Today, would you buy an EV vehicle.

[cqaigy2]

I also remember global warming that killed the dinosaurs. Guess maybe they should have quit farting and driving their diesel trucks too.

I think you have misremembered the dinosaur thing, wasn't global warming. Most likely that big asteroid that hit down in what is now, Mexico was the last straw, but also volcano farts. So there, you got your farts, but it wasn't dinosaur farts.

 

[Torvy]

You claimed "the bolt has to be slashed because it is inferior to other options". Define "inferior"?


So you can read into the marketplace what you want but until you drive a Bolt you have no clue. I personally believe that the rest of the EV's are extremely overpriced for what you get.
I met a Mach-E owner at a charging station while charging my Bolt. He stated he paid $72K for his EV that was used with 2500 miles on it. His car was fantastic and had a huge center screen but was it twice as good as my Bolt? Nada!

The main reason the Bolt is down in sales, IMO, is the over exaggerated fire issue (0.0016% of all Bolts) with the original battery, that has since been upgraded.

Inferior is always defined by the market. I'm happy that you are happy. If it works for your needs, that is awesome. Often in history some 'better' technologies have been found wanting by the market. (see Amiga, Betamax, etc.) For me, a hybrid makes much more sense, especially the Prius Prime that we have. (Though, if I had to do it over, I would get the Rav4 Prime)

Consumer Reports has the Prime scored at 79 and the highest scoring EV or Hybrid sedan (there are two higher rated small SUVs, one of which is the Rav4 Prime). The Nissan Leaf (pure EV) scored a 78. The Bolt scores out at 62. That would be more objectively 'inferior'. At the end of the day, we all have options.

 

[lman]

So true! This weekend we drove round trip from an hour north of San Francisco, to a few miles south of The City. There seemed to be a Tesla among the oncoming traffic nearly continuous. Three around us, waiting at stoplight, a couple of times.

EV's aren't the answer for the deep rural folks on here. But they are great for urban owners who can charge at home and drive mostly within a 100 mile radius. A huge number of Americans fit that profile.

Did you see any pulling a livestock or 30' flatbed trailer?

 

[CaptFerd]

While we argue about fancy Electric Cars, Windmills and Solar panels on a tractor forum my focus would be more on plowing a field and feeding these people.

 

[nickfank]

EV's aren't the answer for the deep rural folks on here. But they are great for urban owners who can charge at home and drive mostly within a 100 mile radius. A huge number of Americans fit that profile.

I'd say that EVs are even better for rural folks, because we tend to own houses & barns that provide plenty of roof space for solar arrays. That means our cost per kWh is about 1/3 of what urban dwellers pay. The roof on an urban high-rise doesn't have enough space to provide solar power for all the residents, but out here in the boonies, installing a solar array and running your car/truck off of it is so cheap that you're wasting money if you don't do it. (And, if you buy the notion that the grid can't handle EVs, being a producer in your corner of the grid makes that worry go away.)

We have one old cheap EV that can only travel 90 miles on a charge, but pretty much every 2019 and up model can go 250+ miles on a charge, and I know of three high-end 2022 cars that are over 500.

 

[California]

Did you see any pulling a livestock or 30' flatbed trailer?

You assumed the urban folks I talked about have cattle in their back yards? Surprise, no.

 

[RoyJackson]

I'd say that EVs are even better for rural folks, because we tend to own houses & barns that provide plenty of space for solar arrays. The roof on a high-rise doesn't have enough space to provide power for all the residents, but out here in the boonies, installing a solar array is so lucrative that there's no reason not to do it.

To a point...but we also have longer distances to drive. Small EV for grocery-getting if there's shopping within 20-25 miles.
But, most equipment is still going to be internal combustion

 

[nickfank]

This GM is slashing prices for the Chevy Bolt amid high demand for electric vehicles might get me to buy one. I would have to do some research to see if it would fit my needs for a second vehicle. (actually my third vehicle... I put more miles on my company truck than on anything else.)

I've got a 2019 Bolt, and it's a great car. They're slashing prices because of competition, not because it's a bad car.

My Bolt is one of the models covered by a battery recall, so right now, I'm running it at 85% of full charge most of the time. That's my only gripe. Everything else about it is great, and the battery problem will be fixed at no cost, so only a mild inconvenience.

 

[nickfank]

Oh, so now I only have to pay for a solar array, AND buy an EV.
What planet are people living on

The planet where those of us who have done that are saving a pile of money. You don't have to do anything. I punched the numbers into a spreadsheet and decided I wanted to do it.

 

[nickfank]

To a point...but we also have longer distances to drive. Small EV for grocery-getting if there's shopping within 20-25 miles.
But, most equipment is still going to be internal combustion

I used to think that, but we're 2 years into owning an EV and our ICE car only gets used for vacation trips. It's rare that I have a round trip of over 200 miles, and most new EVs can handle that with ease. But yeah... still waiting on the truck, tractor, etc...

A bit off topic, but... I bought a cordless electric chainsaw two months ago. I wasn't expecting much, but I'm blown away by how well it works. That's one piece of equipment I'd recommend switching over to without reservation. Weirdly, the primary drawback is that it has so much torque that it feels more dangerous to me than the two-stroke.