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I filled up my Ram 1500 today for $2.38 a gallon at Walmart in Harker Heights, Texas, 25 gallons = $59.50. In Californina the average price today was $4.66 a gallon. In California that would be $116.50 dollars a difference of $58.00 bucks. That really sucks if you are living in California. In Texas I can drive my Ram 1500 390 Horsepower pickup for what a midsize Chevy, Honda or Ford would cost to drive. Do not even mention to me the cost of driving electric vehicles unless you factor in the cost of a battery pack replacement, see below from Google:

Examples of Battery Replacement Costs (estimates):

Hyundai: $38,000 - $45,000 (or $50,000 - $60,000 CAD)
Kia EV6: $33,000 US or $45,000 CAD
Ford F-150 Lightning: $34,000 - $45,000 US
Mustang Mach-E: $35,000 US
Tesla Model 3: Around $16,000 plus labor
Volkswagen ID.4: $15,000 - $20,000 US
Nissan Leaf: $12,000 US
Chevrolet Bolt: Around $12,000 US
BMW i3: Around $13,500 US

Basically when your battery pack hits 100,000 miles and end of warranty your vehicle is worth only its scrap metal.

Oddly I do see a place for electric vehicles for short range commutes to work of less than 100 mile range. These could be recharged nightly for commuting or for us retired to the local grocery store. It must have enough battery power to run air conditioning and a heater for the 100 mile total commute. It gets hot in Texas and cold, we need both.

However, if I want to drive from my home in Salado, Texas to my family back in El-Paso, Texas I would stop in Fort Stockton and fill up my Truck once only in 5 minutes. If I were in an EV it would be two stops and 30 minutes to an hour depending on the EV Charging station capacity. I do not accept this.

Note to Californians that are conservative, you are welcome in Texas, but not so much liberal. In fact liberals just stay the hell away from us.

I traveled from my home in Pocatello, Idaho to San Diego in September 2023. My high school 50th class reunion. The night before I returned, I had to top up my gas for the return trip. It was $6.999 per gallon in San Diego. I traveled home the next day and upon arrival in Pocatello, topped my tank off before driving the last mile home. I paid $3.25 per gallon for ethanol free 87 octane regular. The ethanol polluted stuff was around $3 per gallon.

“Oddly I do see a place for electric vehicles for short range commutes to work of less than 100 mile range. These could be recharged nightly for commuting or for us retired to the local grocery store. It must have enough battery power to run air conditioning and a heater for the 100 mile total commute. It gets hot in Texas and cold, we need both.”

Funny, I know a doctor here in Texas who limits his Tesla driving to 50 miles (one way) - just as you state. After that, it’s a real car, only. The specific drive puts him at risk of a traffic jam as its through the city, so he could be sitting for a while with his air conditioner on, so his limit makes sense.

Bottom line is like you say, EVs can have a place for some people (those with extra money like the doctor who can charge at home), and can be very useful if gasoline is not available, but they are nowhere close to being as useful.

But don’t be so sure about nightly charging - it works for now, but Australia is already discussing (nothing official yet) the DRAINING of EV batteries at night to support their grid, since their existing, huge, grid-level batteries have a habit of self-immolation. Obviously if people try to get ‘cute’ at night by unplugging, they’ll be stopped.