Cars & Transportation The Overlooked Dangers Of EV's

Remove this Banner Ad

Log in to remove this ad.

How many ICE vehicles have fires each year?

Cadogan makes it clear that he's not claiming EVs set on fire more frequently than ICE vehicles. He's saying that when they do go the results can be catastrophic.

Thermal runaway means the whole car can go up in seconds with a very high intensity flame.

They can't be put out by conventional firefighting methods such as water or or air starvation as it's a chemical reaction that generates its own oxygen. All you can do is try to cool it to a point where the reaction stops - which on a car ferry or in an underground car park might be impossible. A typical ICE vehicle fire can be extinguished with a few hundred litres of water in minutes. An EV fire can take several hours and over 150,000 litres of water to bring under control. Even then the fire can restart hours or even days later.

The toxic fumes can be lethal and there should be some public education to always stand upwind of an EV fire.
 
Cadogan makes it clear that he's not claiming EVs set on fire more frequently than ICE vehicles. He's saying that when they do go the results can be catastrophic.

Thermal runaway means the whole car can go up in seconds with a very high intensity flame.

They can't be put out by conventional firefighting methods such as water or or air starvation as it's a chemical reaction that generates its own oxygen. All you can do is try to cool it to a point where the reaction stops - which on a car ferry or in an underground car park might be impossible. A typical ICE vehicle fire can be extinguished with a few hundred litres of water in minutes. An EV fire can take several hours and over 150,000 litres of water to bring under control. Even then the fire can restart hours or even days later.

The toxic fumes can be lethal and there should be some public education to always stand upwind of an EV fire.
But but but, its green! And I am wonderful for driving one !
 
But but but, its green! And I am wonderful for driving one !

Yup, purely a status symbol. Has no bearing whatsoever on saving the planet.
The only real reason to own one is convenience for urban driving where it does better than ICE cars. Cheaper to run once the new car price crosses over with ICE.

Still no good for long distance driving and towing.
 
Cadogan makes it clear that he's not claiming EVs set on fire more frequently than ICE vehicles. He's saying that when they do go the results can be catastrophic.

Thermal runaway means the whole car can go up in seconds with a very high intensity flame.

They can't be put out by conventional firefighting methods such as water or or air starvation as it's a chemical reaction that generates its own oxygen. All you can do is try to cool it to a point where the reaction stops - which on a car ferry or in an underground car park might be impossible. A typical ICE vehicle fire can be extinguished with a few hundred litres of water in minutes. An EV fire can take several hours and over 150,000 litres of water to bring under control. Even then the fire can restart hours or even days later.

The toxic fumes can be lethal and there should be some public education to always stand upwind of an EV fire.

Saw a video of what appears to have been a head on collision between 2 EV vehicles. Looked like a war scene. Huge explosions!
 
Yup, purely a status symbol. Has no bearing whatsoever on saving the planet.
The only real reason to own one is convenience for urban driving where it does better than ICE cars. Cheaper to run once the new car price crosses over with ICE.

Still no good for long distance driving and towing.

Cadogan has videos about the carbon footprints of ICE v EV vehicles. EVs start with a large initial carbon cost due to the manufacturing process. Thereafter they incur less carbon - but not zero, as they need to use the grid to charge which is still mostly from burning hydrocarbons. All things considered it might take about 75,000km to break even, thereafter there will be some reductions in net carbon.

But he also points out there is a large price differential between ICE v EV vehicles. Buying a cheap internal combustion car and investing the savings on a solar panel system would reduce carbon dioxide more than buying an EV.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

Back
Top