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FLEET SPEAK: Electric vehicle questions threaten the solution

Date: 15 June 2010

Paul Barker is editor of BusinessCar

There are a couple of stories raising concerns about electric vehicles and how they might find a home as part of the fleet transport mix.

The first is research released by leasing firm Arval that found fleets have significant concerns about recharging networks and the lack of a clear long-term direction from the Government. It could be massively harmful to the long-term potential of EV acceptance if comparisons with the LPG debacle of a few years ago can't be nipped in the bud. In case you've forgotten, liquid petroleum gas was heralded as the fuel of the future, until the grants suddenly ran dry at almost no notice, just as it was on the verge of gaining mainstream acceptance. A small, loyal band of users still run LPG vehicles, but it was close to becoming established.

The second story is the boss of residual value expert Glass's Guide highlighting his concerns about a huge drop-off in RVs for electric vehicles if the batteries aren't leased separately, as the drop-off in battery performance could be a massive stumbling block for used buyers. That's muddied the waters after rival RV provider Cap said it will only be quoting RVs on electric vehicles that have the battery included in the list price.

While manufacturers are doing their bit by developing interesting vehicles capable of performing in the right fleet environment, the stories in this week's issue prove there's still a lot to do in the marketplace before everything is set up for practical widespread acceptance.

Paul Barker, Editor

BusinessCar



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