An future end to DPF Diesels?

[FatTire]

We own a 2019 Chevy Bolt. 237 mile range when we don't have to run heat or AC. There are people who do cross-country trips in them, but we're not inclined to do that. We have gas vehicles for that. We use the Bolt for a commuter/grocery-getter vehicle. We may try the 250+ mile trip to my wife's family one of these days, but really that's not what we bought it for. Not a chance we'd try to make a Vermont-to-Florida run. When using it for local trips, it's been perfect. Pretty much zero maintenance, and we never stop at a gas station. Drive it to work and back, run whatever errands we need, and plug it in overnight. Even in the winter, when we need to run the heater, range has not been a concern. It doesn;t fit 100% of our needs, but that kind of use is the vast majority of all driving in the USA.

At this point in time having an EV and a conventional vehicle (for those who can afford it) makes sense. A guy I know who started an automotive repair shop and became pretty successful with it mentioned he expects to.downsize considerably during the transition to electric since the EVs require both less maintenance and less repair.

 

[fried1765]

We own a 2019 Chevy Bolt. 237 mile range when we don't have to run heat or AC. There are people who do cross-country trips in them, but we're not inclined to do that. We have gas vehicles for that. We use the Bolt for a commuter/grocery-getter vehicle. We may try the 250+ mile trip to my wife's family one of these days, but really that's not what we bought it for. Not a chance we'd try to make a Vermont-to-Florida run. When using it for local trips, it's been perfect. Pretty much zero maintenance, and we never stop at a gas station. Drive it to work and back, run whatever errands we need, and plug it in overnight. Even in the winter, when we need to run the heater, range has not been a concern. It doesn;t fit 100% of our needs, but that kind of use is the vast majority of all driving in the USA.

And the lion's share of your electricity is generated by which fossil fuel?
Transmitted over how many miles?
You have found the very first ecologically truly "free lunch"?

 

[ericm979]

Mazda is coming out with a sparkplug-less gas engine with even higher CR than their current 14/1 that is supposed to give even better fuel mileage. Right now on the current Skyactiv (new one will be Skyactiv X), they are about 20% above diesel consumption of a TURBO diesel without turbo.

That's similar to two stroke technology Honda had in the '90s. Under most conditions the spark plug did not fire. Ignition was through what they called "activated radicals" which are semi burning molecules left over from the last cycle. It gave about 30% better fuel economy and better emissions. They ran prototypes in Dakar and Baja. I got to ride one of the Baja racers. It had a wonderful smooth powerband and would pull from down low while still making good power for a 400cc two stroke. They also had production versions.

I'm excited by the new combustion engine technology in this thread. IC engines are not dead yet! While electrics will make sense for many more uses, it will take a while to make them cost competitive and there will be uses they're not suited for. Improving IC engines will help.

 

[FatTire]

And the lion's share of your electricity is generated by which fossil fuel?
Transmitted over how many miles?
You have found the very first ecologically truly "free lunch"?

I don't see where he made any claim of ecological purity. He's just reporting his experience with the EV.

 

[John_Mc]

And the lion's share of your electricity is generated by which fossil fuel?
Transmitted over how many miles?
You have found the very first ecologically truly "free lunch"?

I don't see where he made any claim of ecological purity. He's just reporting his experience with the EV.

Fat Tire is correct: I did not make any claims about ecological purity. We didn't buy the Bolt to be "ecologically pure". We bought it because it fit our needs.

However, for the record: the "lion's share" of our electricity is generated by our PV panels. (A lot higher majority came from our PV panels before we got the EV.) The bulk of our heat comes from wood which we harvest from our own property. I heat with wood because I want to, not because it's ecologically pure (it's not). A good bit of our hot water comes from solar hot water panels. Backup heat and hot water is from propane.

I don't try to convince people that my way is "better". Frankly, I don't care if others are interested or not. About the only thing I'll proselytize about is getting people who do heat with wood to burn fully seasoned wood and burn it properly.