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To: Olog-hai

The real, and unreported, issue is not the vehicles range.

But, how long does it take to recharge the battery pack so it can move again? A 200-mile range is nice; but, if it takes 2, 4, 6, or 8 hours to fully recharge the battery pack of what use it is?

I am looking at a 600-mile trip at the end of the week to visit my son. That’s three “recharging stops” human and gas or electric. A gas stop is what 20 minutes? An electrical recharge is going to be?

BTW - even Robert Heinlein knew this to be an issue back in 1972 when he wrote “Time Enough for Love”. There were electrically powered cars in the novel powered by a “shipstone” that could easily, and apparently, quickly swapped out. Until the current generation of electrically powered vehicles achieve this capability inexpensively (time and dollars) electrical vehicles will be limited to urban transportation ONLY.

The golden age of electrical cars was in the 1910’s where they were used as city cars to compensate for their limited range. Hmmm. A century later and we are again playing with electrical cars for many of the same reasons as a great-grandfathers. And they are still failing for the same basic reason - impractical outside urbanized areas.


65 posted on 01/12/2015 7:32:33 AM PST by Nip (BOHEICA and TANSTAAFL - both seem very appropriate today.)
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To: Nip
“I am looking at a 600-mile trip at the end of the week to visit my son. That’s three “recharging stops” human and gas or electric. A gas stop is what 20 minutes? An electrical recharge is going to be?”

...30 minutes to get 80% charge using a Tesla Supercharger. These are positioned along interstates throughout the country.

Of course, the vast majority of your charging will take 10 seconds: 5 seconds to plug in when you get home in the evening, and 5 seconds to unplug it in the morning.

68 posted on 01/12/2015 7:36:36 AM PST by LogicDesigner
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To: Nip
A gas stop is what 20 minutes

A strictly "gas only" stop is 5 minutes.

87 posted on 01/12/2015 8:44:39 AM PST by NorthMountain (No longer TEA Party ... I'm the TAF Party)
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