EVs must excite people & not be dreary, Top Gear legend Richard Hammond says as he reveals why drivers won’t buy them
TOP GEAR legend Richard Hammond has said electric cars ‘are amazing’ – but has picked out the reason why people might not buy them.
The popular TV host, 53, spoke openly and honestly about EVs on TikTok, emphasising that motoring will need to go through a major change in the future.
Hammond has revealed he’s owned a handful of electric cars in recent years, including a Tesla Model X and a Mercedes EQS.
But when asked what he really thinks about electric cars by ‘She Talks Cars‘ presenter Abigayle Andre, Hammond said: “I think they [EVs] can be amazing and they have their place.
“We have to stop digging up fossil fuel and releasing more carbon into the atmosphere, but the answer isn’t and can’t be for us all to drive electric cars.
“I don’t think they’ll ever achieve that but they are an essential part of the picture alongside hydrogen combustion, hydrogen fuel cells and synthetic fuel in internal combustion engines needed to keep 1.6 billion cars on the road.”
The legendary presenter added that ‘the future can be incredibly exciting’ with current petrol-driven road cars running on ‘synthetic fuels’.
But the motoring fanatic believes the problem may boil down to how EV brands market themselves and how they can appeal to proper car enthusiasts.
He added: “We don’t want dreary, anonymous autonomous Tupperware boxes, so we won’t buy them.
“What we’ll buy is cars that excite – a machine that moves us physically and moves us emotionally.”
Hammond hosted hugely popular BBC motoring show Top Gear alongside Jeremy Clarkson and James May during its 16-year heyday.
The trio can now be found on the television series The Grand Tour for Amazon Prime Video, as well the YouTube channel Drivetribe.
And Hammond recently hit out over claims that Top Gear is too dangerous to make after it was axed following Freddie Flintoff’s horror smash.
He said: “I think with all shows occasionally things go wrong. You’ve got to mitigate against that as best you can – and then hope.
“There are dangers to anything. You can fall off a ladder.”
In other news, another Top Gear legend is selling his iconic motor at an auction.
Elsewhere, the UK’s fastest-selling used car for October has been revealed as a model that was discontinued three years ago.