Tamworth car dealers say electric vehicles have many positives, although need improvement for rural areas

That is the capability of the latest generation of electric vehicles in Australia, although Woodley's Motors principal Mark Woodley believes "there is a bit of a road ahead" before electric vehicles are mainstream in regional areas.

Last week the NRMA installed a free 'fast charger' at the Hands of Fame Park, as part of a statewide regional network, that can charge a vehicle in under 30 minutes, which Mr Woodley believes could be the start of a change in mindset.

"The issue is charging, especially in a big wide country like Australia," he said.

"I think hybrid vehicles that are electric with small petrol or diesel back-up engines will be normal within two years - rural people need that certainty.

"It will happen, but there has got to be a lot of change and a lot of improvement yet, as well as a lot more charging stations."

Unlike combustion engines, electric cars actually get more mileage out of city-style start stop driving, as the engine uses braking friction to recharge the battery, and are also much cheaper to maintain according to Tamworth Jaguar Landrover (JT Fossey) brand manager Jason McGregor.

"The only liquid in an electric car is the windscreen wiper fluid, so there is a lot less heat and moving parts, which keeps maintenance costs right down," he said.

"We still have a way to go but they are becoming more popular."

In Australia 2700 electric vehicles were purchased in 2017, however that represented a 67 per cent increase on 2016, with those figures estimated to continue rapidly increasing.