Interesting to see how VW are approaching marketing in UK: Will...

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Will I make it out of town? Common electric car questions, answered
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The FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) around electric cars is significant, but is it justified? Actor and EV enthusiast Robert Llewellyn tackles nine of the most persistent myths about electric vehicles

Robert Llewellyn


Modern EVs make range anxiety a thing of the past. Photograph: Chris Floyd/Guardian
You can’t go far in an electric car. Coined In the 1990s to describe drivers’ concerns about how far an electric vehicle (EV) could take you, “range anxiety” has been surprisingly tenacious, despite the huge steps forward. Although early electric cars had a slightly limited range, the standard nowadays is about 150-200 miles, and models that can cover up to 400 miles on a single charge are in the works. Since only 2% of UK journeys are more than 50 miles, the FUD over range is largely irrelevant.

The battery will wear out. Our primary common experience with (lithium-ion) batteries is with phones, tablets and laptops – small batteries commonly charged to 100% and discharged to zero. This is very stressful and damaging to batteries, which is why their lifetime is limited. Batteries in electric cars are much larger, and they’re never actually charged to 100% – even when the indicator in the car says they are. Likewise, they never run flat, thanks to a buffer zone managed by the car’s software that protects the battery. So, simple answer, the batteries will probably outlast the car.

The old batteries will end up in landfill. Putting old EV batteries in landfill makes about as much sense as chucking money in the bin. A vast majority of the materials in used batteries can be used to make new ones, and they can also be reformatted for other uses, such as static boxes for the grid, homes or businesses.

Charging too many EVs at once will melt the gridWrong. The National Grid has already stated that it could charge 2m EVs today with zero upgrades and no new generating capacity. Local networks will need some careful management, but testing has already taken place. Electric Nation, which ran a UK-based smart charging trial with clusters of EVs in small areas, found that simple power management software ensures all cars get charged overnight without putting undue strain on the local grid.


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There’s plenty of capacity to charge electric vehicles. Photograph: Chris Floyd/Guardian
Electric cars are a silent killer. The fact that EVs are (sometimes) silent is often used against them. Why? The thinking goes that as pedestrians can’t hear them, they’re more likely to step in front of one. I like to think that this can be disproved with a bit of logical thinking. Imagine for a second that you’re driving a petrol or diesel car in a busy urban area; pedestrians are crossing the street, not looking where they’re going, half of them are wearing headphones. What do you do? You slow down in order to avoid an accident. Now you’re in the same situation driving an electric car; there are people crossing the road in front of you, not looking, not listening, and they can’t hear the car … so you accelerate and run them over, because you’re a psychopath?

No. It’s always the driver’s responsibility to avoid pedestrians and cyclists – the sound (or lack thereof) of the car is irrelevant.
Electric cars are more expensive than ‘normal’ cars. Strictly  speaking, this is currently true; a new electric car will set you back more than the petrol/diesel equivalent. But the good news is, it looks like this will only be the case for the next couple of years. Predictions show that EVs will reach cost parity with petrol/diesel cars in 2021 and then get cheaper.

But even if you buy an electric car today, it’ll still work out cheaper than a petrol/diesel car in the long run. Why? Because not only is electricity cheaper than petrol or diesel, but electric cars need very little in the way of servicing, as they’re very simple mechanically.

You could never power bigger vehicles with electricity alone?  While electric cars have grabbed the headlines, the fastest developments in EV technology have been with public transport, particularly in China, where there are already hundreds of thousands of 100% electric buses ferrying people around. Meanwhile, there’s an actual ferry operating between Denmark and Sweden that is powered solely by an electrically charged battery, and numerous companies have long-haul electric trucks and short-haul passenger planes in the works. In fact, electrification is the ideal solution for vehicles doing repeated, set routes.

Hydrogen is really the future? This the statement I hear the most often from people who have never driven a battery electric car. Without question, hydrogen will play a very important role in powering our lives in the future, but there is still a question mark over the mass adoption of hydrogen fuel cell (HFC) passenger cars. Current HFC cars are very complex, very expensive and very heavy. They need large battery packs to operate satisfactorily, and due to the fuel cell needing to use super clean air, the air filtration system is complicated and pricey to maintain.

I feel my masculinity will be diminished without the roar of a V8 engine. If this is your problem, I can only suggest counselling.

E-questions answered? Find out more about the Volkswagen e-Golf at volkswagen.co.uk