I was so happy to see a new episode of Fully Charged available to watch, but I do wish it was longer! Your observation about the actual process of making a car is spot on. They are going to have to get even better and think even more out of the box for the future, but they are doing very well as a company and others are researching new green and sustainable ways to build cars, even going so far as to "grow" the parts they need as you showed us previously. Thanks for another fun show.
This was a wonderful antidote to watching Top Gear's take on the electric car. What rubbish! Developments in high efficiency automotive design are far more interesting than the latest 'super' car. You're consistently fair, balanced, and practical. I love the way Volvo is thinking, even though such a car may be at the high end of my price range. They seem to have all bases covered - 4 wheel drive for bad weather (key in Canada), towing capacity, and super efficiency for the daily commute.
I tried a Volvo V60 R. Line hybrid from Denmark to Roterdam and back. It's a long time since I've tried so good and comfortable car. It was strange the first time that you start and begins to run on electricity. The silence. It's great. And the acceleration it have, even if it run on electricity ..
My understanding is that since this video was made, Volvo has changed the air conditioner and oil pump to both work electronically, without the need for the engine to be running. That's important, because it means that the V60 plug-in can now start, and run on electric power only. Much cleaner too, and means this can be a pure EV for short to mid-length journeys. £47,000 is a LOT, this is a high-end car, with a high equipment level. You also get £5000 in UK subsidies for it and fuel savings.
Nice video, thanks for getting back to the roots of testing alternatively motivated vehicles...this is what brought me to your channel at the start, keep it up!
@XitUp A very good point and something I now wish I had asked the folks at Volvo about. To be fair to them, many shorter journeys possible without starting the diesel at all, but I'm with you on the dirtiness of diesels and the costs of maintaining them
@JRP3 That is true, it does have a lot of baggage to carry around. But it's still a useful setup for the transition period between having no quick charge stations, and to having enough quickcharge stations to be able to use a pure electrical car even for long trips. Hybrids still have good reason to be around.
I've been wondering about diesel-electric hybrids for awhile, but I would think the place to put them first would be in large trucks, which use diesel engines anyway. They would, of course, run on diesel for cross-country travel, but for low-speed residential driving and pulling away from a traffic light, electric power would help them be quieter and cleaner as well as more efficient.
Wow, this is a dream car! It's a hybrid and a diesel, it actually drives like a proper car, and doesn't sound "CVTeish". Really great mpg figures, now I just wonder how well it handles and if it's as fun to drive as it seems in the video...
@Jesus45U You are correct and I am very aware of the Fisker Karma and I would obviously love to 'have a go.' However, this show is still being created on zero budget with very little time, I love doing it, I want to do more, I'm striving to do more, but getting access to a very rare car that's currently only in the United States is not simple. I'm just saying :-)
@XitUp I am sure that it will have a 'regeneneration mode' to enable the engine to produse the temp. As most vehicles will aim to do a regeneration on a higher speed long run senerio in the first instance, the engine will be running in this drive anyway. Ultimately it is the exhaust gas temp. that is key not the engine temp so almost instantly the engine will be producing the temp. required.
@XitUp 1996 VW Cabrio. Prev owner replaced engine at 90K Miles. On 2nd engine, I had to replace the water and power steering pumps, oil filter, air filter, 2 radiator hoses, all belts, both oxygen sensors, mass air flow valve and spark plugs so it would run reliably and be road tested to see if it was a worthy EV conversion candidate, and that it is! The muffler is busted and the gas tank leaks : - )
Still waiting for this car, only a few available and there's a waiting list??? This is 2013, I have yet to see any passing by in London. Perhaps in July?
One of the things that concerns me about diesel hybrids is the DPF. Will it get hot enough to clean itself if the engine is constantly being turned on and off. Modern diesel cars have huge costs for replacing parts due to the complications of trying to clean up a dirty fuel, I think this would only make things worse.
I live in the US and don't even have a license so there's basically a 0% chance I'm ever going to get one of these, but IDK why plug-in diesels aren't more popular both (especially) here and in other countries. They basically have the best of all worlds. They can use electricity exclusively on short trips, can use the widely-available diesel fuel on long trips or if they haven't had time to charge, and unlike with gas, ethanol is always an option for after fossil fuels run out.
Watching the latter part of this video and hearing your comments about Volvo's sales into China all just supports what Carlos Ghosn said about China and India as net oil importers and the future of energy. Another great episode.
@DanFrederiksen I have worked with composites, I know how strong it is. I also know that if you build a 500 kilo car, it's going to be less safe in a crash than a 2 ton steel one, no matter what material you use. Especially if it's in a crash with another 2 ton steel car. Yes, fiberglass can be safe if you make it thicker, but then it gets heavy. Yes, I advocate bicycles. The speed is *much* lower, they cost very little to produce, and if the roadnet is buildt properly, it's safe to bicycle.
Nice new intro you got there, and keep up the good work, always waiting for a new episode to see what you dragged put of the bushes to show us :) Why are you not doing more movies with the Prius?
@XitUp I will have to disagree - Communications and Economy is always linked, no matter what you do. The best way to turn a profit is to buy low and sell high, and you do that by aquiering knowledge of the prices abroad, for that you need good communications. The two cannot be seperated. Without good communications, everything would end up being more expensive, and less likely to be in supply.
@DanFrederiksen Making the heavy cars illegal .. brilliant rebuttal, sir. I'm sure the family with 5 kids will love it. The simple matter is, that if you want to make a practical every day car, that can take mom, dad and 2-3 kids, you will end up with a vehicle that weighs in around a ton at least. The better way would be to make the communities small enough that you can walk/bicycle for the majority of yours needs, that way we would not NEED a car, nor use energy on moving it about.
Beats the prius hands down, plus you don't look like someone who has sacrificed their dignity to be seen as eco. With the performance available it really is great, and even has the 4wd benefit in the winter! I'm planning to get a v60 at the end of next year, however I can see this hybrid being out of my price range. Any ideas on cost?
@msyin9 I am fully aware of permaculture farming. Permaculture farming is centered around small villages/homesteads of farming, but we have a lot of really big cities which cannot do that. What you are missing, is the SCALE of the beast, even if you managed to sow, culture and harvest all the wheat needed for a city like London, the sheer weight and volume of just moving the corn is WAY beoynd being done by hand - In other words, you need heavy machinery.
Hi, can you do a show about electric bikes? there very interesting and fun to use. and I think that the E bikes will change our behavior toward transportation. Thank love the show
The solution would be to uninstal the DPF because it is in fact a polution factor. DPF's and that is a little known fact are harming the environment more than not having them installed. Why? Because cars without DPF produce soot not good but relatively heavy so it won't stay in the atmosphere they will fall to the ground and will be absorbed by the flora. What DPF's do is they burn soot and produce "particulates" and CO². Particulates are much more harmful to humans and stay
@XitUp Hello there. I'm reading your statement where you say car engines outlast the cars themselves and can't understand it. It sounds like you're saying that car engines outlast the cars themselves. Or did you mean an electric drive will outlast the car? Because that one would be true.
@fullychargedshow I think if you had it in either Pure mode or Power mode most of the time it would be fine, but I fear that many would leave it in Hybrid mode.
@rainbowsalads I can visualise many things in my mind. But it takes a bit more than that to get things done. For taxi firms and local delivery though, I think hot swapping could work, as they tend to have a set route, standardised vehicles and a central hub or depot. For the rest of the world it is unrealistic, and unnecessary, if we have range extenders, slow charging at home/work and fast charge parking bays at motorway service stations for longer trips.
@XitUp True that, heck just making sure there's enough food in all parts of the country is a massive logistics job, and takes good communications. Definately want good communications over a personal car.
Short, but good episode. Here's an idea to stop all that industrial pollution when making new electric or hybrid cars: convert existing ones to electric! After all, we already have plenty of them around and most of us already like our cars as they are. Take the dirty ICE out, put an electric drive in and your car will last another 100K miles.
How can we speed up the transition, so we don't have to carry a heavy diesel or petrol engine around with us? what will it take to get a battery swap at every fuel station by the end of the decade?
@XitUp It does cost more .. right now. That could change though. And wether or not we like the stock markets, we sorta need them for large scale economy. Not having the communications network along wiht the stockmarket servers, would mean we'dhave to use snail-mail ... and that would set us back in a way that would be hard to understand. Instant communications have changed the economy much more than we care to admit.
@DanFrederiksen Have you got sources for those figures Dan? Do you work in the EV industry? Does the company you work for not try to maximise it's profit on the products it makes?
Normally when you see someone test a prototype car, they often have an unfinished feel to them, instruments not implemented yet, bit's and pieces not equipped yet. Volvo makes a prototype, and it looks like it just rolled off the assembly line, fully finished and ready to go. It does give you an idea of how much work they have put into it, they seem to be taking it very seriously. But as mentioned, it's STILL not all that environmental friendly. And cars probably never will be.
@Jesus45U Of course I understand it can run in "electric mode", but that does not make it a "pure electric car" as Bobby states, even for a short time. It's always hauling around an ICE and all associated systems. Part of being a "pure electric car" is the mechanical simplicity, which hybrids do not possess.
@Jesus45U yeah it makes me sad to think that possibly "they never will be". They can be more efficient by reducing both size and weight, but this makes them more dangerous for occupants in a crash. eg: watch?v=jwwiVX7z1PE Extremely light tiny cars with fabric panels sound great to me, but imagine what happens in a crash. It's almost like the car isn't even there - it's just a naked person flying along at 120 kph. The most appropriate sound effect for a crash would likely be "SPLAT". :(
@greyareaRK1 To be fair, Robert is every bit as biased towards the electric car, as Top Gear is NOT biased towards the electric car. Top gear does raise a few real, and fair points - You can't just take a pure electric car today and go anywhere you want, and that's a bugger. And unless you get to a fast charge station, it takes a long time to recharge, that's also a bugger. Robert on the other hand, also raises a few good points - ICE's are not efficient in any form, but they are flexible.
@DanFrederiksen Obviously one can't rearrange *all* houses. But there are a lot of places where you could encourage small distance communities without too much work. And while a 400kg car can carry 5 people, it won't be safe in the least. Heck, the 5 people will weigh more than the car, the raw stesses in a crash would have them tear it apart. Since NCAP crash tests came about several very light cars have been outright banned for being too unsafe ... the Citroen 2cv for example.
@XitUp I can't tell you what they spent, I'm sure they just hired some consultancy company that gave them very expensive solutions but if they had the relevant electrical engineers and all the development amortized then it could be 500$ for the motor, 800$ for all the power electronics (controller, DCDC and charger) and say 8000$ for a 20kWh robust lithium pack. and that is a 100kW system. and that's the cost for converting a wasteful C30. which they wouldn't do if they were intelligent.
Well indeed impressive, but no doubt with Volvo's very high costs for parts and servicing added to the habit of all manufactures to ramp up the price of anything that burns less fuel, I would imagine this car will be well beyond the budget of most of us, and that's the problem! I'd switch today if I could, I really want to but just could not due to the cost. It does not matter how much they can save you once you own them, if you just can't buy them its not good :-(
-continued : Second : We NEED a roof over our heads, and in the winter, they need heating ... or we die. Third : We NEED our to keep our food from spoiling, in other words, we need refrigiation. This at least is already electrified, but it still needs energy pumped into it. We also need to prepare the food, in other words ovens and cooking plates - More energy needed. Fourth : Banking, Stockmarkets and the whole communications network and server computers, also requires energy. continues-
Good car! I like this and the Ampera and plug-in prius, because they are the cars that you could buy and keep them as your ONLY car. Only one pure electric car I don't find good enough, even if you could rent a car, or go by train for those long rare journeys. I like the video, love the series.
Its disappointing that the deisel engine comes on right away when you start the car. If you have electric capacity then it should wait until the battery is depleted before starting the engine. My 2nd gen prius bugs me because the gas engine comes on soon after you start the car regardless of battery charge, engine warmth or depressing the throttle. Sometimes I just want to move the car into the garage or out to the street and starting the engine is totally unnecessary.
@Jesus45U yeah tradeoffs are a bummer. like Speed vs Efficiency. Pure bicycles have the problem of aerodynamics, and the driver has no shelter from the wind/rain. Which is likely why that electric wicycle i linked to looks a lot like just a recumbent bicycle enclosed in fabric. I love my bike, but it's really dangerous to share the roads with cars. Also it only goes about 20 kph if i'm lucky, which is very limiting. It seems that cars aren't big JUST to be safer, "style" wastes much space.
@XitUp Hello. If your car is rusted or "totaled" then obviously is not a car you want to keep, which is premise of my original post. If the engine lasts longer than the body on the car, you've likely replaced many of the engine components and none of the body's. My 192K miles car has a great body but a 2nd engine and rusted muffler; it'll be converted to an EV soon. My 37K miles car has a great engine and I will make it better by yanking it out and converting it to an electric.
@JRoque250 What Jesus4u said. Look at scrap yards, tons of cars that are uneconomical to fix after a small bump but with an engine that has thousands of miles left in it.
@warblingtransistor In other words, you'd prefer an extended range EV(some prefer calling them serial hybrids). The Fisker Karma is actually build that way, except it's a sports/luxury car, so it has a powerful petrol engine to extend range and/or power. But it has all the tech that is probably the best way forward at the moment. Surprisingly, none of the big guys, Robert included, have taken a serious look into it. C'mon robert, get with times here.
@fullychargedshow Well, here's to hoping that they get their eyes open for the blogging reviewers such as you, and bring one around if they ever do some british event. After all, you're more likely to get to the core qualities of a car like that, than the average car reviewer. That alone should be good for them. On a sidenote, what does a ticket to the US cost from where you live these days ?
@Odziz I think Odziz is right on the money here, since Volvo is a swedish company, they would obviously use the system they use in Sweden, which is the metric system. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if there was some truth to what you said. XD
After thinking a little about this whole upcoming energy crisis that will face once oil runs out, which it eventually will. I realized, that cars don't even make it to my Top 5 most important things that needs fuel. Let me explain - First of all, we need food and water, or we die. there's too many people in the world to farm, using horses, so we NEED heavy farm machinery - And I have yet to see an electric tractor bigger than a garden tractor. continues -
-continued : Fifth : Hospitals, Police stations, Firefighting stations and other important major institutions also needs fuel and energy. So there we are, the top 5 being : Food Production Homing / Heating Refrigiation / Cooking Communications / Servers Hospitals and the likes. All of this, BEFORE personal cars even comes into the picture. And we haven't even taken public transport and lorries into consideration yet. Where's all the rest ?
@DanFrederiksen Peak Oil, is absolutely the biggest problem in the "short" term, we will face an energy crisis of epic proportions, so why are we trying to build more cars ? We have more important stuff to worry about ... Farming, Heating houses, making clothes, keepig hospitals running. EV's won't fix that - And that's the truth.
@fullychargedshow.issues in the UK it cost $50000 pounds ! which makes it $70000 if it ever comes to north america. sadly only the rich and the government can afford that. we have the 4 door tesla which just came out and its a little cheaper with 300km + on a single charge. i just looked up the 3008 and half the price !!! sadly i don't see Volvo selling many of these cars as promising and effective as they are. also Volvo is investing in its north American market. maybe one day they will
@XitUp they are might conclusions but I can account for them. what I do for work is quite irrelevant, I still have the knowledge. and even if you want to pretend it's ok to be purely driven by profit maximization, even in that premise they are wrong because noone will want to rent it for 76000$ for 3 years. many big companies price their product after the what we can get away with principle (and they are going to hell) but in this case they can't get away with it. people wont buy it.
@XitUp I wonder how companies would be run if Heaven and Hell had to be taken into account for ? "You Sir, get a raise" "You Sir, get a raise" "You Sir, go to Hell" :D
@rainbowsalads It would take all manufacturers to agree on a standard size and shape battery. It would take consumers who don't care if they drive their new car into a station after 200 miles and swap the battery for one that has half the capacity after doing 150k miles. It will take billions of £ for the infrastructure. It's a bad idea.
@Jesus45U It costs not much more to build a passive solar home than to build one that takes a lot of energy to heat/cool. As for the stock markets, I'd much rather have petrol in my car than give it to them.
If I could wish it into existence we in America need a revolution in the auto industry like volkswagen was to Germany ( without the war part of course ). If we had a charismatic leader to order it into existence , but like I said it's a wish ....
in the atmosphere a lot longer. The reason why filters were introduced is because soot is a visible form of pollution: When laws for filters were promoted they used hankies to demonstrate how dirty diesel cars are. So the automotive supply industries offered a solution they lobbied make a lot of money with it and now we have cars that pollute the environment more than before. And nice side effect we have one more engine part that is costly to replace but totally useless.
Arent all electric / hybrid cars expensive as shit ? and v60 has D5 ( the strongest and most expensive diesel motor). Dunno why they didnt use d2 though :D would cost like 20k € less
I thought the idea was to get rid of the "dirty diesel?" The fact it can go to the moon and back on a gallon isn't the point is it? Its just a peugeot hybrid with a plug :( Oh so that's it, volvo said we can use diesels, so its ok now guys don't panic !! Diesels have been quieter and cleaner for years, " better than petrol," when they told us to change to diesel we did, then when we had millions of them they put the price of diesel up and rather then put the price of diesel down they said buy electric or petrol hybrid electric,thats the way to go!! Volvo say forget all that rubbish, we are making diesels better than any one before so its ok....& we have added a plug and a battery, what more do you want?
@DanFrederiksen Nope, I don't know what it costs, but neither do you. I know there is more to life than economics, but that ranks pretty high on your priorities when you're trying to run a business.
I was so happy to see a new episode of Fully Charged available to watch, but I do wish it was longer! Your observation about the actual process of making a car is spot on. They are going to have to get even better and think even more out of the box for the future, but they are doing very well as a company and others are researching new green and sustainable ways to build cars, even going so far as to "grow" the parts they need as you showed us previously. Thanks for another fun show.
This was a wonderful antidote to watching Top Gear's take on the electric car. What rubbish! Developments in high efficiency automotive design are far more interesting than the latest 'super' car. You're consistently fair, balanced, and practical. I love the way Volvo is thinking, even though such a car may be at the high end of my price range. They seem to have all bases covered - 4 wheel drive for bad weather (key in Canada), towing capacity, and super efficiency for the daily commute.
I tried a Volvo V60 R. Line hybrid from Denmark to Roterdam and back. It's a long time since I've tried so good and comfortable car. It was strange the first time that you start and begins to run on electricity. The silence. It's great. And the acceleration it have, even if it run on electricity ..
My understanding is that since this video was made, Volvo has changed the air conditioner and oil pump to both work electronically, without the need for the engine to be running. That's important, because it means that the V60 plug-in can now start, and run on electric power only. Much cleaner too, and means this can be a pure EV for short to mid-length journeys.
£47,000 is a LOT, this is a high-end car, with a high equipment level. You also get £5000 in UK subsidies for it and fuel savings.
Nice video, thanks for getting back to the roots of testing alternatively motivated vehicles...this is what brought me to your channel at the start, keep it up!
@XitUp A very good point and something I now wish I had asked the folks at Volvo about. To be fair to them, many shorter journeys possible without starting the diesel at all, but I'm with you on the dirtiness of diesels and the costs of maintaining them
@JRP3 That is true, it does have a lot of baggage to carry around. But it's still a useful setup for the transition period between having no quick charge stations, and to having enough quickcharge stations to be able to use a pure electrical car even for long trips.
Hybrids still have good reason to be around.
Thank you! I hope to see more of this car in the future.
The Volvo engineer is a genius. My Volvo V60 Hybrid is excellent.
That noise is fantastic when in power mode!
I've been wondering about diesel-electric hybrids for awhile, but I would think the place to put them first would be in large trucks, which use diesel engines anyway. They would, of course, run on diesel for cross-country travel, but for low-speed residential driving and pulling away from a traffic light, electric power would help them be quieter and cleaner as well as more efficient.
Been getting a lot of spam in the comments, trying to remove it all, sorry for the annoyance
Volvo's styling just gets better and better
Wow, this is a dream car! It's a hybrid and a diesel, it actually drives like a proper car, and doesn't sound "CVTeish". Really great mpg figures, now I just wonder how well it handles and if it's as fun to drive as it seems in the video...
@Jesus45U You are correct and I am very aware of the Fisker Karma and I would obviously love to 'have a go.' However, this show is still being created on zero budget with very little time, I love doing it, I want to do more, I'm striving to do more, but getting access to a very rare car that's currently only in the United States is not simple. I'm just saying :-)
@XitUp I am sure that it will have a 'regeneneration mode' to enable the engine to produse the temp.
As most vehicles will aim to do a regeneration on a higher speed long run senerio in the first instance, the engine will be running in this drive anyway.
Ultimately it is the exhaust gas temp. that is key not the engine temp so almost instantly the engine will be producing the temp. required.
Nice to see Volvo using the original 'Zero Carbon Personal Transport Device' at 09:00 (very bottom of frame).
@XitUp 1996 VW Cabrio. Prev owner replaced engine at 90K Miles. On 2nd engine, I had to replace the water and power steering pumps, oil filter, air filter, 2 radiator hoses, all belts, both oxygen sensors, mass air flow valve and spark plugs so it would run reliably and be road tested to see if it was a worthy EV conversion candidate, and that it is! The muffler is busted and the gas tank leaks : - )
Still waiting for this car, only a few available and there's a waiting list??? This is 2013, I have yet to see any passing by in London. Perhaps in July?
One of the things that concerns me about diesel hybrids is the DPF. Will it get hot enough to clean itself if the engine is constantly being turned on and off.
Modern diesel cars have huge costs for replacing parts due to the complications of trying to clean up a dirty fuel, I think this would only make things worse.
I live in the US and don't even have a license so there's basically a 0% chance I'm ever going to get one of these, but IDK why plug-in diesels aren't more popular both (especially) here and in other countries. They basically have the best of all worlds. They can use electricity exclusively on short trips, can use the widely-available diesel fuel on long trips or if they haven't had time to charge, and unlike with gas, ethanol is always an option for after fossil fuels run out.
Watching the latter part of this video and hearing your comments about Volvo's sales into China all just supports what Carlos Ghosn said about China and India as net oil importers and the future of energy. Another great episode.
@DanFrederiksen
I have worked with composites, I know how strong it is.
I also know that if you build a 500 kilo car, it's going to be less safe in a crash than a 2 ton steel one, no matter what material you use. Especially if it's in a crash with another 2 ton steel car. Yes, fiberglass can be safe if you make it thicker, but then it gets heavy.
Yes, I advocate bicycles. The speed is *much* lower, they cost very little to produce, and if the roadnet is buildt properly, it's safe to bicycle.
Very nice video
great car and episode
Nice new intro you got there, and keep up the good work, always waiting for a new episode to see what you dragged put of the bushes to show us :) Why are you not doing more movies with the Prius?
Keep up the good work Robert
Any news on price?
@Goremaster So you only buy products made in Sweden? What sort of TV do you have?
@JRP3
But it can be "run as a pure electric" .. ie. only use electrical power until it runs out.
@XitUp
I will have to disagree - Communications and Economy is always linked, no matter what you do.
The best way to turn a profit is to buy low and sell high, and you do that by aquiering knowledge of the prices abroad, for that you need good communications. The two cannot be seperated. Without good communications, everything would end up being more expensive, and less likely to be in supply.
1:08 what does he mean with "not american power mode" ??
Anyway the V60 is an amazing car I wish I could afford the hybrid version of it
Evidently American power is raw brash and European power mode is refined and delicate.
@DanFrederiksen
Making the heavy cars illegal .. brilliant rebuttal, sir.
I'm sure the family with 5 kids will love it.
The simple matter is, that if you want to make a practical every day car, that can take mom, dad and 2-3 kids, you will end up with a vehicle that weighs in around a ton at least.
The better way would be to make the communities small enough that you can walk/bicycle for the majority of yours needs, that way we would not NEED a car, nor use energy on moving it about.
Beats the prius hands down, plus you don't look like someone who has sacrificed their dignity to be seen as eco. With the performance available it really is great, and even has the 4wd benefit in the winter!
I'm planning to get a v60 at the end of next year, however I can see this hybrid being out of my price range. Any ideas on cost?
Thanks for the video, any new carpool videos too in the near future or you canceled the show?
@JRoque250 If you don't mind me asking, what car was that, and how long did the engine last?
@msyin9
I am fully aware of permaculture farming. Permaculture farming is centered around small villages/homesteads of farming, but we have a lot of really big cities which cannot do that.
What you are missing, is the SCALE of the beast, even if you managed to sow, culture and harvest all the wheat needed for a city like London, the sheer weight and volume of just moving the corn is WAY beoynd being done by hand - In other words, you need heavy machinery.
Good Review. Its going to be a pretty expensive hybrid, I guess.
Any loss of carrying space?
Hi, can you do a show about electric bikes? there very interesting and fun to use. and I think that the E bikes will change our behavior toward transportation. Thank love the show
The solution would be to uninstal the DPF because it is in fact a polution factor.
DPF's and that is a little known fact are harming the environment more than not having them installed. Why? Because cars without DPF produce soot not good but relatively heavy so it won't stay in the atmosphere they will fall to the ground and will be absorbed by the flora. What DPF's do is they burn soot and produce "particulates" and CO². Particulates are much more harmful to humans and stay
@XitUp Hello there. I'm reading your statement where you say car engines outlast the cars themselves and can't understand it. It sounds like you're saying that car engines outlast the cars themselves. Or did you mean an electric drive will outlast the car? Because that one would be true.
@fullychargedshow I think if you had it in either Pure mode or Power mode most of the time it would be fine, but I fear that many would leave it in Hybrid mode.
@rainbowsalads I can visualise many things in my mind. But it takes a bit more than that to get things done.
For taxi firms and local delivery though, I think hot swapping could work, as they tend to have a set route, standardised vehicles and a central hub or depot.
For the rest of the world it is unrealistic, and unnecessary, if we have range extenders, slow charging at home/work and fast charge parking bays at motorway service stations for longer trips.
@XitUp
True that, heck just making sure there's enough food in all parts of the country is a massive logistics job, and takes good communications. Definately want good communications over a personal car.
@JRoque250
I think what he means, is that most cars rust away before the ICE engine gives up the ghost, thus you don't "gain another 100k" on it.
Finally someone builds a diesel Hybrid... FINALLY
wayting for a rotor engine hybrid!
EinBick what is a rotor engine
Short, but good episode. Here's an idea to stop all that industrial pollution when making new electric or hybrid cars: convert existing ones to electric! After all, we already have plenty of them around and most of us already like our cars as they are. Take the dirty ICE out, put an electric drive in and your car will last another 100K miles.
How can we speed up the transition, so we don't have to carry a heavy diesel or petrol engine around with us? what will it take to get a battery swap at every fuel station by the end of the decade?
very nice show more brain than top gear
@DanFrederiksen Ok Dan, how much does the C30 EV cost to produce?
(episode 28) ?
Great stuff.
@XitUp
It does cost more .. right now. That could change though.
And wether or not we like the stock markets, we sorta need them for large scale economy. Not having the communications network along wiht the stockmarket servers, would mean we'dhave to use snail-mail ... and that would set us back in a way that would be hard to understand. Instant communications have changed the economy much more than we care to admit.
@DanFrederiksen Have you got sources for those figures Dan?
Do you work in the EV industry?
Does the company you work for not try to maximise it's profit on the products it makes?
Will a modern diesel pass emissions tests without it though?
Normally when you see someone test a prototype car, they often have an unfinished feel to them, instruments not implemented yet, bit's and pieces not equipped yet. Volvo makes a prototype, and it looks like it just rolled off the assembly line, fully finished and ready to go.
It does give you an idea of how much work they have put into it, they seem to be taking it very seriously. But as mentioned, it's STILL not all that environmental friendly.
And cars probably never will be.
@Jesus45U Of course I understand it can run in "electric mode", but that does not make it a "pure electric car" as Bobby states, even for a short time. It's always hauling around an ICE and all associated systems. Part of being a "pure electric car" is the mechanical simplicity, which hybrids do not possess.
@Jesus45U yeah it makes me sad to think that possibly "they never will be".
They can be more efficient by reducing both size and weight, but this makes them more dangerous for occupants in a crash.
eg: watch?v=jwwiVX7z1PE
Extremely light tiny cars with fabric panels sound great to me, but imagine what happens in a crash. It's almost like the car isn't even there - it's just a naked person flying along at 120 kph. The most appropriate sound effect for a crash would likely be "SPLAT".
:(
Please tell the Volvo guy that I want a pure electric Volvo which can take me from Stockholm to Gothenburg with only one charge stop on the way.
@greyareaRK1
To be fair, Robert is every bit as biased towards the electric car, as Top Gear is NOT biased towards the electric car.
Top gear does raise a few real, and fair points - You can't just take a pure electric car today and go anywhere you want, and that's a bugger. And unless you get to a fast charge station, it takes a long time to recharge, that's also a bugger.
Robert on the other hand, also raises a few good points - ICE's are not efficient in any form, but they are flexible.
@DanFrederiksen
Obviously one can't rearrange *all* houses. But there are a lot of places where you could encourage small distance communities without too much work.
And while a 400kg car can carry 5 people, it won't be safe in the least. Heck, the 5 people will weigh more than the car, the raw stesses in a crash would have them tear it apart.
Since NCAP crash tests came about several very light cars have been outright banned for being too unsafe ... the Citroen 2cv for example.
@XitUp I can't tell you what they spent, I'm sure they just hired some consultancy company that gave them very expensive solutions but if they had the relevant electrical engineers and all the development amortized then it could be 500$ for the motor, 800$ for all the power electronics (controller, DCDC and charger) and say 8000$ for a 20kWh robust lithium pack. and that is a 100kW system.
and that's the cost for converting a wasteful C30. which they wouldn't do if they were intelligent.
Is it biodiesel optimised ecu?
Well indeed impressive, but no doubt with Volvo's very high costs for parts and servicing added to the habit of all manufactures to ramp up the price of anything that burns less fuel, I would imagine this car will be well beyond the budget of most of us, and that's the problem! I'd switch today if I could, I really want to but just could not due to the cost. It does not matter how much they can save you once you own them, if you just can't buy them its not good :-(
-continued :
Second : We NEED a roof over our heads, and in the winter, they need heating ... or we die.
Third : We NEED our to keep our food from spoiling, in other words, we need refrigiation. This at least is already electrified, but it still needs energy pumped into it. We also need to prepare the food, in other words ovens and cooking plates - More energy needed.
Fourth : Banking, Stockmarkets and the whole communications network and server computers, also requires energy.
continues-
ugh ... the linebreaks got messed up in that last post.
finally! a new one! :D
Good car!
I like this and the Ampera and plug-in prius, because they are the cars that you could buy and keep them as your ONLY car.
Only one pure electric car I don't find good enough, even if you could rent a car, or go by train for those long rare journeys.
I like the video, love the series.
Its disappointing that the deisel engine comes on right away when you start the car. If you have electric capacity then it should wait until the battery is depleted before starting the engine.
My 2nd gen prius bugs me because the gas engine comes on soon after you start the car regardless of battery charge, engine warmth or depressing the throttle. Sometimes I just want to move the car into the garage or out to the street and starting the engine is totally unnecessary.
I have a Volvo S80 2,4 -01 and it has 31MPG or 9 l/100km :/
@Jesus45U yeah tradeoffs are a bummer. like Speed vs Efficiency.
Pure bicycles have the problem of aerodynamics, and the driver has no shelter from the wind/rain. Which is likely why that electric wicycle i linked to looks a lot like just a recumbent bicycle enclosed in fabric.
I love my bike, but it's really dangerous to share the roads with cars. Also it only goes about 20 kph if i'm lucky, which is very limiting.
It seems that cars aren't big JUST to be safer, "style" wastes much space.
@XitUp Hello. If your car is rusted or "totaled" then obviously is not a car you want to keep, which is premise of my original post. If the engine lasts longer than the body on the car, you've likely replaced many of the engine components and none of the body's. My 192K miles car has a great body but a 2nd engine and rusted muffler; it'll be converted to an EV soon. My 37K miles car has a great engine and I will make it better by yanking it out and converting it to an electric.
Are diesel fuels really still that dirty? I thought they've been much cleaner for years.
Is that tire squeal or a laugh at 4:35?
@DanFrederiksen
And how do you assert it is truth ?
@JRoque250 What Jesus4u said. Look at scrap yards, tons of cars that are uneconomical to fix after a small bump but with an engine that has thousands of miles left in it.
@warblingtransistor
In other words, you'd prefer an extended range EV(some prefer calling them serial hybrids).
The Fisker Karma is actually build that way, except it's a sports/luxury car, so it has a powerful petrol engine to extend range and/or power. But it has all the tech that is probably the best way forward at the moment.
Surprisingly, none of the big guys, Robert included, have taken a serious look into it.
C'mon robert, get with times here.
@fullychargedshow
Well, here's to hoping that they get their eyes open for the blogging reviewers such as you, and bring one around if they ever do some british event. After all, you're more likely to get to the core qualities of a car like that, than the average car reviewer. That alone should be good for them.
On a sidenote, what does a ticket to the US cost from where you live these days ?
By the way it has the function to lock deferential for 4WD which work like 4x4 vehicle. Good luck. Good for skiing in the snow. lol
@Odziz
I think Odziz is right on the money here, since Volvo is a swedish company, they would obviously use the system they use in Sweden, which is the metric system.
Still, I wouldn't be surprised if there was some truth to what you said. XD
After thinking a little about this whole upcoming energy crisis that will face once oil runs out, which it eventually will. I realized, that cars don't even make it to my Top 5 most important things that needs fuel.
Let me explain - First of all, we need food and water, or we die. there's too many people in the world to farm, using horses, so we NEED heavy farm machinery - And I have yet to see an electric tractor bigger than a garden tractor.
continues -
-continued :
Fifth : Hospitals, Police stations, Firefighting stations and other important major institutions also needs fuel and energy.
So there we are, the top 5 being :
Food Production
Homing / Heating
Refrigiation / Cooking
Communications / Servers
Hospitals and the likes.
All of this, BEFORE personal cars even comes into the picture.
And we haven't even taken public transport and lorries into consideration yet.
Where's all the rest ?
That's the trouble, our entire economy has been built up over the last 100 or so years on OIL , the 'pitch' of our houses, garden size etc
@DanFrederiksen
Peak Oil, is absolutely the biggest problem in the "short" term, we will face an energy crisis of epic proportions, so why are we trying to build more cars ? We have more important stuff to worry about ... Farming, Heating houses, making clothes, keepig hospitals running.
EV's won't fix that - And that's the truth.
rofl loved the comment he made @1:15, it is european powermode :). Tnx for the review
@Odziz lol, or it could be that most of the world uses the metric system.
@fullychargedshow.issues in the UK it cost $50000 pounds ! which makes it $70000 if it ever comes to north america. sadly only the rich and the government can afford that. we have the 4 door tesla which just came out and its a little cheaper with 300km + on a single charge. i just looked up the 3008 and half the price !!! sadly i don't see Volvo selling many of these cars as promising and effective as they are. also Volvo is investing in its north American market. maybe one day they will
@XitUp they are might conclusions but I can account for them. what I do for work is quite irrelevant, I still have the knowledge.
and even if you want to pretend it's ok to be purely driven by profit maximization, even in that premise they are wrong because noone will want to rent it for 76000$ for 3 years. many big companies price their product after the what we can get away with principle (and they are going to hell) but in this case they can't get away with it. people wont buy it.
Yes, but can you run it i
@XitUp
I wonder how companies would be run if Heaven and Hell had to be taken into account for ?
"You Sir, get a raise"
"You Sir, get a raise"
"You Sir, go to Hell"
:D
@rainbowsalads It would take all manufacturers to agree on a standard size and shape battery. It would take consumers who don't care if they drive their new car into a station after 200 miles and swap the battery for one that has half the capacity after doing 150k miles. It will take billions of £ for the infrastructure.
It's a bad idea.
@Jesus45U It costs not much more to build a passive solar home than to build one that takes a lot of energy to heat/cool.
As for the stock markets, I'd much rather have petrol in my car than give it to them.
Hybrids are so last century. Remember, it can't be a "pure electric" car if it's carrying around a gas tank, exhaust system, and ICE.
If I could wish it into existence we in America need a revolution in the auto industry like volkswagen was to Germany ( without the war part of course ). If we had a charismatic leader to order it into existence , but like I said it's a wish ....
@fullychargedshow Is it just me or are your video's getting hits pretty hard by spam bots recently ?
in the atmosphere a lot longer. The reason why filters were introduced is because soot is a visible form of pollution: When laws for filters were promoted they used hankies to demonstrate how dirty diesel cars are. So the automotive supply industries offered a solution they lobbied make a lot of money with it and now we have cars that pollute the environment more than before. And nice side effect we have one more engine part that is costly to replace but totally useless.
Arent all electric / hybrid cars expensive as shit ? and v60 has D5 ( the strongest and most expensive diesel motor). Dunno why they didnt use d2 though :D would cost like 20k € less
@obts10 Luckily he has the option to ignore you and speak his mind. Too bad if you don't agree, don't watch, or deal with it.
ofc, why not ?
I thought the idea was to get rid of the "dirty diesel?" The fact it can go to the moon and back on a gallon isn't the point is it? Its just a peugeot hybrid with a plug :( Oh so that's it, volvo said we can use diesels, so its ok now guys don't panic !! Diesels have been quieter and cleaner for years, " better than petrol," when they told us to change to diesel we did, then when we had millions of them they put the price of diesel up and rather then put the price of diesel down they said buy electric or petrol hybrid electric,thats the way to go!! Volvo say forget all that rubbish, we are making diesels better than any one before so its ok....& we have added a plug and a battery, what more do you want?
@JRoque250 Most cars engines will last longer than the car itself.
@DanFrederiksen Nope, I don't know what it costs, but neither do you.
I know there is more to life than economics, but that ranks pretty high on your priorities when you're trying to run a business.