Electric Vehicle display coming to Yeppoon
Posted on May 11th, 2021
A local not-for-profit community group will showcase an interesting and diverse range of electric vehicles at the end of May. Organised by Capricorn Coast Landcare with Livingstone Shire Council’s Community Centre, this free event was planned to help bust common myths about electric vehicles (EV’s), and allow curious car nuts to ask car owners about their driving experiences.
WHERE: Beaman Park, James Street Yeppoon
WHEN: Saturday 29th May, 9 till 11 AM
WHAT: EV’s on display will include Teslas, Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi Minicab MiEV, converted Toyota Hilux ute, the new MG ZS, e-bicycles, a custom built trike and a few hybrid vehicles.
Electric vehicles are here to stay, and are becoming more popular in Queensland as drivers realise the long term savings from owning an EV. Sabrina Burke, coordinator at Capricorn Coast Landcare Group speaks highly of the small electric Mitsubishi Minicab van that their group uses to carry tools and sacks of weeds and litter, saying ‘The van costs 4c/km to run, compared to a Holden double cab ute which costs around 16c/km to run. It has one moving part, a motor, whereas a diesel-powered vehicle has hundreds of moving parts. Fewer moving parts means our electric van requires less periodic maintenance. No oil changes, filter replacements, periodic tune ups, exhaust system repairs, no pumps and belts. Plus it is silent, emits no smelly exhaust and has instant power when the driver accelerates.’
Some EV’s, like Tesla, are prohibitively expensive to buy, but the latest MG EV costs less than $45,000, and a suite of new and cheaper electric cars will be entering the Australian car market in the coming year. EV’s can attract lower registration fees and some states offer stamp duty waivers and other incentives to encourage uptake. Despite nay-sayers contesting that EV’s require coal-fired power to recharge, the Australian national grid is becoming increasingly powered by renewables (1), so recharging an EV with clean energy is becoming a reality. Homeowners with solar panels effectively have ‘free petrol’ sitting on their roofs.
(2) Recently ride-share platform Uber recently announced that it and ‘Arrival’ are joining forces to address what they see as the global need to shift the ride-hailing and car sharing services sector – with over 30 million estimated drivers globally – to electric vehicles to reduce emissions and improve air quality in cities.
Most vehicles at the event are privately or Council-owned, with a couple of car dealers to show new vehicles. Some of the E-bicycles will be available to take for a trial spin.
This free event is organised by Capricorn Coast Landcare group with in-kind support from Livingstone Shire Council’s Community Centre.
Flyer – capricornenterprise.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Electric-Vehicle-information-session-1.pdf
