Anyone Here Have An Electric Car?
- Thread starter Chuckinden
- Start date
So basically it's like replacing the ink cartridge in a printer....just throw away and the printer and buy a new one?
If Melissa Ethridge is her favorite singer then yes she is definitely playing for the other team.
Yes, if you don’t own a house with a garage and a charger EVs are completely useless. Which is why I can’t figure out how they are pushing EVs so hard right now. They need charging station infrastructure built up FAST and they need to figure out how to get a full/majority full charge in under 10 mins or everywhere is going to look like that video.
Faster charging kills battery life though. They still haven't figured out how to extend battery life while charging faster.
Agreed, if you don’t live in a house or have charging (220 outlet) at home, a lot of the advantages and conveniences are not available. You’d still be left with a good car, that doesn’t need oil changes, fast as anything on the road, and you can hear your music very clearly without the sound of a motor. But, leaving the house on a full charge and never needing to go to a gas station or supercharger is my favorite pro of an EV car.
I haven’t noticed this in 2 years, but I charge from home 99 percent of the time. I test drove the Tesla plaid the other week and the battery was at 55% and still had 240 miles on it. The plaids are special with Beamer handles, 0 to sixty in 1.99 seconds, and a 400 mile battery
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He is right, fast charging shortens the life of the battery. An occasional fast charge isn't a big deal, but someone who recharges mostly from fast charge stations will notice a shorter battery life. I think the key to the long term success of EVs, and renewable energy as well, is the development of better batteries. Lithium-Sulphur batteries, for example, would be significantly less expensive and have at least 3 times the capacity as current lithium-ion batteries. Unfortunately, they still haven't figured out how to make them work for an extended period of time. They self destruct as they are used, so they don't last long.
So a friend is starting a small shop in the Mount Washington (KY) area to repair cars, boat motors, motorcycles, etc. So he sent his two car repair guys to ASE for training and certification. ASE told them not to worry about repairing EVs. Don't waste their money on equipment to work on them. Basically ASE feels that EVs is a fad and will not catch on long term.
I don't think they think it's a fad and will go away. I think they think that investing in training and tools are not worth it yet. (a) EV technology is progressing at a breakneck speed, (b) there is less uniformity across manufacturers , and (c) less numbers.
a) By the time you get training for the current EV vehicles, it's obsolete. Whereas the changes in ICE vehicles occurs slower.
b) If you are an ASE trained mechanic you can work in mom/pop shops or just about any manufacturer's garage. This is because the basics of ICE engines are well known and utilized more uniformly across manufacturers. This DOES NOT mean that there aren't differences.....but they're less frequent. While the basics of EV's are similar, the manufacturers vary a great deal right now. A Tesla technician would have a harder time working on a Ford EV......moreso than a GM technician working on a Ford ICE vehicle.
c) The numbers aren't there yet. While the sales of EV's is climbing rapidly, they're still a very small minority of cars on the roads in the US. Moreover, most manufacturers require the EV's to only go to certain shops. For example, Tesla requires their cars to go to Tesla shops. Sooo, if you're a mechanic, would you want to invest in training and all the equipment needed to work on EV's if you don't have opportunity to work on them?
Just saw a report on CNBC where they said that the price to publicly change an EV in the United Kingdom is now roughly equal to fueling a car with gas. This is due to the out of control electricity inflation in Europe. Maybe we shouldn't rush to force people into EVs (like California) until the "green energy sources", battery tech and the electric grids are ready.
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Definitely Not a fad. Every car maker is making the change to EV. FCEV and Bevs are the future
Every single battery manufacturer in the world will tell you this. If you haven't noticed then fine... But it is a fact of the industry.
The answer was hydrogen fuel cells. But Obama wanted ev because it was closer to functional. Unfortunately ev will never be economically viable so we are going to waste money on this crap until Hydrogen FC tech can come from another country because we killed our investment in that tech.
Couldn’t agree more with this. Hydrogen fuel cells make a lot a sense. Australia, Europe and Korea are all over it. PLUG and Bloom are our Hydrogen leaders in the US.
Rivian announces major recall of vehicles
The electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian has announced a massive recall of 13,000 of its vehicles due to a safety problem.
"The recall which involves a loose fastener could affect steering and can be repaired quickly according to the automaker"Rivian announces major recall of vehicles
The electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian has announced a massive recall of 13,000 of its vehicles due to a safety problem.www.foxbusiness.com
"There have been seven reports potentially related to the issue, but no injuries have been reported, Rivian said."
"The company says it is a quick fix and expects to have finished the repairs on all of them in about 30 days."
So it's a quick, simple fix. Don't know anything about the manufacturer in question, but a little context would be helpful next time. Recalls have occurred with every car manufacturer and there will inevitably be recalls with future tech as well.
Rivian is a somewhat relatively new EV company that went IPO recently. I believe they sell EV trucks starting around $70k and got a contract to make some EV for Amazon delivery trucks.
One of their manufacturing hubs is in IL and took over what used to be a Mitsubishi vehicle manufacturing plant.
I am not sure if that’s their only manufacturing hub but they are looking to expand into GA and other places.
One of their manufacturing hubs is in IL and took over what used to be a Mitsubishi vehicle manufacturing plant.
I am not sure if that’s their only manufacturing hub but they are looking to expand into GA and other places.
Being partially of fully submerged in saltwater damages cars? Riveting news!
I guess you missed the part about them creating a dangerous fire hazard which is a new challenge for firefighters to learn to deal with.
No. I think the bigger question is why anyone would leave their car where it would be submerged and why they would expect it to be salvageable after being submerged in seawater?
When it looked like we were going to take the brunt of monster Hurricane Dorian in 2019, we got our vehicles and other irreplaceable things out of harms way. If my ICE RAM or her ICE Benz were submerged they'd likely be declared totaled.
It appears that everybody isn't as smart as you.
The whole point of the article was to point out this problem with EVs under such conditions and how it is impacting firefighting and recovery efforts.
With an EV, you are not just sacrificing your vehicle by leaving it behind as with an ICE. They are potential fire bombs and a new threat to public safety requiring new solutions to deal with.
Worthwhile reporting imo, and something for everyone to be aware of.
Just curious b/c I have no clue - how many EV stations are in the places the hurricane was supposed to target? Is it as simple as there aren’t enough stations so people couldn’t charge them and have to leave them similar to there not being enough gas at the gas stations for people evacuating as well?
Could also be cars that are left there by the seasonal folks. Not sure how many older folks make the long drive down to Florida and back. EV's aren't the best vehicles to make long trips with and they might just keep them in Florida where they will just drive around locally.
Yes. I had seen the article about that in the local paper. Fire departments will have to be aware of that. No, I'm not smart, but I don't know why anyone would think it'd be ok to drive a vehicle that had been submerged. If your home flooded and your appliances were underwater, you wouldn't try to use them as soon as the water receded, and the power came back on. The same would go for a vehicle of any kind.
As I understand it, once that battery is waterlogged corrosion makes it a potential time bomb whether you try to drive it or not.
Yeah, the best thing anyone can do with any (let alone EV) vehicle that's been submerged in seawater is to have it towed to a junkyard. I still can't wrap my mind around why people in the storm surge warning area wouldn't leave and take their vehicles and valuables with them.
https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/retrofit-diesel-engines-hydrogen-fuel
interestingengineering.com
Scientists retrofit diesel engines to use hydrogen as fuel, increasing efficiency 26%
This could fast-track the shift to clean energy.
interestingengineering.com
20K mile update.
Still no issues that requires attention, but here are a few little things that annoy me.
The cruise/self driving sensors are somewhat erratic at times. Even though I have the setting at "late" meaning it shouldn't react until "late", it sometimes gives me a "hard" brake and I'm not within 5 car lengths of the person in front of me.
Also, the rain sensor for the auto wipers is erratic. Sometimes it works as it should and other times the window is completely wet before it will activate. I may contact TESLA to see if they have an upgrade to replace the sensors.
After learning all or at least most of the features the screen offers, I have come to the conclusion I don't care for the screen. Voice activation helps, but I think the screen controlling everything will eventually go the way of the Dodo bird.
Battery charging. I installed a 220V charger in my garage when I bought the car and it's the best thing anyone can do if they have a place to charge at home.
Battery may be starting to show some degradation. Maximum charge is 358 miles, but now it's fluctuating. Sometimes I will get 351 and sometimes it maxes out at 347. I'm not sure if this is normal or not. Currently it's no big deal, but I will continue to monitor it.
When I bought the TESLA, I only looked at TESLA due to their charging capabilities nationwide and their dedicated service centers. If I was in the market today for an EV, I would look around. There are more choices out there today that wasn't there this time last year when I ordered mine.
My wife drives it everyday and we both still love it. The only maintenance I have done is rotate the tires.
Still no issues that requires attention, but here are a few little things that annoy me.
The cruise/self driving sensors are somewhat erratic at times. Even though I have the setting at "late" meaning it shouldn't react until "late", it sometimes gives me a "hard" brake and I'm not within 5 car lengths of the person in front of me.
Also, the rain sensor for the auto wipers is erratic. Sometimes it works as it should and other times the window is completely wet before it will activate. I may contact TESLA to see if they have an upgrade to replace the sensors.
After learning all or at least most of the features the screen offers, I have come to the conclusion I don't care for the screen. Voice activation helps, but I think the screen controlling everything will eventually go the way of the Dodo bird.
Battery charging. I installed a 220V charger in my garage when I bought the car and it's the best thing anyone can do if they have a place to charge at home.
Battery may be starting to show some degradation. Maximum charge is 358 miles, but now it's fluctuating. Sometimes I will get 351 and sometimes it maxes out at 347. I'm not sure if this is normal or not. Currently it's no big deal, but I will continue to monitor it.
When I bought the TESLA, I only looked at TESLA due to their charging capabilities nationwide and their dedicated service centers. If I was in the market today for an EV, I would look around. There are more choices out there today that wasn't there this time last year when I ordered mine.
My wife drives it everyday and we both still love it. The only maintenance I have done is rotate the tires.
Good. You’re never going to get perfection on a daily driven car. I’m not going back to gas powered. Gas sucks in comparison. Looking to sell my performance S and get a plaid. I test drove the plaid and it’s even better than the 2020 model s performance. 390 mile capacity and zero to 60 in 1.99 seconds
Fast straight line acceleration in an electric car is so boring. No engine sounds, no engagement of a manual transmission, no unique gear ratios. I'd rather go 0-60 in 3.5 seconds in a loud V8 with character than 0-60 in 2 seconds in a silent electric car.
![[smoke]](http://l.yimg.com/j/assets/img/emoticons/classic/smokin.r191677.gif "Cool [smoke]")
I actually agree. Rode in a Tesla the other day and it was like going really fast in a golf cart, was kind of odd. My brother has an old school high end combustion engine race car and driving fast in that feels exhilarating, I’m sure the Tesla I rode in was probably faster but it had absolutely none of the feel.
