The UK's Internal Combustion Ban Isn't Actually A Big Deal At All
We knew it was coming, and this week it happened: the UK has banned the sale of brand new petrol and diesel cars by 2040. The thing is, the big news story the mainstream media is raving about isn’t really a big news story at all.
The likes of the national newspapers and the BBC have made a big deal out of the UK’s decision to match France’s commitment to ban the sale of solely petrol- and diesel-powered cars 22 and a half years from now, but what seems to be the big issue isn’t really even worth a second glance. Let me explain.
It’s 2017, and electrification is a reality. The technology is in use and working well. Toyota’s hybrid revolution, begun in the 1990s and laughed at by more or less everyone else until those same observers realised Toyota was on the right track after all, has proved to be a stunningly forward-thinking move some 20 years ahead of its time. It even already has a superbly-engineered hydrogen car; the pug-ugly Mirai.
We have neat ‘closed’ petrol-electric hybrids that can biff around town easily averaging over 60mpg, we have plug-in hybrids that will cover anything from 10 to 50 miles without having to go near internal combustion, and the latest ‘affordable’ fully electric cars boast a range of 150 miles between charges – and you can double that for a decent Tesla. The technology is here and it’s working.
Across the range of car makers that hawk their wares in the UK, there are almost none who aren’t already dabbling in electrification. The richest, like the Germans, already have a suite of part- and full-electric options, while the minnows in the pond like Suzuki are getting into their stride with much simpler mild hybrid setups.
There’s no mainstream car maker that can’t come up with part-electrification on every car by 2040. The likelihood, given how fast the technology is moving, is that all but the smallest and least-polluting internal combustion-engined cars would have switched over to some level of hybrid tech by that time anyway in order to keep pace with emissions regulations. The ban does mean we’ll definitely lose performance cars that might have stayed petrol-only, but such is ‘progress’. There is, however, a real problem to consider: cost.
Batteries are not easy to manufacture. They’re all-round expensive, hence why electric cars are so damn pricey. How do you reconcile that with the current crop of £8000 city cars? You can’t. The best you can do under the new rules is make them mild hybrids and increase the price. It might be as much as an extra 10 per cent on each car, which is a bit annoying. Especially so when advancing internal combustion tech and weight reduction could feasibly see those cars’ carbon dioxide emissions cut to hybrid-esque levels by the 2040 deadline.
But this is what will have to be done. It’s not a drastic stretch, the industry won’t be panicking and internal combustion engines still aren’t going anywhere for a long, long time. They’re just getting some help. Sure, sentimentality kicks in once we realise that 2040 spells the end for the likes of the BMW M3, the non-hybrid Ferrari and the Ford Focus RS as we know them today, but new, exciting projects will take their place. We knew this had to happen, and it has. Move along, people; nothing to see here. Yet.
Comments
day by day petrol head scene dying look at news at ct nearly all of them bad news
I wouldn’t say it’s dying. In fact I’d say the automotive scene is in a fairly good place right now. Electronification has been clear for a while now, and considering it should help boost performance cars, I’m all for it at the moment. At this exact moment in time, I think Chris Harris has got it spot on: there’s so much positivity in the car world, so many new sports cars or otherwise that look like fun, that it’s almost boring. You’re spoiled for choice for almost any class, and I, for one, think that we’re quite lucky that that’s how it is at the moment.
But it doesn’t have to be a bad thing to go hybrid, if you look at the current and next generation of hyper cars they are all hybrid in some form and they’re not exactly boring
Just going to leave this here
Not faster than any Bugatti. Quicker to 60mph yes. But your point still holds. EVs can be good if done properly.
All too expensive and unreliable
No.
Except most people won’t be able to afford something like Rimac. The only thing they’ll be able to afford will be something slow and ugly, like Nissan Leaf.
It would be hilarious if someobe did an inglorious b**tards edit of that called “inglorious ev-ards” and the rimac was all srcruffed up with a beard.
Very well said, we’ll just have to wait and see
Now all jokes asaide. We have 23 more years to evolve. Hell 10 years ago we didn’t have dual clutch transmission. I mean look at the Regera, and look at the 2007 Koenigsegg. We will evolve, wheter you like it or not.
but Porsche had a dual clutch transmission in 1984, aswell as VW in a production car 2003
the Ford Focus had a DCT in 2007, the BMW M3 had the SMG in 2007 aswell
Well, at least I’ll have 23 years to enjoy them while they last. I think hybrids are the near-future of performance cars since they offer the best of both worlds. If we got something like a mild-hybid GT86, M3 or MX-5, I’d happily drive it as long as it remains fun. Judge by the outcome, not the technology used
I’m getting sick and tired from being told to stop driving to save enviroment by people who drive A8’s, S-classes, 7-series and Jag XJ’s.
Indeed
A8 is mild hybrid
Most likely even with a big diesel engine….
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Go to hell
Wrong community to post stuff like this in.
QianLi Nissan420sx Mr.PurpleV12 Artur’TheHaferkeks’Kempf TheS80Rallyist
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watch this become brexit 2.0 where they never push the button
I hope the golf gti will continue its heritage with some kind of hybrid. Also this means the death of cheap Manuel sports cars 😩
Honda CRZ is a cheap, manual hybrid. We need more things like that, but with more power.
EVs can have Manuals too. Take a look at the 1st gen Insight, CRZ, and the earlier Hybrid Civics
I’m glad I’m not the only one that thinks that it’s not really a big deal for the normal consumer.
I quite like hybrids and EVs to drive. They feel more powerful than they really are, and they’re quiet. I was seriously considering getting a Renault Zoe just because they seem very sensible as my next car, but I feel as though I’d miss a manual. That’s really my only peave with them