Zeezeebaba

One of my clients is Thatcham Research, it's where I first saw a Leaf. They currently have several Tesla model S vehicles in various states after crash testing etc. I've had a good poke around and they are fairly impressive cars, not a huge fan of the dash (huge slab of touchscreen) but otherwise pleasant enough. They have also been working on driverless tech and I've seen that develop over the last 7 years or so. Originally they were actually rigging up mechanical drivers e.g. hydraulic push rods on the pedals and rotational mechanisms on the wheel, like a cyber driver. They did this to help develop the software for driverless vehicles. Now it's progressed to a normal interior and the only sign of the development process is the operators laptop on the passenger seat. Thatcham work closely with the insurance industry testing and development of tech and composing repair schedules and methods for new cars. I could have made a fortune in press shot photography over the years having seen many pre release vehicles but my job and client confidentiality comes first. All interesting stuff.

I did have a Sinclair C5 when I was a lad I'm sure there will be enthusiast EVs at some stage. Even though manual gearboxes are not necessary in EVs I'm hoping for something along those lines. Part of the fun for me is having total control over the machine and driving it. Driving isn't just about speed or turning corners it's about feeling connected to the car and the road. EVs just like Audis lack that soul that vibe that essence. When automotive manufacturers crack that nut I'm in, until then EVs are nothing but another gadget to another tool to get from A to B. I'm sure everything will be fine, a nice drive out on a Sunday and I can see it now. You get ten miles from the house and the car tells the house "we will be home shortly", the house responds by turning the lights on and the heating and opening the garage door as you come up the drive

The Z felt like a luxury car on the way home I still want the Elise, thanks for the info regarding seats JP. I will always hold the S2k in high regards but I rarely go back to a previous car. I may SC the car at a later stage but it's not about outright speed for me these days and the car today had plenty of grunt to keep me busy. The gearbox needed working above 6k rpm but it was damn good fun.

Well I tried a 111r today with the probak seats. It was probably the most uncomfortable thing I've ever sat in and just my luck the ideal seat position was between the two latches on the runners. Not happy, but I'm going to persevere and research different seating options.

I can't remember the last time I had it but bangers mash and a tin of beans works for me

They struggle now to fill and repair potholes. My local council did pull their finger out for the Tour de France some years back. I suppose it could work if certain revenues from racing were diverted to a particular stretch of road but unlikely.

Finally we can put the Basingstoke ring road to good use, a purely biased location due to the fact I could watch the race from my daughters bedroom window

I think we've agreed that hydrogen takes to much energy to produce so I agree it looks like a non starter for passenger cars. However I can see it's application in commercial and haulage sectors being viable as a range extender. I believe we also agree that the production of electricity needs to increase at a pace utilising renewable sources. A point of note is I'm also a trekkie The day will come I'm sure where I may become excited about my impending EV. At the moment though I'm still planning the next ICE fix. Maybe I should have stuck to model trains, a hobby I had as a kid and one that wouldnt be ruined by progress.It would certainly still rank as the closest thing I've ever had to an EV Alas after a motorcycle fad I turned my attention to cars. I'm doing my bit for the environment by ditching the Z for a lotus elise, happy days and ones which I intend to make the most of. Beam me up scotty. ....

That's just it though at the moment, 64k for a car. Good for you trailblazing away and reporting back how good the app on wheels is. The only chance you will ever get me in one is when they cost a third of that and the ICE is dead. I'm a petrol head and quite old fashioned about it, I agree with your sentiments to a degree but I can't get excited about the death of my only hobby just yet

More importantly I'm still in my 40s with no back problems so an Elise is still viable

Haha no more kids for me I want my selfish hobbies back

Top job

I won't be tracking it much if at all, it will mostly be weekend road touring and yes thanks I've had the nod about different seats.

With one of my kids now 19 and the other not far behind I'm finally in a position to get seriously impractical about my cars again. I've always wanted an Elise but could never justify running two cars until now. My budget will be just south of 27k so I'm looking at the Toyota engined S2 variants. I do plan to test drive a few but beforehand I just wanted to ask if anyone has driven both the 111r and the SC and if so does the SC make a huge difference in the driving experience. I've driven the 111r on a track day and in my opinion it's adequate in the power stakes and I can't really see the point in a more powerful version unless it transforms the experience. I'm guessing the SC just gives you a little more lower down the Rev range and is less peaky? Thoughts welcomed

They gave it up to find and fund new oil and gas fields. The whole thread has been about alternatives to such fuels and the viability of hydrogen vs others. Perfectly on topic as you can see

The irony here is that 60% of the solar products installed in Germany were manufactured by BP. BP for cost reasons axed their solar program a few years back.

Just as a point of note it's also worth checking behind the wing mirror housings for rot.

I think due to cost alone petrol vehicles and petrol hybrids will be around for decades yet. Hydrogen is a better fuel for the environment until you consider the cost and energy needed to produce it then the argument for it falls by the way side. Diesel will die a death that's for certain. The focus should be on renewable energy for power generation as currently we don't have the means to charge everyone's car should EV become mainstream. I have no issue with EV I applaud it, Tesla are basically at a stage now that Toyota were at with the Prius over a decade ago. They will get there I have no doubt but at the moment they can only appeal to a select few who only need a car for certain jobs and have the facility to charge them at home.

I'm all for renewable energy, one of my closest friends runs the solar shop. However purely electric vehicles are unlikely short term. As for infrastructure the oil companies are investing in alternatives including solar but as for fuel hydrogen is at present the most likely fuel in combination with hybrid tech to give a realistic range for vehicles such as haulage and passenger transport. Yes EV will play a part as part of a hybrid set up and the fuel will act as a generator to extend range. This negates charging times and makes electric vehicles more usable.

I really don't think pure EV vehicles are the future. Hybrid combos are more viable long term. People seem to forget electricity needs to be generated, needs to be supplied at a rate much higher than today's demands to support if all road traffic is on the grid. Ultimately tech will reach a stage where power is being generated by everything including roads and street furniture via green sustainable means.

There we go, 300 miles for 3 minutes filling time. This appeals to me more than any power grid draining EV white goods rubbish.

Jag is already working on it!! http://www.wired.co.uk/article/self-driving-autonomous-land-rover-jaguar-technology Lol, so is Thatcham Research but they are miles away from it.The end of the article sums it up nicely re: liability.

This sort of tech will only work effectively on motorways. This is where you will see the ownership of automated vehicles being a benefit. They have yet to design a system that can assess the road surface, condition of tyres etc. There are still so many variables to take into account including road infrastructure issues such as blind junctions etc. Highly unlikely this tech will be mainstream for many many years yet.

Standard nav was pants, I removed it and put a tomtom in the cubby.

I've had mine on for nearly two years (Berks) first MOT it flew through and the second it was just in with some revs and a good run before hand. The car needs a good blast before you go and get it tested.