Race-spec Subaru BRZ racing on synthetic carbon-neutral fuel

Well done Subaru!

They are running a race-spec BRZ in Suzuka this weekend using synthetic (not from fossil fuels) carbon-neutral fuel.

The internal combustion engine lives on and shows it can be clean for the environment! Unlike what the politicians of the world keep telling us.

Motorsport is where real-world research and development happens which leads into our everyday lives.

. o O (Told you Subaru were still focussed on Motorsport)

For further info on how carbon-neutral fuel is created see my post from a few weeks ago on ‘heavyweight’ electric vehicles and how zero petroleum is created.

Full CarScoops Article.
BRZ Concept Racecar Testing Synthetic Carbon-Neutral Fuels In Japan | Carscoops

Boxer Engined Impreza WRX STi has come to an end

Looks like the time has finally come to say goodbye to the ground shaking, petrol infused theatre that is the Impreza WRX STI.

It was inevitable that Subaru would have to make the switch to electric. They are launching their first full EV this year with the Solterra, along with Toyota and its bz4x

The new 2022 BRZ was never going to make it to UK shores and I understand the production has stopped for the new model so no more are going to be made. Fairly limited run globally then.

But I did think a new gen of brz could well be electric. So long as they can keep it lightweight and still have useful range. That’ll be a challenge for the engineers.

For now, due to this press release from Subaru, it looks like there may not be another WRX STI with their trademark boxer layout. Certainly not on the current platform. I’m sure it will return but it’s likely to be high-performance electric.

Can they still make it exciting to drive? A large part of what makes the Impreza good is its performance, road holding ability and what most people recognise is the sound. We’re gonna lose that 3rd one but the first two should remain. At least.

Subaru are still committed to Motorsport although we don’t hear about it much in the UK, and their latest STI concept is an electric track focussed car, so they have a plan.

#onwards

https://media.subaru.com/pressrelease/1881/1/statement-subaru-sti

EV’s are destroying our roads!

Thought for the day …

TL;DR – EV’s are destroying our roads!

Electric Vehicles (EV’s) weigh around 30-50% more than there Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) counterparts. Sure they have no exhaust so don’t pay road tax as that system is based on emissions.

More weight means more damage to our roads

However heavier cars means more wear and tear on our roads. The UK roads are already getting in a worse state of repair every year.  So more money is going to have be spent to maintain and upgrade roads for the amount of heavier cars being “forced” onto them. The extra weight of these vehicles could mean say and extra 40% wear on our roads as ICE cars are replaced with much heavier EV’s. Generally an EV vehicle weights around 500kg more than it’s equivalent ICE vehicle. That’s the same weight and an old mini cooper!

On the extra weight, this could mean potentially higher servicing costs as the cars get older. EV’s still have mechanical, driveshaft, suspension components, brakes & tyres, just like a normal ICE. But the added weight means these components needs to support he extra weight. Therefore the likes of brakes and tyres will either wear out quicker (with possible offset against regenerative braking from EV). Tyres will be wearing out quicker due to the added loads put on them.

More weight means more wear and tear on parts

Servicing costs wont necessarily be much cheaper going forward, sure there’s no oil or spark plug change required but here are other maintenance on the electrics required and potentially more expensive components. ICE’s don’t tend to cause issues in cars, engines are generally bullet proof these days. It’s the brakes, tyres and electrics which cause most problems in cars these days. All of which, EV’s still make sure of, and even more so.

Road tax (VED)

On to the topic of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) for 2022. There’s sadly going to be an increase and probably always will be until the system is updated..  EV owners don’t pay VED because it is based on factory spec vehicle emissions.

So although EV’s are heavier and will likely be wearing our roads out more and they won’t be contributing to the potential upkeep of our roads. Additionally the lighter ICE vehicles will be paying more to subsidise EV’s!  EV’s have been around for a few years now with not much sign of their prices being affordable for most households they are still significantly more expensive that ICE’s even on 2nd hand market! And yet those that cant afford them have to pay more for VED and fuel, which is still cheaper than purchasing an EV of several years of ownership!

EV’s to cost the UK Governmant Billions of £’s in annual revinue

As of 2019 the government raised around £6.5 Billion just through VED.  That’s quite a big deficit to government funding my moving to EV’s Not to mention the government also takes a cut of the petrol/diesel you currently fill up you car with. In 2019 that amount was an additional £27 Billion. So to add that up with eh big push to EV’s the government is going to potentially lost over £30 Billion a year. With more wear and tear on our roads due to heavier vehicles. They are going to have to find a way to get that money from somewhere!

With ICE’s I’ve always been an advocate for scrapping VED and applying the additional “Vehicle Tax” on the cost of fuel. Which I believe would have been fair. The more you drive, the more fuel you use, the more tax you pay. Which, we all hope but doesn’t happen, goes back into the maintenance and upgrade of our roads.

Are modern petrol & diesel vehicles really that dirty?

Just to go back to the point on emissions and “nasty” stuff form exhausts.. My 2014 big diesel 4×4 with 70,000 miles on it, which weighs at least 100kg less than the modern EV city cars. Still on its original exhaust. Doesn’t get any of the classic plumes of smoke from it’s exhaust like you used to get with much older diesel vehicles. In fact I’ve just gone outside and scrubbed my finger on the inside of the exhaust tip and my fingers are clean!. No black carbon or soot build up at all. So just how harmful are modern ICE vehicles? Well the wee sporty 200bhp Subaru BRZ I have qualifies for the Ultra Low Emission Zones (ULEZ) in London!  So are modern ICE’s really that bad?

Clean carbon-neutral fuels are here today

On a final note,  Check out Zero Petroleum – https://zeropetroleum.com/ research and testing already completed successfully to create synthetic fuel from the carbon dioxide from the environment with the help of Renewable electricity and Green Hydrogen (using the electricity produced by solar, wind & wave. This process is similar to what plants and trees do naturally for our planet by cleaning up the air we breathe by applying a process called Petrosynthesis. A Carbon Neutral way to produce a petrol which you can put into your car, van, bus, aeroplane without any modifications to the vehicle. Compare that to a time in 2021 when it was reported that around 50% of the electricity production in the UK was supplied by burning natural gas! So just how “clean” are we being by moving to EV’s

Forcing everyone to switch solely to Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV’s) right now, is not the answer…
…In my opinion…

Something Blue – Subaru BRZ (BabyScoob)

Adopted a new addition to the Subaru family recently.

Here are a few photos that were taken yesterday with #BabyScoob from different angles.

Lots of nice little design details on this thing particularly like the F1-inspired Fog light (F1 Rain light?) at the bottom below the rear bumper.

Last of a breed really with us entering the age of electrically powered vehicles. In my eyes it’s a sort of “hybrid” as Subaru builds them but with a couple of bits of input from Toyota 🙂 (Couple of engine tweaks to fuelling and possibly gearbox)

May just be one of the last true ICE driver’s cars you’ll get. Certainly one of the most affordable!

Possibly a bit of a unicorn car with hardly any of them around, particularly in this part of the world! and with no sign of the 2nd generation BRZ being able to be sold in the UK due to EU regulations.

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