New Poll: Americans Shun Electrics

Some people could use BEV's most of the time (think Ed Begley), but I'll bet only a fraction of % of single car owners would live under the restriction of 70 to 100 ish miles range, then party is over for 4 hours.

Begley's statement that BEV's are only good for 95% of drivers is IMO, not realistic. Has he looked around at how many people park outside or on the street?

I would love to have one as a 2nd car, but the cost doesn't work.

BEV's are a great thing for some, but man that range and charge time bites for the rest.

and yes, I've seen the Better Place demo.

 

1 Ampere equals 1 Coulomb of charge per second flowing through a given cross section of conductor. High current is like white water rapids, low current a trickling stream. Charge is like the water.

Many could use BEV as 2nd car.

I saw my 2nd LEAF so far other day. One white, one blue. I'm counting them!

 

It's spin.
I don't like the headline. Americans aren't saying "No" to electrics. They are saying, we are unsure about new technology, we are uneasy about change. That's human nature.

Do I really believe that "Americans" would NEVER consider an alternative regardless of the price of gas? That's idiotic. I don't care how much people might think driving is a birth right, or how much they might enjoy the convienence of pulling into a gas station and pulling away filled up and with a hot dog in their hands in less than 10 minutes...If gas prices become entirely prohibitive, people will look to alternatives, Hybrid, Hybrid plug in, Electric or otherwise.....

Full Electrics, are a minority product. Much about ownership and operation for the general public is in an early stage of infrastructure genesis. But IMO for the majority? It's not so much Americans saying "No" to Electrics...as a lot of people not quite ready to say "Yes".

15 years ago, you could of run an article proclaming Americans Shun Hybrids...the idea of owning and operating a vehicle that utilized a gas engine coupled with a battery and electric motors seemed that alien and unnecessary. Today the idea of charging a vehicle nightly or being tethered by "range" may seem as alien.

But it's all finding the sweet spot of technology, demand and useability. It's a process. But put gas at $5.00 a gallon, or have shortages to the point where availability as a whole becomes problematic...and you'd be a fool to shun options and advancement, wherever it may be found.

 

This is the common retort among adv. car folks - trannys and engines are not cheap to replace.

However, it seems to be quite common that something like a Corolla can go 300,000 miles on original engine and transmission. Just the other day, a saleslady told me her '92 Corolla has 280k on original engine and tranny.

How long do folks expect the LEAF battery to last in miles or time? And what is the rought projected cost to replace that 24kWhr battery?

 

Why compare a mobile phone to a car? Cell phones have progressed because of improvements in semiconductors and software.

How much has battery technology improved in 25 yrs? Power electronics in EV's are somewhat mature IIRC. I think it is well recognized that massive challenges exist for battery / power source improvement. It will get better, but I don't think it is known how much (as compared to Moore's Law).

Correct me if wrong.

 

I don't think Americans are saying no to EVs.

Show me where EVs are available for test driving and purchase? Seriously... no one is actually polling Americans who have the option to test and buy one!

With waiting lists and scarcity, I'm sure a good portion of the people asked "will you buy an EV next?" said No just because the EV option isn't available to them where they live.

 

you are 100% it is typical newsy sensationalism, spin at it's worse.

putting that aside electrics as they are (Nissan Leaf) impractical and their usability is limited. When they will be half as flexible as regular cars (price, range, charging availability.. most importantly charge time) people will not only consider, they will embrace them.

 

Well I for one am happy with these "sensational headlines". Means I'll be able to get my Prius PHV before everybody else. Keep it up . . . maybe more headlines on how it won't pay you back. . . . Or how about a safety headline . . .

 

there will always be naysayers to any types of fuel. if you build a car that runs on water, you'll get people say that the car is competing with our drinking water supply and that it's causing drought. there's no place to refuel, mofo just goto a water store, it's 25 cents a gallon.
if you build a car that runs on dirt, naysayers will bith about the dirt cars are depleting the ground. soon we cant build any road because theres to dirt on the ground. people would go and steal dirt from your front yard.
god forbid if someone build a car that runs on air. i can hear it now, global short supply of air due to those those damn air cars. airline industry suing the auto industry over air because the planes cant fly because theres no air.
EV is not for everyone. you have your reasons I have mine. I think EV is too far leap for most people. A long EV range PHEV should be the next logical step. it bridges the uneducated people with next generation energy supply. PHEV100 that gets 75MPG combined will cater to 100% of the population. If you dont have a place to charge, it gets 75MPG on gas only using hybrid technology. if you have a place to charge, it has an EV range of 100 real world miles. it pretty much combines the Volt, the Leaf and the Prius into 1 vehicle.
I would much rather drive on electric than gas. Even though my plugin prius gets 80+mpg, i still feel its not efficient enough and the range is too short.

 

Because MSNBC (or any of the big 3/4) is a bastion of objective journalism.

 

they are not but at least they are not the bastion of engineered ideological propaganda

 

I had no idea there was such a large percentage of US homes without electricity.

 

I think he meant public infrastructure. Personally, I would rather charge at home or at relative's house unless there's free charging at public parking.

 

Must have missed the sarcasm flags again. We really need a better system for that.

Tom

 

That's the point.
Most people drive away from their homes.

Edit....and yeah. I dig the sarcasm. If you can't debate....obfuscate.

 

Dave/GW- I can see where EV makes more sense for CA and clean green WA. Now GWmort is in DE my back-yard, and like you he favors USA power plants as EV fuel source. In GW's case I have to breathe in the extra particulates, and I am a jogger. I'll be slightly happier when you guys get your home PV systems running, but between $7500+ EV credits and 30%+ off for PV, its taking years worth of my taxes to defray the cleanliness just for you two Prius Chatters. Since you are both fellow concerned citizens, I will pay it off for you (by paying taxes I should say!), but does not seem "sustainable" to me yet.

 

I personally don't have a problem with tax credits to stimulate interest in this "new" technology. After all....it's a tax credit. This means that the aforementioned PC'ers are paying taxes, which means that there is a good chance that they're net contributors to the economy.
Giving tax money to other people and programs however (comma!) is another issue altogether and is best left for another thread in another forum.

The only issue I have with the whole EV thing is the binary attitude that some folks (I'm sure nobody here fits into this minority!) have with the idea.
You're either 100-percent for it....or you're a Luddite.
Additionally...most of the people that I've discussed (argued) this topic with have a carbon footprint that's at least an order of magnitude bigger than mine...four gas burners and all.

By all means...EV technology should be fully developed, and some assistance should be funded by Uncle Sam (it beats some of the other things that they're doing!!!)
If nothing else, we'll have better batteries to put into our consumer electronics as a result...

But replace ICE?
In the next couple of decades?

Naaaah. I don't see it.

Looooove the heat of the debate though!!!

 

And they could drive away with fully charged batteries, having plugged their vehicle in overnight. True, some people live so far away from work that current battery technology won't meet their needs, but for a huge number of people, an EV would work quite nicely. With only a little effort and expense, EVs could also be plugged in at work, or at the mall...My point, sadly not taken in the friendly, teasing manner in which it was intended, is that electricity is everywhere. It's far more common than gasoline, so to say "there's no infrastructure for EVs" is simply not true.

 

Once again you're BIG assumption is that people are able to park near their homes. Depending on where I park if I had an EV I'd need an extension cord at least 10,000 feet to reach my car.
You say that there's no infrastructure is not true but how many malls have chargers? How many work sites have parking lots AND charging stations? The effort and expense is part of the infrastructure everyone is talking about. Are the utility companies able to meet demand of EV charging stations? Let me tell you here in NYC Con ED is always having blackouts during the summer becasue they are unable to meet the air conditioning demands of NYC residents.