Posted on 09/18/2008 2:33:43 PM PDT by bestintxas
Hurricane Ike just brought the reality back to the dreams of liberals who think electric cars are the solution for the future.
We just went thru Ike and guess what happened? Virtually the entire city was knocked out of power.
What would have happened if the libs would have made it mandatory to have electric cars? No one could have gotten around as there was no way to recharge them.
Cars like the Chevy Volt have a very low range of miles before they need recharging. I thought I saw ~ 40 miles but could be wrong. This would not be enough to even escape a hurricane like we just had.
We have light rail service here in Houston that was also reduced to immobility for the same reason - no power. The city's solution was to go back to independently driven diesel-powered buses that drove exactly the same routes.
The libs would have us believe that electric cars are the God-send we need for efficiency and environment. Truth is they run poorly and do not stack up against the combustion engine.
Although I have not seen the new "Energy bill" that Pelosi just passed thru the house, I bet it contains more money thrown at electric transportation in the form of vehicles or mass transit.
Thanks, but I will keep my polluting old car.
It will have a little internal combustion engine that
can recharge.
There is a small gasoline engine that provides power and can recharge the batteries. If an area truly has all the power knocked out, the gas station pumps won’t work either.
The Volt uses a small gasoline engine to generate electricity for the battery system that powers the electrical drive, but it does not aid in propulsion. Assuming the design comes out as penciled, it will travel hundreds of miles on a smallish tank of gasoline.
Gas station pumps don’t work without electricity. Six of one; half a dozen of the other.
The Volt will go about 40 miles on electricity alone, before the gasoline generator kicks in for a total range of about 640 miles on one tank.
Tesla Roadster all electric has a range of over 200 miles. Yes a golf cart could be problematic in escaping from a hurricane, but the electric cars being developed are far from golf carts.
It is esentially an all electric drivetrain. The engine runs at a constant RPM when it is on to send the juice to the battery. If you charge it and run it less than 40 miles, the engine doesn't kick in. The braking has a regenerative mode, so you capture the loss energy of braking.
Same concept as a locomotive but with a battery added.
the difference here is a single generator can run the gas pumps to fill up thousands of vehicles with gasoline.
Don’t think each car owner needs a generator.
Electric Cars are a joke for America.
I can just see several hundred of them spread all over Interstate 695 Baltimore to Washington at morning rush hour when a 50 mile drive takes 2 and 1/2 hours.
Or your electric car chugging along for all its worth on a major highway as a half dozen tractor trailers come barrreling down on your from behind at 85 mile per hour.
NO THANKS...........
“If an area truly has all the power knocked out, the gas station pumps wont work either.”
Gas stations can run off generators using the very same gas in the tanks that they are pumping. Quite a few gas stations opened soon after Gustav and days before electric was turned back on. Many only accepted cash though since phone lines were down to take credit cards.
Hooking up a portable generator to a gas pump? I think I’d take a step back... actually, I think I take a great many steps back....
Even a portable generator would recharge an EV.
If it can’t travel at least 300 miles before needing gas, then I would not want to use it during an evacuation.
Not terribly convincing. If there’s no power, the gas pumps don’t work either.
If the libs have their way we will all be driving Fred Flintsone cars.
The electrics are coming, but they won’t be primary transportation until you can go 300 miles on a charge. If you can’t get from LA to Vegas without stopping, or Houston to Dallas, then forget it.
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