Hacks

Making photocopies of official documents such as your driver's licence seems like a sensible precaution to take – but is the act of doing it illegal?

It wouldn't be the full Australian urban driving experience if you didn't have to carefully consider a few poorly labelled signs before deciding whether it's safe to park or stop there.

It can take between an hour and a day to charge your car battery depending on the type of battery you have, and the amperage of the charger used.The different types of chargerYou may have noticed there are all sorts of battery chargers on the market and understanding their different uses is key to picking the right one for your situation.Generally, the time taken to charge a battery from flat to full is determined by the amperage of the charger used.Linear battery chargers are the simplest kind of charger and will allow you to charge a battery via a wall socket without any bells and whistles, but often operate at low amperage.The cheapest available Repco-branded battery charger, for example, runs at 2.7amp which will easily take up to 12 hours to charge a run-of-the mill 12-volt lead-acid battery (as is found in most cars) to full.Linear battery chargers simply continuously charge a battery, and do not have controllers that stop charging the battery when it is at capacity. This can cause damage to the battery’s lifespan, or even cause the battery to explode or fail in certain conditions.Multi-stage battery chargers are more expensive (ranging from $90 to $1100) but recharge the battery in bursts. This is healthier for battery cells and resists long-term damage that can be done by simply charging them continuously.Multi-stage (also known as smart or intelligent chargers) are also available at much higher amperage, up to 50A which will allow you to charge a standard car battery in less than an hour.NRMA tells us that while batteries charge faster at higher amperage, it is better in the long-term to charge at lower amperage as rapid charging can negatively impact battery life.Pricier chargers will also have gauges or indicators to let you check the voltage of the battery.Trickle chargers are the last kind of charger and operate at low amperages (between 0.8A – 4A). These are not meant for charging a battery when it goes flat but are meant to prevent the problem in the first place by being connected to the battery in times when the vehicle is not in use.If you have a more advanced battery such as an Enhanced Flooded Battery (EFB) or an Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) battery (the kind often used to support cars with stop-start systems), NRMA tells us this is a good thing as these types of batteries can be charged the same way, actually accept charge faster than their standard lead-acid counterparts, and are designed to operate properly at lower voltages.What if you jump start your car?We don’t recommend using jumper cables for starting most modern cars where you can avoid it, as there is a risk that modern electrical systems can be damaged in the process.If you were stuck in a pinch and had little choice though, how long would you have to drive or idle the car to charge the battery back up again, so you can safely turn the vehicle off and expect it to start again later?NRMA’s advice for a standard battery is “around 30 minutes.” This is because a car’s alternator operates at between 50 and 100A, thus charges a battery relatively quickly.Roadside support services like NRMA, RACQ, or RACV, or even a manufacturer roadside support service can safely jump start modern cars without risk to electrical systems through use of a spike protector, with regulated voltage via an Anderson Plug.These tools prevent damage to the battery and negate the chances of a spark occurring which can cause a battery to fail.If in doubt when it comes to what kind of battery you have or need to jump-start your vehicle, it is best to contact one of these services.

Unfortunately, the easiest way to do things is often the most expensive, and that's certainly the case when it comes to buying a car.

It may seem remarkable, as electric vehicles suddenly become a hot political potato, but the fact is that the world's largest car company, and our top-selling brand, Toyota, does not offer a single full EV for sale in this country. Or many anywhere, for that matter.It seems even more surprising because, perhaps more than any other mainstream car-maker, Toyota is synonymous with pioneering green-friendly environmental technologies, most famously in the slightly ungainly shape of its hybrid sales giant, the Prius, which was first launched here a whopping 18 years ago.Suddenly, in EV terms, it does look like Toyota is somewhat behind EV innovator Tesla, and the big names that are now getting on board, with Nissan already offering the Leaf in Australia, Jaguar the iPace and Hyundai its new Kona EV and Ioniq (plus Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi all entering the market as well).As you might imagine, Toyota has recently been talking up its EV future, its pledge to create a zero-emissions fleet worldwide by 2050 and its promise that all its models will be "electrified" by 2025. But what does that mean, exactly? Will there be a full electric Toyota for sale in Australia by then? Does "electrified" just mean a hybrid, or a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV)?Let's sort the facts from the speculation and take a closer look at the future of Toyota electric vehicles.Toyota will make some full EVs... soon(And it will sell lots of them, in some countries…)In the far more mature EV market of Europe, Toyota is really talking up its EV future, and sounds quite serious about it. Toyota Europe says it knows that "petrol-electric hybrids are not the only solution we can use to help deliver better, more energy-efficient transport" and as a result it has been developing battery electric vehicle technology as part of its "future mobility roadmap". Not only does Toyota Europe believe in EVs, it's going to do its bit to help: "We need to encourage large numbers of people to adopt them, so we will be launching more than 10 battery electric vehicle models by the early 2020s. "Our battery electric vehicles will help to sell more than 5.5 million electrified vehicles each year by around 2030."All good news, unless you live in Australia, because "Our first target market will be China, after which we expect to roll them out to customers in Japan, India, the United States and Europe."Even in the US, however, Toyota seems somewhat hesitant to commit to going fully electric, most likely because it's already doing very well, thanks very much, with its hybrid approach, and plenty more of them planned for the near future. Toyota has also invested heavily in hydrogen fuel cell technology, which is the major alternative to EVs in terms of zero-emission motoring.Bob Carter, executive vice president of sales for Toyota Motor North America, took offence when asked whether he felt bad getting beaten by Tesla in terms of the EV market."I'd argue to the contrary," he said. "When you are looking at full electric, whether it's Tesla or others on the market, they represented last year less than one percent of the industry. "Our strategy is to keep utilising our hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and eventually bring in battery-electric vehicles as the market grows."Carter has also predicted that EVs will still only take up between four and six per cent of sales in the US between 2025 and 2030, which is a figure that's lower than most other companies' estimates.Globally, Toyota has pledged that by 2025, every model in its line-up, and in that of its sister company Lexus, will be "available either as a dedicated electrified model or have an electrified option", which still leaves it plenty of wriggle room to keep selling hybrids.It has, however, predicted sales of more than 1 million zero-emission vehicles by around 2030.But what about Toyota EVs in Australia?The vice-president of sales and marketing for Toyota Australia, Sean Hanley, doesn't sound exactly gung-ho about bringing EVs to our market, perhaps because, like a lot of other industry pundits, he just doesn't think sales are going to explode the way that some politicians predict they will."Plug-in electric will be available," he said, but "right now hybrid is leading and in the foreseeable future I think that is what is going to happen," he says."Hydrogen fuel-cell infrastructure, development and maturity will take some time. In the mean time, Toyota has a credible alternative powertrain called hybrid."And he also says: "We make no apologies for not having a full EV in the market today."Which doesn't sound like what you'd say if you were in a hurry to launch a competitor to the Nissan Leaf, or Tesla's Model 3. As big, powerful and influential as Toyota is, it seems to be banking, for now, on the fact that some people would rather take the Band-Aid solution that is hybrid technology than take the risk on cutting themselves off completely from the safety and security of being able to use petrol stations. As a Toyota spokesman said recently, the company believes that much more spending on charging infrastructure and solutions to power-supply issues in Australia are needed "before the mass introduction and adoption of electric vehicles in the market can become a reality".Hanley also points to the obvious continuing success of Toyota's hybrid approach, with the Camry Hybrid now accounting for more than 50 per cent of Camry orders, and the Corolla Hybrid accounting for a third of that badge's sales. A new RAV4 hybrid is on the way (as is a hybrid HiLux, eventually), and is expected to make up as many as 40 per cent of that car's sales.As long as Toyota can offer its customers a slightly less scary green option than going fully EV, and make good money doing so, it's not going to be the fastest company to jump on the EV bandwagon, at least in Australia.If our market starts to move towards EVs quicker than expected, however, the fact that Toyota is already committed to developing them for other markets means it won't take long to react if required.

Why driving without a licence is a terrible idea

Before rushing to contact your dealer, you really should consider whether there might be a more affordable key fob replacement alternative.

Australia, you have a problem. It seems like a simple task, but reverse parallel parking (also known as parallel parking or reverse parking in different parts of the globe) intimidates many drivers. This can be from never having been shown properly how to parallel park, poor spatial awareness, or not

No, driving in sandals isn’t illegal but if it impairs your ability to be in full control of your vehicle, then you could still be pulled over. Sandals, slides, thongs, Crocs, jandals, flip-flops - there’s a wide variety of loose-fitting footwear out there and lots of colourful names for the stuff that we slip on our feet in a rush. But whatever you wear and whatever you want to call it, none of it is illegal. Unless, of course, driving while wearing sandals causes you to drive carelessly. There are often different rules (or variations of the same rule) for roads across Australia, but all states and territories are subject to Australian Road Rules. And according to Australian Road Rule 297, you must not drive a vehicle unless you have proper control of the vehicle. You can get pinged for this law by driving while having an animal or person on your lap, being distracted by hands-free technology, or wearing footwear that slides around and impairs your ability to use your pedals properly. A good idea is to drive barefoot instead of wearing sandals if it comes to that, since that means your feet won’t be slipping or sliding around. The penalties for driving without proper control of your vehicle vary across the nation but in New South Wales, according to NSW Roads and Maritime Services demerits schedule, you’re potentially risking a $448 fine and three demerit points.In Victoria, as per VicRoads information on demerit offences, careless driving can set you back three demerit points and, in some cases, result in a requirement to complete a safe driving program. Similar penalties apply across the country. It’s also important to remember that if you could be found to be driving illegally, you’re risking any insurance agreement you may have in place. While you should always check your specific agreement for details, be aware that if you get into an accident while you’re not in proper control of your vehicle because you’re wearing sandals, your insurance agreement may be voided. But if you can speed down the highway in Crocs without it impairing your driving, then the only cops you have to worry about are the fashion police.This article is not intended as legal advice. You should check with your local road authority to verify the information written here is suitable to your situation before driving in this manner.

Make no mistake, the electric-vehicle revolution is coming, and there will be a time - and soon - in which we measure the cost of filling a car.