Comments by "Andy Monaghan" (@229andymon) on "The Electric Viking" channel.

  1. While not wanting to take anything away from the Chinese for wanting to adopt renewables, it also makes great geopolitical (and economic) sense for them to do so. China doesn’t have nearly enough fossil fuels of its own, meaning it has historically had to buy them from foreign sources. Which leaves them spending money in other countries and to some extent means them being hostage to supply dictates. The less Australian coal they have to buy for example, the less they need to depend on a NATO allied country and they can also keep their money invested at home. Whatever the reasons, it’s good news apart for Western powers that don’t like to see China winning.
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  2. Falling domestic ICE sales, rising production costs, tanking export sales, unmeetable government mandates…. The end of the ICE age cometh.
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  3. If VW and other legacy auto makers go under, it will *not* be primarily due to the workers on the production lines. It’ll be due to poor and shortsighted management and top leadership. You should say that, Sam.
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  4. If a robot company wanted a really dumb human job to trial in UK, I’d suggest a Tory MP. A suped up vacuum cleaner would probably do as well.
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  5. And Japan..? Did you see the stats for car sales in USA last year - Honda, Nissan and Toyota sales already crashing. They're in deep, deep trouble...
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  6. Not that the personality of a CEO must be the determining factor, but Farley seems to be a genuinely nice guy and also very switched on as to the EV revolution. If Ford went down on his watch, it wouldn’t be because he was blind to what’s happening in China and Tesla. He’s in charge of a massive sailing ship company after steam ships are already sailing the seas.
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  7. Not only are the western auto makers losing their vital Chinese market, they’re also losing their other export markets that BYD, NIO, MG etc are now poaching from them as well….. They’re screwed.
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  8.  @daddy9267  Isn’t that exactly what US companies did in China?
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  9.  @keepitreal2902  it can be argued nuclear doesn’t even compete with fossil fuels. Nukes is about as expensive an energy as you get.
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  10.  @AArata63  Exactly! Which shop floor person created dieselgate?
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  11. Who would buy one? Millions of people. 1 in 4 new cars sold in UK in December were EV.
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  12. Like the design. Tesla makes great cars, but design wise I reckon they’re as exciting as a box of cornflakes.
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  13. The UK EV mandate is for 28% of all new car sales, over the period of 2025, to be EV. So, logically, in order to meet that averaged target, by the end of the year, sales would have to be around 30% or more. Remarkably, I reckon that will probably happen. And we should reflect that this is happening after the new Labour govt actually reduced EV incentives to a negligible level.
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  14. Great news and fantastic to see this vehicle being made in Scotland, but they are not the only vehicle manufacturers here. We already have companies making (to varying levels of manufacture/assembly); haulers, buses, fire engines, RCVs and taxis.
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  15.  @johnwayne8475  What’s not to like about that? Plenty, if you’re GM, Stellantis, Ford, VW, Exxon, BP…
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  16.  @jasonmugridge  and British shipbuilding. I’m from Glasgow and remember the Clyde full of shipyards. All gone now due to atrocious management that didn’t read the future of global shipping. They too tried to blame their workforce instead of themselves. Look at what happened at Sunderland, Brit management and Brit workforce equalled failure, then Nissan came in with Japanese management and turned them completely around. What does that tell you?
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  17. @NoiserToo  you'd have to put even higher tariffs on Chinese EVs too. Even at the recently raised levels they'd still be cheaper. All it would get the EU is a stay of execution. While they sit back in their protectionist prison, China would be swiftly killing their (critical) sales in China and many other of their export markets. China, with 1 in 3 of the global car sales now dictates the direction of travel, not the EU, or USA. Locking themselves in a cupboard isn't a solution.
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  18. Apparently there’s a place where Mammoths survived into relatively modern times. Perhaps the US will be the car industry equivalent.
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  19.  @SaretGnasoh  It’s called foreign direct investment and usually fought to get by host nations and applauded by them when happens. Mostly for good reason.
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  20. 2k pa you're better using taxis.
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  21. Yup, there’s $40m pa right there…
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  22.  @daddy9267  Hmmm. Tell that to the EU?
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  23. Next stop, dilithium crystal batteries! To Alpha Centauri and back on a single charge…. Jokes aside, where does it end?
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  24.  @Nom_AnorVSJedi The Chileans have actual experience of another place directly interfering in their country. It wasn’t China.
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  25.  @emilsohn1671 UK is building a new nuke plant that has been described as the most expensive building on the planet. The UK govt has guaranteed revenue for the operating company at ruinous levels. It will saddle UK consumers with high bills for decades. Before we get to how to dispose of radioactive waste, can you tell me how this makes economic sense?
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  26. “They’re saying they’re doing it, so they must be”. Well, not necessarily…. Let’s see real world testing from independent accredited testing authorities.
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  27. Yes, bad management destroying what was a good company.
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  28. If 1 out of every 1000 people is a complete fool, that’s a lot of fools…..
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  29. EV opposers often tell you they can’t charge at home and don’t have a charger on their street. They usually don’t have a gas station on their street either.
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  30.  @kieranworland8662 Well said. Too often badly run companies run into problems and get away with blaming their workforce or unions for their own failings. Who created Dieselgate, the unions? Who ignored the Chinese EV train barrelling down the line for 15 years, the workforce?
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  31. Why must it take $40m pa to run a company, however big? Like, they couldn’t find someone capable to do it for a mere, say, $20m? Who makes up these crazy numbers? And when the shop floor workers want a couple more % a year and they’re “greedy”.
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  32. There’s nothing wurst than sausages.
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  33.  @glenny2960  I’m no expert on car pricing, but wouldn’t it be fairly normal for any car bought for 20k 7 years ago to be worth about 8?
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  34.  @Geewee-cv4ur  True, but it could be argued that, as a Chinese company, BYD might have a bit of an advantage in the biggest car market in the world - their own. Given the size of the Chinese market, it seems clear to me that the US needs China more than China need the US.
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  35. I understand the feedback so far from companies that hire out Tesla cars and therefore have the biggest case histories are highlighting huge savings on service & maintenance c/w ICE.
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  36. You make good points, but fundamentally I disagree. Firstly, I'm confident the transition to EV will be even quicker than most people think, primarily because people are reading the writing on the wall. They now know the ICE age is over and who will choose to spend 00.000s on a new ICE that will probably be worth little in 5 years coz no-one will want it. That's happening already, ICE sales are dropping off a cliff while EVs climb it. That's only going to escalate. Sure there will be charging challenges for those that can't charge at home, but there will also be solutions. Look for roadside chargepoints and faster charging times at gas stations, mall car parks etc etc. Where do we see the biggest EV population? China, where apartment living is the norm for most people. As for hybrids, sorry but I'm a huge sceptic about those. 2 techs in 1 vehicle? Nope.
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  37.  @mikejones-vd3fg  Sentiments that has led to UK going from a manufacturing powerhouse to an underperformer of note. When I started my first job, in the late 70s, it was with a big firm, but in one of their smaller factories, maybe under 100 employees. I remember being surprised at them having 3 canteens. The fancy one, with white linen and silver service, for around 4-5 senior managers, the next with checked tablecloths etc for around 12-15 middle managers and the the last with plastic chairs and formica tables for the oiks. It symbolised all that was wrong with Brit business - them and us, from top to bottom and in every way possible. The company concerned went out of business, and I can assure you in no way due to unions or workforce. Sure - treat your workforce like cattle, or the enemy, or just a necessary evil. It’s the Brit way.
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  38.  @barunosardadi4717  Well said. That’s the best option.
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  39. Americans seem to me to be obsessing with range, while an analysis of their driving habits leads you to an inevitable conclusion there’s absolutely no need for the average American to do so. They’re making perfect destroy good.
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  40. I don’t know who you were speaking to on your travels, but as a resident of UK, I couldn’t disagree with you more. I expect you reached your conclusions after attending a Reform Party meeting. Trump is about as popular as Athlete’s Foot.
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  41.  @arthurtantiprasut7942  Let us indeed be real. The shift from ICE to EV *needed* state subsidy, otherwise China would have the same situation as US, where established vested interests could and would delay such a transformation. Having said that, I reckon China is probably now past the tipping point where such subsidies are necessary and they should be scaled back.
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  42.  @groundreality5360  ICE sales banned in Ethiopia. A developing nation, for sure, but with a gigantic population.
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  43.  @Anonymous------ what are you comparing to?
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  44.  @ChickensAndGardening  According to IMF, US growth in 2024 = 1.5%, for China = 4.2%. Looks like more “No’s” your side of the Pacific to me…
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  45. I can't speak about England, Wales, NI, but here in Scotland my guess is that Tesla is probably the only one the person in the street is very aware of. I'd reckon knowledge of other brands and models is sketchy at best. As for new ICE sales being in the lower price bracket, that makes sense to me. If you aren't aware EVs are the future, you must be in a coma, but if you are but aren't ready to take the jump to EV yet, then buying a cheap ICE makes more sense than an expensive one. Only thrill seekers would spend £50-£60k for an ICE car that might depreciate like Liz Truss' reputation.
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  46. If you mean double deckers, they're made in Scotland by Alexander Dennis in partnership with BYD. Chinese company Yutong are also selling buses in UK - not made in UK.
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  47.  @SK-lt1so  Unless you’re referring to USA as the prison state, then both operate in China?
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  48. That’s the paradox of capitalism. Without state control (anti-monopoly) regulations, the private sector would destroy itself.
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  49.  @tellyboy17 Great idea. Governments generally need to support industries to move toward net zero. In any case the state can only support auto companies that are convinced they want and need to move to EV, which legacy companies in the West have in most cases failed to do. Try as you might, the West’s failure to compete with China in EVs is not China’s fault, it’s themselves to blame.
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  50. The average American drives around 30 miles per day with an average journey of 12 miles. How many times per year does the average American drive journeys over, say, 300 miles? The logic behind hybrids escapes me apart from drivers who habitually drive long distances.
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