Electric Cars -- anyone own one?

[Capt. Oblivious]

But you already lived in the US, the greatest country on Earth. Musk lived in South Africa, one of those "sh__hole countries" as The Donald referred to them. Apples vs oranges.

Besides, being in the military in S.A. amounted to keeping the "insurgents" in their place, if you know what I mean. Not national defense. Now, the insurgents are running the country.
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Was a little more than keeping the insurgents in their place for the 2500 South Africans that died fighting Angola/Cuba/Russia at that time

Annals of wars we don’t know about: The South African border war of 1966-1989

Reading South African accounts of the 23-year long Border War between South Africa and the Angolan liberation movement UNITA on the one hand, and the…

foreignpolicy.com

 

[M-61]

But you already lived in the US, the greatest country on Earth. Musk lived in South Africa, one of those "sh__hole countries" as The Donald referred to them. Apples vs oranges.

Besides, being in the military in S.A. amounted to keeping the "insurgents" in their place, if you know what I mean. Not national defense. Now, the insurgents are running the country.
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You announced awhile ago that you were this sites ‘unofficial historian’.
Have no idea what that might mean but go back and hit the books
Were you behind the fence at Travis AFB with your fat buddy throwing garbage at me in 1969 when I returned?
Your voice sounds familiar.

 

[chop house]

apparently, wayyyy less than 50% efficient when towing... to wit:

 

[NorCalMikie]

Imagine Florida with a hurricane coming toward Miami. The governor orders an evacuation. All cars head north. They all need to be charged in Jacksonville.

How does that work? Has anyone thought about this.

If all cars were electric and were caught up in a three-hour traffic jam with dead batteries, then what.? Not to mention that there's virtually no heating or air conditioning in an electric vehicle because of high battery consumption. If you get stuck on the road all night, no battery, no heating, no windshield wipers, no radio, no GPS (all these drain the batteries), all you can do is try calling 911 to take women and children to safety. But they cannot come to help you because all roads are blocked, and they will probably require all police cars will be electric also. When the roads become unblocked no one can move.! Their batteries are dead.

How do you charge the thousands of cars in the traffic jam.? Same problem during summer vacation departures with miles of traffic jams. Yes, AAA is starting to prepare tow trucks to charge electric vehicles. How many can they charge before returning to home base and recharge the trucks.?

There would be virtually no air conditioning in an electric vehicle.

It would drain the batteries quickly. Where is this electricity going to come from?

Today's grid barely handles users' needs.

Can't use nuclear, natural gas is quickly running out.

Oil fired is out of the question, then where?

What will be done with billions of dead batteries, can’t bury them in the soil, can’t go to landfills.

The cart is way ahead of the horse.

No thought whatsoever to handle any of the problems that batteries can cause.

The press doesn't want to talk or report on any of this.

 

[GotRDid]

 

[1911nut]

” natural gas is quickly running out.”

I didn’t know that, you sure?

 

[gdbleb]

What will be done with billions of dead batteries, can’t bury them in the soil, can’t go to landfills.

I read lithium can be recycled rather easily but I think you have to avoid having it catch fire when you disassemble the old battery. Minor issue!

I did buy one of those battery-powered leaf blowers for my small yard. Upside is I don't smell like gasoline. Downside is the battery life stinks. My experience mirrors that of the guy above with the F-150 EV except my lesson was a lot cheaper.

 

[Will Henry]

Kind of hard to figure how this devolved into a discussion on draft dodging, but I guess anything can happen. If a person moves to specifically avoid the draft, he can be considered a draft dodger. If he then buys an electric car, I don't know that it has any real bearing on his status either way.
I was drafted and served but that doesn't make me any better than anyone who did not. I was once stopped in a grocery store, while wearing an Army tee-shirt. The guy thanked me for my service and I told him, hey, it's not like I had a choice!
As far as the electric vehicles go, it is plain that they are not a real solution to anything, but they are a workable option for some people in some circumstances. There are too many of us and our lifestyle is unsupportable for everyone, in the long run. This is so whether we choose to drive around on electricity or fossil fuel. WH

 

[rwj]

I didn’t know that, you sure?

Yup… the earth is a closed system and we will eventually consume it (no knowing when)… we’re gonna have to start mining extraterrestrial bodies if we want more “stuff” when that happens!

 

[1911nut]

Yup… the earth is a closed system and we will eventually consume it (no knowing when)… we’re gonna have to start mining extraterrestrial bodies if we want more “stuff” when that happens!

So we’re not really quickly running out. Wasn’t it a few years ago we were the Saudi Arabia of natural gas cause of the huge gas fields discovered in the last 20 years and they’re building LNG export hubs.

 

[rwj]

So we’re not really quickly running out. Wasn’t it a few years ago we were the Saudi Arabia of natural gas cause of the huge gas fields discovered in the last 20 years and they’re building LNG export hubs.

No idea how much is available nor how long it will last… only that it’s a fixed amount.

 

[TrxR]

If I win the lotto I would try a lightning just to see if it would be practical for me but I have my doubts.

I'm not totally against EV's I just don't think the technology is there to be practical for everyone.

 

[Scalloper]

I don't have anything against electric vehicles but I do have a issue with them being drove down my throat. Actually I saw one advertised as self charging from solar. That I would consider just to run into town off and on. I need to go 22 miles for a loaf of bread.
EVs just wont work for many of us, or at least right now they wont. Try pulling a boat from Maine to up state NY. That would take a week waiting for a charge.

 

[NorCalMikie]

In the news now is Brandon test driving an EV pick up a few years back.
120 volt charging took a few days and if you popped for a good 220 volt charger ($5K + installation) you could do a full charge in 24 hours.
Kinda like watching the grass grow.

 

[Brians356]

No idea how much is available nor how long it will last… only that it’s a fixed amount.

If there's a fixed amount of natural gas in the U.S., how would you explain this graphic?



Your assumed "fixed amount" of natural gas is a moving target. There are estimated reserves and proved reserves. Horizontal fracking revolutionized the extraction industry and proved reserves ballooned dramatically, up 250% in only 15 years. And there could be future extraction breakthroughs.

This is just for the U.S. In other parts of the world vast reserves of natural gas go untapped because "green" governments forbid extracting it! Meanwhile, some of those very countries in Europe (UK, Germany come to mind) face an existential threat this winter due to a lack of natural gas! The irony is thick as a treacle pudding.
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[Brians356]

This is an actual warning being shipped with a eBike (electric bicycle) after hurricane Ike. I don't know which company makes it, will update if I find out:

PLEASE BE AWARE: If partially or totally submerged in water, the lithium-ion battery pack used to power many electric devices and vehicles will suffer damage that will compromise its safety and stability. This damage can be even more severe if your battery pack was submerged in salt water.

Please check your eBike as soon as possible. Unfortunately, if your eBike has been submerged in water during the storm, it’s very likely that its electrical system has been damaged and the eBike is unsafe to use. If the battery pack was partially or totally submerged, we advise that you carefully remove the battery pack from the eBike (or wherever it was stored when submerged), and take it to a safe location OUTDOORS, away from any flammable materials. Leave the affected battery pack OUTDOORS until you are ready to drop it off at the recycling center where it can be safely recycled.

When you are able to properly dispose of the battery, place the battery pack in a clear plastic bag and take it to your municipal household hazardous waste drop-off center. Your local City Hall or Fire Department may have resources to help you find the closest facility in your area, or you can check the Call2Recycle website (https://www.call2recycle.org/locator/) for drop-off locations nearby.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOU ATTEMPT TO RECHARGE A LITHIUM-ION BATTERY PACK THAT HAS BEEN PARTIALLY OR TOTALLY SUBMERGED IN WATER.

ATTEMPTING TO CHARGE A COMPROMISED LITHIUM-ION BATTERY PACK CAN RESULT IN A VERY DANGEROUS FIRE THAT GENERATES SIGNIFICANT HEAT, TOXIC GASSES AND IS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO CONTROL.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

The earth is adding gas every day just the way it always has.

 

[Brians356]

The earth is adding gas every day just the way it always has.

Where are all those dinosaurs dying every day? We could charge admission and make a fortune. "Jurassic Park".
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[1911nut]

The earth is adding gas every day just the way it always has.

I’m doing my part

 

[rockhound78]

Looks like Ford is raising the price of its F150 lightning again. Base price going up 11%