It takes and Australian commentator to tell it like it is:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyyJB8NOQ-g

tomo,
I agree, and that's why the battery lease and exchange seemed noteworthy. Gives the incentives a shake-up.

Imagine my amazement at suggestions that Mr Obama would be so self-regarding as to adjust past events to put himself in a favourable light.

DaveS, Mailman,

After enough practice with scooters, it's possible to graduate to bigger and better things (make sure to look right up at the tippy-top).

From yesterday's:

... It converges of course ...

This fuel carries the energy to take to capsule into orbit.
This fuel carries the energy to lift that fuel and the capsule.
This fuel carries the energy to lift that fuel, that fuel, and the capsule.
...
and N levels later, you have the Saturn 5.

Obviously, at some level of payload, N → ∞

Only 3 DaveS?? Blaaaaardy amateurs!!

In parts of Asia scooter riders seem quite adept at carrying three passengers, perhaps it is the future of affordable family transport.

Mailman,
Perhaps this great Aussie ad captures something of what is achieved in a hard day's work for the NHS. (Have posted that ad here before, I think, but it has such wide application!)

Ross Lea,
The problem is that the scaling is not linear. At 90 km/h, a car will be pushing *a lot* more air than the scooter. More powerful motors required. They call for a larger battery. The weight goes up accordingly, which calls for more power in the motors again. It converges of course, but the car with carrying capacity for four people will cost a deal more than two scooters with the same capacity but, as you say, at least you'll be out of the weather (and then you start asking for heater/air-con, and things step up again).

The battery swapping is an interesting point. Home-charging a scooter would seem reasonably practical. It might be that the manufacturer is more worried about fires and liability. Seems a sensible idea. It also makes it more likely that people will use official battery packs rather than cheap/shonky ones. Might lead to informative statistics on fire-proneness in years to come.

Also on the EV theme, I thought this article by Mark Mills was pretty good. He's an engineer, and explains why BEVs for everyone is a pipe dream. It's pretty long, and I confess I didn't read it to the very end. This part gives the skeleton of his argument:

But in banning ICE cars and mandating the use of EVs, policymakers are explicitly betting on the truth of three crucial claims:

1. EVs will lead to profound reductions in CO2 emissions

2. EVs are now, or will soon be, cheaper than, and operationally equal to, ICE cars

3. There is a diminishing role for the automobile in modern times; in effect, there is a generational realignment in how citizens seek personal mobility.

All three are bad bets not supported by facts.

This electric scooter with swapable batteries seems a great idea well suited to Asia. I would be great if a small car could be made usiing a similar swapable battery pack more suited to our climate.

https://cleanscooter.in/gogoro-2-series-plus/

There are version with speeds upto 90km/h

Robert,

Re - waiting lists.

Friends husband went in to hospital being short of breath and not feeling well...he was in hospital for 14 weeks before he was finally sent home.

Although he needed a valve repaired in his heart (major surgery by anyones standard) the run around he get from the NHS was comical! His operation was delayed by one medical "emergency" after another until he was eventually sorted and then 10 days after the operation was released home to convalesce...however yesterday my friend was saying the surgeon who did the work fell off his bike a few days after the operation and broke his arm! You cannot make this up!