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Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

businessinsider.com

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Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#321

Post by sitkack »

I have an aging 2011 Nissan Leaf with a realistic 55 mile range. I charge it at home with a 15a extension cord. I drive it every day. Occasionally I give it a boost charge at charging station.

I am in Seattle. I can get to Issaquah, Bainbridge, Everett, Tacoma and back no problem. If I had a _modern_ electric car with a 150 mile range, I could drive to Vancouver BC or Portland instead of taking the train. I don't think electric cars should have a range over 200 miles.

Gas cars should be taxed out of existence.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#323

Post by axegon_ »

Here's a slightly different take: When I first tried electric cars, I absolutely loved them and really wanted one. However a few things to consider:

1. My country's infrastructure when it comes to electric cars is appalling. I'd be fine in the city but outside the city, I'm pretty screwed.

2. Winters: though climate change has softened winters down considerably but still, the fact that a full charge in summer gets you 250km and the same charge gets you less than 50 in winter is something I won't be able to work with.

3. The skewed stats about how eco-friendly electric cars are. I mean my 3 liter diesel is arguably more eco-friendly if I employ similar tactics of presenting the data: I drive it once a week for single digit kilometers.

4. Musk: let's just say that he made sure I hate electric cars and anything he's involved with. I can't stand his ego, lies and hypocrisy. Let's just say that if he goes missing tomorrow, I won't miss him a single bit.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#324

Post by midasuni »

epolanski wrote: post #322

Unsurprisingly, more cars, even if electric, are not a solution. Yet again, the answer is better public transport.

How do you provide better transport to a village with 30 houses in and services in 4 different directions?

There is literally demand for no more than 30 journeys a day in each direction. An hourly bus service would have more drivers than passengers even if it captured 100% of passenger journeys.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#325

Post by midasuni »

bob1029 wrote: post #320

I think the central problem for me boils down to some fairly essential math. When you are fueling up a gasoline vehicle, you are drawing something like 10-20 megawatts of effective power for the duration. And remember, this is pretty much any gas station. Now, what kind of power output can I expect at the highest end supercharging station under the best possible circumstances? The solution seems to be hybrid where yo…

20MW? That’s some impressive charger, the most I’ve ever seen is 0.15MW, and the typical home charger is 0.007MW.

A typical large EV would charge in 20 seconds at that rate.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#326

Post by ctchocula »

zeroping wrote: post #239
hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #204

This article makes me even more dismayed at the fact that the Chevy Volt never really took off. I really believe it would be the perfect car for most people: 1. As the article points out, most people drive less than 40 miles a day, and the Volt provided 40-50 miles of electric range. 2. Since the battery is relatively small for an EV, no expensive home charging system is needed - just plug it into a normal 120V outle…

I agree, but noting one downside to the Volt and other plug-in hybrids: the complexity. There's a lot that can go wrong when a car is in any kind of collision. EV have 'scary' high voltage cables that many repair shops don't want to deal with, but they make up for it with simplicity. Plug-in hybrids have almost all the complexity of both, combined. My Volt ate some road debris, and it punctured an oil intercooler and…

+1 I've also been bitten by this.

The low production volume of the Volt meant that the 1st generation Volts suffered from a poorly designed regulator on all windows, so the power window stops working. Those need to get replaced 5-8 years in. The battery coolant sensor is also poorly designed and if you ever get the dreaded SHVCS message, will prevent the Volt battery from charging. The dealer then rips you off asking for $2000 for what should be a 15min repair. /rant

Aside from these small things, I've loved the Volt and the 40mi is perfect for the average commute. Wish GM invested more in Volts instead of Bolts, which are way less aesthetically pleasing.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#327

Post by nicbou »

paxys wrote: post #142
iknowstuff wrote: post #43

Dumbass "journalists" with the usual clickbait. Explicitly MORE people are buying EVs: > Sure, sales of EVs keep going up — a record 300,000 cars sold in the US in the third quarter of 2023 were electric The only thing they're seeing is "but the pace of adoption has markedly slowed" -- no shit, have you seen the interest rates and price diffs? And which manufacturer grew the most? Oh that's right the only all-EV one.…

Business Insider is blogspam. Pretty much anyone can sign up to write, and their primary goal is to get clicks not win Pulitzers. And they are immensely successful at it considering how consistently they show up on places like HN despite having no content of value. Forbes is in the same bucket.

Business Insider and Forbes are in my Google search results blocklist for that reason. There is no quality content on those websites.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#328

Post by furyofantares »

lukas099 wrote: post #75
rappatic wrote: post #58

The article talks about range concerns as if they're simply incorrect or ill-founded: > Niedermeyer said that while an electric car can meet most people's driving needs, it struggles with edge cases like road trips because of the need to recharge. Since Americans have been promised a one-to-one substitute for their gas cars, this seems like a failure; an EV should be able to do everything a gas car can. This idea per…

People focus too much on edge cases when making life decisions, imo. > We need a dining room for when we have parties (has a party once every 2 years; room sits empty 99% of the time) > We need a guest bedroom (guests could stay at the hotel down the street) > I need a pickup truck (driver is an accountant who maybe picks up a couple bags of mulch from Lowes twice a year) I'm glad I live in a prosperous society where…

I'm extremely confident that our guest bedroom that sits empty most of the year has increased the # of family visits we get by a whole lot. It's still mostly empty and it's true they could stay in a hotel, but they feel welcome, they have a place they can make their home, and it's just less commitment and planning.

If you're middle age and only see your family once or twice year when you visit them on holidays, it's sobering to make a guess as to how many more times you'll see them in your life.

I'm guessing my empty guest bedroom that might as well be replaced by a hotel visit has doubled the number of high quality visits I'll have with some family members.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#329

Post by niemandhier »

rappatic wrote: post #58

The article talks about range concerns as if they're simply incorrect or ill-founded: > Niedermeyer said that while an electric car can meet most people's driving needs, it struggles with edge cases like road trips because of the need to recharge. Since Americans have been promised a one-to-one substitute for their gas cars, this seems like a failure; an EV should be able to do everything a gas car can. This idea per…

My Skoda Enyaq has a range of around 350 km ( 100% -> 20% ), using a 300kv charger the car is fully charged pretty fast. I have traversed Germany in the north south axis quite comfortably.

The thing can pull a trailer, max distance is less but I only need to go the local hardware store.

I think those concerns overall are unfounded for most of us.

Re: Fewer people are buying electric cars in the US

#330

Post by epolanski »

protocolture wrote: post #80
rappatic wrote: post #58

The article talks about range concerns as if they're simply incorrect or ill-founded: > Niedermeyer said that while an electric car can meet most people's driving needs, it struggles with edge cases like road trips because of the need to recharge. Since Americans have been promised a one-to-one substitute for their gas cars, this seems like a failure; an EV should be able to do everything a gas car can. This idea per…

Yep. I have a Diesel. My average trip length will be roughly 60km. However, 4 - 8 times a year I need to go much further. Last year a single round trip for work was roughly 2200 km. And that was through extreme rural environments. The vast majority of places I stopped to refill the vehicle did not have electric service. Average trips being serviceable doesnt help me. I dont buy a vehicle assuming it will work on aver…

You can rent a car for these cases.
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