Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow.

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   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,341  
"Police said four women were on the electric boat when it got swept up in the current near the dam and wasn't strong enough to escape, according to FOX 7 of Austin."
That reminds me of the time BIL took a small kicker boat out on the straits of Juan de Fuca during high tide going west. Tide turned and he almost got swept out to sea. That was a gas boat.
 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,342  
New discussion on Grid capacity and Grid relationship to future EV load demands.

Autoline This Week talk

 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,343  
Thread pruned. Please refrain from introducing the political discussions yet again.
 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,344  
I’ve said may times here and elsewhere that I’ve done the math (which the EPA hides because they hate coal) using the EPA’s data available in 2013 my power hog Tesla Model S (380 Wh/mile from the power grid, a new Model 3 can be as little as 260 Wh/mile) running on pure coal fired USA electricity has emissions comparable to a 30 MPG gasoline automobile.

But, is effortlees to run the Tesla on nuclear, natural gas, hydro, coal, oil, solar, or wind.
I wonder how the drought situation in the west (especially in areas dependent on hydro power) will affect EV implementation. Lower levels behind the hydro dams=less output.
No one's building any new coal or nuke plants, wind and solar can only provide so much.

While properly equipped coal plants can be fairly clean, you've got to look at the big picture. Mining of it is anything but.
I'm not in a rush to buy an Electric Vehicle - BUT I expect at some point in the future it could happen. That would be a 50% reduction of ICE vehicles in my household. That is what the transition to EVs could look like. The major auto manufacturers and tractor manufacturers are investing in the design and development of EVs.

The naysayers aren't upset because they think EVs may come to pass, but because they know they will.
I wouldn't call myself a naysayer, but I do question a lot of the hype on EVs. The gov't is kind of forcing automakers towards EVs with overly strict fuel economy/emissions regulations. Personally, I see EVs having a place (commuter/city cars), but I also see it remaining a niche market for quite some time to come, I definitely don't expect them to be mainstream in my lifetime.

I haven't read every single post in this thread, but what about as these vehicles get older? Let's for argument's sake that the batteries will be good for 8 years. They're quite expensive, and are likely to remain so. That's gonna put a crimp in desirability for used vehicles, and not everyone can afford to buy new.
Also, the technology is changing quite rapidly. How backward-compatible are new batteries (or for that matter the electronics that control the car) with old vehicles? Are dealers (sounds like independent mechanics are being shut out of all this) going to keep a large, pricey inventory on hand for 10+ year old cars?
 
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   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,345  
Mail truck of years ago or not . Energy storage density is still too low and charge time is too long .
 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,346  

Yesterday Tesla started deliveries of their $130,000 updated model S. It's 1020 horsepower 200 miles per hour single speed electric car to compete with high-end stuff out of Europe.

Yea, gonna buy a couple for my commute. You did mean $13,000, right?
 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,347  
Mail truck of years ago or not . Energy storage density is still too low and charge time is too long .
Meh. Mail delivery carriers average 35 miles/day. There is no issue with "battery density" or charge time. This is well within caveman flooded lead-acid battery territory.

Researching data to back up the above I find this which says only 18 miles/day, 5288/year: Pushing the Envelope: The USPS Long Life Vehicle - Great Business Schools

I remember 40+ years ago when the USPS was auctioning "old" Jeep mail trucks prior to the LLV that very few had more than 18,000 miles.
 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,348  
I haven't read every single post in this thread, but what about as these vehicles get older? Let's for argument's sake that the batteries will be good for 8 years. They're quite expensive, and are likely to remain so. That's gonna put a crimp in desirability for used vehicles, and not everyone can afford to buy new.
Consider salvage Tesla battery brings $15,000-$20,000 on eBay. I don't think the problem 8 years hence is going to be bad at all.

Also, the technology is changing quite rapidly. How backward-compatible are new batteries (or for that matter the electronics that control the car) with old vehicles? Are dealers (sounds like independent mechanics are being shut out of all this) going to keep a large, pricey inventory on hand for 10+ year old cars?
Not really changing all that much. Tesla puts all the smarts to control the "battery" in the battery assembly. Depending on the car there are 16-19 independent modules (you can buy those too on eBay) each with their own battery controller. Under software control, each with their own microcontroller. Firmware Tesla is known to have changed with over-the-air updates. So any magic future battery technology only has to be placed in the same size box with the same connectors.
 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,349  
Meh. Mail delivery carriers average 35 miles/day. There is no issue with "battery density" or charge time. This is well within caveman flooded lead-acid battery territory.

Researching data to back up the above I find this which says only 18 miles/day, 5288/year: Pushing the Envelope: The USPS Long Life Vehicle - Great Business Schools

I remember 40+ years ago when the USPS was auctioning "old" Jeep mail trucks prior to the LLV that very few had more than 18,000 miles.

They used to make those mail jeeps here in South Bend. There were always 2-3 used ones sitting in front of the post office with for sale signs on them. This was in the 60s and 70s. Many were purchased by rural newspaper route drivers, as they had right-hand drive. Kids liked to buy them as well. Some went for just $200. The later larger mail vans were produced here as well. In the 80s I had a part time job driving them from AM General to railroad spurs around northern Indiana for loading and shipment to parts unknown. The worst ones to drive were the ones going to Hawaii. They were coated in some kind of goo to prevent corrosion in shipment. Nasty sticky stuff. Had to pull a paper off of the windshield to remove a port-hole size amount of the goo to look through when driving.
 
   / Battery based electric vehicles of today and tomorrow. #2,350  
Around Pinehurst NC the golf course groundskeeper jobs are everywhere. Lots of young guys cutting grass.

I just saw my first electric robotic lawn mower. I've seen commercials etc but not in action. Not really a vehicle but.....
One of my jobs in the high school days was mowing grass and taking care of the course at the local golf course. Kind of fun in those days. Unless I got stuck whipping the greens which I did often. But I sure got my excercise in before moost everyone got out of bed. Those greens do not get that perfect by themselves :cool:

 
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