Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

lehtimaeki.medium.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

41–50 of 114 posts

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#41

Post by asplake »

scandox wrote: post #26
paganel wrote: post #19

> The first car I bought (after driving a self-repaired / built junk) was a Honda Civic type-R Yeah, no, not all of us have enough money to have had as our first car a "Honda Civic type-R". Probably the title should read be more like: "If You're At Least Comfortably Middle-Class The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric". But of course all this push to EVs is a huge regressive tax applied to the less-off people which i…

I am an adherent of bangernomics[1]. I don't care at all about cars. But right now I just don't have the knowledge to buy a second hand EV. It's too risky and things are changing too fast. I'm afraid until there's a healthy and predictable second hand EV market, you are quite right. [1] https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/motors/bangernomic...

I wonder if it is yet possible to lease secondhand EVs? I’ve leased two Toyota hybrids (both new) and for me it’s the way to go.

(But don’t get me started on Toyota’s “self-charging hybrid nonsense”)

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#43

Post by DoingIsLearning »

roschdal wrote: post #8

Petrol cars have significantly longer driving range, which is important for transport efficiency. Petrol cars are significantly cheaper to buy. Petrol cars refuel significantly faster than electronic cars recharge. Petrol cars don't have a costly battery which degrades over time and pollutes.

I really really wanted to disagree with you and bash on ICE's. But then I thought about it and this article's guilt trip is the type of hostility against 'carbon emitting' consumers that is also part of the problem in our fight for survival (and for the survival of whoever is left behind after we are gone).

It is the same lazy strategy as Coca-Cola making you feel guilty about not recycling the plastic they created or BP going on twitter asking people what is their 'climate pledge'.

If we are serious about this fight for survival then governments and Energy industry need to replace Coal and Natural Gas for something else non-hydrocarbon based ASAP and stop Oil & Gas Energy subsidies. Then there is moral ground to ask consumers to feel guilty about their ICE emissions.

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#44

Post by wilgertvelinga »

roschdal wrote: post #8

Petrol cars have significantly longer driving range, which is important for transport efficiency. Petrol cars are significantly cheaper to buy. Petrol cars refuel significantly faster than electronic cars recharge. Petrol cars don't have a costly battery which degrades over time and pollutes.

- Very few trips are long enough to deplete an EVs battery

- EVs have significantly lower Total Costs of Ownership

- To refuel your petrol car, you have to make an extra trip to the petrol station. While your EV is simply charged where it is parked overnight

- The extraction, refinement and transportation of petrol pollutes way more than that EV battery will

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#45

Post by Lio »

Always amused when people call themselves "petrol head", really what they mean is just "car nerd".

"I'm not someone dorkily obsessed with an ordinary, everyday item. I'm a glamorous petrol head! Just like Jeremy and the boys."

Car. Nerd. :P

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#46

Post by busterarm »

theshrike79 wrote: post #20
busterarm wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Petrol cars actually work in extreme climates.

My diesel and petrol cars really didn't like longer -30C weathers. The oil turns into mush and the poor 12V battery can't hold a charge. It was a roll of the dice every morning whether I could go to work each day. With an electric car, I sit in the car, press a button and it works. The cabin is hot within 5-10 minutes. Compared to my diesel, which started blowing hot air to the cabin around the time I was already at…

You had -30C winters and no engine block heater and battery tenders/jump kits?

Electric cars only really work at sedan weight/form-factor right now. Most people who need to drive in extreme climates aren't really city drivers and typically need more capable types of vehicles to go with the terrain...if not all out industrial vehicles entirely.

Heavy equipment like that isn't even viable with electric vehicles yet.

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#47

Post by user-the-name »

ppf wrote: post #40

>"Why bother doing anything here as China is polluting so much? The reality is that we have to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions. All. That includes every tonne we release here, in our home country. No matter what does, we have to stop our pollution here Now." Exporting your CO2 emissions to other countries (in the form of battery manufacture) does not achieve this goal. If anything, it's worse, because other countr…

> Exporting your CO2 emissions to other countries (in the form of battery manufacture)

This does not make sense. Battery manufacture is no way equivalent to ICE emissions.

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#48

Post by vishnugupta »

I had made this vow.

The charging network in India is next to non-existent but I was OK to risk it and figure out a way to get it installed in my apartment.

To compensate for the lack of charging network I need the range to be 700-800 KM so that I can use it for highway runs. But the ones that are available advertise somewhere between 300-400 KM which translates to 200-300 KM real world.

So I bit the bullet and bought an ICE car. I really hope the range improves in next 5 years. Otherwise electric cars are only viable to those who can afford a 2nd car in India.

Re: The Next Car You Buy Should Be Electric

#49

Post by user-the-name »

6f8986c3 wrote: post #15
busterarm wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Petrol cars actually work in extreme climates.

Petrol cars can be easily fixed in a driveway.

Not a modern one. An outdated, inefficient one, sure. But not one that is actually built to be efficient.
Post reply on HN