Royal Automobile Club of Queensland Pivots to EVs

The Royal Automobile Club of Queensland ran its annual Motorfest day on the 19th June. Sadly, it was the same date as the Noosa EV Expo and I was unable to attend. Many of my friends did and they have graciously allowed me to use their comments.

RACQ Events Manager Tamara Van Der Walt said another highlight of this year’s event would be the Future Zone, which delves into the exciting technologies reshaping the motoring industry. “The Future Zone will showcase the latest in low-emissions vehicle technology and the future of mobility,” Ms Van Der Walt said.

“RACQ have been providing services to motorists for many years. I have been a member for over 40 years and have had to avail myself of their services. This was mainly for George, my 1964 Wolseley. It was at one of these visits that the roadside assistance mechanic also met Tess (my 2019 Tesla 3) and we had a discussion about RACQ’s plan to be future ready. He told me of the Roadside Assistance vans that were already equipped with battery chargers for EVs. I am thankful that I have not had to use one, though we did appreciate the RACQ tow truck when a large piece of steel went through the rear tire of our Tesla on the way to Warwick.”

ride4U RACQ

Katrina tells me that June 19th was a great day with perfect weather and really well attended. There was something for everyone from classic cars, to the beautiful Jaguars to modern EVs in the Future Zone. EVs were well represented with a range of BEVs from Tesla, Hyundai, Porsche, Kia, and Mazda had a hybrid. There was a hydrogen vehicle from Queensland Transport as part of their future energy strategy.

There was even a Volvo truck and an electric scooter.

The EVs were nicely juxtaposed against the vintage cars, as well as the RACQ’s stand which featured a craft section for kids from the fabulous Reverse Garbage and of course the food, face painting, and rides for the kids. Charging infrastructure providers were also represented at the Futures area, ReGenEV, Plug Share and Chargefox.

Arran from ReGenEV tells me that there were a lot of very interested people in the Future Zone, and EVs in general. His Tesla Model X received a lot of attention, especially when it did its light show. ReGenEV received a broad variety of business leads from large apartment complexes to basic home installs.

ReGenEV even had a visit from ABC News. The segment was aired that night as part of their nightly weather time slot. The segment features a snippet of ReGenEV display and had a nice young kid for an up close interview in our Tesla Model X.

The Future Zone was popular

Next year, though, Arran will section of his X, for viewing only. Too many kids played with the screen, changed the settings, and left their foot and finger prints behind.

Adam suggested that soon his “Tesla” will be normal — so perhaps next year RACQ should rename the Future Zone to the Electric Vehicle Zone. He would like to see the Zone relocated to an area that is easier for the public to find. Of the 100 or so people that looked at his car, about 30 asked questions. Most were questions from the curious, some were provocative. “Come and join the cult!” someone shouted out.

The event was well supported by the EV community — including Australian Association of Electric Vehicles and the Tesla Owners Club. Well done RACQ, check out their reviews of EVs at the back of their club magazine. Six of the best indeed.

By David Waterworth with a little help from his friends

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