Emily and Dan Dixon with their Nissan Leaf and Tesla Model 3. Photo / Supplied
The rise in petrol prices shows no sign of slowing down, so is now the time to start thinking about switching to an electric vehicle?
Mike Tweed talks to Whanganui locals about the pros and cons of kissing fossil fuels goodbye.
Emily and Dan Dixon own two fully electric vehicles.
Dan said the move came from a desire to lead healthier lives in general.
"My dad got sick with cancer about four years ago, and we decided to change the way we ate.
"Then it expanded into things like getting solar panels on the roof, and we've carried on from there.
"Obviously, we liked the idea of paying less for petrol as well."
They began with a Toyota Prius hybrid, before buying a fully electric 2013 Nissan Leaf three years ago.
"It's not a long-distance sort of car, which I guess is what puts a lot of people off about electric vehicles - that 'range anxiety'," Dan said.
"For around town it's brilliant though, and it costs around $20 a month to run."
Last month's passing of the Land Transport (Clean Vehicles) Amendment legislation would allow New Zealanders greater access to cheaper electric and climate-friendly cars, Transport Minister Michael Wood said.
Since July last year, the clean car discount had driven electric car registrations to more than 10,000.
"This legislation takes us further by expanding the discount to include new and used imported hybrids and other low emission vehicles from April 1, 2022, expected to prevent a further five million tonnes of emissions," Wood said.
Rebates for electric vehicles of up to $8625 will continue.
Those rebates are funded by placing charges on the purchase of high emitting vehicles from the start of April.
Vehicles with moderate emissions get neither a rebate nor a charge.
Emily Dixon said the couple recently bought a Tesla Model 3 with the help of a $8600 government rebate.
That set the end price of the car at around $61,500.
Now, any risk of range anxiety has been taken out of the equation.
"We loaded it up with the kids and all our camping gear and because there's no motor in the front, there's a bit of extra room," she said.
"On the way to Coromandel we just had to stop to charge once for 20 minutes in Taupo, and that cost $27.
"The entire trip, to Coromandel, down to Rotorua, and then home, cost a little less than $60. That's two weeks of holidaying and driving around all over the place."
David Jones Motors principal dealer, Gareth Jones, said he was fielding an increasing amount of inquiries about electric vehicles.
The government's clean car standards, along with the chance of a rebate, factored into people's thinking.
"Compared to 2020/21, we've sold hundreds more electric or PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric) vehicles," Jones said.
"The interest has been incredible, and why wouldn't you when you can get the $5750 or the $8650 rebate.
"I think it's fair to say that electric vehicles will be our future."
An LDV (light-duty vehicle) client that travelled from Tauranga to Gisborne every night was saving $100,000 a year in running costs through the use of electric vehicles, Jones said.
"That's the price of two vans."
Marton company PEC specialises in fuel dispensing technologies, but a key part of future plans is exploring opportunities in hydrogen fuel.
Managing director Richard Coxon said hydrogen vehicles were electric vehicles, but were FCEVs (fuel cell electric vehicles) as opposed to BEVs (battery electric vehicles).
"I absolutely think there is a role for BEVs, but it's more for commuter traffic, with the convenience of being able to plug in at home. That's where the real value comes in.
"Where BEVs start to come unstuck is when things increase in scale, be it weight or distance."
People currently driving electric vehicles were "absolute converts", Coxon said.
"So they should be. They don't have to pay anything, they are able to charge them at home, and the infrastructure is able to cope with small volumes.
"When will those incentives start to evaporate? I'm not so convinced that early adopter advantage will exist.
"If we add scale into it, how on earth do you put a battery in a massive truck?"
There had also been record sales of larger petrol and diesel vehicles in the past six months, Jones said.
"They are trying to beat the ute tax, or the 'dirty vehicle' tax. We are expecting the biggest number of registrations in history for March.
"That will probably be followed by a record low in April."
He said It would be interesting to see the longevity of batteries over the next five to eight years, along with the reselling of electric vehicles.
"Will technology make batteries more affordable, and the recycling of them more affordable? Time will tell.
"I actually saw the first electric ute in New Zealand last week, the EVT60. We expect to see that by the end of this year.
"There will be a lot of interest in it. People will be wanting that for their fleet."
Sourcing enough raw materials for batteries could present environmental issues, as could the disposal of them, Coxon said.
"I don't think you would be able to get enough stuff out of the ground to have all cars converted."
At present, only Japan had found a way to get rid of second-hand electric vehicles.
"They send them all down to New Zealand," Coxon said.
"Again, I'm not totally disposed to battery electric vehicles, I just think there are some inherent limitations that are not exposed by early adopters.
"The advantage of hydrogen in the fuel cell is we're just borrowing water for a short period of time."
Midtown Motors owner, Raj Patel, said he agreed with Coxon in terms of New Zealand's reliance on electric vehicles from Japan.
As a whole, he didn't think New Zealand was ready to go fully electric.
"We've got a lot of imports running around that are hybrid or EV, which we've bought after the Japanese are finished with them.
"They've used them, they've got the goodness out of them, then New Zealand puts its hand up and gets them in."
Electric vehicles weren't affordable to most people new off the showroom floor, Patel said.
"I don't think there's such a thing as a cheap, new electric vehicle at the moment."
Dan Dixon said although the disposal of batteries was a concern, the environmental impacts of petrol and diesel powered vehicles made that a "moot point".
"One could argue there's a bazillion crushed ICE (internal-combustion engine) vehicles scattered around the Earth.
"I can't imagine resources like batteries just being thrown away, and I think technology will allow them to be recycled."
Their Nissan Leaf was down to eight battery bars out of twelve, Emily Dixon said.
"It's almost a decade old and we don't need to replace that battery, which is what the rumours tend to be - 'You have to get a new one after 10 years'.
"When we first got the Leaf there were a couple of times where we limped home with only a couple of kilometres left, but it's just getting used to charging it every day.
"Then you never have to worry."
A decrease in ICE vehicles on the road would eventually lead to fewer respiratory issues in the community, she said.
"More electric vehicles means less carbon monoxide, and I think that will have long-term health effects."
Riders and spectators in Whanganui are anticipating the start of the last race.