The great hybrid swindle
I recently enjoyed a business lunch where the guest speaker was Climate Change Minister Penny Wong. I was very impressed by her obvious intelligence and enthusiasm for her job (“My mum was thrilled when I told her my new job is to save the world”).
However Wong is a lawyer, not a scientist, and when asked what she is personally doing for the environment, she said “I drive a hybrid”.
Oh dear, she’s fallen for the hybrid hype. This prompted me to write an article which was published this month by Crikey.
The gist of this article is that hybrid cars:
- Have everything that can go wrong with a petrol car plus everything that can go wrong with electric cars
- Don’t burn much less fuel that a modern turbo-diesel or even small petrol car
- Have a huge carbon footprint in the manufacture of all those extra components
- Are uneconomical to own and operate
Most importantly, fully electric cars are practical today and don’t suffer these drawbacks. Electric car technology presents a massive opportunity for Australian technology, manufacturing and the economy.
I also explain how solar powered cars are a practical reality for many urban commuters.
For those who do not subscribe to Crikey, the article can be downloaded here.