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I’m ready to trade in my electric car

latimes.com

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Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#51

Post by borski »

tgma wrote: post #50
borski wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nonsense. Superchargers are packed; while they work, you’re waiting in line for a charge. Meanwhile, while some folks have had issues with EA, I haven’t, and even if I did, I’d just use a Chargepoint, EVGo, Shell Recharge, or any number of other chargers as needed. Not to mention that I can buy a Tesla charger adapter for like $60 that lets me use destination chargers at hotels, and that Tesla is opening up to CCS ch…

Anecdotally, even in Tesla heavy Northern California supercharger wait times are often zero or close to zero unless you consistently hit the peak times. I don’t know if you have stats or bad first hand experience or simply generalizing reports from holiday peak times off hand. The expansion of superchargers to non-Teslas may indeed cause problems. So far I have seen perhaps one total non-Tesla vehicle. If anything, t…

The implication that Teslas were somehow superior and outside the category of other EVs. I don’t hate Teslas; I just consider them another EV, with some pros (the supercharger network) and some cons.

Elon and the FSD nonsense is one such con. I only brought it up because he just promised it again by the end of this year, and it set off a spate of people going “Tesla is the best” when we’ve all seen this story before.

I credit Tesla with kicking off the revolution; I don’t even dislike their cars. I’ve enjoyed when I’ve rented them.

I just think they’ve stopped innovating in recent years, and frankly, I wish they would. More competition is always good.

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#52

Post by buggythebug »

gharman wrote: post #49
shireboy wrote: post #18

This to me is still the weak link. It’s not just chargers, it’s 30+ minute charge time. As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. More chargers would help but it’s really battery tech and charge times that need a few more innovations before I’d consider for a car I might take a road trip in.

> it’s 30+ minute charge time. As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. I dissent! Just did a 2-day (each way) road trip with young children and those charging breaks are pretty great and well-spaced for letting them run around and blow off steam. It’s not such a bad idea for the adults either…

[flagged]

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#53

Post by alistairSH »

gumby wrote: post #47
shireboy wrote: post #18

This to me is still the weak link. It’s not just chargers, it’s 30+ minute charge time. As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. More chargers would help but it’s really battery tech and charge times that need a few more innovations before I’d consider for a car I might take a road trip in.

> an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell You point out a problem with the IRA law, which subsidizes charger build out at service stations , precisely the wrong place for them. They should be building out in shopping areas, various roadside and destination attractions etc.

Maybe, but the last thing I want to do mid-trip is get off the highway and go shopping or whatever else. I want to top up the car, use the restroom, grab a drink, and get back on the road. I want to get wherever I’m going ASAP.

Chargers should be at full-service stations. Places with a deli or cafe, where it’s somewhat pleasant to rest for 20-30 minutes. Not someplace that the kids want to stay for hours.

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#54

Post by alistairSH »

aksss wrote: post #45
xyzzy_plugh wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I recently went on a trip where the power was out at our destination for over 24 hours due to a storm. The nearest town was ~20 minutes away and likely did not have any fast charging infrastructure. Even if it did, it's a pretty bad spot to be in, especially if you have young kids. I have been considering getting an electric car but that trip made me realize I'd have to reserve the EV for urban travel only. Otherwise…

I don’t know that it’s wildly impractical. Some people carry battery-powered emergency jump starters for their ICE car. This just seems like the reciprocal backup power solution. Carrying a generator seems very practical to me if you are putting yourself in situations where it could be not just useful but the difference between you being stranded vs self-sufficient. Nobody said that owning an electric vehicle require…

How are you going to carry a generator in a typical sedan or crossover? In the trunk, next to your luggage? Now your clothes smell like fuel. On the roof? Now your range took a 15% hit. On a trailer? Range hit, plus you have to store the trailer at home.

As a one-off thing, like driving into a town after a storm, might work. But it’s not a solution to range anxiety generally.

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#55

Post by avalys »

xyzzy_plugh wrote: post #29
shireboy wrote: post #18

This to me is still the weak link. It’s not just chargers, it’s 30+ minute charge time. As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. More chargers would help but it’s really battery tech and charge times that need a few more innovations before I’d consider for a car I might take a road trip in.

I recently went on a trip where the power was out at our destination for over 24 hours due to a storm. The nearest town was ~20 minutes away and likely did not have any fast charging infrastructure. Even if it did, it's a pretty bad spot to be in, especially if you have young kids. I have been considering getting an electric car but that trip made me realize I'd have to reserve the EV for urban travel only. Otherwise…

If the power is out at your destination you're unlikely to be able to operate the gas pumps either.

Who brings emergency gasoline supplies with them on a family trip with young kids? The suggestion is ludicrous. Is your typical vacation, like, traveling to Florida to experience a hurricane making landfall?

If you do a lot of travel to remote locations and camping and hiking and things like that, yes, an EV will probably be a stretch for that use right now. But most people in the US live and travel between major population centers.

Even if you are into the remote/outdoorsy stuff, an EV is a perfectly viable second car.

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#56

Post by alistairSH »

PragmaticPulp wrote: post #39
shireboy wrote: post #18

This to me is still the weak link. It’s not just chargers, it’s 30+ minute charge time. As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. More chargers would help but it’s really battery tech and charge times that need a few more innovations before I’d consider for a car I might take a road trip in.

> As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. If you’re doing road trips frequently and you absolutely cannot find a charging station that coincides with a lunch break spot and you cannot afford a single extra hour, then sure, this seems like a reason to wait for things to improve. But I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard this argument from people who are more…

A very specific example… I live outside DC. I like to visit Canaan Valley WV to go camping. There is no charge infrastructure anywhere nearby. So, it’s a 2 hour detour on the return leg to recharge on what is normally a 2.5-3 hour trip (each direction).

But, from my house, that’s about the only trip I’ve found like this. Any of the beaches are reachable. Most cities within a day or two Drive are reachable.

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#57

Post by SoftTalker »

xyzzy_plugh wrote: post #29
shireboy wrote: post #18

This to me is still the weak link. It’s not just chargers, it’s 30+ minute charge time. As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. More chargers would help but it’s really battery tech and charge times that need a few more innovations before I’d consider for a car I might take a road trip in.

I recently went on a trip where the power was out at our destination for over 24 hours due to a storm. The nearest town was ~20 minutes away and likely did not have any fast charging infrastructure. Even if it did, it's a pretty bad spot to be in, especially if you have young kids. I have been considering getting an electric car but that trip made me realize I'd have to reserve the EV for urban travel only. Otherwise…

If the power is out the gas pumps aren't working either, though it's possible some fuel stations have standby generators.

I have never taken extra gas along on a trip in the USA (I don't do long offroad treks or safaris, and neither do 99% of drivers).

The range and charging time issue with EVs are issues regardless of weird one-off events like the power being out for a day.

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#58

Post by guhidalg »

buggythebug wrote: post #52
gharman wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> it’s 30+ minute charge time. As great as electric is, an extra hour in the car on a road-trip with 3 kids is a tough sell. I dissent! Just did a 2-day (each way) road trip with young children and those charging breaks are pretty great and well-spaced for letting them run around and blow off steam. It’s not such a bad idea for the adults either…

[flagged]

Superchargers are normally built in retail areas that are popular enough to be safe.

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#59

Post by quijoteuniv »

tgma wrote: post #8

Specifically the author is talking about a non-Tesla EV, one that had the known defect of lack of a proper charging infrastructure at point of purchase. Nothing to see here. [Talking about Teslas and “EVs” as if they are the same category is like talking about Computer Science and “STEM” in a single category. Often disingenuous and draws the wrong conclusion.]

I think the attitude of the CEO trickles down in the kind of people that buy Teslas. This translates in the way the drive their car around. Not everyone of course, some just are interested in the EV, But is almost that like buying a car allows you to have the CEO attitude, is maybe that what they are selling?

Re: I’m ready to trade in my electric car

#60

Post by kwhitefoot »

ShakataGaNai wrote: post #33

The problem here is one of someone not doing their research, electric charging challenges, and apparently not knowing how maps work. Is CCS charging unreliable today? Yes, compared to gas station or Tesla Super Chargers... CCS has a ways to go. They are the weak link. The author doesn't discuss ANYTHING positive, like how its super easy to have a fully charged vehicle all the time because you charge at home overnight…

CCS is just the connector. Almost all European Tesla chargers now have CCS connectors, they are not less reliable than the previous Type-2 connector.
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