When did fuel become so sexy?
Now, I’m deeply passionate about cars, as you might imagine, but far less passionate about fuel.
Is it me or is this all just getting a bit silly? as “car people” shouldn’t we be more interested in the cars that are being made rather than the fuel source?
An interesting phenomenon is taking place at the moment and it’s really blown me away but just how deep-routed the feeling is on this subject. Over on my YouTube channel, some of the most aggressive and heated comments come on the subject of fuel…yes...fuel.
I know my fair share of VW evangelists and I thought they were a fairly loyal bunch but conversations with them about other brands of car rarely get quite as heated as if you suggest to an EV enthusiast that a petrol or diesel car has anything going for it whatsoever. The other side of this coin is also true, much more so in fact, there are plenty of tin foil hat conspiracy theorists out there claiming that we’re all being forced into EVs by evil corporations and if we don’t buy one in the next 3 weeks we will be put against a proverbial wall and shot.
“When did fuel become 95% of the conversation? surely the car is the interesting bit that we should all get excited about?”
Now to give away my position on the great fuel debate. We will all be using alternative fuels in the future as fossil fuels are no longer a viable option given the state of the planet and the dwindling natural resource. I’m cool with that. Those alternatives could be electricity, hydrogen, synthetic fuels, cooking fat, methane, wind, light and horse manure….I don’t mind and nor do I particularly care as long as it is relatively inclusive (i.e. not the sole preserve of the wealthy), it’s easily accessible, reasonably priced and doesn’t take away from the experience of using or owning a car.
There are strong arguments about what is and isn’t “clean” or best for the environment but there are so many people making arguments that already personally have a dog in the fight that it tends to blur into a cacophony of noise which I find difficult to wade through and verify as the data needed to do so is often produced or sponsored by some kind of lobbyist with “skin in the game”…as are many commentators on the subject.
I really feel we should now peacefully resign ourselves to the fact that within the next ten years perhaps, we may no longer be able to purchase traditional petrol or diesel; there may be synthetic versions of those fuels available (likely at a premium) but most of the planet will be driving battery-powered electric vehicles. The importance of saving the planet cannot be understated, it’s just a job that needs to be done. It probably wouldn’t do us any harm to be less reliant on other nations for our fuels either.
If you like picking fights with random strangers? start talking about electric cars and wait for it to “kick off”.
Battery technology is not without its drawbacks, the cost of acquisition for a battery-powered vehicle is still currently high, and the charging infrastructure is pretty woeful in many areas at present with no home charging solution available to many. There are also a number of questions about the mining of precious metals required for current batteries etc. All of this will improve in time and it seems that BEVs have already won “the race” in terms of the primary new chosen fuel source for the many.
Hydrogen seems to be a more comfortable transition for many of those used to ICE vehicles but it has drawbacks that make its use in private vehicles seem unlikely to really catch on, it’s expensive to produce, and transport and perhaps seems better suited to public transport, aviation and the marine industry than it does to joe public. It’s also extremely inefficient compared to a BEV and required even more nasty mining. Synthetic fuels are already in production but are likely to cost an absolute fortune by the time that they reach our pumps…for the foreseeable future at least.
Changes are happening at the moment and there will be pros and cons as a result, that’s just life. Let’s not let the changes or the fuels become the full story, let’s remember that up until 10 years ago we just used to talk about the actual cars - now there’s a thing!! Let’s also stop bashing each other for making our own choices. This is a great time to be a gearhead, the industry hasn’t seen changes like this since the car replaced the horse and cart, let’s roll with it, embrace it and get back to talking about cars!
What I’d love is for people to start getting excited and enthused by cars again, not by their fuel source, just look at Tesla as an example, the extremes of love and hate for their vehicles is quite absurd. I’ve personally loved the Tesla vehicles that I’ve driven because the driving experience was great, the technology was extremely well executed and I couldn’t stop smiling throughout. If it has performed in the same way but had been powered by something else I would have felt exactly the same way.
It just feels like so many people are now in love with petrol or diesel or electricity that many have forgotten about the actual car. If we fall out of love with cars we will be driving around in boring utilitarian pods. There are also so many burning countless calories arguing for or against something they are never likely to own. I don’t want a caravan but I won’t fight you to the death if you want to.
When I drive a funky little city car, or V8 monster, or an EV that can get from 0-100mph quicker than I can get out of a chair (I am 44!), it’s the car that puts a smile on my face, it’s the car that you connect with, the fuel is way less interesting folks. Trust me.
“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.”
― Søren Kierkegaard
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