How to get a classic Alfa into a Federal Budget yarn

[poohbah]

spotted this in today's The Australian.

Copied the text as you need a subscription to read online.


Pic:Eddy Failla with a collectors' gem, an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale 1959. Picture: Britta Campion

Electric cars can charge, but where's the romance in that?

SASCHA O'SULLIVAN
REPORTER
12:00AM APRIL 5, 2019

For Eddy Failla, driving is about the interaction between the driver and the car and the rev of the engine.

So it is hardly surprising Mr Failla is not a fan of the electric car revolution. He says they are more like driving an iPad — which focuses on the destination rather than the journey.

Mr Failla, an old school petrolhead who drives a 1959 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale, said Bill Shorten's target to have electric vehicles comprise half of all annual car sales by 2030 would take the joy out of driving.

Mr Failla said increasing the use of electric cars was a "necessary evil" to reduce pollutants, but much of the fun of cars, and the historic value of vintage models, would be lost.

"As a driver we actually enjoy the physical action of driving and enjoying the car, and now with the (newer) cars it's all about what the occupant can do while driving." Mr Failla said.

"You lose the romance of driving. I can't ever see an electric car being the same as the classics.

"I don't care if it's the fastest electric car in the world it will never be a collectable; the electric cars will probably outperform the older models, but they won't be the same.''

There are also concerns that Labor's electric vehicle plan could destabilise the nation's power grid unless it is paired with major energ­y market reforms including "smart" network upgrades and a national rollout of time-of-use tariffs­ to ensure EV owners don't charge their cars during peak deman­d periods.

Energy Networks Australia warned in a submission to the Senate's recent electric vehicle inquiry that growing numbers of EVs, combined with the nation's flat energy pricing structure, could worsen energy peaks and exceed the capacity of low-voltage networks.

"Australia's distribution networks were not designed for any significant uptake of electric ­vehicles and the consequential demand­ for charging," the peak energy network body said.

[Citroënbender]

Nice looking car, which carrozzeria?

[poohbah]

Bertone I think.

[Colin Edwards]

"Electric Cars" = the greatest propaganda con job of all time!

If a government is seen to be promoting electric vehicles they are perceived as being environmentally responsible!!!

If a government was truly being environmentally responsible they would discourage inefficient transport (cars) and encourage (spend many billions) on efficient public transport (not cars!)

The day a Federal Government says "diesel powered passenegr cars (including SUV's) will from tomorrow be totally banned from our roads" is the day i'll give them some credibility. 

The problem is not the number and diameter of the pistons or if the propellent is the flow of electrons.  The problem is the size, mass and number of the vehicles on the roads and some peoples obsession with bulk!

The increase in vehicle numbers on our roads and the increasing space increasingly larger cars occupy (SUV's and minibuses are interchangeable!) is unsustainable and has been for many years yet the politicians yak about the mode of propulsion.  What a disgrace!

[Pseudonym]

*facepalm*

"Replacing new cars with electric cars would take the romance out of driving."

Yet he's not driving a new car because they're about as romantic as a blow up doll...

As much as Rupert might throw shade to try and protect his investments Jay Leno nailed it on Top Gear years ago - electric cars are going to help preserve the classics by becoming the new workhorses. But yes Colin, the truly efficient shift in transportation would be to move away from using over a ton of machine to move under 100kg of human.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

[bazzbazz]

Jay Leno, now there's someone who owns enough "Magic Metal" to open his own car yard!

[Craig_m67]

What a crock.

There's room in this world for those (of us) who can indulge vintage/classic (insert your marque here) romantic car ownership AND new, vastly simplified electric drivetrains.

Give me a Tesla3, X or the new Y any day with ludicrous mode (or a Porsche taycan, etc) to do the point to point daily hack work, so I can self flagellate romantically in my own time later.

ICE is dead, long live the future (so long as I can sniffpetrol in the comfort of my own entitled home)

[poohbah]

I just liked that the Oz used an alfisti with one of the coolest ever Alfas to illustrate the yarn. Personally I could care less who prefers electric over Ice. As long as I can still get 98 octane.

[aggie57]

This whole argument about ICE vs. electric is already lost.  It's not going to be the central question, in fact it's not even 'the' question.  The real interest is how developed societies will transition from personally owned (or leased) vehicles for daily use to a world where we don't own a car for that, we don't drive one, and we most certainly don't have any real say in how it is propelled. 

Telsa is stuck in the middle here.  Their cars replicate the 20th century model but with ICE replaced with electric.  Uber, Lyft etc. are heading in the right direction.  They are building out personal transportation networks that break the link between perceived ownership and getting places.  As soon as they can they'll drop the drivers and become autonomous, they will offer a range of types (you can already order an UberSki in mountain area's) and we will treat them as utilities in much the same way as we do mobile phone companies. 

We'll still be able to own and operate our classic cars.  It'll just be a hobby like riding horses is today. 

[Victor Lee]

I don't know much about electric cars (but learning!). 

I was chatting to another car enthusiast a few months ago who does know about electric cars.  One comment he made was interesting:  If every second household in Melbourne was to get an electric car, and charge them at night at the same time, there will not be enough power in the grid!  (That comment is made on today's power generation abilities and current state of play of home solar). 

So perhaps before we all go electric (and yes, I could consider one for my next daily car), the powers to be need to advise how are we going to charge them?  More feed in tariffs for home solar?  Unlikely as feed in tariffs are decreasing, not increasing.  Cheaper and more efficient home solar and batteries?  More power generators that burn coal? ... which would be environmentally self defeating!  Big solar farms or wind farms?

[105gta]

Well brought up Victor, I have read in a few articles that the battery in a  Tesla model S is approx 10000 times the size of a mobile phone battery it still only has a life of around 5-10yrs
What is going to happen to all these batteries full of chemicals after we finish with them. As Currently there is no way to recycle them to a point where the lithium can be refined enough to be reused except for plastics. Another issue the world is facing.
Even BHP is advertising to get people to support mining stating that electric vehicles consume 4 times more copper than a regular car.
Here's an interesting read on a few other issues just on the batteries alone.
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/lithium-batteries-environment-impact

[aggie57]

For sure there are a lot of unresolved questions around non-ICE vehicles. Do we prefer to generate power using fossil fuels but in a contained facility rather than in millions of individual machines scattered around our countryside?  Or maybe we prefer to use an increasing amount of renewable energy knowing that means more likelihood of shutdowns when demand exceeds generation or distribution capacity? 

Who knows, what is clear though is that humans are a very resourceful species and there is a lot of money being invested in a future ICE less world.

[Evan Bottcher]

+1 Alister.  I look at my nephews and nieces and they have no real interest in owning their own car in the way that we did.  Reasonably priced, affordable, and (mostly) safe uber is at their fingertips.  Internal combustion vs electric will no longer be of any interest to any of us, it'll just be an economic decision by the company you're buying your ride from.