Electric Car in your future?

[DustyRusty]

 

[Mark_BX25D]

 

[Bmyers]

I have watched several videos on electrical vehicles, especially the Ford truck and I don't see it meeting my needs and the price is out of range I'm willing to pay.

 

[motionclone]

I wouldnt mind an electric work truck as long as:

Could haul as much weight as a gas truck
Cost the same to buy as a gas truck
Cost the same over life of vehicle as a gas truck
Same reliability as a gas truck.
Cost the same to operate as a gas truck
Lasts about the same miles as a gas truck
Maintains resale value about the same as a gas truck.
Fuel up times about the same as gas truck.
Same amount of fueling stations as gas trucks have.

Then yeah, as long as the gov will give me a couple thou subsidy to buy it i'd do it.

 

[The Evil Twin]

I wrote an intercompany white paper on EVs total CO2e consumption a while back. I doubt much has changed (batteries are a hair better maybe) and found that it is really not economical for us with 300 vehicles in the road. One of our focus points is to reduce our customers carbon footprint and we would be increasing ours by going EV.
Never mind the fact the grid wouldn't support doubling the EVs on the road.

 

[Daferris]

Here is some real world experience with a 2017 Chevrolet Volt ( Electric with a range extending gas motor).
I bought the car 2/8/18 as a demo so I got it for 28% off of MSRP.
I use the car as my primary daily but I also have a Third Gen IROC for fun and track days at GingerMan Raceway over in South Haven, MI. I also have a F350 for towing ect but it only averages 2-3,000 miles a year.
I was not ready to go full electric back then. Now I really don't see a problem with getting a full electric for my next car. That said it will be awhile as I keep my cars at least 10 years.
Now for the big reason I love the Volt is I really could care less what the price of gas is. Since I bought the car To the last electric bill on 10/20/22 I've put in $864.01 in gas and have used $1,668.01 in electric for a total cost per mile of $0.0418 or put another way it costs me on average $4.18 to drive 100 miles. That's paying an average of $0.165331 per kWh since 2018.

You all can bitch and moan, Complain that the "man" is controlling you... Bottom line is the money I'm not spending at the pump is more money that I can save for retirement, doing things I want to do or just having cash in the bank.

Oh and for the folks spreading F,U,D in 5 years since the car was built I have lost only 1.4% of the battery capacity That works out to about 3/4 of a mile on range loss.

Meanwhile every morning the car is fully charged and ready to go.

 

[Mark_BX25D]

cost to replace chevy volt battery at DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo. Privacy, Simplified.

duckduckgo.com

 

[NCL4701]

From what I’ve seen so far, not a good fit for my needs at this point. Probably a good fit for some. To me, no different than a SUV is a good fit for some but not for my needs, so I routinely drive a pickup. I have no issue with electrics taking over part or all of the market so long as overall cost is competitive with ICEV’s and it isn’t mandated and forced on people who’s requirements aren’t met by currently available EV’s.

If EV’s take over some or all of the market it should be the same progression as diesel taking over the medium duty truck and small off-road equipment markets.

 

[Daferris]

cost to replace chevy volt battery at DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo. Privacy, Simplified.

duckduckgo.com

On Car-Part.com a battery is $2,000 as far as it's installation I have a 2 post hoist and a good trans jack...
But it's not anything I need to worry about at the current rate the battery is degrading. The car will be 20+ years old and probably a rust bucket given the salt they use in Michigan before it gets to where I'm down to 90% of capacity...

 

[Biker1mike]

Odds are I will need to replace the wife's car and my truck at least two more times. Have to believe I will have no choice but go electric or run really old vehicles.
The good news is that I have seen two gas stops change owners and then rebuild. Each has a row of high speed chargers. As the market grow, the number of chargers will have to grow. There will be pain for our generation but I believe it will routine for our great grandkids.
Putting a charge station at the house will be costly. Will have to run from the back of the house and under the driveway.

 

[ZTMAN]

I never thought I would by an EV anytime soon, but ended up with a Lightning Pro (base model)
Had it for two months, and I like it.
I would not use it for out of range road trips, but it is great around town and to run the 70 mi round trip to my camp.
I charge the truck at home and do not use those fast chargers. They are expensive and bad for battery longevity.

 

[Daren Todd]

I currently rent and no local public charging stations. And the cost to add a charger to a rental house that I can't take with me puts an EV off the table.

I'm not opposed to one once we get back into owning a home instead of renting.

But from an economic standpoint even if we owned our own home. It doesn't make much sense for us to switch to EV anytime soon.

Trucks paid off and will last quite a few years to come. Cars 2yo, and we have a couple years left and it's paid off. EV costs way more then what's left on the car note.

Now if said EV had a battery that would last for 20 years then I would consider it.

 

[DustyRusty]

If I knew that I would last 20 years, I also would consider it. In 20 years, both I and the EV will be dead.

 

[OrangeKrush]

It would make for a neat toy but I'm pretty sure I won't own one in my lifetime. I bet depreciation "Because of Batteries" is going to be a huge factor if you ever try to trade in OR sell outright. I dunno what would hurt value more.. original half worn batteries or some cheap repurposed ones.

Gotta say.. Chevy does have some cool lookin ones being advertised, sorry Ford-tech!

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Had one of them 4 door,fuly loaded battery powered 'Mustangs' in the driveway here for 2 hours,it went back to the dealer. Not enough space here to list all the things wrong with it.
The Lightning is no better.Range is lousy and battery cost now over 20K,4 doors and a trunk, yeesh.
If, IF, someone made a 2 door, short box pickup that'll haul a fully loaded 7k dump trailer THEN I'll see about trading in my '97 F150.
Is there a place for EVs ? Yes,maybe pizza delivery in the city ? Last EV truck I was in was a milk delivery truck, some 60 years ago.

 

[mikester]

Personally I think plug-in hybrids (PEV) are the way to go. On my 3rd and am averaging 5L/100km or about 47mpg which is on par with my motorcycle for fuel economy. Two of the vehicles are still running in the fleet, one was retired last year after 13 years use and had 380K kms on the clock due to rodents getting into the electrical.

I drive mostly highway miles and live in a cold climate with snow/slush 4 months of the year. Cold climate kills electric range.

I would like to get a new plug in hybrid before ICE gets banned. Problem is there are none to be found in Canada (the model I want anyways) and there's a 2 year wait list if I factory order where I have to put down $1K deposit, they can't tell me the model year of the vehicle nor the final purchase price - ah no thanks.

Food for thought - I can buy two prius prime PEV's for about the same price as one Tesla 3. I don't think one Tesla will out live 2 new cars.

Cost to operate PEV for me is about $0.06/km. Any electric vehicle will cost about $0.04/km based on our current hydro electricity rate of $0.15/kWhr which includes all taxes, delivery fees, government subsidies etc. The hydro cost will almost double in 2025 when the government subsidies go away making the cost of operating an all electric on par with the PEV.

The other dis-incentive to an EV is car insurance. A new Tesla 3 costs 50% more per year to insure than a new Prius Prime PEV.

I wouldn't mind an EV as a second vehicle for short commutes. Long range trips are not practical for an EV. FYI I can go 1,000km on a tank of gas in my hybrid, re-fill in 5 minutes and drive another 1,000km. You can't do that in an EV.

 

[The Evil Twin]

Not related to EVs per se, but grid capacity. It's just not there to electrify it all. Never mind power plants average 40% efficiency.

D.C. Board Rejects All-Electric Building Plan After Last-Minute Pepco Concerns

An eleventh-hour letter from regional utility Pepco left members of the Construction Codes Coordinating Board in doubt and seeking answers.

www.bisnow.com

 

[fried1765]

I wouldnt mind an electric work truck as long as:

Could haul as much weight as a gas truck
Cost the same to buy as a gas truck
Cost the same over life of vehicle as a gas truck
Same reliability as a gas truck.
Cost the same to operate as a gas truck
Lasts about the same miles as a gas truck
Maintains resale value about the same as a gas truck.
Fuel up times about the same as gas truck.
Same amount of fueling stations as gas trucks have.

Then yeah, as long as the gov will give me a couple thou subsidy to buy it i'd do it.

A vehicle for climate dreamers ONLY!!!

 

[Mark_BX25D]

Not related to EVs per se, but grid capacity. It's just not there to electrify it all. Never mind power plants average 40% efficiency.

D.C. Board Rejects All-Electric Building Plan After Last-Minute Pepco Concerns

An eleventh-hour letter from regional utility Pepco left members of the Construction Codes Coordinating Board in doubt and seeking answers.

www.bisnow.com

This is the big elephant nobody wants to talk about. Even IF electric cars were good for the environment (they most certainly are NOT), we don't have the power production to support them. Not now, not in 10 years, not in 20 years.

And how will you generate that power? Coal? Natural gas? Oil? Nuclear?

And don't say, "green energy", because there is no such thing. Solar panels and wind are both destructive to the environment (and CANNOT meet the demand, anyway), fusion has been ready to go commercial "just in the next few years" for decades now, with ZERO progress, and nothing else is even on the horizon.

 

[TheOldHokie]

Here is some real world experience with a 2017 Chevrolet Volt ( Electric with a range extending gas motor).
I bought the car 2/8/18 as a demo so I got it for 28% off of MSRP.
I use the car as my primary daily but I also have a Third Gen IROC for fun and track days at GingerMan Raceway over in South Haven, MI. I also have a F350 for towing ect but it only averages 2-3,000 miles a year.
I was not ready to go full electric back then. Now I really don't see a problem with getting a full electric for my next car. That said it will be awhile as I keep my cars at least 10 years.
Now for the big reason I love the Volt is I really could care less what the price of gas is. Since I bought the car To the last electric bill on 10/20/22 I've put in $864.01 in gas and have used $1,668.01 in electric for a total cost per mile of $0.0418 or put another way it costs me on average $4.18 to drive 100 miles. That's paying an average of $0.165331 per kWh since 2018.

You all can bitch and moan, Complain that the "man" is controlling you... Bottom line is the money I'm not spending at the pump is more money that I can save for retirement, doing things I want to do or just having cash in the bank.

Oh and for the folks spreading F,U,D in 5 years since the car was built I have lost only 1.4% of the battery capacity That works out to about 3/4 of a mile on range loss.

Meanwhile every morning the car is fully charged and ready to go.

We are experiencing the same sort of FUD and speculative arguments that preceded a lot of things that are an everyday reality - a few that come quickly to mind:

1. Electric lights
2. The telephone
3. The horseless carriage
4. The internet
5. Roof top solar
6. Digital TV
7. The cell phone
8. Dick Tracey's two way wrist watch TV

I believe the EV die is cast just as it was with those technologies. The infrastructure and cost issues will be resolved as demand and usage increases. If not it will fail on its merits not preconceived biases.

Five years ago I did not give an EV much thought. If I were buying new tommorow it would be high on my list. I have never ever wanted to drive more than 400 miles in a day let alone in one sitting and the performance of modern electric cars is phenomenal. Eight hundred plus horsepower, enough torque to snap your neck, and a cabin that is incredibly confortable and convenient cannot be ignored. I test drove a friends modestly expensive Tesla Model S and it was an unwordly experience. Much like a different friends rediculosly expensive two seat Mercedes twin turbo V8 AMG but with more seating, more comfort and less noise....

Dan