Today, would you buy an EV vehicle.

[Roric]

EV or ICE- it is all about applying the right tool to the right job.
Would you buy an EV?
Would you buy a Lamborghini?
Would you buy a quarter horse?

Fit the tool to the task.

 

[Jstpssng]

All the talk about the grid not being able to handle EVs and EV's polluting just as much as ICE's due to fossil fuel generating the electricity are pessimistic exaggerations by people who don't want to see change or who prefer to buy into negative environmental propaganda.

Nor necessarily. There are people-including some on these pages- who seem to feel that it should happen right now The grid, as well as the availability of suitable choices aren't there.

I've been interested in something electric for a second vehicle since before Hybrids became a fad. Yet I have concerns and questions, some of which I am finally getting answers to. None of those answers have come from TBN members, who are more apt to call you a hater if you aren't on the EV bandwagon. For me, breaking down or running out of fuel in the wrong place can be a life or death type situation, especially in winter.

There are differences between converting from horses to autos vs gas to electric.

-Nobody was forced to do the former, and it happened over a period of decades. My grandfather still kept a work horse until around 1950, because there were there times when it was the best tool for the job. During the Depression he used it to haul garbage for the pigs, from a resort hotel about 20 miles away.

-There was no risk of gas for people's cars, taking a resource away from other purposes.

-We weren't dependent on another country for vital components of the auto. I know that some don't consider that a problem as long as it doesn't affect their bottom line. I consider it a matter of national security. We can participate in a global economy and still put our own needs first.

 

[Jstpssng]

Think about that for a second...if there is high demand, they wouldn't be slashing prices. The Bolt has to be slashed in price because it is inferior to other options.

As I said, I would have to research them. It could also be that the people buying electric are the type who have to have the best of everything, just like they needed an $80,000 F250 to go to the grocery store.

 

[Hay Dude]

I bought a 2018 Chevy Volt in 2017 and has been my local driver ever since. Most of my daily commutes are under 50 miles so the only gas I normally use is when the engine starts up because the computer says the gasoline in the tank is getting too old and I need to burn it. I do use it for a longer drives on occasion, it works just fine and still gets 40 miles per gallon using regular gas. I couldn't be happier with any vehicle and am extremely disappointed that Chevy stopped making them. My wife hates it because it is too low to the ground and hard for her to get in and out of.

With all that said, today buying an all-electric car is quite sensible for daily short drives. The quietness, power, and lack of maintenance are not factors to overlook. You still would have to make all sorts of undesirable compromises thought to go on a cross country trip in an EV. If I owned a EV I'd prefer to own a second ICE vehicle for long trips. (or just rent an ICE vehicle for long trips). EV's definitely have a disadvantage for cold weather use due to reduced range and the lack of waste energy energy to heat the driver's compartment.

Today's EV trucks just doesn't make any sense to me. They are too expensive, have too small of range if hauling a load, and are just not ready for prime time. To me, if one chooses to buy an electric truck, he probably doesn't even really need a truck.

All the talk about the grid not being able to handle EVs and EV's polluting just as much as ICE's due to fossil fuel generating the electricity are pessimistic exaggerations by people who don't want to see change or who prefer to buy into negative environmental propaganda. The grid and generating power will increase as EV usage goes up (Do you really think there were gas stations all over the place in 1910 when ICE's started taking over transportation needs?). The efficiency of a natural gas electrical generation system runs circles around an ICE, even when grid losses are factored in. Every credible study ever done states that you pollute less with an EV regardless of how you get your power. No credible study claims that EV's are pollution free. And Nuclear power will return. Just wait and see.

Completely different situation. Gas stations also didnt supply electrical power for homes to be lighted, heated, cooled and keep food preserved.
Everyone knows most of our grid is garbage and itll take billions in borrowed or confiscated money to reinforce it for the tsunami of EVs forthcoming.
We all know the mostly foreign built EVs are just to give a false sense of security that they will “save the environment”. They wont.
The increased electrical demand will result in more pollution from power plants and contamination from lithium, cobalt, copper mining and battery disposal issues. The EV imports will cost Americans more lost industrial jobs and the imported solar panels and windmills will cost Americans more lost energy jobs.

There’s no free lunch. I bet this “lunch“ will be a _ _ _ _ sandwich.

 

[2manyrocks]

The more lithium ion batteries out there, the more fires that apparently are next to impossible to extinguish.

Given the amps involved, I wouldn't be shocked if DIY repairs were banned, making it that much worse to own an EV.

But given the price tag of new cars and trucks, I guess we'll all end up on e-bikes.

 

[Jchonline]

Solar arrays usually have a battery bank, in fact they all do. I have yet to see a direct to inverter from a solar array type set up.

They absolutely do not in a grid tied scenario. The majority are grid tied with no battery.

Now if we are talking off grid, yes…but you would need 75kwh of battery backup to charge that tesla battery overnight. Go ahead and price that out!

 

[Jchonline]

I bought a 2018 Chevy Volt in 2017 and has been my local driver ever since. Most of my daily commutes are under 50 miles so the only gas I normally use is when the engine starts up because the computer says the gasoline in the tank is getting too old and I need to burn it. I do use it for a longer drives on occasion, it works just fine and still gets 40 miles per gallon using regular gas. I couldn't be happier with any vehicle and am extremely disappointed that Chevy stopped making them. My wife hates it because it is too low to the ground and hard for her to get in and out of.

With all that said, today buying an all-electric car is quite sensible for daily short drives. The quietness, power, and lack of maintenance are not factors to overlook. You still would have to make all sorts of undesirable compromises thought to go on a cross country trip in an EV. If I owned a EV I'd prefer to own a second ICE vehicle for long trips. (or just rent an ICE vehicle for long trips). EV's definitely have a disadvantage for cold weather use due to reduced range and the lack of waste energy energy to heat the driver's compartment.

Today's EV trucks just doesn't make any sense to me. They are too expensive, have too small of range if hauling a load, and are just not ready for prime time. To me, if one chooses to buy an electric truck, he probably doesn't even really need a truck.

All the talk about the grid not being able to handle EVs and EV's polluting just as much as ICE's due to fossil fuel generating the electricity are pessimistic exaggerations by people who don't want to see change or who prefer to buy into negative environmental propaganda. The grid and generating power will increase as EV usage goes up (Do you really think there were gas stations all over the place in 1910 when ICE's started taking over transportation needs?). The efficiency of a natural gas electrical generation system runs circles around an ICE, even when grid losses are factored in. Every credible study ever done states that you pollute less with an EV regardless of how you get your power. No credible study claims that EV's are pollution free. And Nuclear power will return. Just wait and see.

Glad you are enjoying the Volt. I do like the hybrid idea much more than pure EV. Unfortunately I dont have any daily commutes that are shorter in length. It would be nice to run around town in if I dont need the truck.

With regards to the electric grid…..the challenge I see here comparing it to gas stations is the strict government control over the grid. That makes it take much, much longer. Second when gas was booming there was no question as to what we needed to do. Just build more gas stations. With electricity no one can agree….NG, Coal, Nuclear, Wind, Solar, Hydro…..lots of options but lots of bickering about how to go about it. Nuclear plants (full scale) take 5-7 years to build. NG is about 2.

My concern here is EV purchasing and manufacturing can change quickly, but the grid cannot.

 

[Oaktree]

Intelligence and common sense are not always in the same package.

IMO, only a rich fool would buy an EV when they can afford a Mercedes or BMW. I know a few rich people. They do not buy Rolex or Cartier watches because they want to know what time it is.

And how are a Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, etc. any less pretentious than an EV? They're all rich man toys.
How is it any different than buying a Raptor or any of the other monster trucks? They're to look macho at the country club, not to do any real work with, yet they're selling like hotcakes.

Those who live off grid know how this goes. Guaranteed they watch their "energy budget" (hint it's a meter and usually in the house somewhere).

Yeah. I used to work with a guy who lived off grid. He was always very conscious about electrical use, unplugged EVERYTHING when it was not in use. He had to be...expensive to run the generator when the solar batteries went low. I'm sure modern solar setups are more efficient than his 00's vintage one, but still you can't waste a watt. Big lifestyle change to go solar!

Its no longer about the environment. Its about compliance. States are banning ICE vehicles.
You WILL drive an EV, even if the pollution to build them, charge them and dispose of them is worse than ICE vehicles.

I'm sure there will be a backlash at some point. Everyone's in favor of "saving the planet" until it comes time to pony up and make sacrifices themselves. Yes, prices on EVs will come down, and there will be "everyman" models, but IMHO that day is further away than EV proponents like to make you believe.

I disagree with you that EVs are more polluting than ICEs. Everything these days seems to come with 18"+ wheels and pricey low profile tires. Long gone are the days of 15" wheels where you can get tires relatively cheap.
No, they're not as "green" as they're made out to be, but that's the power of marketing.

 

[Skagit]

I work for a fire department as a mechanic, another local department is building two new fire stations and wanted to prewire them for charging electric fire trucks (all of the large manufacturers are now offering them). They showed the specs for the charger to the building engineer and the color drained from his face, they don't have enough power supply to the building to run one charger. There would need to be two or three heavy truck chargers plus several light duty chargers.

A little quick math on even just an electric car, let's say the battery is 82 kwh (newer Tesla), most families have multiple cars but they're not typically going to need to recharge fully every night so let's just say 60kwh total for two or three cars every night. That's double (2x) the current average household energy consumption per day.

They're already saying most of the country will have rolling blackouts this year. I may not be an electrical engineer but I don't think we can multiply our current energy consumption by three (3x) and just expect that to be fine...

If the goal is for everyone to drive electric cars then we needed to start building power plants and distribution lines 10 years ago. Some solar panels and wind ain't going to cut it.

 

[Snobdds]

They absolutely do not in a grid tied scenario. The majority are grid tied with no battery.
Now if we are talking off grid, yes…but you would need 75kwh of battery backup to charge that tesla battery overnight. Go ahead and price that out!

How do they convert Dc to AC without dumping it into a storage vehicle to then allow an inverter to do a conversion.

You can't have direct DC to AC...impossible.