Now lets hear the cowboys pile on about their SUVs. I just want to say that hybrids will have a place, first as a commuter or delivery vehicle or fleet vehicle then perhaps for heavier duty.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
How could the plug in version cost $3K more? I think someone could come up with a home hobbyist kit for $100 or so.
I had a leased EV1. Remembering to recharge it was never a problem. You come home. You plug in.
My charger had a timer on it so that it would start charging after midnight when the electric rates are about 1/10 of the day rate.
People interested in this issue should know that the
electric car, or the lack thereof,
is stictly an issue of cost.
Very practical electric cars could be built today.
Several years ago, there were GM and Honda electric
cars that sorta worked. With new lithium-polymer
batteries, these cars would be practical.
Now lets hear the cowboys pile on about their SUVs. I just want to say that hybrids will have a place, first as a commuter or delivery vehicle or fleet vehicle then perhaps for heavier duty.
Let me give an example of a 'cost decision'
involving an electric car.
There are devices known as 'supercapacitors'.
With supercaps, you can, very fast, store/release electricity.
To store the energy of a '0 to 60 mph' acceleration,
you would need about $2000 of supercaps.
This would make 'regen' braking, a lot better,
and the car would be more versatile.
On the other hand, does it make sense to spend
two grand to store electricity worth one cent?
My SUV gets over 150 MPF (Miles Per Flush). And no potty stops required.
Hope it works and helps weans us from Mid East and Venezuelan oil.
Premium gas lovin', supercharged, 4wd fuel efficiency bump.
Back to the drawing board you liberal wetdreamers.
BUMP
Has anyone examined the health effects that the large magnetic fields of the current from/to the batteries has on the passengers? Charging during braking will cause a pulsating magnetic field, which may be even worse.
From batteryuniversity.com:
The cycle life of sealed lead-acid is directly related to the depth of discharge. The typical number of discharge/charge cycles at 25°C (77°F) with respect to the depth of discharge is:What the modification necessarily does is to stop the engine from turning on to recharge the battery until the battery is more drained than it would be in the original hybrid design. As long as you don't let the battery discharge more than 10% or so, it will last a long time.
- 150 - 200 cycles with 100% depth of discharge (full discharge)
- 400 - 500 cycles with 50% depth of discharge (partial discharge)
- 1000 and more cycles with 30% depth of discharge (shallow discharge)
The lead-acid battery should not be discharged beyond 1.75V per cell, nor should it be stored in a discharged state. The cells of a discharged lead-acid sulfate, a condition that renders the battery useless if left in that state for a few days. Always keep the open terminal voltage at 2.10V and higher.
The bottom line is that any gas savings would be offset by the cost of replacing a $3-$4K set of batteries on a frequent basis