Landyfox
Well-Known Member
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- 4,489
Following a conversation with a neighbour this morning about the planned conversion of his old VW Bay Window camper to electric. I’ve been left stumped - Although I can appreciate his desire to ‘save the planet’ and wanting to preserve the longevity of his beloved van, I just don’t get.
Firstly it’s the cost, the cost of a conversion is north of £20k. That okay, I suspect you could do this cheaper if you do the conversion yourself. But then you would have to source the motor, batteries and all the other ancillaries. That’s not to mention inspection costs. I would assume you would be faced with strict stringent test/inspection (there’s a lot to go wrong).
Secondly, are electrical vehicles really a viable choice in 2021? I can appreciate we will all be encouraged to drive fully electric or automated vehicles in the next 20-30 years, but at the moment the infrastructure is just not there. Believe me, my main daily drive is a Hybrid which is great when in the combustion engine mode, electric not so much. It’s a nightmare finding charging points and when you do they’re either not working (normally the case) or they have been taken by someone else. Home charging is great, perfect solution, but what about if you have on street parking, or what happens on a long journey. Availability is only going to get worse as more people buy electric. It could be suggested that I am all doom and gloom, and point out that the infrastructure is going to improve - of course it is, I accept that but at a cost which will inevitably be passed on to motorists. My daily drive was new in August, but since I October I have not been able to charge it due to a recall. Indeed, for almost 4 months BMW have instructed owners not to charge their vehicles and only use the combustion engine whilst they workout a solution. Now my point being, if you drive fully electric vehicles what do you do if you can’t charge it? Especially if a company like BMW are struggling with reliability, question must be asked of the reliability of conversions.
Lastly, I’m not against electric but I feel a pragmatic approach is needed. Yes we all want to save the environment, but are all electric vehicles really practical in 2021. If you really want an electric vehicle, why not purchase an older one and restore that (obviously wear in batteries is expensive) - personally I don’t see the benefits of paying £20k for a conversion of classic that is infrequently driven.
Absolutely I could be wrong and remain open to others opinions, but I just don’t get it. I would be really interested to hear if you or someone you know has done this and what their experiences were. To do this, I think you need deep pockets which I don’t have and a real desire to want electric.
Firstly it’s the cost, the cost of a conversion is north of £20k. That okay, I suspect you could do this cheaper if you do the conversion yourself. But then you would have to source the motor, batteries and all the other ancillaries. That’s not to mention inspection costs. I would assume you would be faced with strict stringent test/inspection (there’s a lot to go wrong).
Secondly, are electrical vehicles really a viable choice in 2021? I can appreciate we will all be encouraged to drive fully electric or automated vehicles in the next 20-30 years, but at the moment the infrastructure is just not there. Believe me, my main daily drive is a Hybrid which is great when in the combustion engine mode, electric not so much. It’s a nightmare finding charging points and when you do they’re either not working (normally the case) or they have been taken by someone else. Home charging is great, perfect solution, but what about if you have on street parking, or what happens on a long journey. Availability is only going to get worse as more people buy electric. It could be suggested that I am all doom and gloom, and point out that the infrastructure is going to improve - of course it is, I accept that but at a cost which will inevitably be passed on to motorists. My daily drive was new in August, but since I October I have not been able to charge it due to a recall. Indeed, for almost 4 months BMW have instructed owners not to charge their vehicles and only use the combustion engine whilst they workout a solution. Now my point being, if you drive fully electric vehicles what do you do if you can’t charge it? Especially if a company like BMW are struggling with reliability, question must be asked of the reliability of conversions.
Lastly, I’m not against electric but I feel a pragmatic approach is needed. Yes we all want to save the environment, but are all electric vehicles really practical in 2021. If you really want an electric vehicle, why not purchase an older one and restore that (obviously wear in batteries is expensive) - personally I don’t see the benefits of paying £20k for a conversion of classic that is infrequently driven.
Absolutely I could be wrong and remain open to others opinions, but I just don’t get it. I would be really interested to hear if you or someone you know has done this and what their experiences were. To do this, I think you need deep pockets which I don’t have and a real desire to want electric.