Electric Car Rant

[Top_Fuel]

One should realistically not look at the propulsion operating cost per mile as the true cost factor.

Agreed. I knew an EV would have a lower fuel cost per mile, but I wanted to run a simple example to see how many miles you would have to drive to even come close to breaking even on the price of the vehicle. It was a lot more miles than I would have guessed!

I just talked myself out of a Bolt...

How in the world do you get electric that cheap?

In Ohio you can purchase electricity from 50+ different providers. Once a year I go out to this website and compare all the electricity prices in 1 place. I go with the cheapest provider that doesn't have fees or negative restrictions.

[Basic]

Agreed. I knew an EV would have a lower fuel cost per mile, but i wanted to run a simple example to see how many miles you would have to drive to even come close to breaking even on the price of the vehicle. It was a lot more miles than I would have guessed!

I just talked myself out of a Bolt...


In Ohio you can purchase electricity from 50+ different providers. Once a year I go out to this website and compare all the electricity prices in 1 place. I go with the cheapest provider that doesn't have fees or negative restrictions.

That is pretty awesome that you get to choose. I don't think I have those options is lil old Kentucky, but I am gonna have to do some research it seems!

[Nobu]

You can choose down here in Louisiana, but the choice also tends to involve a change in residence. lol

[Mirageman38]

Technically I get free electric with my apartment (infinite MPG?), but the landlord would probably not be happy having hanging electric lines out the 10th floor window and down two blocks to charge my car.

[Mark]

Technically I get free electric with my apartment (infinite MPG?), but the landlord would probably not be happy having hanging electric lines out the 10th floor window and down two blocks to charge my car.

I can't own an electric car, because I only buy vehicles with manual transmissions. A quiet, pleasant riding electric car would absolutely bore me to death!

I can see why others might like that, however!!!!!

[Eggman]

I can't own an electric car, because I only buy vehicles with manual transmissions. An quiet, pleasant riding electric car would absolutely bore me to death!

I can see why others might like that, however!!!!!

Try one. I think you'd like it.

[Mark]

Try one. I think you'd like it.

Buying a hydrostatic riding lawnmower was a stretch for me, but I must admit that I like that!

I can see people liking electric vehicles. I just don't see them becoming popular everywhere any time soon.

Electric cars will be at the mercy of electrical charging rates some day just like gas cars are at a the mercy of gas prices. Sort of like cell phone users (gave up their land lines) are at the mercy of cell phone companies. I don't know of many people who don't complain about how much they must pay for WiFi/month at home.

If the electric demand for electric cars climbs high enough, it may reduce the demand on fuel. Less demand on fuel may help keep fuel prices down, & that would make my Mirage & I happy!

If I ever became interested in an electric car or hybrid, my first question would be - how much does it cost to replace the batteries? That may make brake jobs & oil changes seem cheap by comparison?

If I owned a working crystal ball, I would be a wealthier Mirage owner!

[Fummins]

The latest Bolt is the only EV I would consider. It has a good range now (250+ miles) and a potentially realistic price. They have an $8,500 incentive and are selling for roughly $10K below MSRP...which puts them into the mid-upper 20s. If that number gets a lot closer to $20K, they might get my attention.

Forget the $40K PHEV. How about a $9500 iMiev?!?

Attachment 18047

They're getting cheaper...(bolt)https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...ckType=listing I don't know if that price has incentives already in the price?
I found some cheaper ones up here too. The average dealer list price last time I looked was $45-50,000 last time I looked at bolt prices. $36,000 is better, knock another 10k off and I'd be seriously considering it.

Edit: I just read some of the fine print fro that add, it includes $1000 from a trade in and my include loyalty rebate etc...

[Top_Fuel]

They're getting cheaper...
Edit: I just read some of the fine print fro that add, it includes $1000 from a trade in and my include loyalty rebate etc...

Yeah...lots of Jedi mind tricks going on there to arrive at a $23K price tag. I grabbed this off of the dealer's website...



That $8500 rebate is no joke...but I'm still a tire-kicker in the mid-20s. If I can get a Bolt in the US for very close to $20K, I would consider it.

Bolt sales were doing well this year before the covid stuff hit...but the sales numbers are being propped up by that big rebate. At least that's what people in the Bolt forums are saying.

[7milesout]

I have to admit I'm also being swayed by things like adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist.

I would love to see Mitsubishi do a BEV Mirage/G4 or even a PHEV (and some new seats to boot.), but I don't see that happening anytime soon.

Go4th - I have a lot of respect for your mindset in your posts. However, take this with a grain of salt, because my experience with adaptive cruise control is with a 11 year old vehicle. However, it is the flagship of Lexus, so maybe it acts like a 5 year old car.

I will say that the ACC in my Lexus LS 460L, B-L-O-W-S. Why? Well I guess it's a matter of a person's driving habits. I watch what is going on far ahead. If I'm following, I'm watching what's going on cars and cars ahead. Even if I'm not following cars (closely) I watch far ahead to see what may affect me so I can begin slowing early, and maybe just roll through an area where cars slowed versus having to use the brakes. I save fuel that way and smooth out my ride. Even as luxurious as my Lexus LS is, the ACC drives like a dumbass. It doesn't see anything ahead, and just throttles right into traffic. And then brakes as if the ACC had been looking down at it's smartphone. And there are other issues. If following traffic using the ACC, sharp enough curves, the ACC loses sight of the car ahead, and if we had been rolling along lower than my set speed, the ACC will trigger the car to accelerate mid curve and then hit the brakes coming out of the curve because it has gained on the car in front because it now sees it again. That's some serious b.s. if you ask me. I drive much smoother than that. I use the traditional cruise, pay attention far ahead, and smooth out my drive much better than the ACC can do. And, with my LS 460L's ACC, it lets me vary the following distance with 3 positions - 1) Too close, 2) too damn close, and 3) holy sheeeat, why is it so close? Even the furthest position away is too close. I follow further back than that to give me plenty of lead time to react in as smooth a way (brakes, coasting, lane change, whatever) as is possible.

The point being, unless current ACC systems have greatly improved, I wouldn't sweat not having that. Lane Keep Assist, this may be the only one I would like ... if it simply nudges the car back to the center of the lane, without making any beeps. It should just do it quietly ... then I may like that one. I've not driven a car with this though, so I'm not certain. There's no other safety crap that I care about. Wouldn't mind having a back up camera on my old 2000 Dodge Ram pickup. That's a convenience to me, not safety. Because I just barely creep backward in all my cars.