Selling off that many EVs for cheap might help popularize things.
Right now, a lot of poor folks like myself drive clunkers…while there are many new cars going to waste:
The real emissions scandal is that these cars—even if not as clean as promised—are likely both greener and safer than many junkers out there. They should be given away, but eco-zealots don’t like that.
The Right doesn’t want to pay good wages, and the Left wants us in caves.
A pox be upon both their houses.
I would hope that VW has disposed of all of those repurchased diesels in the last 6 years. Diesel ownership is not for the poor in North America, as the fuel is always more expensive than gasoline and the maintenance was always a headache, even before the joys of common rail injectors, DEF and particulate filters. I might also mention that VWs of that era had electrical gremlins and are notorious expensive to repair. Nope, I wouldn’t take one for free.
From my own standpoint, I don’t drive very far and I spread my mileage out over multiple cars. As a result, I keep them for 15, 20 or 25 years. I honestly couldn’t repay the “carbon debt” of an electric car and I’m greener staying with petrol. Also, I pay the highest electricity rates in North America, so high that plugging in a plug in hybrid would cost me more than owning a conventional hybrid.
The biggest issue with EVs is the weight. Teslas are hard on tires. I also suspect that giant electric trucks will require routine suspension component replacements. Indirectly, EVs can be hard on brakes but not in the way you’d think. Electric cars use regenerative braking to such an extent that the rotors will rust and pit, requiring replacement.
Then there’s the fact that EVs are hugely to expensive to insure
because of repair costs. They tend to get totaled out in comparatively minor accidents. Insurance is a huge consideration. I pay more in premiums than I will ever pay at the gas pump.
Finally, the electric clunkers of the future will be routinely be blocking traffic at rush hour. With petrol cars, the working poor had just about as much driving range as the rich, assuming a full tank of gas. 20 year old EVs will have a range of tens of miles, not hundreds.