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Las Palmas

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Posts posted by Las Palmas

  1. 2 hours ago, First_Lexus said:

    China seems likely to be as South Korea was twenty years ago in terms of automotive development and dominance. The political situation may muddy those waters though, especially regarding Taiwan.

    India could be the one to watch. They have so much potential in terms of domestic growth, and that often translates to international growth as seen in China since the 1990s. 

    I spent time in China in the late 90s/early 2000s and recently came back from India. I can see similarities, but the democratic process in India makes it far more palatable to the West, and Modi knows that. He’s already distanced himself from Putin for reasons beyond not supporting his actions in Ukraine…with more to come at full G20 in India later this year I’ll wager.

    Tata is going big on EVs, and the UK is likely to be a big player in that through JLR, albeit fairly minor in global terms. Based on what I read neither China nor India are really backing hydrogen, and if that continues I can’t see it taking off anywhere, least of all in a niche market such as the UK.

    Anyway - and I don’t think I’m alone here - all I want as a motorist is the ability in Winter temperatures to drive for a 300 mile round trip at motorway speeds without having to recharge or refuel. Once an EV can give me that I’ll switch. Having discussed with most of the major EV manufacturers over the last 12 months none can guarantee that at the moment apart from Tesla, and their horrid ‘new money’ image combined with terrible build quality (and if you don’t believe me just look at some used models with mileage on them) means I won’t consider them.

    https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/uk-set-win-battle-host-tata-electric-car-battery-plant-bbc-2023-05-24/

    Problem with winter driving longer distance in cold climate in Battery powered car is that you will need nice warm clothes as heating from Battery will very soon make the Battery lose power.

  2. 26 minutes ago, Steve_S said:

    So, let's look at South Korea, a country known to have one of the most ambitious plans with regards hydrogen. According to their government roadmap they aim to have around 450 public hydrogen fuelling stations by 2025 and around 1200 by 2040. Sound impressive? Well, 1200 fuelling stations is around 10-15% of the number of available Gas (petrol/diesel) stations available in South Korea now. So, their "ambitious" plan will take 17 years to reach a point where they can still only provide around 10-15% of the fuelling infrastructure available to ICE drivers today.

    Note, that in the meantime the plan in SK is to reach 0.5 Million EV chargers by 2025 with a mix of around 85% to 15% of slow to fast chargers. i.e. over 150 fast chargers and almost 1000 slow chargers per hydrogen station by 2025. They are well on their way to achieving that.

    So, the South Korean versions of our hydrogen advocates do at least have some prospect that a hydrogen powered vehicle could make a sensible buying choice in the near future.....depending on where he/she lived of course. The roadmap appears to favour certain areas in SK.

    But if you are seriously interested in the question of which will be the dominant drive train technology in the future it is pointless basing that on today's current technology as some sort of benchmark. You need to get your crystal ball out and look about 15 years in the future because it will take at least that amount of time for the hydrogen infrastructure to catch up to a point where it will significantly impact the mass market.  Call it 10 years if you want to be super optimistic. A lot will happen in 10-15 years (a lot is going to happen in the next 5), especially with regards battery technology.

    Exept for your optimism with regard to Battery technology I find your  writing worth reading. But certainly - a lot will happen in 10 - 15 years. The 2 largest companies making batteries for cars are in ? Right: China.

  3. So, it took 30 years to get from 2% to 40% more or less green electricity in UK. How long it will take to get any further is not easy to know, but the 2015 meeting in Paris with lots of signings and all promised something and in the 8 years since that: Like usual - nothing.

    Take 40 from 100 and you have 60% dirty electricity and according to the Volvo calculation how long it will take to annul the production of new car with Li-Ion Battery (driving 100K Km on green electricity would be OK) it is not even near that, and most likely not any better than if a reasonably modern already existing ICE engine car had been driven same distance with petrol; using the existing car could even be better for the environment.

    What is then the reason to destroy the planet and make the people that are searching for minerals ill?

    image.thumb.png.445245acda4e1faabcdfde5f890d346e.png 

    Lithium is typically mined through a process called brine mining, which involves extracting lithium from underground salt water reserves. The risks in polluting local water sources arise here, with examples in Salar de Uyuni and Salar de Atacama. This process involves pumping salt water to the surface, where it is evaporated to remove the lithium and other minerals. Despite being relatively energy-intensive, this remains one of the most cost-effective ways to mine lithium nowadays.  Unfortunately, these toxic metals can contaminate water sources, threatening not only humans but also animal biodiversity.

    Unlike Lithium where the supply is plentiful, there is more of an effort to meet the demand logistics for cobalt.  The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) produces 60-70% of the world’s Cobalt output.  However, the conditions of the mines in which Cobalt is produced has generated significant controversy in the media and abroad.  Still, the average, daily $3+ wage for miners is significantly more than the average wage in the country (where 73% of the population live below $1.9 a day).  A main reason why workers will continue to mine in these fields is the above average pay and thus the associated economic incentives resulting from artisanal mines. It is currently estimated that between 140,000-200,000 people work as artisanal miners in the DRC.

    Nonetheless, the risks of cobalt mining on the human population in Congo is well documented, where mines are often operated in dangerous and polluted conditions.  The mining and refining processes are often labour-intensive practices and are associated with a variety of health problems as a result of accidents, overexertion, exposure to toxic chemicals and gasses.  On top of all this, violence is common throughout cantered around racism, discrimination, and worker abuse.  The miners, known locally as creseurs, are so economically reliant on this informal economy that these dangerous conditions cannot afford full consideration.

    The environmental costs of cobalt mining activities are also substantial. Southern regions of the DRC are not only home to cobalt and copper, but also large amounts of uranium. In mining regions, scientists have made note of high radioactivity levels. In addition, mineral mining, similar to other industrial mining efforts, often produces pollution that leaches into neighbouring rivers and water sources. Dust from pulverised rock is known to cause breathing problems for local communities as well.

     

    Tell me honestly: Are the Battery powered cars worth that?

     

     

  4. Pamesa Group is the first to use unique hydrogen-based fuel in its production processes

     

    image.thumb.png.af64818633133fb9bdf073baa64ae5b0.png 

     By JOHN MAX    https://www.hydrogenfuelnews.com/author/john-2-2-2-2/

    The achievement was the result of a partnership with eCombustible Energy.

    Pamesa Group and eCombustible Energy partnered to launch the first carbon-free hydrogen-based fuel to be used in commercial industrial operations. According to a recent news release, the fuel, which is completely free of carbon emissions, was used by Pamesa Group in its productions process in place of natural gas, in a world first.

    eCombustible is a new carbon-free fuel.

    The hydrogen-based fuel is known as eCombustible and is produced by eCombustible Energy. The fuel is generated via an enhanced electrolysis process and with far greater production efficiency compared to any other electrolysis technology.

    The fuel is generated using modules. This enables the fuel to be configured according to the specific requirements of each eCombustible client, like Pamesa. Furthermore, this hydrogen-based fuel can be used in existing equipment with very little or no need to modify the existing machinery to accommodate it.

    Therefore, since the energy generation process takes place in existing equipment installed in the same plants as the Pamesa production centers, there is no need for fuel transportation or distribution. Due to this fact, the carbon emissions associated with the life cycle of eCombustible is lowered even more compared to traditional fuels.

    With its new hydrogen-based fuel, eCombustible is helping hard to decarbonize sectors find a viable solution.

    “Our mission is to provide a long-term, cost-effective, carbon-free fuel supply solution to help industries that today rely heavily on fossil fuels and give them energy independence,” said eCombustible Energy CEO, Jorge Arévalo.

     image.thumb.png.8b4493ce1dd3b41e76638ed272108414.png

    The CEO added that “Pamesa is leading the way in demonstrating how sectors whose CO2 emissions were economically unfeasible to reduce with current technology can now contribute to a more sustainable world while continuing to grow their businesses.”

    Pamesa has achieved a number of key milestones with the support of eCombustible. These include having the first plant of its kind worldwide that can function without reliance on natural gas and having a more efficient solution than current hydrogen alternatives, while remaining 100% carbon-free at a price that is more competitive than natural gas.

    “I am proud to announce that, after four years of effort and investment, exclusively private, we are going to be able to produce in our plants without emitting carbon dioxide and without depending on third parties,” said president of Grupo Pamesa, Fernando Roig.

    After its initial success with the hydrogen-based fuel, Pamesa intends to implement eCombustible in all its operations.

     

    Unfortunately, of the 190 countries that signed the Paris treaty 8 years ago not one of these have fulfilled what they signed. Some have done little, many have done nothing and are more or less status quo, while several are polluting more. Water from underground of Denmark, which is supposed to be clean enough to have in tabs and drinkable is not, and the agriculture still have permission to use poison that will make the situation worse. Pfas (PFPeS, PFDoDA, PFUnDA, PFTrDA, PFHpS, PFDS, PFNS, PFUnS, PFDoS og PFTrS) is a rather dangerous thing and have since May this year come on the list of things that shall be analysed, but luckily most of the places that are delivering water are still not able to analyse for that, so it is safe to drink tab water in Denmark; even more lucky is that it is considered safe to have twice the amount in the water than was permitted 10 years ago. EU to ban all non-essential uses of PFAS: Will the UK be equally ambitious? Actually, it does not matter because PFAS is not - and will not be banned – only non-essential use of it is restricted. And who is to find out what essential use is?

     

    Such make it hard to believe anything we are promised from official sites.

    • Like 1
  5. 58 minutes ago, ColinBarber said:

    Indeed, but it will improve over time as countries switch to more sustainable energy generation and therefore make EVs more friendly.

    We all know now that the Paris Agreement was about letting the temperature rise as it liked as long as it was good for economy, while telling the poor fools that the politicians are doing all they can and it is going to cost. Like usual – the poor must pay in order to let the rich get richer and we suckers have to believe what we want, and do what the politicians say.

    And all the politicians participating in the meeting have since then made laws that would let all continue as always, while telling us that they do what they can.

    Now 8 years later, all of what was promised has been accompliced, and we see it in the weather forecasts daily. Half of Spain is having temperatures above 37 degrees Celsius, forest fires are becoming more and more normal, lakes dry out in several countries, glaciers are melting and rocks fall down making in needed to evacuate little towns.

    And you believe that when politicians say the electricity will be made green it actually will be that.

    This is close to being so naïve that it could be called something else if that would not be – not really polite.

  6. 2 minutes ago, ColinBarber said:

    Indeed, but it will improve over time as countries switch to more sustainable energy generation and therefore make EVs more friendly. An ICE vehicle will always need petrol/diesel and continue to pollute the same as it did when first purchased.

    Hope in one hand and spit in the other and trust politicians. The hand you hope in will remain empty.

    Wish what you think is true, but doubt it.

    Absolutely, but the ICE cars driving round now have been produced and while they were made polluted, while new cobalt and lithium batteries need a lot of power and disgustingly polluting material in order to be able to power a car and are polluting more than they gain driving around without exhaust pipes (ask Volvo). They make bigger batteries now to get longer range and that make the cars heavier and in order to keep the batteries safe on our not always perfect roads the cells are glued so firm together that it is not worth it retrieving the minerals as it is too energy and cost needing that it is cheaper to buy new minerals, until there are no more.

     

    • Like 1
  7. 6 minutes ago, ColinBarber said:

    Why would they be sorry? You select the most suitable option at the time of purchase. Anyone going electric now will get the benefits for 10 years before hydrogen becomes a legitimate alternative for the private motorist, and the infrastructure will be in place for another 10+ years beyond that, the same way petrol/diesel cars will still be around for years. 

    As soon as the batteries are no longer up to what was promised (7 - 12 years) batteries, mostly made in China like many other things, will have a different price than hoped for. The rest of the car would likely still be in good condition. Correct that owners have been preferred and lured to buy EV cars, but doubt that governments will continue to favour EV car owners; they are going to need funds from something, if / when EV cars will become more than 20% of the car fleet driving. The grid will have problems charging if / when more than half will be Battery powered; which might never happen. Only those with own solar chargers will stay happy, as electricity will do what all things do = when more is wanted - price will go up.

    Those that bought EV cars because they wanted to help the planet have been fooled as the cars need to be driven a lot of km/miles in order to reach neutrality and as long as electricity is still made from very much fossil fuel (coal, lignite, natural gas) it will never happen. In Germany more than 50% is rather dirty. UK not much better.

  8. 8 hours ago, Malc1 said:

    from little acorns eh !

    Malc

    as an aside was reading this morning that EV owners could be facing a Govt, effective " pothole " tax coz of the excessive damage done thru' the inordinate battery weight issues ........ 🤣

    Come 2035 and the owners of Battery powered cars will be minority and sorry that they listened to the stupid politicians that made them believe it was the way to go.

     

    Storage of excess electricity are going to be in hydrogen as batteries are useless due to too many reasons to list (self-discharge etc.).

    image.thumb.png.10964f080a5616d68e368b762437fccf.png

    Electriq, a company based in Israel, has just been recognized with the prestigious World Economic Forum “Technology Pioneers” award for its advancements in hydrogen storage technology, Electriq Powder.

     

    • Like 1
  9. Industry use H2, aviation is well on its way and even a very old project from around 1970 has started:

    The first platform-based wind-to-H2 deep water renewable hydrogen electrolysis plants have made their way offshore in recent weeks, making it possible to prove concepts first developed half a century ago.

    Hydrogen is not happening.

    But do not tell that to owners of RR.

     

    image.thumb.png.57cf6669b04b13a62b47ef6d53f63c7a.png 

    The company’s CEO has stated that the automaker is thinking that it “might exit batteries.”

    The automaker has been focused on developing Battery electric vehicles as its zero-emission offering.

    The latest Rolls-Royce Spectre made its way into the spotlight earlier this month at Villa d’Este in Italy for its European debut. That model is the first electric vehicle from the UK-based automaker and is expected to begin production in September. It will boast one of the largest batteries any production car has ever held, at 120kWh.The vehicle’s range is said to be over 300 miles, with rapid charging at 195kW.

    That said, Torsten Müller-Ötvös, Rolls-Royce CEO, has said that the unique positioning of the company and the average owner’s specialized use case means that it is possible to consider hydrogen cars as a technology with true potential for the future.

    image.thumb.png.b2a0fa43577846b52dd4a5d331f3b3b8.png 

    H2 cars have an advantage.

    Müller-Ötvös sees hydrogen cars using fuel cells as an option quite comparable to Battery electric vehicles, only with distinct advantages once it is further developed.

    “And why not? I would say so when the time is right for us, and when the technology is so much advanced, that it is definitely something we would pursue as Rolls-Royce,” he said. “Why not? We might exit batteries, and we might enter into fuel cells.”

  10. image.thumb.png.c1514bd644a5d3fe14efc7149360667c.pngimage.thumb.png.de09259198839fc9e4b60acea6039c8a.png

    Cheap: gasoline 95 octane 1.07€ - diesel 1.10€

    Shell super 98 octanes 1.39€, 95 octanes only .05€ cheaper. BP and the rest are all more or less same price.

    So far, I have been filling Shell in as wonder why somebody can sell gasoline so much cheaper than all the other companies and when passing by one of the Petroprix stations there are only few cars filling there. Is the reason for few customers with Petroprix that everybody else are suspicious like I am?

  11. 50 minutes ago, BrettMRC said:

    There is probably some merit in getting the tyres fitted at the dealership in terms of comeback if they damage a rim...? 

    The tools (machines) they have now are close to fool-proofed. Rim damage when changing tyres are or at least should be a thing of the past.

    The specialists are just that. Lexus and Toyota are changing a tyre now and then. The specialists do nothing else all day.

  12. Affluently living is great.

    The rich continue to have fun.

    Temperature rising, and, so what?

    Cars only for us rich, so what?

    Our great grandchildren will have a hotter life, so what?

    Ice will melt and seas will rice and land will be lost, so what?

    We can move to higher grounds! Not all can, so what? - We, had fun!

    The poor can walk till the shoes are worn out and from then they get their feet hardened. So what?

    We have cars and money and a pleasant life!

    That way of thinking LED in France to invention of a machine called the guillotine. So what?

  13. Just now, Malc1 said:

    why don't you ask the old fashioned ICE local repair/fixing guy to take a look and fix the existing ?

    Malc

    Right Malcolm,

    I believe that in your area, Richard, you can find somebody competent to install a radio with CD player in the car without it looking as too out of style.

  14. 1 hour ago, Malc1 said:

    Gentlemen your thoughts please 

    this Toyota Crown Royal is shod with new Blackarrow tyres ….. your thoughts please for sensible use on this 3ltr power machine ?

    thank you 

    Malc 

    If that is the deal breaker tell the seller that you are interested with decent tyres on it. That could give possibilities for various changes.

  15. We use the phone only to listen to music while driving (now and then also receiving a call or 2), but wonder why it should be needed to charge the phone. The phone we have has power enough to last quite a lot of hours (more than 12) without needing being charged. Never used charging pads, see no reason, actually believe that a lot of energy is wasted that way. Only our Braun toothbrushes are charged without directly being connected by wire.

  16. Why we need to talk about clean or green hydrogen so much is hypocritical. It is coming, but not in a day or two.

    Talk a bit about how clean or green the electricity in the grid is made. In Germany more than half electricity is made using coal, lignite and fossil fuel, and in UK it is not really green either.

    Meaning that 100k lifetime of a Battery car, that is made very polluting will be filled with a large percentage of unclean electricity. So, as it is today, and probably also tomorrow, Battery powered cars will never become technology that is helping reducing pollution.

    Those claiming otherwise are either not knowing what they talk about or plainly do not want to look at how much they are actually damaging the world they supposedly are trying to help buying the battery-powered cars. Meaning they are selfishly only getting as much out of governments subsidies as possible without caring the least about how much they are really damaging.

    • Like 1
  17. 4 minutes ago, DBIZO said:

    That's all fine, but we were talking UK originally. Summers clearly fit your climate. Last winter in the UK, as you must have seen it in the news, hundreds of cars ended up in the ditch and stuck on roads because of accidents. Summer tyres  were clearly a major factor, the other one of course is incompetence, as always.

    You are talking UK. I talk of conditions everywhere.

    Tyres are not made in order to fit UK only.

  18. 9 minutes ago, DBIZO said:

    I responded but it doesn't show up...anyway.

    We will continue to disagree. I reject your accusation of fallacies yourself have acted out (goalpost shifting specifically). 

    The data is quite clear, and your interpretation lack internal logic. Your assertions that summers are better 360 days and that people just need to learn how to drive for those 5 days a year does not pass cursory standards of reasoning, let alone safety considerations.

    There no value to the performance of summer tyres on UK roads. Zero. You're normally driving very far away from the limits of their grip window. All seasons cover you comfortably.

    This notion that you're giving up something of value with all seasons vs summers has no substance. If you can drive all seasons hard at high tempo (90-120 mph) in frosty, subzero conditions across Germany and Austria (I have), surely driving in the UK is not even a challenging task for them, don't you think? Or almost anywhere, really. I'd put money you couldn't tell summers and all seasons apart for their performance in a blind test. Unless you drive like a lunatic, or going on a track day.

    Your other assertion that people will just need to learn how to drive on summers in cold conditions for those few days and you use a corner case (black ice) to justify it is just the empty inanity I expected to surface on this topic. Not from you personally  just in general when received wisdoms and 'common sense' are challenged. Surely you cannot be serious suggesting that we should put the onus on millions of drivers' skills, the majority of whom should have never got their license in the first place? And slippery conditions where it is actually important how much grip you have left are much more common than you imply. All seasons give you that additional safety floor, literally under your car, that you won't be sliding off the road as easily just because it's 1C and wet. Again, lack of logical coherency in your reasoning: you need all your summer tyre grip in good conditions (when you don't actually need it) but it doesn't matter how much grip you have left in poor conditions?

    I too learned to drive in a continental climate and driven in all sorts of conditions, including blizzards at night, ones that don't really exist in the UK. And I regularly drive from and to the UK across Europe, on all seasons, in all seasons. They perform excellently.

    I've said everything I wanted, so I'll not respond any more. Evidence supports the conclusion that safer all-year-round driving in the UK means all-season tyres as a standard choice. High-performance cars, track days, sure, go for UHP, and then don't drive when there is a chance of precipitation or condensation in cold conditions, please. 

    I have been driving on summer tyres on the high way from Oslo to Trondheim (through Röros) when snow covered the road looking at the marking sticks on both sides of the road to make sure not getting out of the road.

    Like Linas said. Learn to drive in different temperatures. In Norway you learn to drive in snow and accidents happens everywhere, but not very often there because of snow on the road.

  19. 23 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

    I have long given-up reading tyre reviews from actual owners, because they are always all over the place. 

    The guy in tyre reviews who does driving tests is excellent thought, the only annoying part is that he often tests Premium tyres on Ecnoshaitboxes like 1.5 Golf, or even GTI. Basically, what works and doesn't work on Golf will be completely different on Lexus or some other Premium RWD car. 

    As far as Goodyear always cracking before wearing out... again really depends. Tyres age, so if your mileage is low it may be the case, but will not be the case for people who drive more. So I would take such blanket statement with pinch of salt (even if sometimes I like to make such statements myself). And it is not necessary that such statements are wrong, but because they can be interpreted wrong without context.

    RWD cars are good for less than 5% of drivers, so no reason for tyre testers to look hard into such cars.

    Golf is a very common car so good reason to try on such a car.

    It is possible to read on the tyres when they are made and UV is hard on not just rubber. Outside of tyres are more often cracking than inside. Never used Goodyear but see no reason they should crack much more often than other tyres.

  20. 2 hours ago, Bob99 said:

    Thanks for all the replies, I have been running Goodyear asymmetric 3’s and later 5’s, and have been really happy with them both in performance and longevity. Didn’t get any cracking on the rears like there is on the front. When I went for my quote for refurbishing my wheels I mentioned I would be changing tyres at the same time and the guy said don’t buy Goodyear as they always crack before they are worn out. Then he looked at mine and said Michelin were better.  So getting quotes for a set of pilot 5

    A good sales-person is always able to recommend something that is most profiting.

    • Like 1
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