About​ EV’s

invented in 1884

The first EV was built in 1884 by British inventor Thomas Parker.

A full history of the Electric Vehicle can be found here.

A common misconception is that EV’s cannot tow anything. All I know is it’s not every day that you’re going to tow a Qantas jet, but just to show you that it can be done, click here.

EV’s can tow regular trailers, boats and caravans just like ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) cars. The most popular EV in Australia is the Tesla Model 3 which is certified to tow 1000kg’s. The newly released Tesla Model Y is able to tow 1600kg’s.

Another misconception is that EV’s cost over $100,000. The cheapest EV (at the time of writing) in Australia is currently the BYD mid sized SUV at $44,990. However different states are now offering different cash-back incentives. Victoria is $3000 so take that off the price.

The used car market is Australia is starting to get more EV’s as people upgrade. Currently you can get an early Nissan Leaf for around $15k which whilst it won’t be a great interstate car, will be ideal for the inner city resident.

A myth I’ve heard a lot is that the battery in an EV doesn’t last long and can’t be recycled. That’s false in both parts. For example, in the Tesla Model 3 the warranty alone is 8 years with the life expectancy to be a lot longer than 12+ years (depending on individual usage). The end of life batteries are then being repurposed for things such as house and small business power storage and the batteries that are being recycled are getting 95 – 98% of nickel, copper, cobalt and lithium back, and unlike many other products, those minerals don’t degrade as they’re recycled, making a relatively closed-loop battery economy possible.