The above ad was banned by the UK's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) because they thought is was misleading. The argument they presented is because most people that drive the car will need to get electricity from the grid which burns mostly coal for generation so the car is responsible for emissions, even if the pollution is not emitting from the car itself.
This is called the "long tailpipe" argument that EV opponents use to undermine the benefits of electric vehicles. There is some truth to it, since most electricity generation does cause emissions, but there have been countless studies that have proven how much better it is for the environment to use grid-generated electric verses gasoline. Plus, you can generate electricity from clean, renewable sources, something you can never say about gasoline.
So I have a suggestion for BMW. Deliver the first ActiveE you produce to me and I'll swap it for the MINI-E. You can then take photos of me driving the car and charging it at my home with my 8.8kwh solar PV system in the background and you can advertise how the car is truly a zero emission vehicle since it is charged exclusively from my home where I generate more than double the electric that the car will need to use. My ActiveE will be a zero emission vehicle, period!
You have my contact info BMW, in case you like the idea......
