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Thread: Electric cars

  1. 12-30-2018, 10:57 AM #151
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Friedrichs View Post
    Good point - with average annual mileage of ~15k and synthetic oil, you probably only need 1 oil change/yr.

    Still, the massively reduced complexity is exciting.
    The complexity of modern cars, electric or ICE, is almost totally in the electronics. The ICE is an extremely mature technology, with broad-based third-party parts and diagnostic capability. If an electric car stops running, it's not like you can take it to the local mechanic to get it fixed: for the time being, almost all service will be dealer-only.

    At this point, the engine/transmission in any car I'm likely to buy will probably outlive me. Not sure about the rest of the car...I suspect the engine is more durable than external rubber parts like door seals. Then again, that's true of electric cars as well.
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  2. 12-30-2018, 11:50 AM #152
    Jim Andrew
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    Interesting thread. My wife has a Toyota Corolla, and it makes nearly 40 mpg average, so compares to electric as far as fuel cost, but I paid much less for the car, so going electric probably would not pay for her. I have multiple trucks, being a small farmer, and my Toyota Tacoma only makes about 25 mpg, and also was a fraction of the cost of an electric pickup. The Chevy 2500 with 6.0 engine, does horrible on gas especially when pulling trailers, so it would be interesting to see how a comparable size electric truck would do as far as driving and pulling. My grain trucks also are pretty bad on gas, and I have no diesels. My thoughts about the changeover from gas to electric is, what will they do with the over supply of gas? If they don't go electric with the over the road semi trucks, there will be a huge over supply of gas versus diesel, and the whole economy is designed to use every product derived from oil, from kerosene to asphalt. One other thing I have noticed in the last several years on the farm, is that yields have increased by huge amounts, and I think co2 could be a factor, although we have better genetics and use higher rates of fertilizer.
  3. 12-30-2018, 3:25 PM #153
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud View Post
    The complexity of modern cars, electric or ICE, is almost totally in the electronics. The ICE is an extremely mature technology, with broad-based third-party parts and diagnostic capability. If an electric car stops running, it's not like you can take it to the local mechanic to get it fixed: for the time being, almost all service will be dealer-only.

    At this point, the engine/transmission in any car I'm likely to buy will probably outlive me. Not sure about the rest of the car...I suspect the engine is more durable than external rubber parts like door seals. Then again, that's true of electric cars as well.
    What's ICE? Is that a hybrid? New term to me.
  4. 12-30-2018, 3:35 PM #154
    Brian Elfert
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pat Barry View Post
    What's ICE? Is that a hybrid? New term to me.
    Internal combustion engine. The regular old gasoline engine that is in hundreds of millions of cars. Technically, it could be any fuel that burns like gasoline, diesel, CNG, or propane.
  5. 12-30-2018, 4:00 PM #155
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pat Barry View Post
    What's ICE? Is that a hybrid? New term to me.
    ICE = Internal Combustion Engine. And that acronym has been used a couple of dozen times on this thread already...
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.
  6. 12-30-2018, 4:32 PM #156
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    Parallel to this subject, there was some interesting notation in the auto news this week that there are folks out there who have decided to harass people trying to charge up at the Tesla superchargers in some areas by blocking the spaces with big-but pick-em-up trucks and verbally abusing the electric vehicle owners. It's been dubbed "ICE-ing"... 'gotta wonder what society is coming to. Geepers...
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  7. 12-30-2018, 4:53 PM #157
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud View Post
    ICE = Internal Combustion Engine. And that acronym has been used a couple of dozen times on this thread already...
    Oh, LOL. Well that's a stupid, and unnecessary acronym.
  8. 12-30-2018, 5:11 PM #158
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    Parallel to this subject, there was some interesting notation in the auto news this week that there are folks out there who have decided to harass people trying to charge up at the Tesla superchargers in some areas by blocking the spaces with big-but pick-em-up trucks and verbally abusing the electric vehicle owners. It's been dubbed "ICE-ing"... 'gotta wonder what society is coming to. Geepers...
    Yeah, what an odd story.

    Yet, even among the polite conversation on this thread, there seem to be several people who seem very anti-electric. What is this? Is it just tribalism (us vs them)? Or a better thought-out fear that the silicon-valley tech folks will all be driving Teslas and leave others (and a part of their way of life) behind?
  9. 12-30-2018, 6:18 PM #159
    Bill Dufour
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Friedrichs View Post
    Yeah, what an odd story.

    Yet, even among the polite conversation on this thread, there seem to be several people who seem very anti-electric. What is this? Is it just tribalism (us vs them)? Or a better thought-out fear that the silicon-valley tech folks will all be driving Teslas and leave others (and a part of their way of life) behind?
    I wonder how those trucks would fair if some helpful person attached the charging cord to them to give them a jump. that is why they parked there right? Lets see 400 volts at 250 amps should get something started right quick.
    Bill D.
  10. 12-30-2018, 6:52 PM #160
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Friedrichs View Post
    Yet, even among the polite conversation on this thread, there seem to be several people who seem very anti-electric.
    Offset by an equal amount of fan-boy rah-rah on the pro-electric side.

    I'm sort of in the middle: a Bolt (or something else larger than a Leaf and cheaper than a Tesla) would fit in with my life-style quite nicely, but not quite nicely enough for it to be my only car. And I really can't justify owning two cars to cover the 7K or so miles I drive each year...the same circumstances that pushed me from a Boxster to a Corvette to an Accord, bringing me more-or-less full circle to the Acura I had ten years ago.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.
  11. 12-30-2018, 6:55 PM #161
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    Parallel to this subject, there was some interesting notation in the auto news this week that there are folks out there who have decided to harass people trying to charge up at the Tesla superchargers in some areas by blocking the spaces with big-but pick-em-up trucks and verbally abusing the electric vehicle owners. It's been dubbed "ICE-ing"... 'gotta wonder what society is coming to. Geepers...
    Probably the same Neanderthals who think it's the height of hilarity to blacken the side of the car next to them with a cloud of diesel soot.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.
  12. 12-30-2018, 7:45 PM #162
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud View Post
    Probably the same Neanderthals who think it's the height of hilarity to blacken the side of the car next to them with a cloud of diesel soot.
    Actually...that was mentioned in the article, too. Same folks who tend to modify things so that they create black clouds every time they step on the accelerator hard.
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  13. 12-30-2018, 8:01 PM #163
    Ronald Blue
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    Actually...that was mentioned in the article, too. Same folks who tend to modify things so that they create black clouds every time they step on the accelerator hard.
    They have coined that as "Rolling Coal" Jim. It's apparently cool to have a diesel that you can blow a cloud of thick black smoke. I'm neutral on electric vehicles. They are coming. As more break through's happen they will improve range. I think it will take some time for them to be a factor in trucks. I certainly don't believe the claims Elon Musk puts out there on theirs. Yes they toured the country with one. Not one time did any of the photos I saw show a trailer in tow. Put the total vehicle weight up to the 80,000 legal weight and let's see what the range is. City delivery is probably doable, but no cross country runs for a while. Time will tell.
  14. 12-30-2018, 8:29 PM #164
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud View Post
    Offset by an equal amount of fan-boy rah-rah on the pro-electric side.
    I resemble that remark

    In all objectivity, though, I don't understand the animosity to electric cars. I can't imagine reading a news article about people blocking access to gas pumps with their Teslas...

    They won't be for everyone (just as diesel trucks are not "for everyone"), but for vast swaths of the population, they will have significant advantages over gas.
    Last edited by Dan Friedrichs; 12-30-2018 at 8:53 PM.
  15. 12-30-2018, 8:51 PM #165
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Friedrichs View Post
    I can't imagine reading a news article about people blocking access to gas pumps with their Teslas...
    I personally know a couple of Tesla owners who might pull that stunt if they were sure they wouldn't get their butts kicked.
    Remember the old joke about the difference between BMW owners and porcupines? That's them.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.
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