Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

Let's say I spend $500/mo on gas for an ICE car. That's roughly 6 fill-ups per month at the gas prices where I live for a full tank that gets me 350 miles of range. How long does charging up an EV take for the same kind of range? How long does it take for 6 full recharges per month? Filling up the gas tank takes me 3 minutes on average, that's about 20 minutes per month. I bet EV recharging takes a lot longer, but even if we're generous and we say 20 minutes for a full 0-100 charge, that's 2 hours a month. 2 wasted hours of my time is worth far more than $500 to me.

When I'm driving my car, and specifically refueling, most often it is not on some long journey where I could use the 20 minute break from driving to stretch, go to the bathroom, etc. It's during commuting where I have other stuff to do. That extra time spent waiting for the EV to charge is just wasted time to me -- I don't want to sit around futzing with my phone or 'relaxing' -- I have shit to do. And no, I can't charge at home because there's no way that's happening where I live, nor do I frequent any shops/malls that have charging stations that I can rely on, nor does my workplace offer such a service.

Most people in the US are driving from their suburbs downtown or from two close cities.

As an European I lived 6 months in Columbus, Ohio, and it was crazy to me that a trip from suburbs 10 miles off downtown could take you multiple hours.

Dayton to Columbus is connected only through bus, and it's a 2 hours trip!

Should be a 25 minutes train.

In Europe public transport isn't perfect, but it's way better than in US.

I live in a small village not far off Rome.

Going to city center is a 1 hour drive, way more during peak time, but in train it takes you 20 minutes, and guess what, most people take the train. It's comfortable, quick, cheap.

This also means that many people in my village do not need multiple cars per household, me and my SO have just one and it sits in the garage most of the time.

Hell, I remember being in LA and it was impossible to walk 1 mile distance. You had to call Uber for such things. Crazy.

Methinks you assume too much. Rooftop solar is only really an option for someone that owns a SFH, or is in a townhome with a fairly permissive HOA (In the US).

Someone living in an apartment probably has no ability to access reliable solar except via the primary grid (which we assume will be down in case of emergency.) And in other places, like California, having solar panels is growing increasingly expensive due to the additional fees imposed by the electric utilities (and nevermind the initial costs.)

Gas is relatively easy to stockpile in large volumes, it has a huge energy density, and is highly useful for other things, not to mention being fairly portable. You can even use it for producing electricity by using a generator.

Alfa Romeo Stelvio 2018 / 2.0 petrol / 280 bhp Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio 2021 / 2.9 V6 / 510 bhp

We have ZERO incentives to change these cars with electrics; why would I change my convenience to put gas in the established gas network with the dubious charging station availability (Eastern Europe)?

I drove a Hyundai Kona electric last year; well, when you drive it at 150-180 km/h - the battery dies quite fast :)

I am not convinced AT ALL in electric cars. Maybe in 20-30 years ...

> But I like living in this kind of excess!

Sure, and I'm sure you deserve it. As do we all. But guess what? In the hard cold reality that we live in, it's not sustainable or feasible for everyone to own a huge hulking gas guzzling vehicle just to enable your yearly road trip. Wish it was, but it isn't. Not even close.

> How preposterous, I certainly don't live in excess!

Oh yes you do. On a global and historical scale, if you can afford a car, then you live in excess. I'd bet that all of us that read this website do. You need some perspective.

> But I pay for myself!

No you don't. If the planet is failing to even sustain civilization from this lifestyle, clearly somewhere there are costs that aren't covered. The market has no solution for the external costs that most things in our lifestyle incur.

> But the alternatives would mean a slight inconvenience to me! I would have to adjust and re-evaluate things I've grown used to. They're not the 100% optimal solution for me personally!

Well, I'm sorry that the freaking possible end of future civilization causes an inconvenience in your modern life of abundance. Actually no, I'm not. If stopping and waiting at a charging station those three times a year you make an 8 hour trip is what it takes to ensure a healthy life for future (and even current) generations, then I'm saving my concern for more pressing matters. Heck, I'd even argue that renting an ICE car on those occasions might be a reasonable price to pay, no matter the (in the grander scheme of things) slight inconvenience this means.

Grow up, people.