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Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

theguardian.com

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Re: Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

#21

One thing I keep getting tripped up on with EV cars is the usability during an emergency. I grew up in SoCal when there were rolling black-outs. Just this week, a windstorm took out my parent’s power for 3 days. I don’t view electricity to be as reliable as gas. What fact am I missing that can change my view on this?

It's easier to set up back yard solar panels than a back yard fuel refinery.

'backyard' Solar panels won't recharge an EV

Re: Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

#22

One thing I keep getting tripped up on with EV cars is the usability during an emergency. I grew up in SoCal when there were rolling black-outs. Just this week, a windstorm took out my parent’s power for 3 days. I don’t view electricity to be as reliable as gas. What fact am I missing that can change my view on this?

It's easier to set up back yard solar panels than a back yard fuel refinery.

It's an interesting topic, many view gas station and the oil supply as more reliable.. probably a too-big-to-fail aspect of it. But 'if' it crashes, it's indeed a lot harder to compensate for than electricity.

Re: Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

#23

One thing I keep getting tripped up on with EV cars is the usability during an emergency. I grew up in SoCal when there were rolling black-outs. Just this week, a windstorm took out my parent’s power for 3 days. I don’t view electricity to be as reliable as gas. What fact am I missing that can change my view on this?

Buy rooftop solar. You'll be vulnerable to standard California chaos, but if the world truly collapses, you can disconnect from grid power and cruise around the post-apocalyptic gas-free wasteland as a zero-carbon road warrior.

Re: Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

#24

I’ll be interested to see the lifespan of EVs for “normal” people. I’ve got a 2012 Nissan LEAF we bought post-lease in 2015. I love it still, and don’t have any plans to replace it. The battery is not in great shape, but it gets me where I need to go. I am genuinely considering replacing the battery rather than buying another EV when the battery finally fails.

Maybe the replacement battery will have better tech!

AFAIK the main problem with the Leaf battery is that it doesn't have active thermal management[1].

I guess it's possible one could make a replacement battery pack which has an internal cooling loop, but it would be quite limited in how much heat it could get rid of through the battery case body without external radiators.

Of course better batteries might heat up less when used or charged, due to lower internal resistance, but that still leaves really hot or freezing days.

[1]: https://electricrevs.com/2019/01/31/does-the-new-62-kwh-leaf...

Re: Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

#25
post #20

One thing I keep getting tripped up on with EV cars is the usability during an emergency. I grew up in SoCal when there were rolling black-outs. Just this week, a windstorm took out my parent’s power for 3 days. I don’t view electricity to be as reliable as gas. What fact am I missing that can change my view on this?

Blackouts knock out gas pumps, too.

They can always fuel a generator

Re: Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

#26

One thing I keep getting tripped up on with EV cars is the usability during an emergency. I grew up in SoCal when there were rolling black-outs. Just this week, a windstorm took out my parent’s power for 3 days. I don’t view electricity to be as reliable as gas. What fact am I missing that can change my view on this?

Look at how many chargers are nearby and how far you'd have to drive in a typical rolling black-out to charge. I bet it isn't that much worse than how far you'd have to drive a gas car to refuel, as those stations tend not to have reliable backup power either.

On the US southeastern coast, the big concern is hurricanes. Gas stations are far from 100% dependable in regional emergencies both before and immediately after the event. Electricity tends to only be a problem afterward.

Re: Sales of electric cars up by 43% in 2020

#29

One thing I keep getting tripped up on with EV cars is the usability during an emergency. I grew up in SoCal when there were rolling black-outs. Just this week, a windstorm took out my parent’s power for 3 days. I don’t view electricity to be as reliable as gas. What fact am I missing that can change my view on this?

I only charge my car once a week, as it has almost exactly the same range as my old gasoline car (~300 miles). So if there is going to be a bad storm in the forecast, I will top it up, just like a gasoline car.

If the outage is extended, there are plenty of DC fast chargers near enough to me that its unlikely that both me and them would face an extended outage, just like how in a gas car you might have to drive a few gas stations over to find one with power. If I had solar installed, I would be able to recharge during the day if I am somewhat careful in driving as the estimated surplus power for area I have for solar is ~7-20 miles a day.

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