Posted on 12/21/2021 1:27:56 PM PST by george76
In Finland, an unhappy Tesla owner decided to blow up his Model S after learning it would need a new expensive battery pack. In the video on YouTube with English subtitles, Tuomas Katainen explains his 2013 Model S was in the shop for more than a month for service. When he heard back from the shop, they told him they couldn’t repair his car, and the only option was to change the entire battery cell.
Katainen said the fix would’ve cost him upwards of €20,000 ($22,500). He told the dealership that was absurd, and he donated the car to a Finnish YouTube channel Pommijätkät, whose name literally translates to ‘Bomb Dudes.’
Instead of fixing the Model S, 30 kg (66 pounds) of dynamite was strapped to the car for one explosive show. Showing his frustration, Katainen even had a doll of Tesla’s founder Elon Musk in the driver’s seat.
Multiple angles of high-definition, slow-motion cameras captured the epic explosion (this time, it wasn’t spontaneous ..
The problem with electric cars utilizing lithium batteries is degradation over time. It’s sort of like a smartphone or laptop — enough charging cycles over the years, and the batteries will begin to hold less charge. The same thing happens with a Tesla or any other electric car.
… and as Katainen found out, the fix becomes so expensive that it’s not even worth putting the car back on the road. Think twice when falling into the ESG trap of buying a fully electric vehicle because in the medium term, if not covered by the automative maker or third party insurer, you might have to shell out an excessive amount of money to replace the battery.
“blowing up a car would not be carbon neutral”
That may have been part of the statement he wanted to make
We were right!
It blowed up real good!
This seems to be terribly environmentally unfriendly.
I like to point out to the greenie weenies I know that gas-powered automobiles have a massive and fine-tuned recycling ecosystem that has existed for 80-100 years (and it isn’t just a crusher and landfill, any recycler who wants to make money has a team pull ANYTHING rebuildable or salvageable on a car before it’s scrapped).
And, I’ll bet that 99% of lead-acid car batteries are recycled, and that might be a low estimate.
2005 but you knew that.
Owning cars will be like owning vacation homes. Most people will rent when they need one. By the minute, by the mile, by the day. Meanwhile, Tesla will be using the car for electrical power arbitration, robotaxiing, and bitcoin mining.
“I’d have converted the Tesla to a V-8. It’d be a fun project for sure.”
It’s been done, but it was massively expensive and impractical. I wouldn’t try if I got the car AND an LS engine/transmission for free.
I think it is comparable to needing to replace an engine in an “fossil fuel” auto, just to “fix” it. The battery pack is likely a bigger cost component than the simple electric powered motor in a Tesla and that motor will likely outlast numerous battery packs. Meanwhile the batteries will likely keep getting more and more expensive.
If he woulda replaced the battery it would have probly done it on its own eventually
Jokes on you, snowflake.
Well I've changed a lot of iPhone batteries out (with off-brand replacement batteries) for 25 bucks to keep iPhones going.
The problem with cars is the battery pack is HUGE and proprietary to the OEM and sells for 20 grand.
It’s a 2013 though. That was pretty decent battery life actually. But this is why I wouldn’t buy an electric car...especially a used one.
I guess that’s what happens when you run out of invading Soviet tanks . . .
Get a car fax report. You might find out William the Conqueror was a prior owner on that 1005 and it will be worth more.
“We just bought a 1005 Ford Focus this past Spring”
I had no idea Ford was around back then. :)
Our approach is a bit different. We get a great deal on a new vehicle, then baby it for 150,000 to 250,000 miles. (Mrs. Chandler has great intuition about when it’s time to trade it in.) No high repair bills, no inheriting other people’s problems.
“I think it is comparable to needing to replace an engine in an “fossil fuel” auto”
A new conventional powered gas engine (crate motor) will run you around $5k or less depending on what it is.....I doubt install would even be $2k.
For $22k even in this economy you can buy a new or slightly used low end Toyota or hundai for that I would imagine
I’m designing a switching charger for LiFePO4 batteries.
If you control both the maximum charge level and the minimum discharge level they can last longer than you can.
You also need to use sensors to limit the max rate of charge and discharge... don’t go to extremes with either.
And monitor cell temps, too cold, 0C, or lower or too hot and they are done for.
I have an idea for a preconfigured, small solar power system
where the battery pak, the pure-sine wave inverter and the charge controller are buried at the panel array location in a vertical cylinder and kept at reasonable temps both in hot summer and cold winter. Accessible for repair by unscrewing the cap of the cylinder and pulling out the gear.
The inverter might need to be in an oil bath to keep cool enough if it is stressed... this is a technique used to cool computer equipment in some situations and does very well.
The only thing coming back to the home would be a buried underground feeder line of adequate gauge to handle the amperage. Communications with the equipment from a small control box inside the home would be by data-over-power sent through the feeder line... an easily accomplished thing.
Most home solar setups have a rats nest of wiring inside the home that is a fire hazard as they are often built by amateurs... that stuff is best left far away from the dwelling...
How many miles did he drive in those eight years? How much did he run the heater, which relies on waste heat in a gas powered car but “fresh” energy in an electric car (like the old VW gasoline powered heater).
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