Electric Car Rant

[7milesout]

OK, finished the whole thread now. I wanted to say, I guess I'm kind of old school. The kind of dude the left side (politics) hates. Yet I don't hate the left side. And, I love to burn gas. One of the things that attracts me to a gas vehicle is the sound. I'm very audibly in love with the process of ICEs.

Here is my biggest issue with EV vehicles. It is not EV vehicles in and of itself. It is the freedom of choice. I'm fine with EV vehicles being available, but I'm not fine with gobment mandates that say, "by 2030 gas vehicles will not longer be for sale, and gasoline will no longer be available." Stuff like that. I like my freedom to choose. I'm not saying that's how it's going to be in 2030. I'm saying if that is how it goes, I will NOT be liking it. I'll just be grumpy.

Will I choose gas over electric? Nope. I will choose what makes the most sense to me at that time. But I want choices, and to have the freedom to make my choice.

Personally I think the natural thing we would tend to see is that more and more EV will drive up the cost / demand of electricity. In order to make more electricity available, there's going to have to be more coal burnt, or nuclear plants built, more damns erected, more solar panels, more wind turbines. Otherwise we may experience brown-outs and/or extremely expensive electric bills. And, with more EV available, demand for gas will go down, and will make gas vehicles more attractive (at some point). Naturally I think a balance would happen on it's own. And then technology companies will start competing to make their respective products better. And when that happens we all win. Capitalism. If EV vehicles win out and gas vehicles go away like dinosaurs, so be it. I just don't want gobment to force one technology over another. That will reduce competition to drive innovation, and will reduce choice.

I'm ready to be attacked and "kilt" by the left... J/K.

[Fummins]

Every few months I keep circling back to wanting a Volt...They'd have enough ev range to last me a couple days(ish) commuting to work and I'd be able to fearlessly take a 600 mile trip in a 10-11hr day.
Next week I'll want a pony.

[7milesout]

Fummins - Since the creation of the Volt, I have considered it THE BEST ELECTRIC VEHICLE created. It is the electric vehicle I would want. I wish they still made it ... maybe make it a bigger sedan. I'm not aware of the Bolt. If it is the exact drivetrain setup or not.

But for probably MOST owners (including apartment owners), it is the best solution. Around town it will likely run on electric charge continuously. Plug it into 110V at home at night, or at every chance you get if you can't plug in at home (apartment).

However, let's say there was a family emergency one had to get to 700 miles away and flying wasn't an option. Jump in the Volt and go no matter the charge state of the vehicle. Heck, drive it around the earth no matter the charge state of the vehicle. I drove one, one time. It was quite peppy.

In my case, I could probably drive it nearly endlessly and never crank the gas engine. Guys on the internets have to add Sta-Bil (or similar additives) to prevent the gas from going bad while it languishes in the tank.

It is a heckuva vehicle. Would be even better if that drivetrain were proliferated in a big flagship luxury sedan, tiny little "Poverty" models, and huge 3/4 acre Suburbans. It is a better powertrain than the Prius hybrid powertrain. And I'm a Toyota fan to death.

[MetroMPG]

Next week I'll want a pony.

[Mirageman38]

Why do you guys want electric cars? For the environment?

[Fummins]

Hell no! I have a smoke belching chipped pre emission dually diesel. I'm not a tree hugging, braided armpit haired earth ranger.

I figure if I spend less on fuel driving to work it'll make me feel like I'll have more cash to haul our old crappy old heavy holiday trailer to the bush so we can chase squirrels, deer and bears with our inefficient loud side by side lol.

But for reals, I get bored of cars fast and usually just drive them into the ground then drive them into the wrecker to die. If I get another car I'd like it to be a little roomier, lower seat, more whizzbang features would be kinda neat, nicer ride, a little more power, quieter etc..... and if I can get all that crap and better fuel economy I'm all for it.

[MetroMPG]

Why do you guys want electric cars? For the environment?

Mirageman, have you driven any? Genuinely curious.

[Dirk Diggler]

Is the Nissan Leaf anygood? Its got an eCVT right? Those are really reliable from what I've read.

[MetroMPG]

It's not even a CVT - it's just a single-speed transmission. Doesn't get much simpler or more reliable than that.

The problem with some older Leafs is battery degradation leading to reduced capacity & range. They have passive cooling, and some didn't do well in hot places. Nissan reformulated the battery chemistry, but I don't know if it fixed the problem. Almost all other mass market EVs have liquid cooled batteries.

[Eggman]

The point being, unless current ACC systems have greatly improved, I wouldn't sweat not having that.

7milesout, with all due respect to your opinions, adaptive cruise controls have improved. Try taking a current model Subaru for a test drive as an example.