OT: Electric Vehicles--anyone driving them or seriously looked at them?

[Mr. Pink]

Originally Posted by fa63

My wife is a power engineer, works on transmission & distribution lines for a living. I can tell you unequivocally that there are preparations. Just because it is not in the news doesn't mean it is not happening

The argument in this thread has gone to, dont worry, things will work out, to, dont worry, they're working on it. Either way, we have a concrete time limit to get some stuff done, and, as a layman, it looks to me that this is going to be a trillion dollar public works project that somebody is going to pay for, which, of course, is you and me. Just like we spent and spend massive amounts on the interstate highway system to subsidize transport of goods and bodies, we are going to have to spend much more on making electricity and delivering it, and that money ain't falling from the sky. If somebody has some plans, its criminal if we dont all hear about it.

[Spaghetti Legs]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Ralph’s comment is the best one here. The rest of the cloud shouting is just noise. ICE vehicles won’t disappear tomorrow or next week and EVs won’t take over overnight.
.

100% agree

[gemship]

Originally Posted by dmitrik4

But infrastructure will adapt. It has before, when people riding horses laughed at those new-fangled “auto mobiles.” Where you gonna refuel that thing? My horse can just eat grass when it gets hungry!

We’re still in the early, early days of EV development. Even given the (overblown) issues with manufacturing (ICE vehicles also use a lot of energy and create a lot of waste/pollution to build), the immense efficiency advantage of EV powertrains over IC make it almost inevitable. The two main hurdles now are charging infrastructure and battery energy density, and those are solvable things.

I would also add as a third hurdle is price. To be affordable for the masses like a volkswagon or a Model T was.

[fa63]

Electric utilities are pretty heavily regulated; you are welcome to dig through their plans (often called an Integrated Resource Plan or IRP) and see how much they plan on spending on what and how they plan to recoup their investments.

Originally Posted by Mr. Pink

The argument in this thread has gone to, dont worry, things will work out, to, dont worry, they're working on it. Either way, we have a concrete time limit to get some stuff done, and, as a layman, it looks to me that this is going to be a trillion dollar public works project that somebody is going to pay for, which, of course, is you and me. Just like we spent and spend massive amounts on the interstate highway system to subsidize transport of goods and bodies, we are going to have to spend much more on making electricity and delivering it, and that money ain't falling from the sky. If somebody has some plans, its criminal if we dont all hear about it.

[kppolich]

On topic, finally found a 2021 Model 3, Long Range in a color I like (Blue) without that gaudy white interior. FSD and Acceleration Boost (not that I'll use it) are also included and the price is right.

Taking a look tomorrow!

[Rusty Luggs]

The question I have is this - How will the revenue from gas and diesel fuel taxes be replaced?

[CAAD]

Originally Posted by Rusty Luggs

The question I have is this - How will the revenue from gas and diesel fuel taxes be replaced?

Taxed based on miles driven of my guess. Maybe even taxed on kwh used to charge. They will get their $ one way or another. Off peak electricity rates will be a thing of the past once the masses move to EVs.

[saab2000]

Originally Posted by Rusty Luggs

The question I have is this - How will the revenue from gas and diesel fuel taxes be replaced?

My annual registration is $100 higher. Not sure what happens going forward but this is the current situation where I live.

[AngryScientist]

It will be interesting to watch from the sidelines as this market really develops. I never buy new cars, so it's the used car market that interests me. Personally I think the ecar technology is developing at a very fast rate right now, and we are probably at the brink of another breakthrough that will make the next generation of ecars a step change better than the current generation. Where will that leave the current generation on the used market? Will we approach a reality where a car is more similar to a phone than a vehicle with regard to resale value and usability?

I only recently bought a newish truck, but for years did fine with $3k jeeps bought well used and kept on the road. I do all my own car work and don't mind tinkering, so this worked out.

The thought of paying 40-50k for a- new car just doesnt compute for me, so i'll just sit back and watch how things play out for a long while.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

For me, it mostly comes down to economics. Generally EVs are toys for wealthy people at the moment.

For my family, if we were to replace the vehicles we have with something roughly equivalent in the EV space, it would cost us tens of thousands of dollars that we would never approach getting a payback on, and my life would be less convenient than it is now.

There would need to be a huge shift on multiple fronts to make EV make any sense for the real world in which I live.

Great point. ME, like, Angry, don't see me buying a EV, for LOT$ of $, that is less convenient that the ICE car I have now.

[saab2000]

Again, lots of noise.

My EV will be massively more convenient for me. No need to always yuck someone else’s yum.

People need to buy what works for them.

[AngryScientist]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Again, lots of noise.

My EV will be massively more convenient for me. No need to always yuck someone else’s yum.

People need to buy what works for them.

why is it noise? is it only valid discussion if we talk pro ecar?

dont get so defensive. this is just a discussion.

[Tickdoc]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Again, lots of noise.

My EV will be massively more convenient for me. No need to always yuck someone else’s yum.

People need to buy what works for them.

Says the guy with a saab handle.

[CAAD]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Again, lots of noise.

My EV will be massively more convenient for me. No need to always yuck someone else’s yum.

People need to buy what works for them.

No noise and not yucking on your parade. EVs are at their infancy. They work great for some, unattainable for many, and just don't make sense for others. Lots of wait and see. I truly believe in 20 years time we will look back at today's offerings/technology and think wow how did we deal with those slow charge times and massive batteries. Also interested to see hydrogen fuel cell developments, what I think will be a true ice replacement.

[NHAero]

Originally Posted by CAAD

No noise and not yucking on your parade. EVs are at their infancy. They work great for some, unattainable for many, and just don't make sense for others. Lots of wait and see. I truly believe in 20 years time we will look back at today's offerings/technology and think wow how did we deal with those slow charge times and massive batteries. Also interested to see hydrogen fuel cell developments, what I think will be a true ice replacement.

I'm waiting to see how hydrogen can possibly play out. The barrier I see is transport of the fuel to hundreds of thousands of end user fueling stations. It's not a candidate either for pipelines or trucking as far as I can see, because of its extremely low energy density. Storage of the fuel in the vehicle is the least of the challenges. But Honda, who are typically pretty innovative, seem to have placed significant bets on fuel cell vehicles, so we'll see!