Posted on 02/09/2019 12:16:08 PM PST by Hojczyk
Are electric vehicles the wave of the future, or expensive toys? This shocking news story–shocking if you live in the North, anyway–suggests the latter *** Many owners discovered the range limitations last week when much of the country was in the grips of a polar vortex. Owners of vehicles made by manufacturers including Tesla, the top-selling electric vehicle company in the U.S., complained on social media about reduced range and frozen door handles during the cold snap.
Frozen door handles are an annoyance not unique to electric cars, but reduced range can be life-threatening.
At 20 degrees, the average driving range fell by 12 percent when the car’s cabin heater was not used. When the heater was turned on, the range dropped by 41 percent, AAA said.
Of course, at 20 degrees you pretty much have to turn the heater on. T
Also, AAA tested the vehicles at 20 degrees above zero, a balmy temperature that we haven’t seen for a while here in the Twin Cities. What happens at 20 below, a temperature we have seen several times in the last week or two? Or eleven below, which it is at this moment where I live? A car whose range is severely compromised at such temperatures could be a death trap.
Advocates of “green” energy say that giant batteries will overcome the intractable problem of the intermittency–i.e., unreliability–of wind and solar energy. Of course, while batteries can power my laptop for six or eight hours, or a vehicle for a relatively short distance, no batteries exist that can power a city for six months, nor is any such technology on the horizon. But I wonder whether green energy advocates who toss around the word “batteries” much as they might say “magic” have considered the impact of cold weather.
(Excerpt) Read more at powerlineblog.com ...
Elon Musk?
Hmm ...
Is he related to AEon Flux?
All the block heater does is make more certain of a cold start at cold temps.
We live north of Minot near the Canadian border, our actual temp yesterday was -35.
The article is about engine efficiency. I keep accurate records on fuel economy. Our 2016 Outback gets a max of 30 MPG in the summer, and on the coldest days gets 20 MPG in the winter. Our 2018 F150 gets a max of 17 in the summer and a low of 14 in the winter. The winter driving range for the Outback would be 320 and the Ford 500 miles.
Not only is the efficiency better, but I can get gas anyplace.
These Gang Green idiots live in a bubble where they see only what’s in front of them and have a time dealing with that when making up these stupid ideas for laws.
“These guys have owned plenty of expensive cars, some a lot more expensive than the Tesla”
“You can pretend that these are toys all you want. “
So, a toy.
“The cost of running their Tesla fleet is running at 5 cents per mile,”
I doubt that. Such claims are often based on bogus numbers.
I got a “signal” for the false virtue types - and it requires just one finger.
Chinese buy more than 500,000 EVs per year not including Teslas. Their target is urban air pollution, not some imaginary energy benefit.
It doesn’t matter how many benefits it may or may not have, THIS is a fatal flaw. You can’t build cars just for one area of the country. They have to be able to withstand all weather conditions.
Properly mixed engine coolant will not freeze. The block heater preheats the engine to ensure combustion by thinning the lube on the cylinder walls allowing the engine to rotate faster during the starting process. This warming and faster rotation improves compression and warmth of the fuel air mixture which enhances combustion, thus all but guaranteeing a start.
Newer vehicles with let’s say 0W5 motor oils do not require block heaters as the oil pours like water in the winter anyway.
You would only be what, four miles from home?
L8r
Gasoline engines aren’t in danger of going away, there’s plenty of situations where they have a big advantage.
But Tesla level electrics will be cars that people want to drive, for the reasons that you noticed with your friend’s car. That’s already happening in my part of SoCal.. they are getting to be about as common as the Mercedes.
“-—the principles of physics and chemistry win again—”
Yup, the same things that apparently do not allow climate researchers to come up with even one accurate climate model.
I doubt that. Such claims are often based on bogus numbers.
You’re correct; that claim of 5 cent per mile operating cost is deceptive. Presuming the 5 cent figure is correct, that can only be for direct operating cost. There is no way it includes the MASSIVELY higher capital expenditure required to buy the car in the first place.
Let’s instead compare total ownership cost of a Tesla vs. a conventional vehicle and the numbers will be significantly against the Tesla.
I think Tesla included an “undocumented feature” in the cars (battery combustion) to counter the extreme cold and reduced driving distance.
Servicing hasn’t been any problem among those I know..but getting repair parts after a minor traffic collision was a major issue.
Model 3s are selling for $44,000. Their target price is supposed to still be $35k.
Nissan Leaf msrp is $29,900
The Greenies don’t comprehend the Laws of Physics with batteries and there is no technology coming that can solve those problems of better batteries and storage.
The only cars with batteries that work are the Hybrids like the Prius. Or we can go to Compressed Natural Gas cars that will work just fine or even hybrids of those will work.
Common sense for the Green Crowd is about non-existent.
Leaving aside the fact that 50% or so of all the electricity burned by electric cars is produced in coal fired base load plants, [Ooooh, bad!] do you ever turn on the AC [air conditioner] in your Tesla when you are stuck in rush hour in the heat and the smog? Assuming you do, what does the AC drain on the battery do to range - assuming say, 90 degrees F ambient.
“There is no way it includes the MASSIVELY higher capital expenditure required to buy the car in the first place.”
That was just one of the items I was thinking, but you’re right. They also often compare electricity costs below market, like 5 cents a kilowatt, and they also compare it to gas costs at $5 a gallon.
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