Driving an electric car from Sydney to Melbourne / the Downsides of EVs

[ruSTynutz]

INSANE queue for EV charging is HILARIOUS (and tragic)

https://youtu.be/py9huBMByvs?si=AEDZmXMJYh4-C6Ez

[Joso]

How many times is this crap going to be put on the site been on here for months

[ruSTynutz]

Electric car sales growth in Australia hits the brakes amid Tesla slump in 2024

Deliveries of all electric cars except Tesla grew by nearly 30 per cent last year – but a sales slide for the US car giant pulled the total closer to negative territory than ever before.
Annual sales of fully-electric vehicles in Australia have increased by the smallest margin on record, data published today has revealed.

And it is not due to a cooling in demand for all types of battery-only cars, but rather 8000 fewer Tesla deliveries than in 2023 that pulled the entire EV market down to a year-on-year increase of 4.7 per cent – compared to 29 per cent growth for all other EVs.

Data published by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) and Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) lists 91,292 new electric vehicles as sold in 2024, compared to 87,217 the year prior.

EV sales growth outpaced the broader new-car market – which was up 1.7 per cent year-on-year – but it is a far cry from year-on-year increases of 161 per cent in 2023, 93 per cent in 2022 and about 230 per cent in 2021.

To continue reading, click this link: https://www.drive.com.au/news/electric-car-sales-stall-in-australia-2024/

[Gadget]

Electric car sales growth in Australia hits the brakes amid Tesla slump in 2024

Deliveries of all electric cars except Tesla grew by nearly 30 per cent last year – but a sales slide for the US car giant pulled the total closer to negative territory than ever before.
Annual sales of fully-electric vehicles in Australia have increased by the smallest margin on record, data published today has revealed.

And it is not due to a cooling in demand for all types of battery-only cars, but rather 8000 fewer Tesla deliveries than in 2023 that pulled the entire EV market down to a year-on-year increase of 4.7 per cent – compared to 29 per cent growth for all other EVs.

Data published by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) and Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) lists 91,292 new electric vehicles as sold in 2024, compared to 87,217 the year prior.

EV sales growth outpaced the broader new-car market – which was up 1.7 per cent year-on-year – but it is a far cry from year-on-year increases of 161 per cent in 2023, 93 per cent in 2022 and about 230 per cent in 2021.

To continue reading, click this link: https://www.drive.com.au/news/electric-car-sales-stall-in-australia-2024/

The much anticipated model Y refresh was released yesterday.  Many potential buyers were holding off for the release. Others who are waiting for 2nd hand model Ys, were also waiting for the release of the new one.

In Q4, Tesla made 345,000 vehicles and sold 395,000 vehicles and only missed their projections by 1.8%

https://www.tesla.com/en_au


Sent from my SM-N986B using Tapatalk

[ruSTynutz]

I must admit I like the look of the new "Y" more than the old one...   

[ruSTynutz]

An interesting read... 

2024 EV sales in Australia:
A deep dive into the electric car market that saw Tesla drop, BYD grow – and 10 new brands enter the market

https://tinyurl.com/pnapavm5

[Gadget]

I must admit I like the look of the new "Y" more than the old one...   

Yay! Something we can agree on.

Sent from my SM-N986B using Tapatalk

[ruSTynutz]

Don't get too excited there, Gadget, I still have no intention of buying one! 

[ruSTynutz]

EV buyer intention halves

Carsales survey shows 18% of intenders pick EVs, down from 40% in June 2022

ELECTRIC vehicle consideration has again dropped significantly for Australian motorists with the latest Carsales EV Consumer Survey
report confirming that hybrid vehicles are the emerging choice – alongside petrol.

When asked to predict the car respondents would be driving in 2035, nearly half said they would be driving a petrol vehicle (27 per cent)
or a hybrid vehicle (22 per cent) in 10 years.

Only 18 per cent of respondents believe they will be driving an EV by 2030; a steep decline from 40 per cent in a June 2022 survey.

The survey also showed that price remains a key barrier to selecting an EV as a next car, Carsales data services director Ross Booth
said. “The price issue was further highlighted with two-thirds of EV considerers saying they’d be more likely to buy an EV if there was a
$3000 government incentive,” Mr Booth said.

“The good news is that we’ve already seen a drop in new EV prices. Since 2021, the price of petrol vehicles has risen by 20 per cent,
while EV prices have decreased by 9 per cent, a drop of more than $3000 on average.

“Competition in the EV market is also increasing and, with up to 12 new Chinese car brands set to enter the country, many of which
will focus on EVs, prices will likely drop further in the upcoming years,” he said.

The key findings from the survey are:

• Lifetime EV consideration has once again dropped, with only 30 per cent of respondents having ever considered an EV.
  This continued drop from 56 per cent (June 2022) likely a reflection of the cost of living crisis and a decrease in disposable income
  for the average person.
• The loyalty of current EV owners is declining: While 83 per cent of EV owners are likely to buy another EV in the future, this
  represents a decrease over time from 95 per cent in May 2023.
• However, consideration of hybrid vehicles has significantly increased from May 2024. Both plug-in hybrids (up 24 per cent) and
  regular hybrids (up 53 per cent) have significantly increased in consideration and are now considered more often than battery electric cars.

To continue reading, click this link: https://tinyurl.com/msezz88p

[ruSTynutz]

Electric Vehicle Fires: 25 Out of 100,000 Stat Doesn’t Add Up

Are electric vehicles really safer when it comes to fire risks? You’ve probably heard the widely shared claim that EVs only
experience 25 fires per 100,000 vehicles sold—a statistic that seems to outshine gas and hybrid vehicles.
But what if I told you that data is completely wrong?

In this video, we’ll dive into the truth behind EV fire statistics and uncover the misinformation that’s been circulating for years.
From the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to global studies in South Korea and Sweden, we’ll explore the
limitations of current data sources like NHTSA, NFIRS, and EV FireSafe, and explain why accurate fire incident reporting is crucial.

https://youtu.be/cIDZT55rwh4?si=Vzd4Ibs-HO8jL2sc

[ruSTynutz]

Tesla sales crash in Australia as Musk impact has consumers looking for another brand

The sales of Tesla electric vehicles has slumped sharply again in the first month of 2025, with sales of the once market-leading Model 3 sedan
falling more than 60 per cent below the same month last year.

Tesla has been the major player in the Australian EV market, with share sales consistently above 60 per cent over recent years, but that started
to change in 2024 when its sales for the year slumped 17 per cent – a fall attributed to increased competition from Chinese EV makers, the
expiry of state rebates, and the impact of Musk’s political actions.

That slump has continued into January. It is traditionally a slow month for the car maker – and the industry as a whole – but new data released
by the Electric Vehicle Council show that Tesla’s overall EV sales fell 33.24 per cent to just 739 units.

The Model Y held up OK, increasing sales by 21 per cent over the same month a year earlier to 465. But the Model 3, despite the release of the
“refreshed” Highland option, slumped 62 per cent to just 274 – a figure that a year ago would have not earned a place in the top five EVs in the country.

To continue reading, click this link: https://tinyurl.com/yrpdyr7s

[ruSTynutz]

I wonder how many "Tesla Fanboys" will buy these? 

https://tinyurl.com/32bb4mtz

[ruSTynutz]

Elon Musk’s Tesla faces class action in Australia over car defects

Tesla owners have stunned the Australian motoring industry with a move against Elon Musk’s company.

Disgruntled Tesla owners in Australia have launched legal proceedings in the Federal Court against Elon Musk’s car manufacturer, claiming the company sold vehicles with major defects while also over-promising on the abilities of its cars.
The consumer action filed against Tesla Motors Australia by Australian firm JGA Saddler targets the sales of Model 3 and Y cars manufactured by the US-based Tesla Inc.

Both those models accounted for more than 40 per cent of Australian EV sales in 2024 despite the surge of Chinese brands entering the EV market.
The class action will target three alleged problems with the Model 3 and Y cars, including ‘phantom braking’, poor battery range and lack of autonomous driving.

“Tesla made promises about their vehicles’ safety, performance and features such as their ‘full self-driving’, but it appears some of these promises are falling flat,” JGA Saddler director Rebecca Jancauskas told AAP.
Ms Jancauskas said ‘phantom braking’, the potential for a vehicle to activate its emergency braking systems for no reason while in cruise control, was a huge problem for Tesla drivers in Australia.

“This dangerous phenomenon … would terrify you and your passengers and could, if it causes an accident, result in serious injury and/or death,” Ms Jancauskas said.
While the braking issue is a safety matter, the battery and autonomous driving issues are a matter of Tesla failing to deliver on its promises to customers, according to the class action.
“Imagine your EV has never reached 75 per cent of its advertised battery range, or the promised self-driving features, that you paid a premium of more than $5000 for, have never been delivered,” Ms Jancauskas said.

To continue reading, click this link: https://tinyurl.com/etkru4vw

[ruSTynutz]

Italian Competition Authority investigates EV companies BYD, Stellantis, Tesla and Volkswagen

The investigations focus on the information provided to consumers regarding EV driving range, battery capacity degradation and limitations on standard battery warranties.

The Italian Competition Authority has launched four investigations into BYD Industria Italia s.r.l., Stellantis Europe S.p.A., Tesla Italy s.r.l. and Volkswagen Group Italia S.p.A. over suspected unfair commercial practices. The investigations look into the information provided to consumers on EV driving range, battery capacity degradation and limitations on standard battery warranties, potentially in breach of the Consumer Code.

In particular, the companies’ websites appear to have displayed generic – and at times contradictory – information regarding the driving range of their marketed electric vehicles, without clarifying which factors impact the advertised maximum range and the extent to which they affect the actual range.

To continue reading, click link: https://en.agcm.it/en/media/press-releases/2025/2/PS12926-PS12927-PS12928-PS12929

[ruSTynutz]

Tesla drives crash in EV sales

Elon Musk’s association with the Trump Administration has contributed to the tanking of Tesla sales across the globe.

According to CarScoops, Tesla sales in Norway fell 44.4% in January through February, while in Germany, Tesla sales fell 76.3% in February compared to the same month in 2024.

The picture becomes even bleaker when you realise that in both the Norwegian and German markets, overall EV adoption has steadily increased.
Electrek reports that global sales of Tesla were down year-over-year for the first time in a decade in 2024, and the situation looks worse in 2025.

Back home in Australia, Tesla’s deliveries dropped 65.5% in the first two months of 2025.
The latest data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) and the Electric Vehicle Council shows that a total of 5,684 full battery electric vehicles (BEVs) were sold in
Australia in February, compared to 10,111 in the same month last year, when Tesla dominated and accounted for 5,665 units.
Tesla sold just 1,592 units in February—accounting for nearly all the fall in BEV sales by number.

To continue reading, click this link: https://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2025/03/tesla-drives-crash-in-ev-sales/

[ruSTynutz]

I had to laugh at salesman Trump's attempt to "pump up" the plummeting sales of Teslas by supposedly buying one, even though he doesn't drive... 

See here: https://tinyurl.com/3yn49ku7

[ruSTynutz]

Tesla Fails Roadrunner Test 

A viral video experiment has exposed flaws in Tesla’s camera-based “Autopilot” driver assistance system.
American YouTube presenter Mark Rober published a video examining the difference between camera and laser – or LIDAR – based driver assistance features in cars.

Tesla chief executive Elon Musk is a famous proponent of camera-based technology, believing that if visual processing is good enough for human eyes and minds to process their environment, then it can also work for cars.
But other companies ranging from Volvo to Google’s Waymo insist that more sophisticated radar and laser rangefinding sensors are necessary for vehicles to assess their surroundings.

Rober put the cars to the test by setting up a fake wall inspired by “Roadrunner” cartoons.
In his experiment, a Tesla Model Y relying on cameras for its cruise control and auto emergency braking systems did not detect the obstacle, smashing through it spectacularly.
But a prototype Lexus fitted with an expensive LIDAR scanner accurately recognised the wall and stopped in time.

To continue reading, click link: https://tinyurl.com/5e62p7ar

To view video, click this link: https://tinyurl.com/42tk6mvw 

[Shillas]

I had to laugh at salesman Trump's attempt to "pump up" the plummeting sales of Teslas by supposedly buying one, even though he doesn't drive... 

With self driving mode in the US swasticar, he doesn't need to.

[ruSTynutz]

Thinking about it, maybe it could be a good thing if he does use self driving mode, especially after watching that video I posted up earlier... 
Anyone care to paint a brick wall instead of one made from polystyrene foam?

[ruSTynutz]

The Great EV Con: The deception driving our green future

https://7news.com.au/news/the-great-ev-con-the-deception-driving-our-green-future-c-18261836

In a world-exclusive investigation, Liam Bartlett uncovers the dirty truth behind so-called clean, green electric vehicles
and how China is getting away with causing a toxic environmental catastrophe. 

You'll need to sign up to 7Plus to watch the video: https://7plus.com.au/7news-spotlight

[ruSTynutz]

I see EV and plug-in hybrid sales plummeted since the Fringe Benefits Tax exemption ended on March 31...

Plug-in hybrids, were down 62 per cent compared to March 2025,

Tesla, recorded just 500 deliveries in April, down a whopping 76 per cent.
Stock of the old Model Y did run out ahead of the first deliveries of the new Model Y which would not have helped but, a similar 76 per cent drop in Model 3 sales year on year also drove Tesla's low performance.
It will be interesting to see if sales bounce back in May... 

[ruSTynutz]

Electric vehicle sales dip as hybrid and PHEV demand rises in March

New figures from the Australian Automobile Association’s (AAA) EV Index show battery EV sales fell but hybrids grew - with the BYD Shark 6 a factor in the rise.

Australia’s electric vehicle (EV) market experienced a notable shift in the March 2025 quarter, as battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales fell to their lowest levels in two years, while hybrids and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) recorded strong gains.

The latest data from the Australian Automobile Association’s (AAA) EV Index revealed that BEVs accounted for just 6.3 per cent of new car sales, down from 7.42 per cent in the December 2024 quarter.

Only 17,914 BEVs were sold between January and March 2025, compared with 21,331 in the previous quarter. This decline coincided with a broader 0.96 per cent dip in total vehicle sales nationally. Internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles remained dominant with 206,810 sales, although this too was down from 215,789 the quarter before.

To continue reading, click the link: https://tinyurl.com/47mu3ehe

[ruSTynutz]

Typical media hype!  Elon Musk has a huge commitment to EVs which I'm sure Trump wouldn't jeopardise. I think it's just a matter of Trump removing the Left's mandates on manufacturers.

Could be Bill, but Trump is that unpredictable he may very well follow through with some of his threats. I guess time will tell...

Seems the "bromance" is over...    https://tinyurl.com/5h6yvwwa

[ruSTynutz]

I tried circumnavigating the UK in an electric van - here’s why it was impossible
Chris Haslam, Chief Travel Writer
Tuesday July 08 2025

It’s green, it’s eco-friendly…and it can take up to six hours to charge, as Chris Haslam discovered. The road trip revolution is still a long way off.

My annual circumnavigation of mainland Britain and Northern Ireland presented the perfect opportunity to try to prove that it was not only possible, but, ideally, a breeze to complete a four-week road trip in an electric van.

Volkswagen thought so too, lending me an all-electric ID Buzz five-seater van, in two-tone candy white and bay leaf green, for the duration. The specs were as impressive as its surfy two-tone looks: an 84kWh battery that charged from 5 to 80 per cent in as little as 30 minutes and claimed a maximum range of up to 293 miles.

The job was to survey the English, Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish coasts — a distance of some 4,800 miles — but since I had the entire month of May to complete the journey I set a maximum of 240 miles a day, leaving a minimum 53-mile safety buffer within which to find a charger for my anticipated daily 30-minute top-up. That may sound overcautious, but over the 16 years I’ve been doing this journey, I’ve seen loads of old service stations closed down, but never seen a new one open.

You need apps to find chargers. A single app won’t do because you can’t be sure that it lists all locations, or that it will communicate with the actual charger you want to use so you can get loyalty discounts and receipts, so I downloaded Charge Assist, Electroverse, InstaVolt, Plugsurfing, Pod Point and Zapmap. They’re all free, because they make their money in a variety of ways — that may include commission from charging providers, advertising or data analytics, for example — and soon their icons were crowding my phone.

It was already becoming something of a faff and I wondered how useful they’d be in those parts of the nation where 5G is a popular fairytale, but, overall, I was extremely pleased with myself. I had a green van and a greener plan for a low-cost, zero-carbon road trip (if you ignore the upstream emissions from manufacture and electricity generation). That’s not how it turned out.

Click on this link to continue reading: https://archive.md/id5Wt

[Biggles]

This guy is worth a read- here's a sample from near the beginning:
"First off, few EVs can draw 300kW. The Audi e-tron, the Porsche Taycan and the Volvo EX90 are among the exceptions, but the VW ID Buzz pulls only 185kW. Second, if the battery is too cold, or too warm, you won’t even get 50kW. Ditto if the battery is almost empty. Third, your charge could be slower than advertised because, er, there are other drivers charging, or it’s a Monday and there are five crows perched in the lightning tree, or the cows are lying down."