Electric vehicles

[electra225]

Out here in God's country, we are inundated with Teslas. There are LOTS of them running out here. Seems like every traffic accident out here has a Prius or a Honda Fit involved in it somehow. With gas prices expected to hit $5 a gallon in the Valley by summer, the market for such vehicles may be stronger. My old golf cart will run about 50 miles on a charge here on flat ground. The cops sit watch for golf carts operated by underage drivers. The penalties are pretty stiff. You can get your can tossed in the clink and get your buggy impounded. My point in all this is there may not be an opportunity to buy a vehicle with an interna' combustion engine in it very many years hence. GM just introduced its all-electric Silverado pickup. Maybe having an electric car for around here, then renting a gas engine car if we want to go out of town might be a good way to go in the future. I can't see taking a trip from here to the east coast in an electric car being a worthwhile pursuit. Any of you guys had experience or thoughts on electric cars?

[Firedome]

Electric will be the way of the future, and that future will be here very soon. We plan to keep the mileage way down on our near mint 64K mile Xterra Pro 4X for trip use, the Mustang convert with 62k miles for fun, the 200k great-running beater Xterra S for winter duty, and eventually get an electric for most local town and country use.

We have most of the parts for a 5kW (expandable) solar system that can be used on and off grid and can power an electric car, house, mower, tools etc. We'd like to be as independent as possible for if/when the excrement hits the ventilator for some reason (there are many - everyone should check out Ted Koppel's book "Lights Out", it's a sobering read.)

Anyhow the soon-to-be-introduced vehicle we like right now is the Toyota electric "Compact Cruiser", you can go anywhere on electricity and we already have a 4 x 8 utility trailer it can tow.

https://www.caranddriver.com/toyota/compact-cruiser-ev

[19&41]

Maybe as opposed to a gas car rental on long trips, having a trailer mounted generator on tow could be an option.

[electra225]

I'll be one of the last to convert to an all-electric vehicle.

[19&41]

I like how people refer to as just converting to it, as though they were just going to have a new one sent in exchange as opposed to having to spend a massve amount of money on one. It will take 20 years after a "reasonably priced" one is available for it to be used enough for me to afford.

[electra225]

Won't any older, used electric vehicle need an expensive battery replacement? Methinks a used electric vehicle will be considered as e-waste and recycled rather than sold as a used car. It cost me $2500 to rebuild our old golf cart, a 1986 Club Car. It was cheaper to rebuild than to replace it. It is one of those vehicles that refused to quit running in spite of its shabby appearance. I can only imagine what it would cost to rebuild a Tesla.

[19&41]

I would think that as battery suppliers become more plentiful, the cost of re batterying a car could become more reasonable. I think of Jay Leno's Baker Electric. That makes a long lived electric chassis and powertrain seem possible. As expensive as the technology is, there will have to be some allowances for those who can't afford to pay a new car note all their lives.

[TC Chris]

I was one of those who figured that electric cars were far off on the horizon, and besides, I want a real car with guts and noise. But then, I also figured that renewable electric energy was far off on the horizon and that wind solar could never amount to much. Well,here in MI they are decommissioning coal-fired power plants rapidly, and heavy-lift ships from Europe are bringing in wind power towers, generators, and blades by the dozens. About the time I moved to Traverse City in the mid-90s, the municipal power system installed the largest wind turbine generator in the country. It put out 600KW. Now the huge wind farms use devices each putting out 2.5 MW each, 4x what our local windmill generated.

The new electric cars don't really have torque curves from what I've read. They have torque lines. They just go, ferociously.

Change happens whether we like it or not. Lots of us, me included, initially fall into the "not" category but I am learning to be more open to new things. I resisted using a computer mouse, for goodness' sake. "Who needs one of those clickety devices anyway...." It's a lesson. So when it comes to electric cars, I'm keeping an open mind and expecting them to be the transportation mode of choice quicker than anticipated.

Chris Campbell

[Motorola minion]

After the invasion news this morning, $3.63 for 87 knock-tane at Costco in a slow line, one pump was out of order. There will be pain with gas prices on my 90 mile round trip commute, putting over 20K a year on a '10 Subaru with 205K, 2.5 boxer 4cyl and 4EAT trans, 23 mpg is it unless I want everyone passing me, then it can go to 28 . The Tacoma V6 gets a max of 20 because, with its 5-speed AT, feels right cruising at 70. Another vehicle that I would never spend for an electric version of

My last two Subaru AWDs handle better than anything Ive owned to date*, so I want an affordable conversion kit for MY car, including a vacuum pump for the brakes and compressor for AC and PS pump. - I was dreaming of a conversion kit 20 years ago for my 83 GTI Rabbit, many asked me if it was a diesel That VW handled so good, it would have been a great electric vehicle with a low-center-of-gravity battery pack.

My dentist is the only one I know who can afford a Tesla, with charge station in garage at work and at home. I cannot understand how the future charging apparatus unless induction-coupled for isolation and safety. It only takes a 240VAC-30 AMP plug, so everybody can hook up at a residence. Charging stations are not feasible in many outdoor locations where cars get parked now.

Making cars safe is also a consideration with electric versus gas. Regenerative braking has to be superior if applied evenly to all 4 wheels, with anti lock sensors of course. Batteries will lower the center of gravity , handle like on rails. Downside: The chances of vehicle fires caused by collisions, don't expect improvement there no matter how its fused



* Never had a Corvette, Porsche, BMW or Mercedes

[electra225]

Wife came home from taking the cat to the vet in a little town about 20 miles SE of here. Across the street, down the block from our house, the Circle K has gas for $4.05 a gallon for regular unleaded. The wife bought gas in this little town for $3.49. I burn premium in the Mini and at that Circle K I mentioned premium gas is $4.69 a gallon. We have a membership in Sam's Club where I paid $3.89 for premium after work on Tuesday. No doubt premium gas will be over $5 a gallon here by the middle of summer. The Mini gets 38 mpg driving to work if I don't see a Mustang that needs an education. The lowest I ever got on the Mini was 14 mpg, when I had it in "pursuit mode" and was driving like I was qualifying for Talledega. It is a sad day when you can get $50 worth of gas in a Mini Cooper that is not even on empty.

[Firedome]

We figure on augmenting, not converting, our "fleet"... the gas cars aren't going anywhere, I like them too much. They
ca be converted to LP gas pretty easily if needed. Many Europeans do this in order to legally drive big US cars they import there.

The payoff for a electric is pretty quick if you can generate your charging power. And even faster as gas prices climb,
I think Greg is correct w/ $5 gas by Fall, and I think it will stay there or higher, price rises tend to be "sticky", they go up faster
then they go down.

As for performance, electric motors make full 100% torque at 0 rpm, making for pretty amazing acceleration,
so driving one is not going to be a hair shirt experience by any means!

[TC Chris]

Downside: The chances of vehicle fires caused by collisions, don't expect improvement there no matter how its fused

Seems to me that the radio news this a.m. said the burning transport ship carrying thousands of $$$$$$$$$$$$ cars was probably set afire by an electric vehicle malfunction.

Chris Campbell

[electra225]

There were volunteer fire departments in Missouri that wouldn't combat a fire in an electric or hybrid vehicle. They didn't have the training nor the equipment to properly disable the battery to fight the fire. What few electric vehicles got on fire outside of a "professional" fire department's service area burned to the ground where they sat. The volunteer department would work to keep the fire from spreading.

[hermitcrab]

I watched a video where they have developed MOF... short for metal organic framework.... very small in size but it has the capability to retain vast amounts of gases or water... they are thinking a safe way to contain hydrogen for cars which is the only thing stopping their development .... I would like to see that tried before people's houses burn down when their electric car battery ignites