IS THERE ENOUGH JUICE? Chris Harris talks EVs with Graeme Cooper from the National Grid | Top Gear 

I don't know even Chris seems positively biased towards BEVs. He seems to like the cars, but just questions the roll out.

Chris really had my words in his mouth. The question were so well spot on that I was so happy to listen to this 30 mins talking. Really, we need to give credit to the man.

Fantastic summary, I was about to type the same myself!

@@Neojhun I think Chris sits on the fence - his thoughts about electric performance cars are very negative (and similar about heavy ICE vehicles as well tbf), but for everyday stuff he is quite positive. Which is exactly where it should be I think.

@5putput Dunno mate, you're telling the story. I'm only going on the feeling I got from the video, if it's untoward, then why am I the one at fault?

Yes, it would be a great refresh for the format. I still feel a like they're trying to make the old format work, despite the overhauls. Understandable, but this would be nice change, as nobody else does this as far as I know. Bring in an expert and discuss topics like this.

Just a really great, balanced discussion. I’m not a huge “petrol head” but I loved listening to this debate/interview.

Yes, this. Chris Harris is already a great automotive journalist outside of Top Gear. Bring more of his (and his cohosts’) expertise in and you’re looking at a new Top Gear that doesn’t feel like it’s just trying to replace the old trio. This isn’t their show anymore.

I couldn’t agree more. But they generate more views from doing the other stuff, and if you look at the view count on this video, you can understand why they don’t do this, because it doesn’t earn them as much

@@b8yep959 As James Hetfield said: sad but true.

@5putput " banning his company's competitors"? Can you just point out who the national grids competitors actually are? Edit - and now 5putput has deleted his original comment where he made a complete moron of himself so most of this thread doesn't make sense. FYI He referred to "competitors of the National Grid"

@5putput and that’s exactly how I like it. 😘

@5putput You didnt answer the question.

@5putput Once again not answering the question. It's quite a simple one. Seems to be too much for you though. Do you want have a third try?

@5putput Copy pasting the same non answer is still not answering the question. Three tries, three fails. Feel free to try again, your stupidity is getting quite humourous.

lol

Your world must be very limited.

@5putput You are very brave exposing your level of stupidity on Social Media. Well done. Hope it serves you well. Oh, wait. You look or appear to be posting from a fake account. Interesting.

@5putput Speak for yourself, it only sucks for people like you.

@5putput Your aluminum hat is on a little too tight. Or you need counseling. or both

Graeme, so why was there no mention of the significant engineering works required, the technical challenges (storage) and the risks involved, in making mass use of EV possible. The sort of topics covered in the recent Ofgem publication about: "Proposals to unlock investment and secure the capacity to support up to 11 million electric vehicles", "Ofgem.......proposals to rewire Britain....", "will unlock significant, potentially unlimited, additional funding", ".........co-ordinated upgrades to the transmission and distribution power grids to enable a nation-wide charging network for electric vehicles." www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/ofgem-proposals-turn-your-street-green-transforming-local-electricity-networks There was plenty of time in a half hour programme for an honest overview of the challenges ahead.

@@neilevreality5273 I suspect because they were limited to 30 minutes. I expect that to cover everything about the vehicles, the infrastructure the politics and the human factors it would require a couple of hours minimum.

Grid could handle the draw, Can the Distribution network? (Not your Grid!)

Excellent interview , it was brilliantly presented. However two big assumptions were made.... 1. You can charge on your drive ( most people don't have a drive) i appreciate you answered this partly in the interview. 2. You can charge at work. Vast majority of people can not park at work. This is quite a big problem. Best electric car discussion I have heard yet.

@@millskidd8099 go to the cinemas every second day what's wrong with that

We all have a part to play. We don't have to be envious of people who aren't afraid of disagreeing or being offended. We can just be them.

Well said

Totally agree.

Conservatives made climate change a political issue. Its an existential crisis we should all fear and fix

@5putput absolutely no idea what you're blathering on about. Back to your mother's basement please, there's a good lad.

writing*

Even Jeremy has basically come around, he just doesn't enjoy driving them

About as much as anyone enjoys reading your spammy comments. No need to be horrible and call someone a moron. If you want to argue it then make a solid argument instead of throwing childish comments.

@@Ovenman940 He runs a farm where he sells vegan products, its crazy

@5putput i have no problem with it being multinational. According to edie.net they've announced plans to cut emissions by 80% by 2030, rising to 90% by 2040. That's enough for me and personally, i'm not bothered about being net zero as i think it's near impossible. Where are you getting this info about wanting more tax payer money cause I've gone looking for it and can't find it. If they're asking for more for having to completely overhaul their entire structure to be cleaner then so be it. I'm happy for them to charge more on the taxpayer within reason to make up for the changes. Also the BBC has a very strict and transparent advertising policy. I don't see how you could see this as an advert which i don't believe it is as it's almost a debate in a way more then it is a talk show host promotion. Even if it was a promotion of the national grid. Like who cares.... speaking to journalists is what PR people are supposed to do to help people understand their business and build a relationship with the public and their customers. If the national grid launched an advertising campaign on ITV or youtube ads trying to debunk greta and say that fossil fuels is the only option then ya. I would consider that propaganda but that's not what this video is. This video is outlining that if people want changes it's going to take time and a lot of money not because they're greedy but because extra work requires extra resources. That's capitalism. Again there's no need to be hostile. if you want to change minds just post stats and resources and be informative instead of being hostile.

Hall e lu jah?

Let's not forget that with wireless charging, roughly 50% of energy is lost. Plug in charging is >90% efficient. It's a no brainer.

@@TheSJDRising thats exactly what i was going to comment. Wireless charging a 10 watthour phone or 3 watthour watch, the efficiency isn't that important on the grand scheme, but charging a 100 KILOWATThour battery with 50% losses would be madness.

@@TheSJDRising My thought was, the killer app for wireless induction charging would be taxi ranks, for charging electric taxis while they waited to pick up... also, yes, at home if you have too much money or a wind turbine on your roof...

Yeah, exactly why Apple’s wirelessly-charged dreams of a port-less iPhone goes against all the crap they go on about being better for the environment. Just because you can move your electricity generation towards net zero, doesn’t mean we should get complacent and wasteful.

@@danspratt2 Madness if you've paid for the electricity to be delivered by the grid, arguably just a lazy choice if you generate your own electricity...

I kind of agree (was a big fan of Chris Harris RU-vid channel before he joined TG), but is there not room for both? My 10yo loves TG, me, not so much these days. But if TG also produces & promotes this kind of alternative format online, then we're both happy!

An online video that fills one with hope and admiration for the human race, as opposed to the so many that do the opposite. Bravo!

Keep TopGear but have TopGear+ for this type of content

Old entertainment format/ fun format you mean.

@5putput I see you have extremely negative feelings about this interview, considering the volume of angry comments you have posted in this video... So just to get some facts straight: I think we all realize that this was paid promotion, and it's really NOT the end of the world; it's happening every day, in all forms of broadcasted content. Having said that, I did not hear anything in this video regarding technology, infrastructure, and future viability of EV motoring, that you would call "factually incorrect". Did Graeme Cooper try to promote the activities of National Grid? Probably yes (no surprises there). Did he bring a load of BS on the table to do so? No - at least I could not spot any of it, but please correct me if I'm mistaken. I really don't get why you are so frustrated about this whole thing.

@5putput You still have your free will to switch this video off... Think about it :)

@@someguy6141 I've been seeing this guy being replied to all the time on this video but his comments are all deleted. Out of curiosity, what kind of stuff was he saying?

@@techpassion4126 If I remember correctly (it's been a while since my comment here), he was bashing Top Gear for giving a chance to National Grid to promote their business, claiming that this interview was basically a load of lies and he was trying to present electric cars as something nearly impossible to work in the real world. Rest assured he deserved every bit of the heated replies, the guy was full of shit.

5putput dude...give it up. Stop trolling.

@@edrcozonoking hahahha he is fishing but no one is biting

Thank you. Very kind.

@5putput conning people with propaganda is what you been doing with every single one of your comments in this thread. What are you like 5 years old or just pretend to be 5 years old online?

@5putput why would anyone trust anything you have to say. Almost every post you have made has huge holes in the factual content which shows that you have no idea what you are talking about.

He's rubbish, kinda

Yeah this could be a more regular feature.. discussions on new innovations like battery tech, power generation, home charging, etc.

I too would have liked to hear more from Graeme Cooper. Unfortunately, the idiot interviewer wouldn't shut up long enough.

I think both can and should exist! Because I'm assuming I'm not the only one who enjoys hearing Chris share his views (good or bad) on cars. As well is informative discussions such as this.

@@caseyjones166 Harsh. I thought it was quite an enjoyable and informal back and forth but maybe I’m just too much of a Chris Harris fanboy

@5putput usually when someone agrees or disagrees with something, they listen to what the opposition has to say, rather than calling all those around them morons and idiots. Maybe some people will buy into this “propaganda” which they are entitled to do and maybe others, myself included, want to hear what course we are currently on as a society so that maybe we can understand the situation and where we are headed and in turn in our own small way have a discourse locally through democratically elected representatives as well as other bodies that support or oppose the state’s position on this issue. To do otherwise and effectively cut oneself off from the discussion altogether seems idiotic and moronic to me frankly.

Thank you for your kind comment.

@Spud Chuffington jones Not as far as I'm aware, but stranger things have happened.

@5putput thank goodness we mindless sheep have you to educate us and open up our naive little minds. Thanks again

@5putput if you object to what has been said in this video, feel free to make a youtube video that explains what is happening in reality, with equal or better knowledge of the EV revolution, past, present and future and without the bias you claim there is in this one

@5putput I am the boss.

@5putput you caught me, it’s my mother.

@5putput ok, it wasn’t a paid advertisement video.

nah, 9v are way better.

Get some Varta ones.

I am going to mount wind turbines on the roof so it charges while I'm driving

@@jamesgaskin7757 Genius😂

Nah Lithium Polymers that like go BOOM!

£500m toward EV isn’t even a down payment. EV is going to cost over £100 billion in investment to make viable.

@@stubones where the hell did you make up that number?

@@stubones Source?

@5putput Again, there's claims in your comment that are totally unsubstantiated. The CEO of National Grid announced yesterday that they have committed to Net Zero by 2050. Before that announcement, they'd plans to be 80% of the way to net zero by 2050.

there is a gaining key on how to invest into crypto and earn huge....Are you interested?

In all fairness the TG icecream van was possibly a joint project with Ed China's world record electric icecream van. The TG one was for fun but had items that were incorporated into the one Ed China had built like the icecream machine being powered by pure electricity rather than the diesel engine. It was a bit of a promotional exercise to highlight that icecream van's and other similar catering vehicles can be powered by pure electricity rather than being parked up with a diesel or petrol engine running all day emitting fumes.

@5putput Sticks and stones. Your tribal ICE comments are lost in a sea of favourable feedback for Graeme.

@5putput you are quite the conspiracy theorist....

Thank you I agree this exactly why I always loved how he approached these subjects the trio were never very informative let’s be honest tell me more than 0-60 numbers

I don’t want to say that the old trio are in anyways lesser ... see as a kid they brought me into the car world .. and as an aspiring car designer I would say that their entertainment made me love cars ... I’m just saying that Chris needs a more receptive audience . To put into perspective ... If the trio were a crazy amazing Marvel/action movie you watched with your girlfriend . You also to watch with your dad ,a nice story based movie you watch with your dad .

95% of cars on the road are appliances owned by people who don’t care about cars. They will all go in the bin anyway

@@hoonaticbloggs5402 what worries is me is that the 5% of interesting cars are made possible by the 95% of runarounds. Without the golf we wouldn't have the gti, without the four door 205 shopping car we wouldn't have had the 1.6 gti, no M cars without business saloons etc.. When/if the industry behind all the ICE daily drivers goes, the cost of enjoying interesting cars will go through the roof and make classic motoring impossible to everyone but the very wealthy

@5putput you must be fun at parties

@5putput the thing is that the BBC and Top gear in particular, is 100% tax funded, so what marketing are you talking about? I only see information mixed with entertainment.

Kids are programmed enough, geezer.

@@edkramer5592 so which is preferable, provide them with some information or no information?

Why? They can’t drive.

no ( national grid ) lighty no likey

that's why they have Chris, for the smarter stuff ;)

@@briangreen6602 Pahh!

@5putput get out

@5putput 😂😂😂

Don’t forget his interview with Jonny Smith on The Late Brake Show

Also, check out Remove Before Race interview with CH

@5putput What do you mean to imply? That the same plutocrats supplying our old fashioned energy requirements are aiming to control our future energy supply? Or that this conversation deserves to be shouted down by luddites chanting "V8! V8!"? I'd welcome a good conversation refuting the necessity or viability of these technologies and infrastructures as readily as I watch these folk discussing them, but I rarely see much more than regurgitated rhetoric.

@5putput okay mate just chill on the conspiracy talk for a moment. I’m aware that Graeme works for national grid but it’s not like they have a hidden agenda. They supply electricity. Consumption is increasing and will surely increase more as electric cars become more popular. They want to communicate that the infrastructure can support any increase in demand for EVs and that even after batteries are done in the cars there is still a good use case for them. What’s the issue? All of this stuff is still up in the air anyway there was a lot of use of hypothetical scenarios anyway. You’re mind is running away with itself, which is why people think you watch the Joe Rogan podcast 🤣

@5putput it’s a great podcast but you’re one of those overly enthusiastic chaps. Next you’ll tell me the earth is flat, lizard people run the world and 5G will be the end of us all 😂

@5putput So it's the first one. I get it, it's frustrating that the rich will continue their stranglehold on big industry, infrastructure, and business, but that's seperate from the services they provide. Internet service providers, pharmaceutical companies, nearly all industries has it's profiteers. It happens in every progressive venture, and every conservative venture. That's how the world works, and how it will continue to work until systems are put in place to prevent the profiteering. Seperate from all that is the valuable services and technologies provided. These things have their own merit and deserve praise for what they can provide to our lives. If we shunned technologies to forsake it's profiteers, we mightn't even have stone tools. Regardless of all of that, electricity is an inherently accessible power medium. With gas and oil, you have no choice but to rely on huge companies to prospect, drill, refine, transport, and dispense fuels, and then you still need a device in which to burn it. Conversely, you can generate electricity in a multitude of ways. Hell, I can scrap together an alternator and a scrap bicycle and generate some power without leaving my property. With batteries powering more and more devices, it isnt hard to store that power now, either. Those batteries can power either their own devices for others, or feed back into your household for either convenience or emergency, or can even be sold to the power grid. This can't be done with internal combustion without chaining yourself at the hip to some of the biggest companies in the world.

@5putput Biofuels can indeed be produced in smaller scale operations, but they still require vastly bigger facilities (and companies) to produce them vs electricity. If your gripe is with profiteering, why would you defend the systems with the higher barriers to entry that only the already rich can afford? Edit: Even so, biofuels face a lot of pushback. Biodiesel isn't "regulated" enough for widespread adoption and distribution, ethanol is bashed for it's energy density and emissions, and biomethane has even worse energy density than ethanol, and has a reputation as dangerous for burning invisibly in daylight. I love the idea of alternative fuels, but even those are hard to prop up against the monstrous machine that is the oil industry.

Spot on

@5putput Back that up then, else you are the fake news.

Raymond, reliable power stations are being steadily shut down; perhaps you missed the news that in the last few weeks the national grid has had to seek extra capacity to come online due to a lack of power. Another point is that averages do not give the full picture, as the grid works on instantaneous demand and supply. Another worrying facet is the call for greater demand side response (AKA rationing) and even the talk of rolling power cuts. Does this sound like there is enough capacity? However, power generation and transmission aside the real problem that will come is our distribution network is undersized for the projected load of ev charging, not to mention the push to install heat pumps.

@@iareid8255 Power stations are coming to the natural end of their designed life and being replaced with alternative power generation some of with are renewable. Peaker power generation is in place as the demand changes throughout the day, however, the problem with these plants is they are slower to react, where energy storage when there is over production is the key and is instantaneous to react to demand. Also, generating more power via solar when the demand increases during daytime is a benefit to the grid. As Graeme stated, the planned increase in wind generation is more that enough just to cover electric car ramp, so I have no concerns over the availability of energy. Energy produce is consider for decades in advance. As demand has decreased, the load on the network has to, thus there is more than enough capacity in a well maintained grid, therefore, I think your concerns are unfounded. Investment is required to build out the charging network, however, whether it be a charge station or a petrol station, investment is required nonetheless.

Raymond, it is a myth or wishful thinking to think that renewables and storage can take the place of conventional power plants. Bear in mind that I am familiar with U.K. power and not so well versed with other countries' but you can't change the physical and engineering constraints. That is his opinon but the national Grid is in a difficult place as they have to follow what the government dictates and publicly support them, even if ultimately it will all come crashing down. Wind and solar are unsuited for large scale grid supply, this has been documented by engineering institutes for decades and it is getting worse as more is added. (Solar is bad because most is uncontrolled by the grid) The envisaged increase in electrical demand is going to outstrip the consruction of new plant, particularly as with wind you have to instal about 2.5 times capacity to get 1 actual unit of power, as you say older plants are being shut down (Some prematurely) which makes it worse.

Definitely, all of the above please 🙏 🙂 🙌

3. Pay per mile i suspect. With gprs / tracking you'll get a monthly or annual bill. Given the UK generates 40 billion from VED, the current liberties enjoyed by EV owners will be undermined somewhat.

Good spot, I missed this watching first time around

I also know someone who owns one of the backup generator companies and he has to start up the diesel generators when there is a high usage of power. I wonder if this is why Rolls Royce aviation have been asked to develop mini nuclear power stations in the UK?

Exactly. As long as legislation allows the use of ICE 'classics', that is. The only issues in that circumstance become cost and ease of access. I live in Japan, and each year, we lose so many petrol stations, as the country's car fleet gets increasingly hybridised or electric, that we're projected to have none by 2030 or so. Therefore, range anxiety becomes the ICE owner's problem, not the electric car owner's one. If there's a way to have one synthetic fuel pump at the odd charging station, just for us guys driving ICEs, it could work.

@@ChrisNichollsPhoto No-one is talking about what is going to happen with Lorries/Trucks by which most our freight is moved. Will we be driving EVs when trucks are overtaking us using diesel/hydrogen, or will all freight be moved by electric rail to rail heads then moved by EV? No-one seems to be discussing this, it's all about cars. How is freight moved in Japan, by rail?

@@SuperNevile It's a key point, but it is being addressed, albeit far too slowly. Electric/hybrid trucks and vans are being developed, with some already on sale and being used. As I'm sure you've seen, Biden has mandated all US government vehicles (including trucks/vans/) be electric, and here in Japan, where it's a mixture of train and truck/van, you are starting to see more hybrid and electric delivery vehicles. Everything will be electric or hydrogen-powered eventually. It's just a matter of time.

Exactly, I was super surprised Chris didn't think the horse would be vilified when the streets were filled with horse dung.

I wouldn't consider Horses only for the wealthy, My mum has owned horses for as long as I can remember and I wouldn't consider her wealthy.