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[Sir Tigger KC]

It's not all about CO2 though as the internal combustion engine emits other toxins.  Nitrogen, Carbon Monoxide, Nitrogen Oxide, Sulfer Dioxide, Hydro Carbons and Particulate Matter (soot).    I challenge anyone who dosn't think any of this matters to attach a hose to your exhaust, put it through the window, sit in the car, start the engine and see how long you last!     

Alternatively the next time you are sat in a city traffic jam or queue at the lights, think about all the toxins being spewed out by the hundreds of vehicles, as you watch a young mother walk by with her baby in a buggy at exhaust pipe level.... 

Stop/Start and Hybrids are a good start in reducing this sort of pollution and Nick W may well be right that Volvo's announcement is a cynical marketing ploy, but it is a statement of intent and a step in the right direction IMHO! 

[STEMO]

When electric vehicles come down in price, as they surely will, and the range gets a bit better, I will surely have one.
BUT....it will have to come in estate guise, or it will be of no use to me.

[Bigron]

How will the government raid our wallets without VAT and Excise Duty on fuel when that happens - after all,  it will be exactly what they CLAIM that they want - lower "pollution"?

Ron.

[STEMO]

How will the government raid our wallets without VAT and Excise Duty on fuel when that happens - after all,  it will be exactly what they CLAIM that they want - lower "pollution"?

Ron.

I'm sure there are people with large brains working on that right now, Ron.

[Sir Tigger KC]

How will the government raid our wallets without VAT and Excise Duty on fuel when that happens - after all,  it will be exactly what they CLAIM that they want - lower "pollution"?

Ron.

I'm sure there are people with large brains working on that right now, Ron.

Getting my crystal ball out Ron, they will introduce a milage levy.  All vehicles will be connected to the internet and HMRC will know exactly how many miles you have done every year and will deduct the tax from your bank account. 

[STEMO]

How will the government raid our wallets without VAT and Excise Duty on fuel when that happens - after all,  it will be exactly what they CLAIM that they want - lower "pollution"?

Ron.

I'm sure there are people with large brains working on that right now, Ron.

Getting my crystal ball out Ron, they will introduce a milage levy.  All vehicles will be connected to the internet and HMRC will know exactly how many miles you have done every year and will deduct the tax from your bank account. 

That sounds simple enough, can't wait. 

[Viral_Jim]

Jimmy, I challenge your figures: but even if you are somewhere near right (you ain't!)

Challenge away Ron. After all, a forum is about exchanging views and information, but please show your working

https://micpohling.wordpress.com/2007/03/27/math-how-much-co2-is-emitted-by-human-on-earth-annually/

This blog walks through the total CO2 per human based on 2 scenarios and comes up with a figure of either 2.168 x 10^9 tonnes/year or 1.362 x 10^9 tonnes/year. Granted, a huge difference depensing on how you calculate it. Both calculations are done from first principles so not really open to politicising. That compares to 24.136 x 10^9 tonnes per year through burning fossils. Or somewhere between 5.6% and 8.9%. Add in all the other sources of CO2 (animals, especially those bred for food), volcanic activity etc etc and the figure from human breathing is likely to be well below 5%, so actually less than I had asserted.

I don't think a figure as high as you claim (over 95%) bears up to even casual scrutiny. Take food animals for a start, the UN estimates that there are 19 billion chickens in the world (or about 2.4 for every human), similarly, there are 1.5 billion cows (UN again), or about 0.2 for every human. So how could they contribute a tiny fraction (less than 1% according to your estimate) of the CO2 compared to the amount we do?

The Institute of Mechanical Engineers reckoned that transport accounts for about 25% of all the UK's co2 emissions and that doesn't include foreign-owned airlines (who's CO2 is attributed to their "home" country). This seems about on par with the USA's Environmental Protection Agency figure of 28% for the US (fewer foreign-owned airlines operating in the US per mile flown).

How will the government raid our wallets without VAT and Excise Duty on fuel when that happens - after all,  it will be exactly what they CLAIM that they want - lower "pollution"?

Ron.

Ah! now that's an easy one. Charge pence per mile driven, with different charges depending on class of vehicle. All they have to do is pass a black-box law and its done. Sure, it might be against our human rights to have the government spying on us, but that won't be an issue in a couple of years now will it 

Stop/Start and Hybrids are a good start in reducing this sort of pollution and Nick W may well be right that Volvo's announcement is a cynical marketing ploy, but it is a statement of intent and a step in the right direction IMHO!

This is bang on the money imo. I fervently hope that electric (or later hydrogen) cars will do for petrol motors what the car did for the horse. Electrics will take over as the day-to-day beasts of burden and the petrol cars will be things of pleasure, to be used as a hobby and enjoyed. I really enjoy driving, I've been on track days, drove that M140i for 250 miles through wales on a whim, but I would welcome an electric self-driving car to take me along my M42, M6 and M1 commute each day, in silent relaxed comfort while I read a book, watched a film or caught up on some email. I would defy anyone to derive pleasure from that kind of driving .

[omega2018]

I don't think a figure as high as you claim (over 95%) bears up to even casual scrutiny. Take food animals for a start, the UN estimates that there are 19 billion chickens in the world (or about 2.4 for every human), similarly, there are 1.5 billion cows (UN again), or about 0.2 for every human. So how could they contribute a tiny fraction (less than 1% according to your estimate) of the CO2 compared to the amount we do?

plus cows in particular fart a lot of methane.  methane is about 32 times more powerful a global warming gas than CO₂

nitrous oxide N₂O by the way is nearly 300 times more powerful at global warming than CO₂ also it strips out ozone protection like CFCs used to before they were restricted.  30% of it comes from human activity, mostly farming.

[Bigron]

Thanks Jimmy. At least you know it was a friendly challenge, not a spiteful one.
Oh, MY figures? They came from the Daily Telegraph and they are NEVER wrong! 

Ron.

[ronnyd]

Did i read today that France are banning internal combustion engines from 2040, or was i dreaming?

[Viral_Jim]

Nope, not dreaming. But it's sales rather than Annan. Go would take another 15yrs ish to really start to weed them out.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/jul/06/france-ban-petrol-diesel-cars-2040-emmanuel-macron-volvo

[JDX]

What about commercial vehicles, how do they fit in this new era?

[Sir Tigger KC]

Bigger electric motors and bigger batteries.    I've never driven an electric car but from what I've read they have terrific torque! 

[JDX]

No I've not driven one yet either. I'm itching to drive one of those Tesla's.
We keep talking about electric cars at home..... maybe in the near future 

[Sir Tigger KC]

I suspect hybrid trucks will make an appearance before long with the electric motor doing the urban work and an internal combustion engine of some sort for motorway/highway work. 

Trucks which run on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) are common in other countries so maybe future trucks will be hybrid CNG/Electric?    Solar panels on the roof of the trailer to charge the batteries maybe?