1 in 5 electric vehicle owners in California
switched back to gas because charging
their cars is a hassle, research shows
Business Insider,
by
Dominick Reuter
Original Article
Posted By: NorthernDog,
7/30/2021 8:36:45 AM
In roughly three minutes, you can fill the gas tank of a Ford Mustang and have enough range to go about 300 miles with its V8 engine. But on a recent 200-mile trip from Boston to New York in the Mustang's electric Mach-E variant, Axios' Dan Primack said he felt "panic" as his battery level dipped below 23% while searching for a compatible charger to complete his trip. "I was assured that this might be one of the country's easiest EV routes," Primack wrote. "Those assurances were misplaced." For Bloomberg automotive analyst Kevin Tynan, an hour plugged into his household
Reply 1 - Posted by:
psych53 7/30/2021 8:47:54 AM (No. 862025)
A hundred years ago, electric vehicles failed and people lost interest in them for two reasons: a lack of range and difficulty recharging. In a hundred or so years, neither problem has been solved. To think electric vehicles are practical for the ways Americans use cars is just nonsense. People need to study history and learn from past mistakes.
57 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
bpl40 7/30/2021 8:52:29 AM (No. 862032)
When I look at a Tesla I see a coal belcher. The environmental damage in producing electricity for this contraption is deliberately ignored or brushed under the carpet. Besides hurtling down the highway at 70/80 mph with with a monster of a battery in the same confines as oneself is not comforting. Household current has 110 volts and 17/18 amperes of current. An EV battery has 380 volts and thousands of amperes. If you cannot charge it perhaps you are lucky. No thanks!
33 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
JrSample 7/30/2021 9:02:55 AM (No. 862043)
Just consider how the battery in a conventional automobile fails after about three years' use, and it is only being used to start the car and operate auxiliary equipment while being recharged by the alternator. With a conventional car a battery failure means the driver is stranded until he can get to a store, obtain a replacement battery, and install it. Now, with an electric vehicle, consider that the entire operation is dependent upon an entire bank of batteries maintaining their charge when they are being used as the only source of propulsion. These contraptions are going to be a nightmare for the owner. A hybrid vehicle at least still has a gasoline engine charging the batteries and to prevent being stranded when the batteries are low.
23 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
red1066 7/30/2021 9:09:59 AM (No. 862054)
This is why I'll never consider an all electric vehicle. It's one thing to be low on gas, it's quite another to be low on electric power.
32 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
reefdiver 7/30/2021 9:13:30 AM (No. 862062)
Electric vehicles are an expensive novelty, but if they become mandated it would a huge disaster as most people could not afford to buy or maintain them and the idiot liberals would want to provide a free one to the needy as a human entitlement.
18 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
planetgeo 7/30/2021 9:16:05 AM (No. 862066)
Not very "progressive" to drive coal-powered cars that will be an even bigger environmental hazard when they are junked.
24 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
sanspeur 7/30/2021 9:20:45 AM (No. 862075)
I might not have latest info . But , what country ( unfriendly is a nice way to not get banned here ) owns most battery companies AND the rare earths mined to be in them ?
1938 Dad drove a chain drive electric truck delivering beer in NYC ! Knickerbocker Beer . Only “beer “ still going strong .. not the man , the truck , NYC or Knickerbocker
19 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
smaricic 7/30/2021 9:28:39 AM (No. 862084)
One solution might be to include a small gasoline-powered generator (and a small gas tank) in the car for times when you can't find a charging station. The BMW i3 has such a generator -- I don't know how successful it has been.
8 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
PChristopher 7/30/2021 9:30:54 AM (No. 862087)
There's someone in my office building who has a Tesla and plugs it in a building outlet all day everyday. I'm sure the building owner appreciates that
26 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
varkdriver 7/30/2021 9:38:38 AM (No. 862102)
As you noted, #1, intelligent people have trying to solve this one for decades and decades. There are certain laws of physics/thermodynamics/etc. that you just can't get around, especially by legislating that all vehicles will be electric in California by year xxxx.
#7, I know I have [or think I have] sipped on a Knickerbocker at one time or another. Also, Rheingold, Ballantine (the Three Rings, Purity, Body, and Flavor), Schmidt's, Schlitz, and a few others that no longer exist. The tales my liver could tell!!
16 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
Old Army Vet 7/30/2021 9:40:10 AM (No. 862109)
I am friends with someone that has been an electrician for over fifty years. According to him the price to install the proper equipment to quick charge your electric vehicle is high. A quick charger, step up transformer along with ancillary hardware runs into the thousands of dollars. Then you have the increase in your monthly electric bill, which is considerable. Now, someone, tell me where the environmental advantage is. I haven't heard anyone come up with the overall gain by switching to electric vehicles.
21 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
varkdriver 7/30/2021 9:42:27 AM (No. 862112)
Sorry for the second post, but I should try to consolidate my so-called thoughts better before hitting the 'submit' button [sudden thought: will the Democrats force everyone in America to hit a SUBMIT button sometime in the near future?].
I actually liked the idea of the old Prius. A hybrid of a gasoline engine and a storage battery. The gas engine provided plenty of amps to charge up the battery. Still the same issues of the battery replacement, but you don't have to solely rely on finding a charging station, and waiting with your thumb inserted somewhere for hours while your car charges.
12 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
Mass Minority 7/30/2021 9:43:27 AM (No. 862114)
This is an example of what is so fundamentally wrong with the lefts approach to problem solving.
Lets assume that the lefts assumptions on climate change are correct, just for the sake of argument. Electric vehicles and tiny eco cars would be a good way to address part of the problem. But here is where the left always fails. because an electric vehicle might be part pf the answer they try to use the power of government to force it as the only answer. They try to use government mandated poicies to bend economics to dive an imaginary market (in this case tax gasoline to make it too expensive, create artificial shortages by using regulatory bodies to limit production etc). They then try to force this artificial "answer" on the entire country all at once. It is an all or nothing, my way ot the highway approach to the problem. To the left it is always am all or nothing proposition.
here is the reality. It will be decades befor there is a nationwide fast chrging capacity that is reliable and simple to find, That is just reality. The widespread use of electric in the heartland, or indeed anywhere more than 50 miles from a magor city is impractical.
That being said an electric car is a phenomenal option for an urban center, they are small, quiet and do not produce smoke or smog. Distances driven are relatively short and it would be practical for cities to invest in the charging station infrastructure, If I lived in the city I would consider an electric just because of these factor,
If the left wanted to solve their problem this is how they would proceed. Do what you can now because every little bit help and allow the natural course of technology develop. For electric cars maybe by the time they have finished with Urban electrification the technology will have advanced enough to tackle the next level by seeping into the suburbs. In 25 years everybody just might be on face book bragging about their new ultra powerful electric tractor.
By trying to force a technology that is very promising out before it is ready for the challenges of the real world is actually the best way to kill it off in the first place. Take the politics out, ;et the market do its job and we will all be Happily driving electric pickups because we want to, not because they were an inferior, impractical and faulty product forced down our throat before they were ready for market.
18 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
Omen55 7/30/2021 10:01:04 AM (No. 862138)
No one who uses their car or truck a lot or goes on a long trip will want these pathetic excuses for transport.
When you are stuck somewhere with no charge to find while watching people drive by in real cars it will be a moment you'll never forget🤦♂️
16 people like this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
MDConservative 7/30/2021 10:08:13 AM (No. 862146)
Frankly, buy whatever type of vehicle you like. But to use an EV for cross-country road trip is simply demonstrating its shortcomings. Let's make the marketplace fair - remove the subsidies for alternative fuel vehicles, then let's see what happens.
People forget government at all levels fought the introduction of automobiles years ago with silly regulations. The medical experts pronounced that prolonged travel over 10 mph would lead to bleeding from the nose, ears and eye sockets.
13 people like this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
hope27 7/30/2021 10:15:16 AM (No. 862153)
The topic of power and power grids should not be taken lightly. The marxists desire to control everything could eventually mirror Venezuela. My husband traveled there frequently and the electricity was consistently turned off. Had to repeatedly use his phone's flashlight at night. Good luck with the car recharge plug-in when Obama has a bad day and takes it out on us peasants.
Poster 12 "I actually liked the idea of the old Prius" I own a 2006 sedan. Best car I've ever had. Much better than the hatchback fred flintstone version,
4 people like this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
LC Chihuahua 7/30/2021 10:19:45 AM (No. 862159)
What about any worker that can be called in to work 24x7? A surgeon? A fire fighter? They may not be able to wait for their car to charge. No doubt there are many other fields.
I have to imagine there are some vehicles that cannot go entirely electric. Ambulance? Paramedic? Police car? Fire engine?
12 people like this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
padiva 7/30/2021 10:27:33 AM (No. 862170)
Friends, the use of electric cars is not about personal convenience.
It's about regulation, restrictions and control.
29 people like this.
Reply 19 - Posted by:
mc squared 7/30/2021 10:34:06 AM (No. 862175)
The electric push is part of the Green Plan to keep us from leaving decaying urban centers. We already know the Marxists HATE the suburbs because it represents freedom and reward.
Forcing us to use the fantasy of High-Speed-Rail will discourage many people from traveling.
Years ago when Wifey & I traveled to FL from the north, it was quicker to drive straight through than take a train and pay a fortune to have the car shipped. No schedules to keep and carried everything we wanted.
17 people like this.
Reply 20 - Posted by:
czechlist 7/30/2021 10:45:06 AM (No. 862193)
I have read that in the future the grid will be able to the reverse current and draw power from plugged in EVs when additional resources are needed. Socialist power grid.
3 people like this.
Reply 21 - Posted by:
zephyrgirl 7/30/2021 10:54:27 AM (No. 862206)
Some friends took a long distance trip (600 miles+) in a company-supplied EV six months ago. What would normally take 8-9 hours, took over 12 hours with long pauses for charging. They never took it on a long trip again and shortly after that, turned the car back in to the company.
11 people like this.
Reply 22 - Posted by:
lakerman1 7/30/2021 10:56:07 AM (No. 862212)
#10, you missed out on Old Frothingshloss - the pale stale ale with the foam on the bottom., It was special.
3 people like this.
Reply 23 - Posted by:
bad-hair 7/30/2021 11:03:26 AM (No. 862227)
Game on.
300 miles range at 60 MPH = 5 hours. Faster speed less than 5 hours. Recharge time 6 hours. Enjoy.
120V charging = impossible 240V 10 hours electric cost double. 480 V electric cost quadruple. Enjoy
7 people like this.
Reply 24 - Posted by:
Mizz Fixxit 7/30/2021 11:16:50 AM (No. 862246)
Consider the cost of a recharge as electric cars become more common and gas tax revenues decline.
7 people like this.
Reply 25 - Posted by:
DVC 7/30/2021 11:18:14 AM (No. 862249)
EV s are a passing fad. With the emphasis on passing.
7 people like this.
Reply 26 - Posted by:
snowoutlaw 7/30/2021 11:20:01 AM (No. 862253)
One thing I remember about the old USSR was that people could not travel to other areas without a permit. E-Cars are just another form of that control.
I don't know about other states but in California the state requires all employers to install charging stations for their employees. Where I work there are many and so far no cost so if you have a e-car you have it made, no costs. I did the math and even at my paying
$100/week for gas the E-Car will not pay for its self.
10 people like this.
Reply 27 - Posted by:
formerNYer 7/30/2021 11:22:04 AM (No. 862259)
My buddy went to buy a new ford pick-up yesterday, he asked how the electric Ford F-150 was selling? The salesman said half jokingly.... they couldn't give them away.
10 people like this.
Reply 28 - Posted by:
heartsurgeon 7/30/2021 11:32:06 AM (No. 862271)
15,000,000 cars/California
20 miles/day driven
0.3 kwh/mile
Equals 90 Mwh/day needed to completely electrify California driving.
That's 10% of current electrical consumption in Cali.
30% of Cali electricity currently purchased out of state.
Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant provides 10% of Cali electricity (slated for closure).
No new dams.
Time to buy a bicycle or a horse if you live in Cali.
11 people like this.
Reply 29 - Posted by:
downnout 7/30/2021 11:32:45 AM (No. 862274)
I love how they talk about all the charging stations we’re going to have….never mentioning where the electricity (gasp!) is going to come from.
12 people like this.
Reply 30 - Posted by:
jacksin5 7/30/2021 11:42:35 AM (No. 862280)
Let's just say, 100 Million EV's are sold in the U.S.. Whether you charge the batteries at home, work, or a charging station, Where is the grid to support this massive load that will come on line? Will every one be stuck at home if a blizzard hits the Midwest, leaving solar panels and windmills inoperative?
14 people like this.
Reply 31 - Posted by:
WV.Hillbilly 7/30/2021 12:44:24 PM (No. 862327)
#8
They already have those. They're called hybrids.
5 people like this.
Reply 32 - Posted by:
Penney 7/30/2021 12:55:04 PM (No. 862330)
Well, that didn't take long to find out, ...Whatever happened to common sense?
3 people like this.
Reply 33 - Posted by:
coldoc 7/30/2021 12:59:02 PM (No. 862331)
My cummins diesel dually will be running me around when these things are in the scrap yards.
6 people like this.
Reply 34 - Posted by:
hershey 7/30/2021 1:17:52 PM (No. 862340)
The Law of Unintended Circumstances strikes again....
2 people like this.
Reply 35 - Posted by:
JHHolliday 7/30/2021 1:23:06 PM (No. 862343)
60 years ago a guy in my town owned a battery store. He sold new ones but also re-built old ones. I would buy a used aircraft battery from him to use in my race cars (relatively lightweight). This guy took an old Morris Minor English sedan, put an electric motor in it, and filled the trunk and back seat with linked batteries. I asked how it worked. He said it ran fine for about a mile then slowed down and stopped and better batteries would be the key to EV success. That is still the case here and the replacement batteries run $8,000-$10,000. I can see a breakthrough with batteries or some storage device coming in about 15-20 years but in the meantime, some of these automakers are looking at ruining their companies like Volvo going all-electric. I wonder how far those Volvos will go during icy Swedish winters.
4 people like this.
Reply 36 - Posted by:
stablemoney 7/30/2021 1:54:34 PM (No. 862368)
Are they planning to power those cars with windmill power? The Prius is already a better performer than any of the EV cars they have built.
1 person likes this.
Reply 37 - Posted by:
MickTurn 7/30/2021 2:11:14 PM (No. 862387)
Hey Morons, put a generator in your trunk...you can get gas for it at a Billion Locations...
2 people like this.
Reply 38 - Posted by:
MickTurn 7/30/2021 2:16:58 PM (No. 862392)
I have two vehicles (and several toys, jet skis, ATV etc). One vehicle is a dreded environmental rolling disaster, my Forf F-150 Pickup...V6, Twin Turbo. I get about 24 on the highway loaded. The other vehicle is a Honda Insight (Hybrid) That one gets about 52 MPG...
SO Tesla Victims, how's your day going...hopefully better than those Tesla owners that got BBQ'ed in their CAR when the Battery caught fire! Get a clue Leftists, Electric Cars won't be fully viable until highly efficient roof/hood/trunk solar cells can run the car without a battery, with clouds...and the battery fully charged can go 1000 Miles (parked it charges from the sun). In your Dreams Morons!
4 people like this.
Reply 39 - Posted by:
Anti_democRAT 7/30/2021 3:04:45 PM (No. 862439)
Musk ought give me a tesla and a per diem and i would blog a cross country trip in a fully electric vehicle. I would follow up with a tour guide best places in the usa to be stranded waiting for your car to charge. Better yet maybe a new ford lightning f150 and an alaskan camper. Best places to camp and fish while charging your ford f150.
3 people like this.
Reply 40 - Posted by:
Blue-Z-Anna 7/30/2021 4:55:29 PM (No. 862506)
Re#23.......if 240v cost twice as much per kw hour as 120v then we would not use it for large AC and water heating.
Higher voltage reduces total cost for heavy loads.
EV cars still suk but not for this reason.
2 people like this.
Reply 41 - Posted by:
RedWhite&Blue2 7/30/2021 5:01:50 PM (No. 862512)
The battery in a Tesla weighs 1200 pounds! Try changing THAT by yourself!
2 people like this.
Reply 42 - Posted by:
DVC 7/30/2021 5:27:18 PM (No. 862546)
#35, in many fields , your idea that in 15-20 years the technology would improve, would make sense.
But, batteries are a VERY mature technology, and, unfortunately the prospects for substantial improvements are dim. The field of chemical storage batteries has been thoroughly explored by many large teams of intelligent, well funded scientists and there is very little unknown in the field.
2 people like this.
Reply 43 - Posted by:
Dodge Boy 7/30/2021 5:46:57 PM (No. 862570)
Owning an electric car in Colorado would be a total joke. Even if I liked Ecars, the distance between destinations is too large and the electrical grid here could not handle this load, anyway.
We live 245 miles west of the Peoples Republic of Denver and go there at times for a grandchildren fix. No way we would ever plan to stop mid-way for a day just to charges batteries. No way in hades we would allow ourselves to be stranded in winter weather with dead batteries. And to own an electric-powered pickup truck and expect to tow a 5-ton fifth wheel trailer with it and travel 100 miles at a time between charges. Forget about it. We'll stick with gas/diesel. Go carbon fuels!
2 people like this.
Reply 44 - Posted by:
RuckusTom 7/30/2021 6:50:27 PM (No. 862629)
Just put a nuclear power plant at the end of each block. /s
1 person likes this.
Battery power is suitable for golf carts, and even they use a standard format battery (unlike the Tesla that cobbles together thousands of 3.6v 18650 batteries in a nightmare of connections).
0 people like this.
Reply 46 - Posted by:
Strike3 7/30/2021 6:59:16 PM (No. 862641)
If ever something warranted a big, DUH!
1 person likes this.
Reply 47 - Posted by:
Italiano 7/30/2021 7:05:58 PM (No. 862644)
Tesla owners really think that they are helping the environment. They sure ride well, though.
0 people like this.
Reply 48 - Posted by:
Strike3 7/30/2021 7:12:39 PM (No. 862649)
Question: If a Prius did not have to pull the weight of the battery and whatever electrical components needed to provide the takeoff propulsion, would it not get the same gas mileage without that extra weight, expense and technology? Fifty mpg is not that hard to achieve in a small, light car without all the government-mandated garbage added on. Most cars used by commuters have one person inside, the driver.
According the the greenies and their fearless leader, AOC, electricity is clean, cheap and harmless to the climate, if you don't count all of the coal, CO2 (a lie) and materials mined for batteries. That is exactly what is behind this physical impossibility of clean electric vehicles. A nuclear-powered engine small enough to fit under the hood - that's technology.
0 people like this.
Reply 49 - Posted by:
Strike3 7/30/2021 8:29:19 PM (No. 862721)
#1, your last sentence applies to the majority of our problems. Imagine if we could refrain from fighting wars in shiffhole countries around the world, stop giving people a living wage for not working, realize that a price increase in one area increases prices all the way up the ladder, stop electing idiot politicians, stop trusting the federal government to do anything right, stop listening to every "I love you" from a woman or a man, etc. etc.
0 people like this.
Reply 50 - Posted by:
Sergeant Major 7/30/2021 8:50:20 PM (No. 862742)
When these businesses have recharge stations, do they charge for it? I don't know.
0 people like this.
Comments:
If you don't have a high-level charging station at home, it's a nightmare. But no one ever discusses the cost of installing something with at least 240 Volts.