Electric Motorhomes at Scale, Can't be Far Away Now.

[PaulW2]

Presumably if weight dammages roads MH over 3.5t should pay extra rather than less?

Electric cars weigh maybe 400 kg more than petrol-powered ones. They therefore cause in the region of 2.5 times the damage to road surfaces that petrol cars do.

30 ton lorries, on the other hand, do maybe 25,000 times the damage that a standard petrol car does. One lorry, 25,000 cars.

How to reflect this in vehicle excise duties?

It depends a) on the cost of road maintenance and the part of the vehicle excise that is notionally intended for road maintenance, and b) on the overall economic model and also what other revenue is collected in relation to such vehicles.

Also c) on the extent to which taxes are used as a way of shaping behaviour independently of cost calculations. The current emissions-based rates for sub - 3,500 kg vehicles, versus the lower standard rate for >3,500 kg ones would be an example. Taxes on cigarettes and alcohol would be another.

But our overall tax system must, in overall terms, be a strong contender for the most convoluted, dysfunctional patchwork quilt in the world. So whatever happens is extremely unlikely to improve its coherence.

 

[RetiredPope]

Electric cars weigh maybe 400 kg more than petrol-powered ones. They therefore cause in the region of 2.5 times the damage to road surfaces that petrol cars do.

It was 2023 before a single EV entered the top 20 heaviest cars on the road. When it did it was the EV variant of a car already in the top 20 !

My first EV was a Tesla model S weighing 2000kg, only 200kg heavier than a Volvo S40 (common company car in the company at the time) and only 60kg heavier than the Mercedes E class it replaced.

 

[MichaelT]

Not read all the thread but we were in Zaragoza yesterday and a lot of their busses were 100% electric. I'm guessing they are running about town all day so do many miles and lots of stop starting so the technology must be getting there.

 

[gus-lopez]

Can one drive a 4t car on a B licence? A car is Category M1 and a MH is Category M1 (Special Purpose). Do not the licence weight limits apply to both?

Probably not* but A) who is going to ask & B) will the salesman say anything?

* Yes you can;

**.
1.2 The Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 (the 2018
Regulations) made changes to the law to allow Category B licence holders to drive
an alternatively fuelled vehicle that weighs between 3.5 and 4.25 tonnes, provided it
is not driven outside of Great Britain, used for the transportation of goods, is not
towing a trailer and the driver has completed a minimum of 5 hours training.
**


here;
https://assets.publishing.service.g...uidance-category-b-licence-requirements-1.pdf

Electric cars weigh maybe 400 kg more than petrol-powered on

the one I posted weighs 1m5Tonnes more than its petrol counterpart

It depends a) on the cost of road maintenance a

what is "road maintenance?"

 

[PaulW2]

It was 2023 before a single EV entered the top 20 heaviest cars on the road. When it did it was the EV variant of a car already in the top 20 !

My first EV was a Tesla model S weighing 2000kg, only 200kg heavier than a Volvo S40 (common company car in the company at the time) and only 60kg heavier than the Mercedes E class it replaced.

On a like for like basis they are heavier. That is just a fact.

For a few examples

Are electric cars heavier than petrol cars?

If you’re looking to make the switch to an EV, you may have heard that they’re heavier than traditional petrol and diesel cars. But is this really the case, and does it really make much difference? Read on to find out more.

www.carwow.co.uk

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[Folkranger]

On a like for like basis they are heavier. That is just a fact.

For a few examples

Are electric cars heavier than petrol cars?

If you’re looking to make the switch to an EV, you may have heard that they’re heavier than traditional petrol and diesel cars. But is this really the case, and does it really make much difference? Read on to find out more.

www.carwow.co.uk

The main maintenace requirement on older EVs is suspension. Obviously caused be all the potholes made by motorhomes.