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It begins: Ethiopia set to become first country to ban internal combustion cars | automobiles cannot enter Ethiopia, unless they are electric [Edit: Strong indications this is unreliable]

It begins: Ethiopia set to become first country to ban internal combustion cars

https://electrek.co/2024/02/02/it-begins-ethiopia-set-to-become-first-country-to-ban-internal-combustion-cars/

Ethiopia's Transport and Logistics Ministries have announced that automobiles cannot enter the country unless they are electric. (!)

Edit: It's looking like this wasn't reliably reported

36 comments

Varyk

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Nice one Ethiopia

Caitlyynn

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There is little wrong with combustion cars, at least compared to electric cars Compared to actual solutions, both suck ass

Varyk

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That is absurd on its face.

ICE cars haven't significantly improved in close to a century, electric cars are becoming more affordable, efficient, and sustainable every year.

ICE cars are much more trouble to maintain and cost more to maintain, and as of this year, produce.

ICE cars release more pollutants, while electric cars are annually decreasing and can continue to decrease their pollutants.

There's a huge difference between electric and ICE, don't let some imagined ideal stop you from supporting a practical leap in the right direction.

Trainguyrom

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ICE cars haven’t significantly improved in close to a century

Let's see, power steering and seatbelts became standard around half a century ago, the OBD2 port became standard in the 80s, radios got significantly better, starting as a simple AM Radio to then also putting in an 8 track player, and in the 90s and 2000syou could get multiple disc changer radios (I had a 2005 Ford Escape I got for next to nothing a few years agp which had a 5 cd changer stock) then in the last 20 years fuel efficiency has improved dramatically. And this is all just what I can think of as someone who sometimes walks through car shows to look at the pretty cars but has no clue what he's looking at.

I get what you're saying about EVs being a brilliant step forward from ICE vehicles. Technically I think an all-electric drivetrain should be the way forwards on all vehicles, including hybrids (seriously if it's good enough for basically every diesel locomotive out there, it's good enough for a car) but you have to be honest in your arguments

Varyk

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I agree that car accessories like radios, seat belts, and CD players have improved significantly, but that does not translate to ICEs themselves being significantly improved.

Combustion engines:

1923 - 14 mpg

1966 - 13.5 mpg

1991 - 16 mpg

2019 - 25mpg

Electric cars:

2009 - 85 mpge

2019 - 113

Drivetrains, fuel efficiency, sustainable fuel (solar panels built into the body of the car), battery tech improvement, and so on.

Electric cars have all of the accessory improvements you're talking about related to ICEs, but are also rapidly minimizing all the relevant material, environmental, and even maintenance costs of manufacturing and operating vehicles to become more sustainable at a much more rapid pace than ICEs have.

31337

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Those numbers will go down once everyone is driving 4wd EV Suburbans with half-inch steel plate armor (you know, just so they feel their kids are safe) :)

Trainguyrom

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I'm hoping the current lack of sedan/small car options and growing bad press surrounding large vehicles will lead to a resurgence of small cars in 7-15 years, but I doubt it will in reality

Varyk

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Haha, yeah, we'll have to see the balance between technological progress and the burden of American ego.

Nalivai

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Ah yes, radio, the main issue why cars kill the environment that much. Or was it the number of Ethernet ports in old OBD connector? I can't quite remember what issue contributes more to climate change

Trainguyrom

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Cars are shit for the climate regardless of the drivetrain. Electric cars are here to save car manufacturers, not the world.

My comment has little to do with climate friendliness and everything to do with improvements in just the last half century with vehicles when the poster I was replying to tried to say that there's been zero improvements in vehicles for a century

Caitlyynn

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Seems like you dont understand the problem

Varyk

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Love to hear your thoughts

kugel7c

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The problem is obviously a general over reliance on motorized road transport and a continuing trend towards more.

Varyk

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If that's the problem, what is the question?

AnAngryAlpaca

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"How can we sell large homes on cheap land outside of the city, while people still need to get 20km into the city daily for work and groceries?"

lntl

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fuck cars

Silverseren

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The easiest way to ensure that would be to get rid of all gasoline-based gas stations and replace them with electric ones. So even if someone tries to sneak in a gas car, they won't be able to refill it.

LanternEverywhere

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That wouldn't work, there are zillions of existing ICE cars there already in use. They aren't banning ICE cars that are already there, just banning importation of new ones

Duamerthrax

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Not to mention non-street legal ICE engines, like generators, water pumps or ag equipment. We should be pursing less reliance on fossil fuels, but in the correct order. More EVs means more need for reliable power infrastructure. Then we wouldn't need generators, irrigation pumps become easier to run from electricity and tractors can be migrated to EV or fueled by biofuels(biogas or biodiesel) to fill the gap.

Akasazh

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It seems like this article doesn't hold up too scrutiny:

https://kbin.social/m/technology@lemmy.world/t/809052/-/comment/4961022

silence7

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Thanks. I'll edit.

Akasazh

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Cheers!

Uranium3006

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I hope they build a lot of transit too

Death_Equity

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*China has entered the chat

benjhm

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Many old cars that are no longer allowed in european cities end up exported to Africa. This leap-frogging move (esp if others copy) changes the outlook - depreciation of ic-cars accelerates, europeans might have to recycle more. Otoh, there are not yet so many 2nd-hand e-cars, so poorer people in rural areas of Ethiopia might be stuck - unless there is plenty of public transport even outside of cities? Wonder whether it applies to (mini-)buses?

MrMakabar

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Also only 51% of Ethipians have access to electricity. That is access for at least four hours a day and enough to charge a phone, have some light and other light tasks. Charging an EV is another league entirly.

So this might backfire badly. At the same time it makes oil infrastructure obsolete and China is selling extremely cheap EVs these days. The BYD Seagull at $11,000 is rather competitive for a new car and something like a Guang Hong Mini for $4500 is also available. Obviously that is not used cars territory, but we are going to see second hand cars of these cars as well and they will be even cheaper.

li10

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Seems like a surprising move, of all the countries that can do it I’d have thought Ethiopia would be near the bottom.

I guess this would also only apply to individuals and not HGVs?

I’m pro trying it, but have my doubts about how viable this is.

silence7

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Per the article, viability is caused by an inability to afford oil, so electric becomes appreciably more reliable by comparison.

Trainguyrom

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In hindsight it makes sense that smaller countries that might struggle to import oil would be the first ones to convert. They already have to supply electricity, why supply a second form of energy too?

VindictiveJudge

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Kind of like how developing countries tend to skip over landline phones and go straight to cell phones. Why bother with that whole other form of infrastructure?