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Featured Reasons behind the slowness of EVs adoption in US

Discussion in 'Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News' started by KrPtNk, Mar 11, 2019.

  1. markabele

    markabele owner of PiP, then Leaf, then Model 3

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    Luckily the vast majority of people don't need that. Honestly, with a little planning, even most Tesla owners could get by with a regular 110 outside of big trip needs.
     
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  2. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    Tesla powerwall can deliver how many amps?

    Collection of solar energy in battery-banks at home will hopefully become somewhat common.
     
  3. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    You really think everyone is going to have one of those big enough to charge one or more EVs in their garage? To charge just one Model 3 base you'd need four of them, at a cost of $26,800.

    They're also only 5kW each.

    Not a viable solution, to say the least.
     
    #203 Lee Jay, Mar 26, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 26, 2019
  4. Zythryn

    Zythryn Senior Member

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    No question automakers need to survive mid-term to be able to attain long term goals.
    Legacy automakers have the luxury of having a war chest that will allow them to absorb setbacks.

    Generally companies will start small with a new product, then roll it out to a larger and larger group. This not only allows the market to develop, but also gives the company time to grow infrastructure, develop supply lines, etc.

    Tesla went all in from the get-go, but they couldn't build enough to have an immediate and direct impact.
    Nissan made substantial moves at a relatively safe cost and as such, after 8 years the Nissan-Renault alliance has sold more evs worldwide than anyone. They are well positioned to continue their domination, however they have been sluggish in taking it to the next level and others are catching up.
    GM made substantial moves at a low cost, but had trouble I attribute to their dealers and lack of marketing.

    And Toyota is doing pretty much the minimum necessary for their carb credits in the USA. Perhaps a little more.
    Are they biding their time till they have the perfect solution? Perhaps.
    Are they focused on the Japanese market to the detriment of the US market? Possibly.

    My personal opinion is that they are missing out on a golden opportunity, and as such, is one of the reasons for the slow uptake of PHEVs/BEVs.
     
  5. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    No, that's why I said somewhat.

    I also expect huge griwth in large-capacity over the next two decades.

    Being case D on the list should highlight the degree of impact as well.
     
  6. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    What specifically is that opportunity?
     
  7. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    even the J plugs in existence aren't all rated that high in many cases, simply because no car yet charges that high in the 1772 format -
    only (some) teslas go that high on 240 & they aren't native to J - but for adapters.
    it's not important - until it is. iow - people that live far away from anything (much less any DC quick charging) might just like to have a little speed.
    .
     
    #207 hill, Mar 26, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 26, 2019
  8. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    ...yet.

    I like that solution from a technology & enviro standpoint, but I also feel like battery technology is where solar panels were in 1985: absolutely proven, but economically hopeless.

    Once battery costs drop another 90% there's going to be some good action in this game. Patience.
     
  9. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    I've been saying it since the beginning - the basic problem, with all of this, is that batteries suck. Even the best ones do.
     
  10. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    not everyone - but some do;

    20190323_124136-1.jpg
    Through (in essence) dip switches - it can be set to varying higher/lower max power levels, & in our case - 'only' 17.2kW. Each of our 2 PV inverters (delivering 4kW AC back to the grid)
    20190323_124120_HDR-1.jpg
    - total of 8kW ....
    ...... so charging at no more than 7kW for a couple hours? Yea - our 100kW underground xformer is plenty safe. BTW - as with most new home developments in SoCal, all these going up around bere in the OC are required to have PV.
    No hand-wringing necessary, even without battery backup.
    .
     
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  11. markabele

    markabele owner of PiP, then Leaf, then Model 3

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    Well...my sucky battery on wheels can take me from 0-60 in about 4.3 seconds and I only paid in the upper $30s for it.
     
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  12. iplug

    iplug Senior Member

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    You got an amazing deal, LR AWD at that price!
     
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  13. markabele

    markabele owner of PiP, then Leaf, then Model 3

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    (after tax incentives and before AP was added on)
     
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  14. Zythryn

    Zythryn Senior Member

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    Could batteries be better? Absolutely!
    They are far better than the alternatives for this person though.
    And each year, more and more people find them superior to other options.

    What sucks, is having a car that doesn't have a full 'tank' every morning.
    It sucks breathing toxic fumes.
    It sucks having to stop in the middle of the day to refill a tank with flammable fluids.
    It sucks having explosive gas lines to your house, requiring special sensors in the house to detect toxic levels of CO.

    These are all sucky things batteries have today allowed me to avoid. And for that reason, I don't feel batteries "suck".
     
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  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i think 'suck' is poor terminology. batteries will improve, as most things do. but the batteries in prius, pip, prime, tesla and many others have proven to be robust, functional and reliable.

    that's a long way from sucking
     
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  16. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    AC? I thought only Europe had such high rate AC chargers.

    Those that need such opportunities at home will get a longer range BEV or a plug-in with some type of range extender. Then, hopefully, by the time such home upgrades are a need, the public infrastructure will be better.

    But won't they be limited by what the on board charger can handle? Then DC charging need not be fast. The SAE did away with the Level 3, and replaced it with DC Level 1 and DC Level 2. All the currently deployed DC chargers are Level 2.
     
  17. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    They are still less than 50% of the energy density of the power plant in the 1903 Wright Flyer, and 1/4th the energy density and 1/2 the lifetime of the power plant in my 1988 Mazda.

    That sucks!
     
  18. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    No, DC.
     
  19. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    energy density means nothing to the average driver. for most, range is the most important thing. it's not equivalent to gas yet, but it keeps improving.
     
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  20. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    Yes, it does, they just don't know it.

    It's range for a particular mass, and cost goes with mass (usually) so it's range for a particular cost.

    Model 3
    $35k for 225 miles
    $50k for 325 miles

    Corolla
    $17.6k for 490 miles

    That difference is DIRECTLY attributable to energy density (or lack thereof).