom is a right for everyone.
"May we think of freedom, not to do as we please, but as the opportunity to do what is right."-Peter Marshall
I concur, nobody wants to live under a tyrannical type of system. Anyways, good educational exchanging for words. I am still hoping for that Tesla one day! 'til next time!
electric cars are also very environmentally friendly just in our environment there is no place charging for the car electric cars @ura-soul
Oh yes, that is one of the main benefits - but not one that's on the top of everyone's lists of importance unfortunately.
I agree with you @ura-soul
The fuel savings are not that big.
But, it really depends on your driving style.
Do you have mountains to go up and down?
Is it all under 35 mph?
Is it stop and go traffic?
Is you daily commute less than half of the cars rated range?
If you drive at low speeds, around town then an electric car will get those kinds of "fuel efficiencies".
But, if not, then it can actually cost more then petrol.
With your solar panels, are you selling electricity back to the grid every month? If not, then you will either have to install more panels or pay the electricity for your vehicle.
And, if you car is parked at work during the day, well, you can't use the sun to charge your car. If you... do the power wall thing, charging a battery to charge another battery, you efficiency falls through the floor.
I used this tool to compare the fuel costs of a possible electric model to the last petrol model I used.
The land here is mostly flat-ish and I would mostly be doing journeys of less than 10miles.
The solar panels get a payout for feeding into the grid, but the way the payments are designed means that we get paid regardless of what we use - so if it's done correctly it should be possible to basically get free charges for the car.
I intend to get an electric when my current car finally dies. I intend to run it into the ground as i figure using the already created resource until it stops working is better than creating demand for a another vehical. Ha! that and i dont have such a lump sum available.
I do intend to go electric. Theres a charging point in my town.
I have read thst although we reduce the emmissions at point if use, they still exist as only a small part of our electrity is renewable. (I use a 100% renewable supplier, Good Energy.)
The batteries used are a hazard and this has a different environmental impact to consider. (Did you read about the large lithiam deposits in AFganistan? Fancy thst eh!)
I'm still looking fwd to getting an electric vehical. Probably a leaf, obviously I dream to have a Tesla. Ha:)
Yes, there are still pollutants involved with electric cars and possible resources to fight over to make them, but overall I feel it is a better option than what's currently being used. I don't know much about the battery technology being used, though I do know that Tesla made the designs for theirs fully open source - so others can replicate their advances.
Wow amazing, i want to change my car too