Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow.

[txdon]

... If built in a union shop. Too bad Musk has been ranting against unions.

I've been fascinated by the Tesla Model Y. I'm waiting for it to get beyond the random assembly quality that Consumer Union says disqualified it from a recommended rating. However - just this week Tesla announced models 3 and Y will no longer have the radar sensors that can see through rain, and see the second car ahead. Just camera sensors that a reviewer said are useless in rain. Not even the cruise control was usable. That's not as attractive.

Only $2,500 of the $12,500 rebate will not be available in the proposed rebate because of non-union.

Cruise control should not be used in the rain in any vehicle per most owner's manuals.

From the Tesla model 3 owners manual page 87"
"Traffic-Aware Cruise Control is primarily intended for driving on dry, straight roads, such as highways and freeways. It should not be used on city streets."

 

[PuffyC]

Looks like a strong offering to me - especially if the "shorter/medium range"/230mi version is substantially cheaper than the long range: I don't know that we have much of a use for that extra range, and if I can get a reasonably optioned (ie, not super lux) truck that can go 200mi that may just be sufficient for us.

The extended range with it's extra acceleration (the standard one is faster than you really need as it is, and I've got a motorcycle if I feel the need) probably has a lot of standard fancy stuff, and even if it doesn't, it's a fair chunk of change on top of the shorter range. I'm not convinced of being able to drive 560 miles in one day in an electric vehicle for the time being (distance from home to a city we drive to once or twice a year because of reasons), since a "300 mile" range vehicle will likely need 2 recharges to get you there (my wife demands the fuel tank not drop below 25% now, so that 300mi becomes a stop around 225mi and 450mi, +/- depending on availability of chargers) and two 45+ minute charges adds a lot onto that trip that's already a stretch for us in one day. The "230 mile" range would require a stop at 170, 340, and maybe 510 with the same 75% requirement, though it could probably be more reasonably stretched to also only need two stops for that trip, which means that its reduced range wouldn't be seen in our use case.

If you do more than a small amount of towing (eg go to the dump, short-distance camping) these should be fine. Longer towing hits them like it does a gas truck, except that this truck takes a lot longer to refuel. We don't do much trailering any more, so this doesn't matter in our equation.

Regardless, I won't be getting rid of my '97 F350 4x4 CC LB, though it may get even less use if we get this truck!

The Ford F-150 Lightning's Range Could Be a Lot Better Than We Think: Report

It could be sandbagging, literally.

www.thedrive.com

 

[Gale Hawkins]

This is a Ford dealership in AL.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

A Self-Driving Truck Got a Shipment Cross-Country 10 Hours Faster Than a Human Driver

A human driver took the wheel for the first 60 miles or so, from Nogales to Tucson—but from there the self-driving system took over.

singularityhub.com

 

[goeduck]

These estimates make the common mistake of projecting forward while assuming we’ll still be under the exact same constraints of today. That’s not how the future works. By 2050 I have absolutely no doubt whatsoever that instead of me pulling 1500 kWh every month from the grid, I’ll be pulling zero, or more likely feeding some back. That’s not some pie in the sky pipe dream - many people are doing exactly that today. If you look at how the price of solar is dropping and how installations are growing, it’s not unreasonable to see a future where the grid will need less capacity, not more.

You apparently live in a state where the sun shines.

Hopefully there is a rain cell invented by 2050.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I listen to this guy some times and like him. His take on the proposed EV federal rebate hurting Ford and GM is not clear yet in my mind.

 

[PuffyC]

You apparently live in a state where the sun shines.

Hopefully there is a rain cell invented by 2050.

You wouldn’t know it based on our recent weather but down here in Oklahoma we’re in pretty prime solar country. I spent a lot of time where you’re at and going solar there might be a bit more challenging Absolutely beautiful though.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Polaris all-electric RANGER to have 'dramatically higher' power-to-weight ratio than gas UTVs - Electrek

Deer hunters should love this.

 

[ning]

Polaris all-electric RANGER to have 'dramatically higher' power-to-weight ratio than gas UTVs - Electrek

Deer hunters should love this.

I'm amused by a couple statements in the video (paraphrased as I watched it and now I'm back here and didn't write anything down while watching):

"people are concerned that electric will add a lot of weight and compromise the 4x4 capabilities ... but this offers the highest power-to-weight ratio of any utv" :: higher power-to-weight doesn't necessarily make it a better 4x4. Not saying it won't be, because there are probably heavier jeeps that are better 4x4's than this thing, but just sayin', the p/w ratio isn't necessarily an answer for the concern

"strongest utility drivetrain" - with more powerful motors, it better be a stronger drivetrain! Their point was that it has fewer moving parts, so less things to break of course, but I hope they've beefed up the drivetrain to handle what's likely a substantially higher torque (at least before gearing). If they really want to reduce moving parts, they could use multiple motors and eliminate differentials, but I see at least one diff at the rear and have no idea if there's one in the middle as well still.

That criticism aside, this seems like a great purpose for electrical. I can see a portable unfolding solar array that you unfurl at your campsite to charge up your truck's battery during the day, and at night you recharge your e-UTV from your truck (considering an e-UTV's battery is likely to be a smallish fraction of a truck's battery)... probably even better as a ranch UTV, since you're even less likely to go 40 miles.

 

[coobie]

Polaris all-electric RANGER to have 'dramatically higher' power-to-weight ratio than gas UTVs - Electrek

Deer hunters should love thi

Polaris all-electric RANGER to have 'dramatically higher' power-to-weight ratio than gas UTVs - Electrek

Deer hunters should love this.

The main issue I see with this UTV is if hunters are in a secluded deer camp with no power say for 1-2 weeks how would you charge this UTV ? How long does the charge last? Our deer camp has wood heat propane lights and NO power..I think makes ford150 model that has some type of generator on they're new trucks but not everyone owns one of those models.