I love electric vehicles. But increasingly I feel duped

[NoTrespassing]

Our current method of using energy for transportation is archaic...lol.

I for one love "recharging" my gas vehicle in 10 minutes flat.

I think it's archaic to think recharging in less than 5 hours is a huge win.

I have always thought using batteries for transportation is silly. There is no way to recharge except through a fixed station that is slow at best. The problem is the transportation problem was solved a long time ago. People now have so much free time they are creating problems to solve over again, only the new solutions are giant steps backwards.

Then, don't even get me started on the "green" lithium and cobalt mining for this new green revolution.

You don't think electric motors will replace internal combustion engines for personal transportation? I think they will as battery tech improves.

 

[Snobdds]

You don't think electric motors will replace internal combustion engines for personal transportation? I think they will as battery tech improves.

Not until they figure out nuclear fusion.

Batteries have a scalability problem. At some point the weight of the battery overcomes any power efficiencies. The laws of physics are not breakable.

We have had exactly one improvement in battery tech in the last 30 years. Lithium. It a lot better, but it's still far from being a solution to the transportation faux problem.

 

[Chewwy]

You don't think electric motors will replace internal combustion engines for personal transportation? I think they will as battery tech improves.

Can’t wait until we have cars that can fly at reasonable prices. They have been promised to be just around the corner since the early 1950s.

 

[WranglerX]

Really think the bottom line in all this is "follow the money" to the electrical industry...

 

[MAX-24-Dean]

Some people seem to think that standing still is the answer to everything. They think that climate change is a giant lie made up by ?? to rob us of our money and take us out of our comfort zone. Because the government is indeed far from perfect, they think the government is part of the conspiracy of that giant lie. Seems like this forum is a sounding off place for these people.

I don't claim to have answers to all of the questions, but I firmly believe change is indeed needed. Our current method of using energy for transportation is so archaic. I agree with Jeff that electric cars are indeed over-sold on their advantages, and the disadvantages are understated. But we live in a constantly evolving situation where change will happen, with many mistakes along with many unexpected advances as we move on, resulting in a better (but certainly not perfect) world.

Change is needed, but to what extent do we go and is there "real science" that says what we are changing to is better and less poluting to the global enviroment?

We aren't standing still on emissions. Over the last 35 years the exhaust "polution" from ICE has been reduced by over 90% (Read 95% somewhere).
When the goal is zero, then the powers that be are using perfection (FEAR) as the goal posts.
Driving through LA now vs 35 years ago is kind of like night and day, very little smog now. Many days there is no smog visible. And the amount of respiratory ploblems has gone down also as a result.
I'm all about clean air, but the goal of zero polution which is perfection when the enviromental rules governing ICE polution have made it good enough in my opinion. A 90 to 95% reduction in exhaust emissions is substantial.
I worked in Industrial Polution Control for a major part of my career, the USA has done more to reduce polution than any other country I am aware of. with the exception of Sweden.

 

[dodge man]

For electric cars it seems to take 15,000 to 25,000 miles to reach the zero carbon footprint point. All of this data is also probably coming from pro electric car sources but I find it believable.

The real question is does an electric car work for the way you travel or drive. For us I figure 80% of the days it would, that’s days not miles. This would be driving no more than 100 miles from home, usually less. The problem is 50% or more of the miles we drive it doesn’t’, which is long trips. We drove from West Central Illinois to Dauphine Island Alabama last week, we didn’t see a single charging station.

 

[Snobdds]

Change is needed, but to what extent do we go and is there "real science" that says what we are changing to is better and less poluting to the global enviroment?

We aren't standing still on emissions. Over the last 35 years the exhaust "polution" from ICE has been reduced by over 90% (Read 95% somewhere).
When the goal is zero, then the powers that be are using perfection (FEAR) as the goal posts.
Driving through LA now vs 35 years ago is kind of like night and day, very little smog now. Many days there is no smog visible. And the amount of respiratory ploblems has gone down also as a result.
I'm all about clean air, but the goal of zero polution which is perfection when the enviromental rules governing ICE polution have made it good enough in my opinion. A 90 to 95% reduction in exhaust emissions is substantial.
I worked in Industrial Polution Control for a major part of my career, the USA has done more to reduce polution than any other country I am aware of. with the exception of Sweden.

We have cleaned up 95% of diesel tailpipe emissions with tier 4 technology. The last 5% is always the hardest and most costly to obtain for the smallest benefit. To get the last 5%, diesels will become super complex and expensive to the point it limits their use. Which is what they probably want.

I always tell my employees...don't let perfection be the enemy of good. Someone needs to tell the EPA this.

 

[Fixastuff]

The last 5% is always the hardest and most costly to obtain for the smallest benefit.

That's why they leave it in the milk. Lol.

 

[Paystar]

Once Government goes all in on something, facts and reality don't matter. Just look at all the damage they caused by forcing the "vaccine" on everyone. In my opinion, Electric Vehicles are the future, and it's just a matter of time until the Government makes it too expensive, or impossible to find parts to keep gas and diesel vehicles running. There are threads on here about 20 year old tractors that you cannot find parts for anymore because they are not Tier4.

My plan is to wait as long as possible, but realize that it's gonna happen. I'm building a new 3 car garage onto my house and I'm going to run the wire for charging Electric Vehicles in it. I might be wasting money, but wire isn't going to get any cheaper, and having it in place now, before sheetrock is installed, seems like a good idea.

One thing that I really like is that the Ford Lightning has a huge lockable storage area under the hood, where the engine is normally located. As a contractor, I think this would be great. I can keep my tools locked up under the hood, and haul material in the bed of the truck. Since I usually work within 30 minutes of where I live, I would have plenty of charge for a full day, and never have to deal with a gas station again. Price to buy one is my biggest issue since I don't know how long the batteries will last, and what happens when the batteries need to be replaced. For now, I'm just gonna wait and see what happens.

You got that right Eddie. The gov and the media like to pull the wool over the "sheeples" eyes. But they don't want to talk about where the electricity and batteries come from, LOL

Was talking to my friend who is my Ford salesman the other day. He said they are having lots of problems with those electric F150's and in his words..."the technicians can't even fix all the electronics problems in the gas and diesel vehicles, they are really lost on those electric ones."

And speaking of vaccines, I got my comment read on The Cow Guy Closed the other day on RFD TV. He even laughed.

I said "Lets get this straight. People are against GMO foods, yet they are perfectly okay with letting the government inject them with a gene altering vaccine? This world needs a giant reset. Send the meteors"

 

[Rockbadchild]

one cargo ship emit the same amount of pollution as 50 million cars … 20 cargo ship creat more pollutions as all the cars on the planet … there are 60 000 cargo ship around the planet… but yet the problem are the cars …

 

[tshep]

I and the wife like nice, but cheap cars.
We both expect to be able to get in and go 200 to 600 miles in a day - once in a awhile. So far that has ruled out cheap E-cars.(same for the truck - maybe 20 mile trips 99% of the time - then 200 or even 1500 miles in 2 days to go get something.) Our use case has not lead to E-cars.

But I could see - and it's not my idea - a drop down guide/contact just like old slot cars. Almost any 100 + trip involves Interstate anyway, why not have all of them paved with load bearing 'cells? Any sunny day is a good day to travel!

 

[Torvy]

one cargo ship emit the same pollution as 50 million cars … 20 cargo ship creat more pollutions as all the cars on the planet … there is 60 000 cargo ship around the planet… but yet the problem are the cars …

Nope, the tractors are the problem!

 

[Fixastuff]

This world needs a giant reset. Send the meteors"

Many people say this but I think if they saw a meteor heading their way they'd change their mind pretty quick.

 

[stevem5215]

Mankind has shown that we reset every so often. Wiping out masses of people at the time it occurs. We are overdue for one of those events and when that happens everything changes. Including how we do things. My personal belief is that flying through air in the current airplane method where air suspends the craft is outdated technology. What is coming is anti gravitational technology which will allow us to "fly" much the same as our dreams of alien saucers and UFO's today that we don't see but in our dreams (and by air force pilots lol). The time is coming and things like superconductors and advanced quantum computing along with nuclear fusion will see those anti magnetic dreams become reality. It'll be a Elon Musk type that drives that to occur. His type of personality that works 20hours a day will drive it to fruition.

 

[JasperFrank]

I use to always recycle the oil from my vehicles. And often wondered what happened to that stuff once dropped off at the recycling center. I imagined it would be refined again in some way to a retail product. Thirty years ago, I asked a friend, who was also knowledgeable about large ships, and what he thought happened to used engine oil. He told me, that it was used as bunker oil to power freighter ships. Of course this is thirty years ago, and he said, they don't really refine it again, they just strain it for metal bits. These large two stroke diesel engines have pistons the size of a coffee table. They can run off of anything that combusts under pressure. And they only run at 70 to 100 RPM. "Are they clean burning?" I asked him. He just laughed at me and said, "(expletive) No! Crews routinely get asphyxiated. You just don't hear about it." As stated, this is what I heard from someone that would have known things about large seagoing ships and bunker oil thirty years ago. I don't recycle old engine oil any more, I use it to lube chainsaw bars.

 

[oldtimer 66]

The Contradictions of Battery Operated Vehicles | Graham Conway | TEDxSanAntonio​

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Nope, the tractors are the problem!

I thought it was cow farts!

 

[Rockbadchild]

one cargo ship emit the same amount of pollution as 50 million cars … 20 cargo ship creat more pollutions as all the cars on the planet … there are 60 000 cargo ship around the planet… but yet the problem are the cars …

If someone need to fact check me,

''according to a report by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), the top 15 largest ships emit more sulfur oxides (SOx) than all the world's cars combined. Additionally, a single large container ship can emit as much diesel pollution as 50 million cars.''

 

[Oaktree]

I use to always recycle the oil from my vehicles. And often wondered what happened to that stuff once dropped off at the recycling center. I imagined it would be refined again in some way to a retail product. Thirty years ago, I asked a friend, who was also knowledgeable about large ships, and what he thought happened to used engine oil. He told me, that it was used as bunker oil to power freighter ships. Of course this is thirty years ago, and he said, they don't really refine it again, they just strain it for metal bits. These large two stroke diesel engines have pistons the size of a coffee table. They can run off of anything that combusts under pressure. And they only run at 70 to 100 RPM. "Are they clean burning?" I asked him. He just laughed at me and said, "(expletive) No! Crews routinely get asphyxiated. You just don't hear about it." As stated, this is what I heard from someone that would have known things about large seagoing ships and bunker oil thirty years ago. I don't recycle old engine oil any more, I use it to lube chainsaw bars.

I'm a big believer in recycling whatever I can. Never really got a straight answer from any of the autoparts stores/garages that accept used oil as to what's done with it. I do know of a couple people who have waste oil burners to heat their shops, I bet that's where a lot of it goes. Hate to think of the air quality issues it causes though.

As far as re-using it as bar oil...uh, no. Tried that once and never again. Do you have some sort of filter you run it thru first? All the suspended gunk in the oil just clogged up the passages in my saw. Real PITA to clean it out.
I'll use some to start a bonfire or something, but other than that I just drop it off at O'Reillys.

 

[EddieWalker]

Was talking to my friend who is my Ford salesman the other day. He said they are having lots of problems with those electric F150's and in his words..."the technicians can't even fix all the electronics problems in the gas and diesel vehicles, they are really lost on those electric ones."

Good point. My biggest concern when buying a new tractor last year was the reliability of the electronics in it. Every tractor that I own has had electrical issues. It's my biggest issue.

On my 2003 Century tractor, I removed every single wire, then just ran the bare minimum that I need for it to run. Since doing that, it's been utterly reliable. It starts every time, quickly and easily. I did the same thing to my 2010 Scag zero turn. Same results. Removing every wire and just installing what I needed has solved all my issues.

I just hope I never get to that point with my 2022 Massey 4707 tractor!!!!

My 2012 F150 wouldn't start after getting gas, so I called my buddy who owns an auto repair shop. He sent a tow truck, and had one of his guys stay late to fix it. Turned out to be an issue in how Ford wired one of the relays to the starter and the alternator. They ran a new wire, bypassing something, and then adding another fuse to it. Apparently, this is a common electrical issue with F150's.

How does a company as big as Ford have common electrical issues with a vehicle that they sell millions of?

What happens if you have an Electric Vehicle and it doesn't work? Who fixes it? What does it cost to have it fixed? I've ready a few stories with crazy ten figure numbers for repairs.