Posted on 09/08/2026 4:59:11 AM PDT by Skwor
The auto industry has a new solution to Americans’ fear that electric vehicles will run out of juice: a gasoline engine.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
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EVs at best are niche products until battery technology improves massively. Enough of the Green wackadoodles pushing this crap.
It’s a crazy idea, but it just might work.
Don’t they already have that?
Called a hybrid?
I have an idea - a gasoline engine without an electric motor. Quite the experiment.
The idea now is specially a gas generator as opposed to car engine it seems.
Still a gas engine is a gas engine, LOL the twisted logic greens go through to worship gaia.
Genius!
Sort of...this idea is more “Train Locomotive” in nature...gas/diesel engine just makes electricity....never drives the wheels like a Toyota hybrid.
RAM trucks is releasing one shortly supposedly:
https://www.ramtrucks.com/electric/1500-rev.html
Hybrids crispy critter at a higher rate than EVs.
And battery cost is still an issue.
Good luck with that, guys.
Henry Ford wishes he had been as smart as you
I thought this was going to be from the Bee.
It might work. An electric vehicle powered by a 1,000 horsepower gasoline engine.
Per AI, sourced to the WSJ story and to Nisaan...
“Difference from Standard Hybrids
Parallel Hybrids: Traditional hybrids (like standard Toyotas) mix power sources, allowing both the gas engine and electric motor to mechanically drive the wheels.
Series Hybrids: These vehicles eliminate mechanical transmissions and driveshafts linked to the gas motor, functioning entirely on electric traction.”
Okaaaaay...
I, however, am uncomfortable with having two systems for potential failure: the gas generator component and EV component. I was concerned about the same with hybrids. Thus, my wife and I have the best of both worlds by one of our cars being a gas car (the pickup) and the other car being an EV. We use the gas pickup for long trips that have few fast EV chargers, or for if we go north in the winter (slow charging in the cold), or if there's pickup chores (both local chores and long trip chores), or for local driving if my wife and I need two cars to split up for the day. All other driving is in the EV to save gas (24K miles per year, about 18K miles charged at home, which is where the real gas savings is).
That's us being practical with the benefits of both EV's and gas cars to best accomplish our transportation needs and wants.
Does the cost of a gasoline/elrctric hybrid like the Prius save enough $$ on gasoline cost to offset the initial price and repairs? Is the longevity of a Prius comparable to say, a gasoline subcompact like a Gas Honda Fit or a Toyota Yaris/Echo?
Do the rechargable batteries in a gas/electric Prius consistently need replacing by original owner and how much $$?
I drove a 2008 Toyota Yaris subcompact for 6 yrs and 188000 miles with zero repairs needed and minimal wear item replacements like wiper blades and headlight bulbs. Started and ran well everytime I uaed it 5 speed stick manual. I hadnt even replaced brake shoes or clutch. Hydroplaned on freeway in a rainstorm on smooth new pavement and totaled it. And had no injuries due to seat belts and all the airbags. Great car. Was built in Japan and came by boat here.
I know it’s hard to take crap like this seriously, but I’ll try. Without reading the article, if the generator is for emergency use only, then it should use propane, mainly because propane basically has an infinite shelf life, whereas both gasoline and diesel fuel goes bad and gas/diesel fuel lines and engines get coated over time. There are ways to mitigate this, but with propane, no maintenance is needed...other than occasional oil changes. The downside is weight and volume for propane storage...but still....
Scout has one to roll out...
https://support.scoutmotors.com/en/articles/10034954-how-will-the-harvester-range-extender-work
Per the above...
“What is the projected all-electric range of Harvester™ equipped vehicles?
Scout projects an all-electric range of approximately 150 miles for Harvester range extender equipped vehicles, for a total combined maximum range of more than 500 miles.”
Hmmmmph...
It’s the direction the industry is headed. You get the immediate torque of the electric motors, great efficiency, but without the range anxiety.
This is more acute in the USA as people drive longer distances.
The architecture of “electric powertrain with a gas generator” isn’t new, cars like the Chevy Volt or Karma Revero have this exact configuration and have been around a while. This is a leveling point, a sweet spot, and is likely to be the norm for a while.
Perhaps in the aggregate, but ...
We own a 2015 Ford Fusion Energi. This is exactly what the WSJ ‘journalist’ thinks is a “new” idea.
The Energi is a plug-in hybrid, meaning it runs as an EV until that high-voltage battery is discharged, then the car operates as a hybrid. We plug it in every night my wife drives it. That 2015 battery still has enough mileage to get her to and from work - a little over 12 miles.
~200K miles on it. trouble-free.
So yeah, to me, this new “extended range electric vehicle” is little more than a power-train twist on the plug-in hybrid model.
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