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Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

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Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#271

Post by EADGBE »

otterley wrote: post #261
jsjohnst wrote: post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While there’s definitely some truth to your point, I also know the vast majority of folks who own a truck that I know use it to pull a trailer regularly (as in multiple times a month). Renting would be an unrealistic hassle for them.

You can pull trailers with cars, provided they have enough torque. When I was a kid, my dad pulled our pop-up trailer with a 1974 Pontiac Ventura (GM 5.7L V8 engine). Just last month I regularly saw relatively large trailers being pulled by relatively small cars when I was in the UK.

> 1974 Pontiac Ventura (GM 5.7L V8 engine)

FWIW, that's considered a truck engine, now. Purely from displacement.

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#272

Post by luckydude »

otterley wrote: post #252
EADGBE wrote: post #229

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How about both? I'm waiting for an electric truck. I'll have my cake and eat it, too. For some folks - a surprising amount in the United States - the practicality, livelihood, and sometimes necessity of a truck outshines its inefficiencies.

I'm not convinced this is entirely true. The majority of people need a truck a few times a year at most. For them, rental is a practical option. The rest of the year, an ordinary sedan or hatchback will suit their needs just fine. If this were not so, people in other first-would countries would also buy trucks as their primary vehicles, and we know that's not the case. (It helps that fuel taxes elsewhere are more rea…

So I used to feel like you do until I moved to the Santa Cruz mountains. A half ton pickup is pretty much required. I have a chevy extended cab, 8 foot bed, gets used all the time for stuff that I couldn't do with a car.

In addition to that I have a chevy 3500 HD dually flatbed that gets used as well. It's an entirely different beast, I've hauled 10,080 pounds of base rock in that thing and I still had spring left.

It also gets used for patching potholes:

http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/03/17/mountain-vigilantes-ta...

The half ton is the blue truck and the 3500 is the white truck. This is set up as a quick attack wild land fire truck (there is a 425 gallon water thank, 9HP davey fire pump with 2 hose connections, 300 feet of 1.5" hose, bunch of nozzles, shovels, etc):

http://www.mcvoy.com/lm/fire-attack/

My trucks get used pretty much daily, living up here without them makes zero sense to me. They are just tools and very much needed in this environment. Sort of like guns, I lived in San Francisco and was very anti gun, moved up here and realized that guns are just tools and sometimes you need them.

That said, I'd love to replace the trucks with electric versions. I'm a huge fan for a lot of reasons. Tesla, if you are listening, please, please give us a family of pickups. If you do just one then a half ton is gonna be the highest volume but I'd love a beefy 1 ton.

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#273

Post by CNJ7654 »

Wow, that's actually really impressive for the price. If only it didn't look so silly. Seriously, every fully electric vehicle out right now, except for Teslas, look like total jokes imo. Just make an EV, and give it a full size sedan frame. I can guarantee EV sales would see a boost.

Also, does anyone know how EVs in general handle New England tier winters? I know the Model 3 will eventually have an AWD model, but what about the battery? Hell, lead acids barely work long enough to run the starter when it's -5F out.

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#274

Post by otterley »

luckydude wrote: post #272
otterley wrote: post #252

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not convinced this is entirely true. The majority of people need a truck a few times a year at most. For them, rental is a practical option. The rest of the year, an ordinary sedan or hatchback will suit their needs just fine. If this were not so, people in other first-would countries would also buy trucks as their primary vehicles, and we know that's not the case. (It helps that fuel taxes elsewhere are more rea…

So I used to feel like you do until I moved to the Santa Cruz mountains. A half ton pickup is pretty much required. I have a chevy extended cab, 8 foot bed, gets used all the time for stuff that I couldn't do with a car. In addition to that I have a chevy 3500 HD dually flatbed that gets used as well. It's an entirely different beast, I've hauled 10,080 pounds of base rock in that thing and I still had spring left. I…

Yes, Larry, you are special. <3

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#275

Post by klipt »

pwinnski wrote: post #112
sowbug wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. Same with Tesla's default settings, and with any Toyota hybrid.

I drive a Toyota hybrid, and have never even remotely considered relying on regenerative braking to even slow my vehicle. If I want to slow down, I press the brake. If there's any slowing because of regenerative braking, I have never noticed it.

Pressing the brake on a Prius will use regenerative braking. It only switches to friction braking if you brake extra hard, or the battery is already charged.

So there's no need to "avoid the brake pedal to use regen" the way it sounds like these Bolt drivers are doing. Which seems really dangerous.

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#276

Post by pwinnski »

klipt wrote: post #275
pwinnski wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I drive a Toyota hybrid, and have never even remotely considered relying on regenerative braking to even slow my vehicle. If I want to slow down, I press the brake. If there's any slowing because of regenerative braking, I have never noticed it.

Pressing the brake on a Prius will use regenerative braking. It only switches to friction braking if you brake extra hard, or the battery is already charged. So there's no need to "avoid the brake pedal to use regen" the way it sounds like these Bolt drivers are doing. Which seems really dangerous.

This makes me wonder if I actually use friction braking more than once every other month.

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#277

Post by ifhd »

hedora wrote: post #20

We just managed to sell another flagship GM vehicle, and the software was so bad, it was nearly a deal-breaker. (Most years of this model had software bugs that were so bad, they could literally kill you — for example, the exhaust system could overheat, and burn the car down). Also, basic electro-mechanical things, like seat belts and the FM radio started to die after 3-4 years. This is with light use in CA. Even whe…

> We just managed to sell another flagship GM vehicle

Which one? You are talking about what sounds like serious safety issues. Which car was it so we can find out more?

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#278

Post by slededit »

vvanders wrote: post #242
hedora wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Case in point. I thought I read bolts (volts?) sometimes put themselves into reverse and accelerate while off+charging. I wanted to paste a link, but found this article instead. It looks like this safety issue is by design. (Also, CR says the handling is “choppy” on uneven pavement, which matches my old lemon): http://www.chevybolt.org/forum/#/topics/7778?page=1 “On this rainy morning while turning to park in a stall…

That seems crazy to disable something the use is expecting in gnarly traction situations. In comparison I've driven our Tesla in heavy rain, snow and regenerative braking has never disabled, although traction control does take over occasionally. Tesla also gradually ramps down the braking to zero at 5mph so it doesn't suddenly disappear.

Deceleration will reduce your available traction which in most cases is better served for steering.

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#279

Post by luckydude »

otterley wrote: post #274
luckydude wrote: post #272

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So I used to feel like you do until I moved to the Santa Cruz mountains. A half ton pickup is pretty much required. I have a chevy extended cab, 8 foot bed, gets used all the time for stuff that I couldn't do with a car. In addition to that I have a chevy 3500 HD dually flatbed that gets used as well. It's an entirely different beast, I've hauled 10,080 pounds of base rock in that thing and I still had spring left. I…

Yes, Larry, you are special. <3

Good special or snowflake special? Let's hope the former :)

Re: Chevy Bolt: the First Practical, Mass-Market Electric Vehicle

#280

Post by 15155 »

lostboys67 wrote: post #199
DannyBee wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

8 awg wire (max 50 amp charger, since 90C breakers don't exist in residential) is not that heavy or hard to work with. 4 awg wire (max 85 amp charger) would be heavy wiring for most folks. You can also get 6 or 4 gauge soow or whatever and make a long cord from charge spot wherever you want. (But i don't remember what NEC has to say about this and am too lazy to look)

You don't have to get a real electrician in to do the wiring esp. at the higher Amperage's? which presumably maxes out at 240v in the USA as opposed to a 415 V in the Uk.

In my own home, I'd do this wiring myself, assuming I had panel space.

Getting an electrician can be useful for liability purposes, but 240V/85A isn't scary if you do some research on how to do it safely, minimum wire gauge, etc. ahead of time.

This is a much higher amperage than any residential circuit requires, though, and will have trouble fitting on many 150A residential service panels.

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