Letters: New Zealand not yet geared up for electric cars

New Zealand is not yet geared up for electric cars, a reader says.

In regards to Gary Muir's thoughts on electric cars (Letters, July 5), my brother-in-law, who lives in Tauranga, purchased a new Renault EV a few months ago. He shopped online and found a dealer there which was the cheapest in New Zealand.

However, they do not service EVs, and since his car has just come up for a service, the nearest place he could find online was in Auckland.

I shopped around also for him and no one in Rotorua services them, and no one could help me, but I managed to find a new Renault dealer in Katikati for him which has just taken on the agency for Renault cars and have trained serviceman to service them.

I think his car does about 400 to 500 kilometres on one charge.

He and his wife made a trip to Hastings recently and went for a recharge in Taupō on the way home which took three hours. Imagine the queues if everyone was electric having to wait? My brother-in-law has also had to buy a second-hand petrol vehicle to tow his trailer when taking rubbish to the dump as EVs cannot tow - so how are all these caravan owners, horse float owners and trailer owners going to get on?

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New Zealand is just not geared up for EVs yet.

Colin L Deans
Ngongotaha

Changing name won't solve the problem

How typical of politicians, if you cannot fix a problem, change the name! It is not "domestic violence" it is now "family violence".

We need to look at what causes violence, what makes a man hit a women - one he is closely tied to either by civil marriage or common law - and what keeps a woman with a violent man?

Usually, drugs and/or alcohol creates violence in a man - but the lack of restraint has to be there in the first place. Typically, the drugs and the alcohol release the buildup of self-loathing, the feeling of frustration when work or lack of work cause impotence - the inability to provide for the family, or the realisation that one is not doing as well as life would dictate. Often the outburst is followed by regret and self-hatred, which only fuels further dismay.

A woman stays with a violent man often because there is nowhere else to go, and children make it imperative to stay, to put up with the bullying.

This is not a new thing; it has gone on for centuries. Unfortunately, there will always be violence in families. Changing the name will not make it any better; we need a new approach and a fresh look at the root cause. (Abridged)

Jim Adams
Rotorua

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