Diesel & petrol alternatives? Your thoughts please

... In the meantime, switch something off, I suspect we're also wasting fuel. 

Such awning heaters .... 🙄🙄

I just noticed that this Blog article is reproduced in the Sept CMC magazine. There is also some mention of "alternative fuelled vehicles" in the editors intro with regards to Tow Car of the Year, and a letter on the letters page from someone who tows with a Polestar 2. 🤔 

where's the rest of the caravan? 🙄

at the bottom of the blog is a small bit 'about the author' The implication is that the above journey was done with his family .... 

Lee Davey

Purchasing a caravan on a whim a dozen or  so years ago, Lee Davey thought it would just be for weekends away with the kids. Since then, Lee has explored the UK and Europe with his family and has taken part in caravanning trips to Asia and the Arctic Circle, crossing almost 30-countries in the process. 

The caravan in question is a 2 berth ..... and has a MTPLM of less than a tonne

He went with his son Charley. Was just the two of them. It’s not a large van, but then it’s a Tesla M3, so it can only tow 1000Kg. They should have done the test with a Polestar 2 😁

It's not a large van is an under statement .... 🙄

I assume you have not seen my posts on towing with that very model on here? 

CT - Indeed we have - ad infinitum. Greta would be delighted.

I read your blog in detail, what a nonsense level of planning was needed  to travel a couple of hundred miles.

How do you feel about the new home chargers that are programmed to switch off just when you need them, and connect to the internet so that you can be charged as a tax for the electricity you use charging up? Switch off because HMG KNOW that there is insufficient power in the grid to cope with their target of electric cars, and recent events have proved that there never will be as long as HMG continue to promote wind and solar instead of nuclear.

I think you said that your Polestar is a company car?? Nice tax breaks, BIK etc but most peeps on this forum don't have the luxury of company cars. OK so the theory is that no one will buy these things, just lease them. How do you lease with no provable earnings other than State Pension and savings to live on?

How do I tow an 1850KG t/a van with an EV - impossible. So not only a new car, but a new noddy size caravan as well.

I have asked my MP several times where he thinks the electric is going to come from, and indeed who is going to pay for the unsustainable rush to net zero - guess what - he refuses to answer - probably because he can't.

I'll stick with my euro 6 diesel SUV (which I bought when I still had an income) until it falls apart, then dump the caravan.

Polestar 2- starting at £39900 - what would the actual cost be when necessary stuff is added - like extended range etc? I bet close to £50K.

Rant over. Off to the gym to lose weight so my car does a bit more MPG.

CT - Indeed we have - ad infinitum. Greta would be delighted.

Sorry if I am boring you...

I read your blog in detail, what a nonsense level of planning was needed  to travel a couple of hundred miles.

All that massive planning of having a look at a couple of apps and a map, just like I would for towing a caravan to any any unknown CL. Terrible. Must have taken me literally minutes. 

How do you feel about the new home chargers that are programmed to switch off just when you need them, and connect to the internet so that you can be charged as a tax for the electricity you use charging up?

They are not "new" the OZE grant was always based on the idea of smart chargers. Mine is, and I find it very helpful being connected to the internet so I can start and stop my charge from phone if I need to and see how much (or little) power has been drawn. Given that I only use mine over night when electricity is both cheap and abundant, it would impact me (and all other EV drivers I know) precisely not at all. If you had read any more about them you may have noticed that the default configuration would be to not charge at peak times, and that could be overridden by the user. Though - given that would cost more - most people would not.  The idea that they will be used to implement a tax on charging is simple here-say with no basis in evidence or fact. Far more likely that road charging is implemented which would impact all drivers. 

Switch off because HMG KNOW that there is insufficient power in the grid to cope with their target of electric cars, and recent events have proved that there never will be as long as HMG continue to promote wind and solar instead of nuclear.

Does not seem to be the opinion of national grid, but there we go. See busted myth number 1. https://www.nationalgrid.com/stories/journey-to-net-zero/5-myths-about-electric-vehicles-busted

I think you said that your Polestar is a company car?? Nice tax breaks, BIK etc but most peeps on this forum don't have the luxury of company cars. OK so the theory is that no one will buy these things, just lease them. How do you lease with no provable earnings other than State Pension and savings to live on?

Yes its a company car, and yes there are excellent tax breaks, and yes I am very fortunate to be in a position to take advantage of them. Though whatever car I choose to use next as a personal car will also be an EV. Probably used, and probably leased or on some other PCP. In terms of leasing with a different income model - maybe you don't. But the question is no different for an EV than it is for an ICE. The point being that EVs are still relatively new, the second hand market is still developing, and lower cost solutions are on the way both used an new. 

How do I tow an 1850KG t/a van with an EV - impossible. So not only a new car, but a new noddy size caravan as well.

No - you just pick an EV that is capable, when the price is right. The C40 EV and from next year XC40 EV will both to 1800kg. The Audi Eton 1800 already. The Tesla X over 2000. The Rivian and Ford F150 when the arrive far more. Just give it a few yers and there will be plenty of choice. 

I have asked my MP several times where he thinks the electric is going to come from, and indeed who is going to pay for the unsustainable rush to net zero - guess what - he refuses to answer - probably because he can't.

Possibly because the 1st is already answered - generation is not an issue, and the 2nd is an intractable question - we are all going to pay. I do find it ironic that you describe the "rush to net zero" as "unsustainable", given that it is being non-net zero that in unsustainable, by very definition. 

I'll stick with my euro 6 diesel SUV (which I bought when I still had an income) until it falls apart, then dump the caravan.

Jolly good. Clearly an EV is not a viable proposition for you right now. Maybe it never will be. Fortunately, no one is planning to take away your euro-6 car so you don't have to worry about it. But rest assured that some day in the future, a suitable EV will be available to tow your outfit, and do so in an economically viable manner. 

Polestar 2- starting at £39900 - what would the actual cost be when necessary stuff is added - like extended range etc? I bet close to £50K.

Long range single motor with towbar; £43,900 on the road. 

Rant over. Off to the gym to lose weight so my car does a bit more MPG.

Enjoy the Burn. 

I am not here to convert you - or anyone. Just to point out the truth associated with EVs and towing, and to help folks understand that the future of all EVs on our roads is not a death knell for the caravan industry. EVs are just at the start of becoming main stream, and caravan towing with an EV in its infancy. But it is possible, it's not massively different, and the future looks even better.