The EV race is on. Nearly won

When Elon Musk launched the Cyber Truck, or electric ute, we saw the future

While Australia lags Europe with EV sales and climate aware prime ministers, even with the least amount of support anyone could possibly give an industry, Australia is set to see EVs achieve price parity with petrol cars in the next few years. And I suspect you will see shades of the Cyber Truck design coming with them. I sure as hell want one.

If you are an EV neanderthal or a gas guzzler car lover, then this article may not be for you, but just know that as sure as Kodak went the way of the dodo bird, so will petrol cars. It's not a matter of if, but when.

Many countries are banning new fossil fuel cars

Governments around the world are set to ban new vehicles that run on fossil fuels and while Trump may be rolling back automotive efficiency standards, car manufacturers are unlikely to pay much attention as their eyes are on the longer term prize. And that doesn't involve petrol cars - incentivised or not. 

The tipping point?

Gas guzzler cars have been in decline for some time, even here in Australia. The general predictions support the tipping point where the number of EVs on the road pass petrol cars to be around 2040. In the next 20 years, that means 530 million EVs hitting the road and 8 million barrels less of oil PER DAY.

Cost is still the issue for many people

While EVs are currently still more expensive to buy as a car, they are way cheaper to run. But even the up front cost is about to change. Ray Wills, Adjunct Professor at UWA and futurist is adamant that even in Australia, we'll see price parity within the next couple of years. (Not sure if 2 years really qualifies for being a futurist, but you see the point.) His advice, if you are in the market for a new car, is to let  your dealer know because in Australia there will be a shortage of supply without known demand. I think I'll try emailing Elon...

Battery toxicity

The race is now on to build better batteries - more environmentally friendly and with longer charge times without building bigger batteries. While EVs produce around half as many emissions as a fuel car over their lifetimes, the use of highly toxic heavy metals like cobalt in the manufacturing of batteries makes EVs way more toxic than a fuel car. 

The range myth

Range anxiety is often stated as a show stopper for EV buyers, but the reality is more fiction than fact. While a car's range is what it is, many of the anxieties around running of juice half way to the grocery store are unfounded.

You can literally circumnavigate Australia in an EV now. The Australian Electric Vehicle Association and Tesla Owners Club mapped the charging stations across Australia in 2018. Given the annual increase in stations is exponential, you can be pretty sure this list has grown substantially.

Downtown or in the middle of Australia, the thing you need to get your head around is that you can literally power up a car anywhere there is a socket. The reality is simply that once you have an EV you  think differently about power. Instead of running a tank of fuel down to empty before going to the petrol station, you simply plug it in when  you get home.  

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