Posted on 07/18/2022 5:15:47 PM PDT by lowbridge
If there is one consistent fact about electric vehicles, it’s that they are unreliable. Now their charging stations have come into question as well.
In Aspen and Glenwood Springs, Colorado, many companies have implemented charging stations in their parking lots. All of them are not fully functional, however.
Chris Lane, a Basalt resident who owns two electric cars, highlighted a couple of issues with the local charging stations: Cables are ripped out, attachments are damaged and screens are cracked.
If there is a mechanical problem with any one of these stations, it automatically shuts down, Aspen Daily News reported.
“I charge in Glenwood, I see problems. I charge in Aspen, I see problems,” Lane said. He mentioned one exception: Tesla’s stations.
“I will say this, the Tesla stations are way better, flawless,” he said.
Companies and stores that have EV stations in their parking lots are expected to take care of them, but this has not always been the case.
The Willits Town Center in Basalt, Colorado, is a prime example. With 11 total stations, five were out of order and two were inaccessible, leaving only four functioning chargers available.
“I see mechanical failures up and down the valley,” Lane said.
(Excerpt) Read more at westernjournal.com ...
How many 500k miles/25 year old vehicles do you see on the road?
And you think batteries need to last that long??
Thanks RoadCat.
I think it works the other way around also.
Dumping on ICE cars is nonsensical as well.
The human race has come to the point that we have so much
free time on our hands, that people are on the verge of
destroying civilization.
I have one 1978 Chevy pickup and one Ford 1992 pickup and I still drive both of them for work and hunting trips.
I changed out the engines on both of them when they hit between 250k and 300k miles; The engine changeouts only cost me about 2500$ per truck, that’s a whole lot better than 12,000$ for a damned battery in a vehicle that isn’t big enough to carry my tools + hunting gear + any game I bring home.
I see a whole lot of 20 to 30 year old vehicles out here where they are used for both work and pleasure; you probably don’t see as many in the big city because people there are more concerned with the “newest toy” rather than utility and dependability!
I do think the batteries MUST last that long and hopefully much longer because they have such a high cost in dollars and even higher cost in environmental impact.
About the only areas EV’s might be practical is congested cities with a lot of stop and go traffic so the brakes can help recharge the batteries. That’s also where the air pollution is the worst so it will be a good thing when that day does come.
Then there’s the extra weight of EV’s which wear tires out twice as fast so there’s more rubber particulates being put into the air as pollution and the environmental impact of making twice as many tires and recycling twice as many tires.
EV’s are not clean. They are actually very dirty vehicles. The illusion is there’s no tail pipe, low sound, and no smell of a cold rich running ICE engine as it warms up. Everything else about them is dirty and far too expensive for what they are. They also have a very low resale value over time. They are basically throwaway vehicles which is another reason the batteries need to last 25 years and 500k miles. Something no one talks about is the range when using the AC or Heater being cut in half. Again; not practical for anyplace but congested cities.
We are a long long way from going to EV’s. My 20 year old nephew may see a time when 50% of the vehicles on the road are EV’s but only if the power infrastructure (nuclear power plants) are built in time. I guess there’s always the possibility of a cold fusion power plant or device being invented too.
Exactly so! Thanks for elaborating!
Electric vehicles make sense for southern California.
That make zero sense here in the cold rural northeast.
Colorado Ping ( Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from the list.)
Especially when you’re using electric power to keep both your interior cabin and the battery temperature from getting too low (which kills your effective max mileage), whereas the heat from the combustion of fuel comes for free as part of the physical/chemical process.
How many 500k miles/25 year old vehicles do you see on the road?Many cars and trucks these days easily last that long with just basic common sense maintenance/repairs.
And you think batteries need to last that long??Not only the batteries, the entire vehicle.
If you don't think they need to, and if you haven't already, you should by all means run out and buy one.
If there is a mechanical problem with any one of these stations, it automatically shuts down, Aspen Daily News reported.
Sounds like Chris needs a gas guzzling whaaaambulace.
Oh I agree with that. No doubt about it.
In some places, we’re probably 50 - 75 years from being able
to use electric there, if ever.
Developments could surprise me though.
You noticed that too? Just wait until the humanoid robots start getting distributed. Lots of menial jobs will be eliminated. And local governments will increase handouts to those unwilling to work (except for those menial jobs). Lots of free time to protest and destroy what others accomplish. I was paying some guys $20 an hour to do some weed clearing and digging. Lots of talking and goofing off, late or not showing up. A robot could be trained to do it, and work continuously without breaks - until needing to be recharged.
I like both types of cars. Just like my tools. You pick and choose what gets the job done. Unfortunately, that doesn't always work when choosing human workers, same goes for machines.
Yeah, you’re making too much sense. Smile...
I agree with your take on things.
The market should decide which cars flourish.
The incentives have helped get the EV industry going. Now it
should stand or fall on it’s own two feet.
They succumb to rust.
I had a 24 year old Nissan Frontier pickup and it’s got rust developing in the wheel wells.
That’s on top of the fact that a LOT of the parts for this truck are now discontinued.
I had to scrounge on Ebay just to come up with replacement switches for the cruise control.
See my other post. If rust doesn’t kill them, unavailable parts will.
And that ECU in your 1992 Ford Pickup is probably loaded with electrolytic capacitors that are spewing their juices all over the board, corroding it as we speak.
Guess you’ll convert it to a carburetor to get around that, if you haven’t already.
That's great and I'm glad its working for you....But I do have a question....
How do you pay for your charge?...do the costs vary like gas stations?..are the “stations” individually owned?
I doubt Id buy an EV right off but I would be interested in owning a few stations if I can charge what I want...and tow you to my station for a small fee when you run out of gas.....
“Many cars and trucks these days easily last that long with just basic common sense maintenance/repairs.”
The average age of vehicles on US roads is 11 years. That’s the highest it’s ever been. And despite that, I see very few vehicles from even the 90s on the roads anymore.
The ones I frequent are nationwide distributors. They charge
different rates, but they aren’t off by much.
You set up accounts and get the best rates.
Rates are somewhere around $0.31 cents to $0.43 cents per
watt. I have accounts, so I pay the $0.31 cents a watt
figure. In other regions, that figure may be lower or
higher than what people in those regions might pay. I don’t
honestly know.
I do pay between $4.00 and $6.99 monthly to keep accounts
open, so the fee at the charge-point isn’t the only expense
I incur. It’s still a minimal up-charge, and with my account
on file, it works out very easily at the charge-point.
My electric bill at home lists my watt hour rate at $0.43
cents per watt.
This week, I will be working on using solar to charge up
my vehicle. I have the equipment to do it. I haven’t
put an effort into setting it up and testing it yet.
Even at a 115 mile range max, I plan my trips around charge-
points. I haven’t had a problem yet. I can’t imagine
others with 200-500 miles of range, having a problem.
I have a small engine on my car. If I want to travel long
distances, I can use it. It’s called a Rex engine. That
stands for Range Extender.
I can go about 75 miles on two gallons. If I keep a small
five gallon gas can in the back, I can go about 225 miles
in between pit stops. Add my electric range on top of
that and that works out to about 340 miles. That’s not
too shabby.
Going in, I honestly thought the range issue would be a big
deal. It really hasn’t been.
Yesterday I was down to 39%, and I charged up to 81% in
twenty minutes, on the nose. I had a 102 mile range
available at that point. In other terms, I added 63 miles
of range for $4.34.
I’ve not come close to running out of charge. I keep a
log of my miles, and I travel up to about 85 miles into
the Victorville region from Los Angeles.
As soon as I get there, I charge up. I then run around.
When I get ready to leave, I charge up again. It gets
me home.
I spend about $10.00 for that 210-220 mile trip, and
goofing around at the locality.
Usually when I get out to the Victorville area, I have
about 15-20 miles left on my charge. One day that 85
mile trip to just under four hours. I’m sure it would
seem like I would be low on charge at that point. Instead
I had 45 miles still available. We traveled so slowly, my
charge consumption was way down.
If a car does run out of charge due to a guy not paying
attention, there are already other tow trucks out there.
Think Auto Club, or other insurance folks that have such
services. I don’t think that’s a good angle for you to
look to, to bump up income.
When I had my shop (died from Obama Care) we kept track of vehicle mileage for when customers returned.
We repaired air suspension and Lincolns were our bread & butter. The rear wheel drive Lincolns were known for very high mileage, especially the Towncars.
The Towncars would come at around every 100k miles of personal use. The commercial limos about every 250k miles.
We had many 300k to 400k Towncars return with a significantly lesser number of 500k TC’s due mostly from crashes.
The kicker was that the 1990-97 TC’s got 30 mpg (pre alcohol).
The MKVII’s could make 200k plus miles but had a braking problem and crashed when the hydro boost braking failed.
The MKVIII’s might make 200k miles but we’re a money pit and usually the quick lube places destroyed then due to cracking the oil pressure switch when changing the oil filter.
The front wheel driven Lincolns just sucked.
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