Who would drive an Electric Vehicle

[peoriairish]

i hope im around when the billionaire in australia creates dinosaurs that would be badass as i grew up loving jurassic park hopefully the team that created dolly the lamb can do the same with the recreation of a dinosaur

It's called a period, bro. Use it every once in a while.

 

[irishfanjho15]

im not high just really bored

I know but honestly from electric cars to real life Jurassic Park? I mean a guy had to ask lol.

and the dinosaur thing is actually a true story about an insane aussie billionaire

Australian billionaire creating a real Jurassic Park? | MNN - Mother Nature Network

Awesome.

 

[dshans]

The future of energy and its relationship to transportation, be it individual or mass, depends on advances in capture and storage. Many (15 to 20) years ago I signed on to be a test site for a company that touted a home hydrogen fuel cell unit that would have powered my home, an EV car and returned excess production to "the grid."

Sadly this was not to be. Fortunately this has not dampened my hopes. An electric car that can travel 350 miles at 65 miles an hour (close to 5.5 hours) with a ten minute time to fully re-charge is intriguing and enticing. How long does it take to grab a cup of coffee, a microwave burger and take a whizz every now and again on a long drive? If, like me, you tend to drive less than 50 miles a day, what is the inconvenience of plugging in overnight at home or on the road?

I look at it this way: had I pooh-poohed notions such as energy efficiency, microwave ovens, walking on the moon, PCs and the internet because they were costly to develop I'd be a sorrier soul than I am today. I wouldn't be able to torture you good folk.

Embrace the challenge. The future is not the property of those who currently exist with current "means." It is the birthright of those who follow; who benefit from the innovation and unselfishness who precede them.

Hell, when I bought a 1976 Honda Civic that boasted "up to" 25 mpg highway that barely fit three people with any degree of comfort I was one happy camper. And that was when gas jumped from 45 cents a gallon to a dollar 25 cents a gallon.

Government mandated standards, be they seat belts, mpg, shoulder restraints, crash resilient cab design, air bags etc.; aren't always bad, even when delayed years by the lobbying of manufacturers.

Faith in a dream, here or there, is the stuff of life.

 

[JadeBrecks]

It would have to perform like a gas vehicle. It would need to have the traveling distance of a gas vehicle. Recharge tines would need to be really really low and easily accessible. And i don't wasn't to have to buy a $10k battery every couple of years for it. In fact i don't want to ever have to replace it. Combine all that together and no I'm not driving electric for a long long time. Gas works keep it clean and keep rocking it till someone can replace it.

 

[BleedBlueGold]

I think those of you skeptics need to investigate Tesla Motors a little more thoroughly. Their cars are quick, powerful, and economical as far as charging goes (it doesn't increase yearly electric costs anywhere close to the yearly cost of gasoline) and many owners install solar panels to charge for free. The downside to these full-electric cars is 1) Tesla models are outrageously expensive and financially out of reach to the majority of people and 2) There is little to no infrastructure for re-charging along highways (like gas stations vs charge stations). Not to mention the length of time it takes to reach full charge. Tesla is way ahead of the curve, imo. They're on the right track. If I had the money, I would've already bought one.

Tesla Motors | Premium Electric Vehicles

For you speedsters:

For you luxury/sport sedan lovers:

For you SUV family passenger soccer mom lovers:

 

[BleedBlueGold]

Of course, provided it can go 500mpt, 100mph, and recharging in <15min.

A few things worth noting:

1) There's a difference between being able to do something technologically and doing something economically.

2) Even if every car on the road was an electric car and we didn't use a drop of gasoline, we'd still have major issues. For starters, there simply won't be enough space on the roads to support everyone having a car if you take into account population growth. What do we do when the population doubles to 600mil, have 15-lane highways? We have to invest in sustainable transportation systems and land use models.

3) We'd still need oil for a myriad of other products.

I wholeheartedly agree with this. Super railways and speed trains for mass transportation as well as upgraded city public transits should be at the top of everyone's list.

Smash the atom, instead. Fusion power will so many of the world's problems.

It blows my mind to think about where we will be in 2100.

We will have a fusion power plant on every continent, and have practically free electricity. We will have batteries that last 100x what they last now. You will charge your cell phone three times a year! haha

We'll have robotics mastered to the point where we won't need manufacturers. We won't need to work. It'll be 99% leisure.

Medically, we will have crushed cancer. Maybe not with medicine, but with nanotechnology. We'll have nanotechnology down so well that we'll be able to revitalize individual cells--and reverse aging in the process.

Science is incredible. Let's hope we don't blow ourselves up before utopia is possible.

I can see it now...obesity rates hit all-time high in a world where no one works but machine robots. Although, by this time we should have found the magic pill for weight loss. Screw it, I'm in!

Valid point. Good luck with that.

 

[BleedBlueGold]

Funny you ask. My uncle told me yesterday that they are buying a Tesla Model S Electric Car

Looks good but only can go 300 miles at full charge. Dumb investment IMO.

I'm jealous your uncle will be getting one. I love this car and have been ever since they released the first concept.

To give you a little insight: "Only 300 miles at full charge" is the best available in Tesla's market. They offer four different types of batteries ranging from 160 miles to 300 miles (plus performance). I commute 150 miles each day to work. The smallest battery they offer would be plenty for me, personally. The daily cost to charge a Model S in my personal situation is around $5.50 (that's 4 hours of charging time daily to achieve my 150 mile range). That's $27.50 per work week. I currently own a Jetta TDi and with diesel in Indianapolis being around $4.00 per gallon and driving 750 miles per week, I spend about $75 per work week.

Sure, there are people who commute 300+ miles a day and to them I say, "Sorry. You just have to wait a little longer." But at the moment, if I recall correctly, the Leaf and Volt battery ranges are far less.

And clearly, road trips are pretty much out of the question at this point until the ranges increase and/or the charging becomes more efficient.

I'm not sure they're a "dumb investment" either. Yes, more expensive up front (mainly because of battery cost). But the cost of gas is rising at rapid rates. The money you save in electric costs in the long run makes it worth it. Not to mention, that like all technology, the more available it becomes, the cheaper it will be. The price of these total electric cars will come down eventually.

 

[BGIF]

i hope im around when the billionaire in australia creates dinosaurs that would be badass as i grew up loving jurassic park hopefully the team that created dolly the lamb can do the same with the recreation of a dinosaur

Preferably the one with an acquired taste for lawyers.

 

[NankerPhelge]

Does anyone here know anything about whale oil?

 

[Irish Houstonian]

Here in Houston we have a few nat gas and electricity refueling stations. One elec. station is just up the road at the Cracker Barrel (not kidding). So they're coming, you just need a critical mass of users.

I'm personally much more jazzed about the Google self-driving car.

 

[kmoose]

Smash the atom, instead. Fusion power will so many of the world's problems.

It blows my mind to think about where we will be in 2100.

We will have a fusion power plant on every continent, and have practically free electricity. We will have batteries that last 100x what they last now. You will charge your cell phone three times a year! haha

We'll have robotics mastered to the point where we won't need manufacturers. We won't need to work. It'll be 99% leisure.

Medically, we will have crushed cancer. Maybe not with medicine, but with nanotechnology. We'll have nanotechnology down so well that we'll be able to revitalize individual cells--and reverse aging in the process.

Science is incredible. Let's hope we don't blow ourselves up before utopia is possible.

Still arguing over Rees vs. Golson, most likely!

 

[irishpat183]

You chumps got it all wrong.


Flying cars.


I'm holding out for those.

 

[BobD]

I spend about 3 hours each work day driving to and from work, so I've been considering a hybrid vehicle. One thing I've been wondering is, what are we going to do with all of these old batteries in 10-20 years?

 

[RyCo1983]

You chumps got it all wrong.


Flying cars.


I'm holding out for those.

2015 is less than 3 years away!

Goldie Wilson Hover Conversion Systems will do a hover conversion on any car for $39,999.95

 

[PraetorianND]

I'm all about the Hybrid Plug-Ins. When you run out of juice on your bat it switches to your gas tank. So if you're driving around town it's likely going to use electric only. If you're driving long distance you're not going to have to try to find an electric station.

That being said, it would be great if they weren't 40k and ugly as hell like the Volt.

I like the premise though.

 

[NankerPhelge]

I think I would learn something about whale oil before I considered the viability of electric vehicles.

 

[JadeBrecks]

Here in Houston we have a few nat gas and electricity refueling stations. One elec. station is just up the road at the Cracker Barrel (not kidding). So they're coming, you just need a critical mass of users.

I'm personally much more jazzed about the Google self-driving car.

I also dont think you guys understand what you will need to put all these systems in. They will be a massive load on electrical systems that already can't support the draw that is on them now. Most power companies give you discounts for becoming more energy efficient. Do you really think they want you paying less? Also what are you going to do to get to work when a rolling brown out happens in the middle of the summer or ice takes out your power lines in the winter. Something like this happens and your car isn't charged.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

I also dont think you guys understand what you will need to put all these systems in. They will be a massive load on electrical systems that already can't support the draw that is on them now. Most power companies give you discounts for becoming more energy efficient. Do you really think they want you paying less? Also what are you going to do to get to work when a rolling brown out happens in the middle of the summer or ice takes out your power lines in the winter. Something like this happens and your car isn't charged.

Good point. If only we had a federal administration willing to allow energy development that keeps pace with population and innovation...

 

[Irishnuke]

Does anyone here know anything about whale oil?

It comes from whales.

 

[IrishJayhawk]

You chumps got it all wrong.


Flying cars.


I'm holding out for those.

Roads? Where we're going...we don't need...roads...

 

[Me2SouthBend]

Probably someone who writes 100 word sentences.

Hey Brick, I'd like to introduce you to BGIF.

 

[choo choo]

i havent seen any electric jeeps yet so i guess nope

 

[peoriairish]

i havent seen any electric jeeps yet so i guess nope

I'm glad someone else is on the same level as me. Automobiles are for enjoyment and work.

 

[arahop]

Of course, provided it can go 500mpt, 100mph, and recharging in <15min.

A few things worth noting:

1) There's a difference between being able to do something technologically and doing something economically.

2) Even if every car on the road was an electric car and we didn't use a drop of gasoline, we'd still have major issues. For starters, there simply won't be enough space on the roads to support everyone having a car if you take into account population growth. What do we do when the population doubles to 600mil, have 15-lane highways? We have to invest in sustainable transportation systems and land use models.

3) We'd still need oil for a myriad of other products.

What wouldn't be economical about electric over oil? The world's economy and ours has been run by oil for way longer than it should have. It will be an enormous shakeup but an absolute necessary one. I do agree with your 2nd and 3rd points, unfortunately the government refuses to change with technology being perfectly content with the constant income of oil. Ford and Tesla's 1st designs for the automobile were electric, getting talked out of it for constant income by the president. It's pretty embarrassing that we still run on oil. Tesla would've laughed if he would've known that 100 years later we ran cars with oil still.

 

[RallySonsOfND]

With an increase in the use of electric vehicles, we will see a decline in the revenue of gasoline taxes, taxing the complementary good (gas) to fix and build roads. People using electric vehicles are getting the same use of the roads but paying less than those without electric vehicles in taxes to use the same roads.


If we continue to move forward with electric vehicles (I believe bio-diesels and Natural Gas are the future) we need to look at reformatting the tax structure to compensate for the lost revenue.

 

[woolybug25]

Whenever I hear "Tesla", I cant help but to think of:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7m7FpzOxbkQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[JDub713]

To the OP: The technology just isn't quite there yet for Joe Schmo to be able to afford what's in the near future, at least pure electric. Some manufacturers are using performance hybrids to enter the hybrid market. These are different than pure economy hybrids, and it falls in line with what most Americans would likely want rather than a pure electric/gas hybrid.

The Prius/Civic/Volt etc, switch to the gasoline engine to power the car once the hybrid drives battery is depleted. A performance hybrid can use both at the same time. At lower street driving speeds, under light throttle, the vehicle is powered purely electric. Once the battery is depleted, the E-drive starts the engine and uses it as a generator to recharge the E-Drive battery, and power the vehicles drive train. Once the battery is recharged, the gas engine shuts off and the car switches back to electric power only. All accessories that are typically engine driven (air conditioning, power steering, etc) considered and no longer belt driven. Steering assist is now electro-mechanical, and a separate electric motor driven by the E-Drive turns the AC compressor.

The performance part is really cool; it's like supercharging your gas engine instantly and can be manually activated by the driver. It uses the E-Drive at the same time as the gas engine to give it a big power boost. Example would be a 335 HP engine with 320 Lb. Ft. of torque, and in performance mode it would put out numbers like 390 HP and 420 Lb. Ft. of torque instantly with the hybrid assist. And because the gas engine is running, the battery is being charged, so the power boost is always there. Each mode can be manually selected by the driver through the radio screen. These are things that are on the market right now, but vehicle costs start in the $65-70k range and go up.

Another factor that hybrid buyers should think about the cost of the hybrid battery. These things are no joke EXPENSIVE. I think Prius hybrid batteries are in the range of $5k+ with labor included. I'm sure you could tack on an extra $1-3k at least for the European cars.

 

[phgreek]

The future of energy and its relationship to transportation, be it individual or mass, depends on advances in capture and storage. Many (15 to 20) years ago I signed on to be a test site for a company that touted a home hydrogen fuel cell unit that would have powered my home, an EV car and returned excess production to "the grid."

Ah yess...the hydrogen economy. My company did some R&D with the Army. We even helped build a fuel cell locomotive. Alas SOFC and the like...pretty tough. Seems like we could never get Detroit on a path with supply entrepreneurs. I often wandered if the intermediate soltion was building cars that ran by combustion of hydrogen...not such a big shift for detroit, and immediate market results for those that would supply....who knows.

 

[BleedBlueGold]

Bumping this thread to ask if anyone (now 9 years later) owns an EV or PHEV (plug-in hybrid)?

TLDR: The engine on my Jetta TDi blew recently and forced me to turn my BMW X5 into a daily driver. I hate racking up the miles on it --> Gas and maintenance aren't cheap and I didn't buy it with intentions of driving 150+ miles per day. So I'm looking into hybrids, EV, and PHEV and would love insight from those who own them.

I can't afford a Tesla. I'd prefer to not wait until next year (which eliminates some models that are projected to release in 2022). I also prefer a small-to-mid sized SUV because I like the higher ride.

My list so far: Kia Sorrento Hybrid (regular hybrid and PHEV version), Rav4 (hybrid and Prime). The Nissan Ariya is intriguing but I'd have to wait until next year...

Random question: Can I charge my car at any charging station? Is it free? If not, how do they bill you? I've never used one...

 

[notredomer23]

Bumping this thread to ask if anyone (now 9 years later) owns an EV or PHEV (plug-in hybrid)?

TLDR: The engine on my Jetta TDi blew recently and forced me to turn my BMW X5 into a daily driver. I hate racking up the miles on it --> Gas and maintenance aren't cheap and I didn't buy it with intentions of driving 150+ miles per day. So I'm looking into hybrids, EV, and PHEV and would love insight from those who own them.

I can't afford a Tesla. I'd prefer to not wait until next year (which eliminates some models that are projected to release in 2022). I also prefer a small-to-mid sized SUV because I like the higher ride.

My list so far: Kia Sorrento Hybrid (regular hybrid and PHEV version), Rav4 (hybrid and Prime). The Nissan Ariya is intriguing but I'd have to wait until next year...

Random question: Can I charge my car at any charging station? Is it free? If not, how do they bill you? I've never used one...

Do not own one, but you don't wanna stick with VW and go with their new EV especially since you're looking for a small SUV? I believe it is only a 240 mile battery, but I think it charges in 30 minutes or something like that. Think after tax credits you would be paying mid to high 30s.