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Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

cleantechnica.com

31–40 of 52 posts

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#31
post #14

I can't wait for widespread adoption of electric cars and reduced pollution.

Are you sure it will reduce the pollution (genuine question)? The cars will stop polluting directly but the electricity producers will start producing much more electricity (which is much more pollution) to feed the cars. So, which of these two pollutions is better - nuclear waste/pollution or co2?

Are you sure it will reduce the pollution (genuine question)?

I live in NYC. I was thinking specifically of the air quality in NYC which its almost sure to improve, rather than total pollution.

However, I think it will improve total pollution as well. I'm fairly certain that natural gas fired combined cycle generation (which is most of the new generation being added) is both more efficient and lower polluting than the internal combustion engine, so total pollution should decrease.

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#32
post #14

I can't wait for widespread adoption of electric cars and reduced pollution.

Are you sure it will reduce the pollution (genuine question)? The cars will stop polluting directly but the electricity producers will start producing much more electricity (which is much more pollution) to feed the cars. So, which of these two pollutions is better - nuclear waste/pollution or co2?

The people that are complaining about pollution rather than global warming might be thinking about the particles that aren't pleasant and/or healthy to breath in. Global warming is a problem for everyone (though the effects of it may vary depending on where you are on the planet), while pollution is for some a more local problem. If, for example, all cars in a city were converted to electric cars there might be more net pollution (maybe - could be all hydroelectric for example), but the pollution itself would be concentrated around the power plants, not in the city itself. So then you won't have to deal with pollution if you live close to one of the main arteries of that city.

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#33
post #14

I can't wait for widespread adoption of electric cars and reduced pollution.

Are you sure it will reduce the pollution (genuine question)? The cars will stop polluting directly but the electricity producers will start producing much more electricity (which is much more pollution) to feed the cars. So, which of these two pollutions is better - nuclear waste/pollution or co2?

The efficiency of a large closed-loop stationary turbine such as is used in power generation is massively better than that of a small internal combustion engine and the oil needs far less messy processing to use as a fuel, so even if all of the power generation was oil based, switching the cars to electric would still reduce CO2 emissions and other pollutive effects.

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#34
post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you sure it will reduce the pollution (genuine question)? The cars will stop polluting directly but the electricity producers will start producing much more electricity (which is much more pollution) to feed the cars. So, which of these two pollutions is better - nuclear waste/pollution or co2?

The people that are complaining about pollution rather than global warming might be thinking about the particles that aren't pleasant and/or healthy to breath in. Global warming is a problem for everyone (though the effects of it may vary depending on where you are on the planet), while pollution is for some a more local problem. If, for example, all cars in a city were converted to electric cars there might be more…

There would still be less net pollution in your example though as the total pollution from using petrol to power the cars would still exceed the amount of pollution from an oil burning power station producing electricity to power the cars.

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#35
post #3

As a Norwegian this keep coming up in lunch conversations. I just bought an old used car from somebody buying a Tesla. What we come back to is the very high sale taxes on new cars in Norway (our "rule of thumb" is that cars are close to twice as expensive in Norway as in some other countries), but that most(/all?) of those taxes are waived for electric. So the alternative to getting, e.g., a Tesla is paying almost tw…

What about driving in the snow? As a Canadian I can't see a Tesla being of any use in the winter, do people talk about that?

Here is a review of the Tesla during winter conditions in Norway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ5PqPeOPT0 (Spoiler: Pretty damn good even in harsh conditions)

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#37
As a Norwegian I would like to see sale numbers in Oslo compared to the rest of the country.

My educated guess is that the vast majority of EVs are bought and driven in the larger Oslo area, and if I'm right, I think we actually should be discussing Oslo and not Norway as a country.

Edit: Reorganized two words.

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#38
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What about driving in the snow? As a Canadian I can't see a Tesla being of any use in the winter, do people talk about that?

Here is a review of the Tesla during winter conditions in Norway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ5PqPeOPT0 (Spoiler: Pretty damn good even in harsh conditions)

Interesting, he had good points about such a heavy vehicle in snow and the large amount of torque that can make for dangerous winter driving especially in a rear-wheel drive vehicle.

I had to look up what the 'cold weather spec' package is and seems to be just creature comforts not different engineering/design to increase efficiency in cold weather.

My concern is at -20C in January with a metre of snow, heater on full blast, spinning the wheels as I plow through snow and slush with aggressive studded winter tires how much will that 400km range drop? Even just warming up the interior (a common thing) in the morning and scraping off the ice off the windows before going to work in the morning. My current vehicle's mileage drops in half in the winter due to all those conditions.

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#39
post #3

As a Norwegian this keep coming up in lunch conversations. I just bought an old used car from somebody buying a Tesla. What we come back to is the very high sale taxes on new cars in Norway (our "rule of thumb" is that cars are close to twice as expensive in Norway as in some other countries), but that most(/all?) of those taxes are waived for electric. So the alternative to getting, e.g., a Tesla is paying almost tw…

What about driving in the snow? As a Canadian I can't see a Tesla being of any use in the winter, do people talk about that?

Really? I live in Hamilton and we plough so aggressively that I don't think anything on 4 wheels is inappropriate for the snow. You barely even need snow tires here unless you're planning to drive out to cow country.

You out West? I've heard they don't salt out there, which makes all the difference.

Re: Top-Selling Car in Norway Now Electric Car Two Months in a Row

#40
post #3

As a Norwegian this keep coming up in lunch conversations. I just bought an old used car from somebody buying a Tesla. What we come back to is the very high sale taxes on new cars in Norway (our "rule of thumb" is that cars are close to twice as expensive in Norway as in some other countries), but that most(/all?) of those taxes are waived for electric. So the alternative to getting, e.g., a Tesla is paying almost tw…

Good God, could you imagine that kind of aggressive policy here in North America? It would be political heresy.

Seriously, everybody was all for saving the world from global cataclysm until we found out it would be expensive and inconvenient.

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