CHARGED UP

I read your test on the fuel consumption of the D-MAX , which is something we all like to know , but I was wondering what your thoughts were on what will happen when we are forced to go to electric vehicles ?

The way I see it is that with the limited range those vehicles provide , no one will be able to go much distance without needing to recharge , especially if you are towing . I believe this will hurt all outback towns , as people won ' t be able to reach them in any sort of reasonable time . And what about things like the Big Red Bash and Birdsville Races ?

Will this mean not only the end of these events , but also the towns that rely on these events to keep them going ? What affect will this have on the farmers and the outback communities ? For me , this will mean selling my caravan and I imagine I won ' t be the only one .

The roll-on from that will be the effect on all associated industries – if I was to try to list all the people who will be affected , I ' d be here forever . I believe the way to go would be diesel made from palm oil ( like Malaysia does ) with Add Blue to clean up exhaust deposits .

Being a Queenslander , I would use catchments in towns like Tully and Ingham to trap water and pipe it out into the deserts , where plantations could be set-up .

If this was done , you would not only save industries , hence jobs , you would also create new ones . And farmers would also be able to be supplied with water , which would help drought-proof them .

Steve B via email

Thanks for your letter , Steve . You raise a number of interesting questions . I think it ’ s true that ever-tightening Euro emissions standards will ultimately lead to a much wider spread of electric vehicles .

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