EV versus rooftop home solar: What's actually greener? | Auto Expert John Cadogan

[@AutoExpertJC]

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[@aitchie4532]

For this application, have you considered using a flow battery instead of a lithium-based battery? The specs for the Redflow-ZBM3 I find very impressive. Briefly. 10 kWh; 48 V; 3 kW (5 kW peak). Granted, significantly larger and heavier than the BLUETTI batteries. But then, since this is a stationary system, how important is that? The whole system can be installed in one's garage - or in your nice workshop! NIL chance of any thermal runaway. In fact the opposite; since since this electrolyte is a bromine compound, most of which are fire retardants. DISCLAIMER: I have no interests whatsoever in Redflow Ltd, either business or otherwise.

[@Sgt_Bill_T_Co]

Any chance of looking at the possibilities of hydrogen powered cars mate?

[@nullgod]

Lol click bait + KZbin ads + embedded advertising commission 😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣

[@piggybakkers]

Hi John. Just a word or two of praise from a pommy boostaard over here on mud island. I love your unabashed, unbiased and irreverent treatment of the plethora of schemers, liars, crooked politicians and general numptys trying to screw us. You are refreshingly honest and forthright. Great channel mate. Keep up the good work. Mark

[@cedhome7945]

Hi there I'm also from the mother land I keep telling the e worshipping Muppets I know hear to listen to this fine fellow from down under preaching truth from the fat cave

[@frenchenstein]

🌟 As a vehicle inspector for light vehicles I have remarked for a number of years that the "saving" of the climate won't be achieved by manufacturers building huge vehicles, for the private motorist, that in no way look, or in all honesty, perform to "save" the planet. This alone is an indication that the planet does not need to be saved from anything. If governments were actually trying to reduce emissions etc., mandates would be proposed to severely limit the weight of every new vehicle manufactured to be a form of transport and not a luxury item.

[@JohnSmith-yv6eq]

Bring back the mighty Datsun 120Y...

[@torrajs7160]

Planet definitely does not need to be saved from anything and they know it. All this climate change scare is power grab and ultimately wealth transfer that will be enabled by police state and regulations it will eventually enforce in the name of net zero/climate change hoax

[@1Longranger]

If governments were gemuine about "saving the planet" they cut back on all the junket air travel that politicians indulge it.

[@David-lr2vi]

You can tell money is their god as if they were serious about the environment they would make cars easy to repair and make their cars for the longest service life. Talk to a mechanic about how easy a modern car is to repair, the manufacturers don’t want their cars easily repaired, they want them to be disposable and replaced at the first opportunity! Which is in no way helpful to the environment.

[@rjbiker66]

Complexity of modern cars is directly related to the emission and safety regs they need to pass.

[@oldbloke204]

Yeah very very true words.

[@kampar82]

​@@rjbiker66Yes, a water pump with a plastic body has nothing to do with disposability, it's all emissions. And controlling everything on a closed bus system, that's also emissions, nothing to do with hampering after market parts production. I mean controlling an alternator with an on/off signal is so much less environmentally friendly than using a bus protocol that is more difficult to replicate. Some things do make cars more complicated, but some solutions car manufacturers do are just a big FU to the customer and mechanic.

[@David-lr2vi]

@@rjbiker66 No. There’s plenty of shitfuckery that manufacturers do just to make repairs more difficult, like one of the Audi V6s that has the timing chains at the BACK of the engine, where the flywheel/flex plate is forcing complete engine removal to replace the timing chains. Or the one of the BMW engines (from the Z3 I think) that has oil galleries going through the alternator bracket for no other reason than to force an expensive repair when the o rings inevitably perish. Or the Alloytec V6 engine in the VE/VF Commodore which has the thermostat at the back of the engine with zero space to replace it. The recommended procedure to replace the thermostat is to remove the gearbox FFS!

[@MattBrownbill]

​@@rjbiker66and all the 'toys' they have nowadays. Example: A perfume dispenser uses a dedicated computer in some three-pronged sh!t boxes.

[@kippen64]

Doing my bit for the environment by cycling to work. Am heartily sick of virtue signalling. Thanks for this great video.

[@rob1733]

He says as he signals, virtually, about cycling to work... Kudos, seriously. But bragging about it is about as overt a virtue signal as one can have.

[@c.s2001]

My wife and I have done “our bit” for the environment by only having 2 children instead of the 4 we wanted to have. No need to thank us! Well on second thoughts, yes please thank us!

[@sptrader6316]

I read an article recently, that the landfills are filling up, with old solar panels, that are leaking dangerous chemicals into the water table, lovely green energy. The gift that keeps on giving.

[@vk3dgn]

We have a 6.6kW array + 5kW hybrid inverter. In 2022 we imported 838kWh for the 3 months August to October. In December an 11kWh battery was added which resulted in importing 6.5kWh for the same 3 month period in 2023 (dropped 838 to 6.5kWh!) That modest battery made a massive difference to the amount of electricity we use from the grid. It's also kept the lights on when the grid has dropped out - which happens fairly frequently in this rural area of Victoria. Don't forget the hybrid inverter or the battery won't charge from the solar array when the grid is down.

[@davedevonlad7402]

That's a heck of a drop you must use virtually no energy in your property overnight at all. My system still trickles 150-200w an hour running two fridges and various small items like clocks and charging phones, laptops ect.

[@yggdrasil9039]

Good tip thanks.

[@luckyguy600]

Wow, a numbers guy eh? I only do 'monkey see, monkey do'

[@the.parks.of.no.return]

Similar story. I noticed the grid was becoming unreliable and added 8kw array , 6 kW inverter with a 27 kWh battery. The grid has gone down twice in the last 4 months. Huge swathes of QLD were knocked out a month or so ago. Doesn't matter to me now - the battery system took over during the entire night. Add 1.5 million new people and start closing coal stations for net zero. This is the era where the idiot rules supreme ( I'll be fine regardless)

[@wazza33racer]

thats correct, otherwise when the grid goes down, the panels either backfeed or disconnect automatically. The hybrid inverter is key. Just dont have the Lithium battery on or inside your home, even the LiFePO4 cells are catching on fire.

[@gaufrid1956]

You are absolutely right again, John. Bluetti produces helpful items. I'm Aussie but I live in the Philippines, where power outages happen often, and Bluetti offers portable power supply units suitable for powering household appliances and laptops and cellphones when the grid is down. As well, they can be used away from home, and you can even get a portable solar array to recharge them if you are camping, for example. More efficient and less noisy than, say, a diesel generator. I'm not affiliated with Bluetti in any way, but these systems are widely used by KZbin vloggers here in the Philippines.

[@sm4629]

I went balls deep with my home Solar. Had RedEarth install a 35kw battery system and upgraded the house to 3 phase. Cost a shit load, but the amount Ergon has to pay me back each month covers the cost of the green loan I took out to get it.. more or less. Typically will throw around 55-65KWh back into the grid each day. Personally I decided to do it because F wasting money on BS carbon credits for business green washing. I refuse to for my business. Take direct action where you can. But hey, it doesn’t count because you didn’t pay some bullshit tax to some rip off made up “green” gatekeeper to pretend to plant a tree… somewhere.

[@yggdrasil9039]

35kWh battery or 35kW solar array? If it's a 35kW solar array you must have a lot of roof space up there! I have 10kW on the roof and that practically covers the entire sunny side of the A frame roof.

[@sm4629]

@@yggdrasil9039 it’s a 35kWh battery and from memory 17kWh solar on roof. Hardly enough space left up there to fit a bees dick. Although an unforeseen benefit of covering the roof in panels. Not half bad insulation.

[@yggdrasil9039]

@@sm4629 17kW, wow yes I can imagine! Yes that's what I've found, that benefit. I've got a tin roof and when the sun hits the sun-facing side in summer it used to get hot enough to fry an egg up there. I put ventilation in the attic space to disperse the hot air, but to no avail. The solar panels have that great secondary purpose!

[@Snerdles]

In eastern Canada, and I tried to get solar two years ago but even with incentives the payback period was always over 15 years and adding a battery so it would actually work if the grid was down the payback never happened. Mostly this comes down to my roof design and limited soace for panels so the labour was too expensive to make it worth it. I need to come up with some way to have a pergola or deck roof that I can also mount panels on in order to get more output. I'm saving, so hopefully someday soon I will run my house and charge my PHEV completely on my own.

[@glengrant3884]

John! Good news! The ev problem has been solved with the latest "dodge ram charger"pickup!👍it comes with an on board v6 petrol generator! Fkn amazing hey!!💪🤪

[@happysaddington6488]

I always thought it very curious that all of these car companies are producing these very high end EVs that most folks can't afford. It seems like the best option for an EV would be a small urban runabout, something with no more than a 25 Kwh battery. Range anxiety isn't really a thing because you're usually just going short distances around the city. Of course, the margins on such a vehicle wouldn't be very large, would they! Thanks, John, for bringing this into full relief!

[@tonyking2030]

A totally brilliant video ✅👍😊….I’m sharing to all my EV pals…hope it really pisses them off!

[@marcol869]

They are still driving a better car then trailer trash who love their gas car 😂

[@eifionhowells]

Thank you for more common sense. I'm keeping my 23 year old Porsche 911 for as long as I can and last month we expanded our PV array and added a 6KW battery pack. My only regrets are that maybe I should have bought a bigger battery pack and had it installed outside - just a bit nervous about having a bomb in the attic but then it is a bit damp here in the UK to install it outside.....

[@AdrianMidgley]

Our streets are populated with cabinets full of electrical stuff. Waterproof boxes are a mature technology.

[@MattBlack6]

I have a very good friend who has been installing off-grid solar systems for a bee's dick less than 30 years. He has a customer with a full off-grid system that is fine as is, but the customer has decided to go and buy a Tesla Model Y. The quote to upgrade the solar system so it can handle charging of the car is $70,000

[@tony34star]

Yes becomes very cheap driving and more green!

[@leah.internet]

That sounds like an entire system redo, maybe to get faster level 3 charging? He's better off having a separate system dedicated to his EV. Off-grid DIY solar for level 2 charging can be done crazy cheap, about 7k AUD. There is so much variation in solar systems so take that $70k estimate with a huge grain of salt.

[@TheMDHoover]

Off grid guy needs a wood gassifier powered generator. What is more green than powering your car with trees?

[@stusue9733]

@@leah.internet Yeah right, as long as the car is at home to charge during the day right?

[@badbasic]

​@@TheMDHooverThe only thing Australia needs, less trees!

[@JimboJones-qn4wd]

I love EV slamming. Keep up the good work.

[@patcummins6036]

Kick ’em in the nuts John!

[@philking5740]

Were you listening?

[@JimboJones-qn4wd]

No I never listen to videos, I just watch them like silent movies@@philking5740

[@luckyguy600]

Blasphemer!

[@stuartedge5906]

You will go straight to electric satan's hell.

[@michaeljamisontigers]

I bought an BMW i8 4 years ago ,I think the battery is about 7kw and I charge it only with my solar system ,I think I could get through a year with one tank of petrol since it is a hybrid ,I don't drive much so my car has about 13 000 km on the odometer, I plan to drive it as long as possible ,I don't really sell a car if I don't have to , I bought the i8 because I just really like it and funny enough it just replaced a Lamborghini diablo I drove as a daily for 9 years . I really can't think that it is necessary for those 100 or 120 Kw batteries ,The Diablo had a 100 litre tank the i8 has a 45 liter tank . I would not want the battery in my car to be bigger than 10kw anyway always enjoy the content on Your chanel !

[@goz7569]

Lol 😂 ahhh Christ all mighty! If you were sitting next to me I’d be patting you on the back & saying everything’s going to be alright 😅

[@BubblesTheCat1]

*Channel One would think someone who owns BMW's and Lamborghini's would know how to spell simple words...

[@ginog5037]

​@@BubblesTheCat1More money than brains...

[@BubblesTheCat1]

@@ginog5037 😳🤭

[@LSturboguy]

so you don't use the car during the day? can you explain how you charge it overnight on solar panels, do they make moon power panels I must have missed the artical on those

[@trentneumann5788]

Hi John I live completely off grid. i had a 5kw solar array with AGM batteries with a usability of 13kw, which i ran my home plus a granny flat from. But with plans to move away from gas hot water and cooking appliances, plus with the batteries reaching EOL, i upgraded to 28kw of Lipo, including installation for 22k. I am planning to get a mg zs ev to soak up any leftover array production and use it's v2l capability as a backup generator, as well as reducing the family's suv travel by around 20,000km+ per year. My intention of doing this is solely economically not ecological. A new suv 90k vs mg 42k minus a 6k ev rebate plus fuel at 2.20L*15L/100km and other operational cost. If my calculations are correct, the ev will be "free" to operate by year 4/5 and not having to purchase another 90k+ family suv.

[@KenM-h5l]

Nice!

[@randomoldbloke]

For a home battery bank can't go past electric forklift traction battery banks 48v 1000ah for under $5 grand . Easily expandable and recyclable. Plus they don't go bang . I know systems like this can last 20 plus years as long as you look after the battery

[@sebastianmessina31]

Love your solar/battery article John. We have run 24 solar panels and a Hansol/Samsung inverter battery outfit for several years. We are saving money monthly. We have a nice Lexus CT200h sedan and a FJ Cruiser to tow the Jayco shitwah. Don’t need an EV. Life is good.

[@ScoochieR]

What is your pay off period on that setup? Thanks. Edit - based on the real cost, not out of pocket.

[@sebastianmessina31]

@@ScoochieR Without crunching numbers, I run a semi retirement picture framing business so I run a compressor and lights every day, we run a pool pump etc. by now our quarterly electricity bill would be about $2300 we are pay $250 ish quarterly. As I said life is good.👍

[@peterpontikos3786]

another practical benefit from a solar-battery home installation is that one can programme the system to use energy stored in the battery during high peak hours and optimise cost savings...

[@marklittle3551]

The 10% / 80% thing should be compensated for IMO. That is the battery range should be estimated with these limits in mind and the vehicle electronics should be configured to regulate charging within these parameters automatically.

[@davidmaskew]

This is something I've always thought but they won't do it as you are taking away 30% of what I think are pretty poor range figures. The range advertised should be a minimum guaranteed for something like 5 years with an estimated rate of decline afterwards.

[@kathrynwhitby9799]

the home solar & battery system is something i aspire to for my top floor flat here in soggy Britain.

[@tedhamilton2362]

I am convinced that home solar (with or without battery backup) makes much more sense to reducing commercial coal and natural gas consumption compared to EV's. I have a 9.3kw home solar that, during winter, puts out 25-35kwh daily. During summer, it can manage 35-55kwh. My RV has 1.5kw solar with a 15kwh battery bank connected to a 6000watt, 240v split phase inverter/charger. I can connect to Grid or the onboard diesel generator if the solar/battery cannot satisfy RV power load.

[@charlestoast4051]

You sure have a great way with words, John, loved this video!

[@nigelh3253]

Another good video! Thanks for talking about the Bluetti EP760. A serious piece of kit and you say, its the way to go.

[@oldbloke204]

Big recall on one brand of batteries that can be found in a few different systems for home storage due to the risk of combustion. Worth looking into for those that have such systems imo. No way I will be bolting one to my house and I'm even liking the portable systems less and less. A nice quality brand pure sine wave petrol generator will be my choice for backup power when/if I decide to go down that path.

[@modarkthemauler]

You could look at mechanical flywheel on gravity batteries instead of lithium.

[@oldbloke204]

@@modarkthemauler I'm fairly sure that manufacturers will get on top of it all and most of the systems seem pretty safe these days. I'm in no rush.

[@user-vk4vd7vr5t]

Newer LFP batteries are far safer than li-ion, no more dangerous than parking a car with 60L of petroleum in the garage

[@oldbloke204]

@@user-vk4vd7vr5t Difference is that a vehicle with fuel in the tank is basically "dead" whilst a battery bolted to the house is basically working the whole time.

[@JustaGuy_Gaming]

In terms of the environment it's hard to really say how good Solar panels are. Their shelf life is not always the 10-20 years they claim due to either damage or improvements in the technology making the old stuff obsolete to use. We also really don't have a good system in place to recycle them, so they just end up in landfills for the most part. That said I would say solar roofs are fairly good, as long as you avoid the battery back ups. Sure it's less useful to still be tied to the grid and sell power back to them (if they accept it). But maintaining a wall of batteries is not cheap and has to be replaced depending on how often you use the battery power. Plus if you have something like a Tesla power wall in your house, better hope there is never a fire or it's a lost cause. That many batteries will never go out.

[@gilleyb1900]

Brilliant as always, thanks John.

[@Dare2Doubt]

Agreed John. For me EVs make better sense as a means of autonomy and home heating is the bigger eco issue. Unfortunately you can't parade your house around town to show how great you are so we're stuck with the tofu-EV conga instead.

[@scenicshoots]

Have you noticed it is easier to breath when you stand next to an electric bus vs a diesel bus?

[@rattusfinkus]

You need to add about 40% to your tailpipe emissions to account for extraction, transport, refining, fugitive emissions used to get your fossil fuels.

[@stuward3374]

While I agree with the basic concept that large vehicles are worse than small vehicles, you're exaggerating the offset time for embedded CO2. It's actually about 1 year of operation for equal sized vehicles, not 4 years as you stated.

[@AutoExpertJC]

No, it's not. Try to keep up.

[@MoosesValley]

Installed solar panels on my roof and a grid tied inverter (no lithium batteries for me). My power bills have turned to credits, and I now get free electricity and make around $110 per month tax free.

[@krissteel4074]

I have the rooftop solar and its been very good, haven't pulled the trigger on a battery supply because there's some constraints on where it will be easiest to locate and not mess with the basic setup of the house's electrical system. That and you're not getting out with less than 10k on gear, a place to put it and some fiddling. What I have done is a little bit of lifestyle adjustment, anything with a heavy draw like washing machines, aircon, heating, dishwasher and my tools in the shed just get used in daylight hours. That's obliterated most of the bill cost and its not taken long to pay for itself. Just on a personal aside, I'm familiar with deep cycle lead acid batteries enough that I'm comfortable with the maintenance on those having done it for a long time. Lithium systems, just not skilled up to know what to look for on those and like any battery pack system on a UPS- they are subject to maintenance. I'm not sure on what the intervals on them you'd want to be checking them, but on the professional UPS gear we'd do a load test and check of the rectifiers every 12 months. They are appealing to have and its worth looking into and getting quotes, more so than a 150k, 2.5t mobile fart sniffing box

[@aliendroneservices6621]

"...its not taken long to pay for itself." Because you're stealing power-service.

[@hohenzollern6025]

Do not, I repeat DO NOT take Cad's advice and install these LiPo batteries. They have a short lifespan and thermal runaway is a given on a long enough timeline. You'd have to replace them often. These are the batteries we use in the RC car racing scene, and a quick youtube search will show you what they do when they have a bad day. A couple large lead/acid like you mentioned, although much larger are infinitely safer to keep around your very flammable house (as long as they have ventilation to vent the hydrogen) and will last for decades.

[@troy3456789]

Have you looked at nickel metal hydride or NiCads? I don't know if they may be less expensive, but am sure they're more stable than lithium ion batteries.

[@zorbakaput8537]

@@aliendroneservices6621 From the sun.

[@giddyurp]

@@hohenzollern6025 all of the idiots commenting have such a shallow knowledge of lithium batteries.. LiPo?? Show me a car or house battery that uses LiPo batteries. You rednecks need to go back to strumming banjo's in the trailer park.

[@antonio_fosnjar]

It is really all dependant on how green the grid is, where I'm from the grid is almost 80% clean. I've had put up solar recently and I've been curious on how much CO2 I've saved, so I did come calculations. In the last 6 months I've saved around 1000km worth of CO2 if you compare that to a pretty efficient car that I own. This is actually really bad since this solar is enough for my whole family of 4, while we collectively drive more than 15000km in that same period. Even with larger initial CO2 footpint, one smaller EV that we could share for commuting would turn out 2 to 3 times better in the long run, but it would also cost 2 to 3 times more than solar system we have.

[@scenicshoots]

According to Google there are 20 million cars in Australia. Imagine if we had 20 million EVs with vehicle to grid. They could take all the solar during the day and make it available in peak times morning and evening. No need for peaker plants.

[@deleteduser3749]

Preach it brother. Cant wait until we start hearing the complaints that "No one told us EVs were shite"

[@voltare2amstereo]

2T+ electric car = more tyre wear, more road wear, means more co2 to replace said tyers or repair said road (and these aren't done with electric machines)

[@patcummins6036]

Jesus friend! Don’t mention shit like that! Can’t have any fucking truth I the EV debate!

[@richardbuckingham4329]

Most road wear comes from trucks, not cars.

[@MrButtonpresser]

I have the solar installed, now looking for a battery solution. Nice work John, I'll check Bluetti out. Cheers.

[@stevencooper2339]

@AutoExpertJC so if I understand you correctly if I want to help address climate change & reduce coal pollution I should 1) install rooftop solar 2) get a home battery to spread that solar 24/7 Once I have done that & I still want to do more can I suggest 3) replacing gas hot water heating & cooking with electric powered by solar (your water heater acting like a big battery) Then if you want to do even more & address city air pollution & middle eastern oil imports 4) Get an economical EV like a MG4 etc

[@federicolopezbervejillo7995]

Great video. I'm from Uruguay. Only 6,5% of our electricity energy sources are non renewable. Hey! You are on the same hemisphere, similar or better latitude, and relative better overall economic development! You certainly can make ALS!!!

[@Graham_Shaw]

John, I'm surprised that any car brand is still willing to work with you through your main website, given your brutal honesty 😂

[@MattBlack6]

I would use Century Yuassa Enersun batteries. Reason, cheaper, proven to last up to 20 years, and there's a robust commercial recycling system in place. You do still need an inverter/charger as well.

[@dougle03]

No lead based chemistry would or could ever outperform LiFeP04 based LFP cells... With the price dropping on LFP there really is no discussion....

[@coweatsman]

500 kms. Not really suitable for the outback going from say Adelaide to Broken Hill which is a little over 500 km. You would need to depend on the rechargers at Yunta (both of them AFAIK) and hope they are in working order. While waiting for the recharge you can see the sights of the great metropolis of Yunta with its double digit population, most of whom work in the 2 roadhouses.

[@hippiebroughton5564]

Looking foward to the next tshirt . keep them comeing .

[@fredfred2363]

It is "a totally f'ed up concept", which is blatently obvious to all of us tech types. Why the hell is everyone buying into it? Why don't they understand basic science?

[@matthewdowning6009]

You could get rooftop solar and an electric car that didn’t have a battery that was too big for your needs… just a thought 🤙

[@markh.6687]

I have a very nice portion of my roof ideal for solar, but with a home value of only US$60, 000, it's not even worth considering when I plan to sell as soon as our housing market regains its sense, or someone is willing to buy it as-is.

[@thewholls7176]

On the Bluetti’s John for your interest and that of your viewers - you be interested to know that there’s actually a good ‘household business case’ expenditure wise rather than buying one AC180 or 200. As I have done myself - you might get better overall and regular use out of two EB70s because now you’ve got one in your vehicle or aluminium shittter on wheels - and one in the tent or next to the campfire whatever the case may be…… So rather than spending 1500 bucks plus - on one big unit, you can still get the same sort of watt hours coverage and have the flexibility of two units …….!! Duuuuuuuude And I would suggest not that I’m a tax agent, but anyone who spends any time working from home. I doubt they would have any trouble claiming something like an EB 70 as an 80% tax loss as a backup for their desktop computer in the event of a power failure. So now it’s even tax effective …… what more do you want I say……..

[@paulh-h9w]

The super sized batteries would be less offensive if the vehicles could do vehicle to grid (V2G) and run your house for a few nights after being charged with your solar panels.

[@stuartedge5906]

Great work John. Why don’t we have tax incentives for smaller vehicals? 1. As a business owner, I have to pay fringe benefits tax on a hatchback or buy a Hilux ute or the like. 2. Hilux utes and the like are huge thanks to emmision laws in the USA that favour large footprint vehicals. Higher fuel consumption is allowed depending on the footprint of the vehical. It is easier for a manufacturer reach the mandated targets by making a larger vehical. This wasn’t the original intention of the US laws but it is the sad fact.

[@michaelchilds3305]

I never hear John break down the emissions in producing oil, including transportation from the oil field to the local petrol station. Granted its a harder calculation to do. But its very basic maths to compare emission in production if your comparing ICE cars with electric. he doesn't compare fairly. The way people talk about petrol, its like it magically turned up to the petrol station without producing any emissions. And yet he talks on great length about the emissions in producing electricity, even though the grid is getting greener all the time. Also a lot more electric cars have the Lithium Iron Phosphate chemistry that he mentions when discussing Bluetti Batteries, for example BYD cars, cheapest Tesla model 3 car. And maybe if we had more electric transportation including cars, we wouldn't need to import so much oil, and if we didn't import so much oil, maybe we could also reduce how much coal we export. And we export a lot more coal than we use domestically.

[@JohnMcClain-p9t]

John, are you including the non-green energy it takes to make solar panels in your calculations, given they can't effectively be built, from mine to end of production" using solar energy? I don't have all the data at hand readily as you seem to.. I've been fighting this since the late sixties when "EV's" were being touted in the first iteration of "green washing" I experienced entering my teens.

[@JV1000]

Top video. You just can't argue with the engineering facts

[@pablorages]

John if you keep talking about these "Morbidly Obese EVs with Offensively Mammoth Batteries" your going to make me want one !

[@paulwilliams698]

Good information , thanks John.

[@markpryce-davies823]

Vehicle to grid or vehicle to home would also be another option here. In Australia I think there's a few EV car makers who do vehicle to load but Nissan Leaf is the only one that does vehicle to home /grid, I think. So kind of a Bluetti on wheels I suppose.

[@carlv8568]

John I was having look through vehicle recalls there are a lot of recalls regarding electric cars and several about overheating or thermal runaways causing fire the advice is always take it to the dealer! Why don’t they put a stop driving park in the open and get a manufacturer to tow it for repairs. Lots of warnings include risk of death! Lots of other recalls should be a stop driving now too. The technical advisors to the authority must have no idea. System needs a big shake up.

[@whya2ndaccount]

Lack of range and no spare makes EVs impractical for us compared to ICE. At home our solar system, including a 9.8kWh battery, since March 2017 has saved 37.8 tonnes of CO2 and generated 63.7 MWh. Also by the by, got a love letter from Subaru asking if I wanted to buy their "Solterra" (looks to be Impreza based) for a mere $84,039 for the poverty pack.

[@luckyguy600]

I like the reality of those I dare take on in a discussion on the prospects of my entire country going 'green'.vehicle wise if not totally. It usually ends every time with me just walking away, shaking my head when I bring up the issue of 'where are we going to get all this electricity' from? And 99% of the time I get 'from the wall silly'. Right.

[@metskipper]

In Canada solar works some of the time. People must realize the price since you need a huge investment in batteries.

[@jimbrien1112]

14.4kwh average usage per day here in Australia ... john is that correct ? ... i just checked my app im using av 24.2kwh per day over last 6 months ... i need help .. lol😂 but yes as of lately u r 100% correct my solar and battery 10.24kw is bloody brilliant i dont get a power bill usually more than $10 or $10 credit a month and i can run the airon all night here in QLD ... its the best investment for 16K i have ever made will pay for itself in about 5-6 years and even quicker the more they keep putting up power prices... all i can say is DUMP the EV get solar and battery instead its worked for me ... All i need to do now is find something to turn off to get down to the average 14kwh per day usage ... wtf

[@simoncrooke1644]

Many people use gas to heat water and warm their house. That doesn't show up in their electricity usage. If you are all-electric your electricity usage will be higher than average.

[@AvenEngineer]

Fun fact; The energy powering a device doesn't come from the generator it's connected to, necessarily. Energy is transmitted via the electromagnetic field, not the wires...

[@wazza33racer]

"Various federal ministers of fuckwittery" Well said John, that describes the situation perfectly, and not just on this issue.

[@gpsfinancial6988]

Is your diesel CO2 calculation well to exhaust? or pump to exhaust? Is there a carbon footprint from ICE vehicle production? or just BEVs? What is the footprint of a battery made from recycled materials? Thanks

[@shaynegadsden]

You missed the Hummer EV's meager offerings at 246Kwh

[@russellhammond4373]

The battery will be .......'routed'. Go John.

[@JohnSmith-yv6eq]

Kangaroo Edward...roo ted.

[@kimmogensen5390]

i am offgrid with 2x 8s lipo 24v 7kwh batteries and 3 kw panels and a pow mr 450v 80Achargecontroller/ 3kw inverter all in about 4000$ i do however have a very low energy usage

[@rw-xf4cb]

Solar and Battery on a house would also technically appreciate compared to an EV. As it would 'add value' to the house.

[@MichaelRobinson-hy8ms]

WE are still a lucky country having people like you calling out the lies and misinformation surrounding the migration to EV utopia. Love your idea of the solar array + Bluetti battery solution. I’ll definitely look into this option. Cheers.

[@MrStephendowns]

Why not get both a battery/solar + EV?

[@liberty0758]

Do you get a free clown outfit if you buy all in one go?

[@richardbuckingham4329]

I’m with you. Get enough solar to generate say 40 kWh of power per day, use 20 for the house and 20 kWh for the EV. That’s well over 100 km per day for an efficient EV like the Model Y, which is enough for most people, including me.

[@stusue9733]

@@richardbuckingham4329 During winter, in Hobart, just how many solar panels would that be?

[@richardbuckingham4329]

@@stusue9733you had to choose the worse case scenario, didn’t you? I’m from qld, up here, in winter, a 12 kw system would suffice.

[@stusue9733]

@@richardbuckingham4329 Because you forgot to mean location matters. Its still a pretty stupid idea, but you do you.

[@gazzas123]

The issue I have with home batteries is that a Tesla wall cost around $14k but a Tesla 67KWh battery cost around $20k.

[@idanceforpennies281]

I need a $20,000 battery backup for my apartment I feel an impulse purchase right now. I can put it on my balcony. Or maybe in the guest room. Cool. I'm all in now. If the building Management start asking questions, I'll just tell them I've got a fire extinguisher (5KG) and to rack off.

[@MothershipVideos]

Great stuff John.

[@thetowndrunk988]

“Gargantuan rolling jokes”- a quite accurate description, I say.

[@jooseppib1082]

My Friends got an Nissan Leaf. Already from the get go it's cheaper than most fossil fuel cars thanks to lower taxes on ev's. Even with high electricity cost per kWh it's still vastly cheaper than any gas car to run. Now he's installed solar panels on his roof and during the summer season he's basically paying fzkall for electricity. No fossil fuel car can compete with that system no matter how passionate you are about ice vehicle's

[@stuartedge5906]

Hi John, be careful, you don’t want to upset all those EV owners.

[@MikeJones-mz5ig]

Renewable energy hit a record high of 72.9 per cent of total generation on Sunday, as a wave of wind and solar across Australia’s main grid sent coal output and operational demand to new lows.

[@utoob7361]

Coming soon: Mad Max EV it's going to be so exciting

[@brettski74]

If we're being totally fair, we should also consider the embodied carbon in the solar panels. I don't think I heard you include that. It doesn't change your overall conclusion, but it does extend out the break even point on CO2. A quick google suggested that a value of about 615kg of CO2 per kW of installed capacity as a reasonable number based on 2020 manufacturing practices. Another source suggested 500-600 kg of CO2 per kW. Another consideration is whether you'll actually be able to export that excess electricity. I don't know how things work in Shitsville, but here you need to get approval from your local electrical utility before you can export electricity into the grid and they may place limits based on the capabilities of the installed plant on your street and the existing generators already operating there. I'm assuming the same physical realities exist in Shitsville and so there are probably similar rules in place, but I could be wrong. Again, I don't think this changes the overall conclusion, but might alter the break-even point.

[@johngoard8272]

Very interesting John I do like the way you work out the different stats regarding the CO2 emission levels and the source from where the electricity comes from and I can see no improvement at all if these wretched vehicles come into everyday use - it simply just does not make any sense. I don't feel sorry for those poor tree huggers who are sucked into this idea that these vehicles are going to save the planet when in reality it will never be that feasible. It also occurs to me just what is the fire risk of those home batteries? I do see your point regarding home solar and the batteries but I think that the majority of folks (at least where I live) cannot afford that setup.

[@janstafford1490]

Do these questions ever come up in school classroom debates it would be fascinating to see 11 - 17 year old get to hear different opinions.

[@samuelchen9285]

Speaking to many people i know who bought tesla. All of them did it for the covenience of less maintenance, no gas station visit and the acceleration.

[@marcc.490]

Waiting for interest free loan for 2 x Powerwall 3. Then slowing wean off gas for water heating and gas by replacing them once they stop working.

[@CoroDan]

Instead of buying 2 brand new ICEs, buy two one year old EVs, one BEV & one PHEV and install a large solar array on your roof (if you don't already have one). Rotate use of the EVs so you can charge from solar most of the time. Charge from off-peak energy during the night the rest of the time. Use a renewable energy plan.

[@mikemccollough6633]

I've tried to take an electric tool battery apart and they keep going into thermal runaway. how do you recycle the batteries if they catch fire?

[@buggiesandboars]

Now do a break down on how long it will take to make back the 10k, 15k, or 20k it cost to have these home batteries... I'd be shocked if they pay for themselves before they need replacing.

[@tazpartridge1612]

Recently installed PV and a battery, haven't pulled from the grid since installed, even when it rained all day. Tier 1 panels and 13.5kwh Powerwall 2, will pay for itself in 8.5 years, without accounting for feed in tariff. We export up to 40kwh to the grid on a good day, only 2kwh on a full on rain day. It is worth shopping around, not for the cheapest, but for the best solution for you

[@brittenmusic6923]

The best of times are long gone...'the formerly lucky country' is all we have left, a term given to times past.

[@jeremyyounger5442]

Serious question @AutoExpertJC what about if you use vehicle to the grid? Instead of a battery at your home setup what are those calculations?

[@StuFletch68]

Well let’s compare car companies to pharmaceutical companies regarding ethics 😅

[@videokfm]

Firstly: There is one factor no one seems to know. How much electricty it takes to make a liter of petrol. Those huge power lines supply electricity to oil refineries. But there is no official Kwh/liter value anywhere.(Conspiracy) Secondly: Here in South Africa since 10 Nov 2023 we have had 4079 hours of loadshedding=no electricity. Therefore no choice but to use solar and battery. I use LTO batteries, these don't burn and are the safest Lithiums. I use about 50kwh per month from the grid, when its available. Grusse aus Sud Afrika.

[@JimboJones-qn4wd]

It all makes sense, why solar and a solar battery on your home is a much better option than buying an EV, but getting a solar battery is still not financially viable for most people. I have solar (no battery) and draw about 5 to 7kWh / day from the grid on average. So if you were paying say $0.50/kWh from the grid multiplied by 7kWh = $3.50/day or $1,277/year. On a $10K battery, it will take 7 to 8 years to break even and on a $20K battery, it will take 15 years to break even. Obviously, these numbers will vary from person to person depending on how much they use from the grid per day on average and obviously doesn't take into account future increases in electricity prices, which are unknown. The point is that you wouldn't buy a solar battery for an investment (you would be better off with bank interest on your money), but if you want to save the planet one house at a time, go for it.

[@kaya051285]

Solar panel industry is intersting. Lots of countires want to produce solar panels but its almost 'worthless' Global production is maybe around 300GW this year at ~20 cents a watt the total industry 'only' has a value of $60 billion annually By comparison the car industry is ~80 million units x ~$40k average price = $3,200 billion or more than 50x the size of the solar panel industry

[@peebow1000]

I got 5kW worth of panels on my roof. I can easily generate 25kWh a day. HOWEVER, to be fair and balance my story out, I was sold a "Hive" battery storage system, retro fitted. It works good, but i paid for the battery backup feature, which does also work well enough, except when we had a 3 day blackout, well with the grid down, the system doesn't charge the batteries anymore. Lights on the first night, not after that though. Kinda seems dumb

[@SlowhandGreg]

In any new development the 1st entrants are at the luxury and top end which is why the models available are marketed at the wealthy If you look at the Smartphone market it started with the Apple phone people said it wouldn't last but we now have a million and one smartphones at all price points. The central issue with going as green as possible is insulation , I've just completed a an extension project and refurb which double insulated the house with a secondary thermal barrier of MultiFoil. It blocks heat going into the Breeze block with cavity insulation and stops heat transfering from them in the summer.

[@olagarto1917]

also you dont have to own the cart for it to break even,it just have to survive in work till its breaking even point

[@Laurelpearce-w8l]

well said, its appalling whats happening here ect no real control of emissions and selling our selves short by a long shot nothing will change with the current next to useless

[@murphyrp01]

Great video and content.

[@wapphigh5250]

I keep saying V2G is a marketing trick. And here we are 2..is it 3 years? on and V2G is still not available in Australia and even if it was (and you were to buy one of these huge EVs and it had V2G..the regulations *still* don't allow an appropriate charger.. and even if you could buy one, most EVS are not actually in the garage when the cheap sun at ve wholesale buyback prices, is shining, they are out on the road at work, school drop, shopping footy at weekends etc etc So yes- a home battery for this (and other reasons you mention) makes way more sense John