@kittykat9180 Well yes, but still I will pass. Not a tree hugger but, Battery production has a terrible environmental impact. Then there are few options for battery recycling and disposal, Upfront cost, charging you more when registering you car. Cost and convenience of charging if/when you can’t charge where you typically park. Lack of available charging infrastructure for your needs.
Lack of range when any extra aerodynamic load (trailer, roof box, etc) is added.
Significant range penalties at cold temperatures.
Battery range diminishes with age.
I’ll stick with my gas car, though I like the fact the electric cars have instant torque.
@kittykat9180@pmarin lol The environmental impact of producing an EV often exceeds the total emissions my gas-powered car will generate over its lifetime. The pollution is just shifted out of sight most consumers don’t realize that the factories building EVs are powered by fossil fuels. If electric cars become mandatory, we’ll need to build even more power plants, likely fueled by coal or natural gas, which contradicts the goal of achieving cleaner air.
@kittykat9180 In any given year our temperatures can swing from -30 to 110 f. We have several Teslas in our area and they all have issues with charging in the extreme cold. Living in a rural area doesn’t help.
@kittykat9180@kjady there are a bunch of YouTube reviews from guys in places like Norway. They seem to handle it fine. They do have a lot of charging infrastructure there. On a Tesla you can tell it when you want to use the car so it will pre-heat, even the batteries if it thinks it needs. It will work without that but will tell you you won’t have max power at first. Same with charging, if you want to super-charge it will precondition batteries on the way. I don’t think the older Teslas did this; might be part of your disinformation campaign, dear Chevron employee.
EDIT maybe you can answer why price/bbl of crude oil is back to where it was about 6 years ago and price at pumps is about 2x as much. And those record oil company profits and bonuses. Must be nice.
We have a hybrid. Despite the fact that it’s got twice the chance for malfunction and slightly higher maintenance cost, this is offset by its excellent fuel economy. If EVs continue to improve at the current rate, the plan is to switch to a mid-range example of the breed.
I have a PHEV and I adore her. I wish the battery had a touch longer life but truthfully, I love having both options. I buy fuel so infrequently but when I need to put serious miles on, I don’t have to wait ages to get a full charge. It’s pretty ace and I’ve saved LOADS on petrol.
@reidk5307@sjk3 what exactly has he saved? His shenanigans cost almost as much as those “savings.” Throw in trump spending 27% of his days at Mar-alago golfing and his upcoming “I love me” parade and we’re down by tens of billions.
@catthegreat@reidk5307@sjk3 Biden sucked too, the dude had dementia.
But I’m confused as to what Biden has anything to do with a conversation about Trump. Can you explain?
We’ve been an electric-only household for over a year now, and we’ve owned at least one EV since 2022. 2014 Spark EV (had for two years and sold it to someone who needed an around town car), 2021 Bolt EV (current), and 2025 Equinox EV (signed the paperwork to lock in April discounts, but it’s still in transit). I will never go back to burning fuel and breathing exhaust every day. The ownership experience has been great, and I highly recommend (non-Tesla) EVs for anyone who can charge at or near home.
EDIT: We put ~23,000 miles on the Bolt in our first year of ownership, including a road trip from Wisconsin to Virginia and back. Ask me anything .
@gnafuthemeh My wife had a '21 Bolt on a 3-year lease. We generally liked the car, but all the battery drama was a PITA (paid full price for 80% of the utility). We didn’t consider keeping it after the end of the lease (especially since the lease buyout was ~$7K more than the equivalent used models were going for locally). We did take the $1400 bribe from GM to not join the class action suit.
Now she drives a hybrid Toyota SUV and we love it.
I can’t afford any new car, and until the EVs swap to a battery system that’s less susceptible to thermal runaway, I think I’ll remain on the sidelines even for used ones.
@werehatrack The upcoming Bolt refresh is supposed to use LFP cells like my old Spark EV. Those don’t catch fire when punctured like some chemistries. The new Bolt is likely to retail for under $30k, so there’s a chance you could get a new one for under $20k with discounts if the tax credit holds (I know, that’s a big “if”). My wife and I just secured an Equinox EV AWD for $12,000 off retail (financed ~$30,000 with $0 down), and I’m sure the upcoming Bolt will have similar discounts available.
And statistically, battery fires are much less common than fires in combustion vehicles.
One thing to consider with this or any plugged in electric vehicle, charging equipment for home,
Spend the $50 extra to have your plug upgraded to handle large loads of electricity for extended periods of time. Even your home oven or home dryer outlets are not typically designed to be turned on and transmit power all night long once or even multiple times a week.
Please don’t let your plug melt or catch fire in your home. It’s a very simple swap out that many electricians will do for a very low fee.
It looks like there are two things that degrade batteries, faster overtime. One is frequent changes in state of charge and battery staying very high or very low for extended periods of time such as leaving it fall or leaving it empty. Vehicles that sit around 50% state of charge seem to show almost no where over time. So even though some vehicles can travel very long distances, the more you keep them in the middle of the battery pack, the more time you will have with them able to keep as much range available to you. I just passed 125,000 miles on mine and the degradation was pretty minimal. I hope it went to a very good second home. It will just keep it charged to around 50% and do mostly short trips around the state.
Some batteries need to be charged to 100% approximately once a week in order for the battery management software to recalibrate the battery. It sounds like this should be done and completed as close to departure time as possible on a day where you will drive more to get the battery pack away from that 100% and then just inched down for the rest of the week as low as you need to go. This is only the case for nickel metal hydride batteries. If your manufacturer does not tell you, what kind of batteries are in the vehicle, you can tell because the software will remind you to charge to 100% once a week. Other vehicles will suggest anywhere between 70 and 90% maximum state of charge for normal days and boosting to 100% as needed.
I love road trips in my electric vehicle because I can pop into a charger along the way plug-in and run in to pee and either get another drink from my car or the closest convenience store. Many times it charges up to where I need it to be before I’ve even finished the bathroom.
Definitely don’t go out and just purchase any old electric vehicle before doing plenty of research to make sure it will meet your needs and you will be able to enjoy the charging schedule. It’s as easy as plugging in a phone. You just need to understand a few things about how and when to charge.
@5665150@kittykat9180 Sure, for that little usage you probably shouldn’t own a car at all. It would be a lot cheaper to take a local taxi service or ride a cargo e-bike to the grocery store.
Drove a Prius for 10 years. I loved it. Hardly ever had to stop for gas. And when I did it was only about 8 gallons to fill it. I easily got 500 miles to the tank. Then Tesla said they were going to have an affordable EV. We put down a deposit before even seeing it. Waited and made fake car payments to our savings account. By the time we could order we were able to write a check for it. Got the extended range Model 3 in red. June 2018. I like to think of it as I got mine before crazy came into it. I drive it everyday. I love it. I hope no one hits it because I can’t afford to replace it. I love watching Netflix in the car when I have to wait for people. It’s a great car that is catching the brunt of crazy right now. We already have a home charger installed. I charge it to 72% and when it gets down to 45% or so I plug it in to charge back up to 72%. Before long trips I charge to 100%. Orlando to Jacksonville and back if you want to get home with very little left. We like to stop at Buc-ee’s and top up. And that’s way more than anybody wanted to know about my EV.
Proud owner of a Rivian! Absolutely the best vehicle I’ve ever owned. nay, driven! Faster than many supercars, all while hauling 7 people. Not quite Quiet as a whisper, but definitely improving over time. Good range too.
@gsrivast My nephew has one. Seems happy. Have not been in it. At the time basic Tesla was available and about 1/2 the cost which made it an easy decision. Maybe a Rivian next time, if stock market recovers.
Fun fact about EVs, IIRC, you have to drive them 60,000 miles to break even with ICE vehicles’ carbon footprint. Because EVs require more copper, nickel, lithium, and other rare earth minerals, and these minerals come from Third World countries with poor environmental regulations, EVs just shift the pollution from the tailpipe to some Third World country.
When EVs get in a collision, they light up like a roman candle and are very difficult to extinguish. Gasoline burns too, but extinguishing that is super easy, barely an inconvenience.
I’ve since learned that EVs don’t have physical door handles. This means if the battery fails, e.g. in a collision or other electrical fault, you cannot exit the vehicle.
Technology Connections YouTube channel did a video about EV taillights. Long story short, if you use aggressive regenerative braking to slow down and stop, your brake lights will not illuminate. The car behind you is not warned you are slowing down and thus increasing the risk of rear end collision. The brake light only illuminates when you press the brake pedal. The exception is the Chevy Volt, which uses a G-force sensor and will illuminate the brake lights for you.
I will say that EVs are neat when they aren’t producing toxic smoke when they are incinerated by an environmental activist at a “mostly peaceful protest.”
Seriously kids, don’t vandalize other people’s stuff because the person on TV or TikTok told you to. Please seek psychiatric help.
Every Tesla I have had uses the brake lights on regen decel.
My model 3 and Model Y BOTH have physical handles you can use to get out - you just pull up like a regular handle.
Those mineral stats are WAY off - re-posted from Facebook/etc.
ICE vehicles are far more flammable than EVs - they have fires ALL the time - another easily verifiable fact. You can find lots of proof on Ben Sullins’ Youtube channel.
I agree about not vandalizing other people’s stuff just because a certain auto CEO is a dick.
IIRC, you have to drive them 60,000 miles to break even with ICE vehicles’ carbon footprint.
@chienfou@mprachar@sjk3 What’s the environmental footprint to pump, transport, refine, transport, store, and resell the fuel needed for those miles?
Also there are batteries that rely much less on rare earth minerals, but I don’t see it being made available in the US anytime soon – for … reasons. One battery manufacturer considered but pulled their North American investments because for fears of espionage technology transfer to the US.
@chienfou@mprachar@sjk3 Yeah the brake lights on decel was always there at least in my year (2023). The whole thing about being stuck inside was an internet hoax. The manual door handle always was there and works. When we first got the car my wife kept using it (you’re just supposed to press the button to lower window a bit and unlatch).
The car would send notifications of “why are you using the emergency door handle please don’t do that!”
I just remembered. A person in Jacksonville had their home destroyed by an EV. They took their Mercedes in for service and got a Mercedes EV as a loaner. The car was sitting in their garage doing nothing when it spontaneously caught fire and burned the house down. Fortunately the residents were able to escape safely.
@sjk3 That’s one case with one EV. Of course there are others, but there are fires with gas/diesel vehicles too and if you can believe what others have posted here, the latter is more common than the former.
@ItalianScallion@sjk3 think of the number of burned-out hulks of RVs you see by the side of the road. All gas. Some still smoldering. OK maybe not built to the highest standards. Maybe a few Diesel but those tended to be built on better chassis and generally safer. The gas ones (I had one) had the engine cooking away and a few inches from the incredibly hot exhaust manifold was flammable plywood you were basically sitting on.
I don’t have an EV but I’d consider one if I ever have to replace my car. My car is 17 years old and runs great. I hope to keep it the rest of my life and pass it down to my nephew.
I’d really like to have an EV, but I’m a renter and I have to park on the street, so no charging at home for me. There are far too few public chargers, and I even live in a very progressive city. IMHO, the lack of a robust nationwide charging infrastructure, and charging speed to a lesser extent, is going to hold back adoption of EVs. It’s unfortunate because cities are where EVs are especially useful because range isn’t a big deal, but cities are also where there are large numbers of renters that can’t plug in at home and therefore where lots of public chargers are especially needed.
@ItalianScallion We definitely need charging points everywhere people park their cars for extended periods. I’ve seen some good examples of streetside charging options, and I hope those become ubiquitous. We need something to force stingy landlords’ hands as well. Fast charging for road trips, slower charging the other 90% of the time our cars are just sitting there.
@gnafuthemeh@ItalianScallion I feel it’s not so much range anxiety but rather charger anxiety that’s holding adoption back. If someone’s commute is 50 miles a day, it’s not a big deal for a 150 mile range EV if they’re able to charge every night while it’s parked. They’ll be waking up to a “full tank” every morning.
Without such, then it means having to recharge elsewhere every other day – and that will get tedious.
@ItalianScallion@narfcake You read about return-to-office mandates, and it makes me think employers who want their employees to make the drive should provide at-work charging. It helps with two issues: charger availability for wider EV adoption, and giving a reason to drive to an office to do what could be done from home.
Good point, @narfcake. Yeah, I think of the tedious task of looking for a public charger near my house to do overnight charging, then having to walk a good distance home in lousy weather, or worse, finding another EV already using the nearest charger to my place. That problem won’t be solved until there are a gazillion public chargers on the streets or there is a new way of charging, like induction charging imbedded in streets.
@gnafuthemeh@ItalianScallion@narfcake My old Silicon-Valley company added a few free chargers, but I was remote wfh so never got to try them. They became so heavily-used that they needed to enforce max charging time. (Like, come in in the morning, move to another spot before lunch). Sounds like almost everyone had EVs soon.
My medical office has 2 free chargers but they are often in use and not that fast.
One benefit of the Tesla was the charging network but now other cars can access it too. Just drove by one yesterday and was thinking wait, that wasn’t there before!
My car registration in WA state includes $150 to make up for lost gas tax revenue, plus $75 for statewide charging infrastructure.
@gnafuthemeh@ItalianScallion@narfcake@pmarin
I remember having a Hardee’s in International Falls and we had outlets on the outside of the restaurant in order for people to be able to plug in their engine block heaters when the weather was below zero.
As for plugging in your car than walking home. Has was mentioned in the business that made you move your car, once your car is full you’re taking up the space that someone else could use to charge their car.
I had this issue a couple of times while I was in Guadalupe with an EV rental. They had some chargers out in front of restaurant/bar areas and people would plug in their EV then be gone for 4 hours… long after the car had fully charged! What a PITA
@Fuzzalini@narfcake LOL my friend who watched the show also thought the thing about bending metal, was the real point and didn’t realize it was about continuously consuming alcohol. (I.e. on a bender as they used to say)
EDIT what’s on casemates today; I haven’t checked. I heard a box or two showed up today.
I plan on being a late adopter of this tech. I’m waiting for the infrastructure to fill out and normalize. Repair and maintenance to become more common with more experienced techs, and less expective, and resale value to not drop off a cliff. Basically, the tech and infrastructure need to mature before I would be comfortable purchasing an electric vehicle.
@jerry559 You and I will both be waiting for a long time for the infrastructure to fill out, I think. For-profit companies aren’t going to want to build out a charging infrastructure until they’re sure that their investment will pay off, and many people (like us) aren’t willing to buy an EV until the charging infrastructure is there. Who’s is going to be the first one to take the risk? Is government going to need to step in with funding, loans, tax credits, etc. to get the charger-building companies to go for it?
@ItalianScallion@jerry559 Good news! EV sales are up, and there are several companies working on building out charging infrastructure with or without federal grants. GM is doing more than most from what I can see, bringing prices down and equipping their dealer service network while working with charging partners to build out fast charging (see EVgo/Pilot and IONNA).
@gnafuthemeh@ItalianScallion@jerry559 the politics aside, which is hard to do these days, the last Joe Biden budget had a lot of money for EV charging infrastructure, and I believe a sizeable contract to Tesla for building more Superchargers. Part of this would be they would have to be accessible to other brands, many of which will now come using the NACS standard, and others can use the cheap adapter.
I don’t know if Trump and Elon have canceled the contract; that would ironic, don’t you think? A little too ironic, don’t you really just think? It’s like rain…
@gnafuthemeh@ItalianScallion@jerry559
Part of the Tesla vision from about 10 years ago was to set up travel corridors even in remote places to counter the range-anxiety. The first was like West coast, both I-5 and 101 corridors. Then other regions and East-West interstates.
At this point I’m not that worried about the range anymore. Might do a cross-country trip later this year might be a bit challenging but sure there will be charging (the car will tell you) but yeah maybe longer stops. I started seeing some motels with charging. But if you stop at a Supercharger only needs 20-30 minutes and the map will lead you there and pre-set-up the batteries.
Never owned an EV, but I have rented one three times now.
First time was a Polestar in France last Summer for a week. Enjoyed the driving experience, though my wife hated the glass roof as she felt that made the car too hot inside and sun is hard on her skin. For some reason they had no inside cover for the roof on that one. My biggest problem with that one was charging while on the road since there are several different charging “universes” in France and each uses a different app. Had my best luck using the chargers that are on the autoroute since most of them took credit cards. Second EV was in Guadalupe early this year. Great driving experience and was able to plug it into my Airbnb at night (slow charge, but they used 220v locally so it worked fine) so never had much to worry about as far as charging until the last day when I had to return it across the island. Actually wish I had had an EV when I was on St Lucia or Martinique on that trip since both of them are mountainous and driving a standard (ie stick) is a PITA. EVS are ideally situated for mountainous roads with their pickup and torque. My last rental was another Polestar for a one-way trip from Atlanta home after being gone to the carib. It was about a 130 Mile drive and I arrived at my house with about 10% charge left. I figured that would be fine and I could trickle charge it overnight and have plenty of charge to get to Montgomery after 18 hrs for the return the next day. Unfortunately when I popedp the trunk there were no damn cables! I limped to the nearest charger 20 mi away (I live in rural Alabama) arriving with about 3 miles of range left. It was a slow charger and took forever to put enough charge in to get to the fast charger at Sam’s 15 miles away from there. One (small) bonus was the fast charger at Sam’s was messed up, and set to run on guest mode so didn’t charge me for my top off! I would drive an EV if I had assurances of a good charging infrastructure, especially since I would definitely put a charger in at the house.
Nothing against EVs in general, I just travel too much in areas where there aren’t as many charge stations as I’d like. So. hybrids. (for a bit longer anyway).
@Kyeh@narfcake cool! I spend time in Asheville NC and these are the most common (plus ubiquitous old Leafs). Seem to be very nice EVs. Oddly don’t see as many Teslas because for some reason people have to drive a long way to get one (no local dealer; makes no sense; think there was some political finagling going on). My friend got a Tesla model Y and he likes it (except got flipped-off in town), but he had to go a couple of hours to pick it up.
@narfcake@pmarin The model 3 is pretty but yes, I think the Ioniq has it beat. I see a fair number of Rivians around these days. They’re pretty odd looking.
@Kyeh@narfcake I hated that almost everything looked like mini-SUVs, or as I called them, minivans without sliding doors. At least the Model 3 wasn’t that.
We haven’t had many sexy cars in a while. I will admit I had a crush on my old Porsche 911 Targa. So sorry I got rid of it when I moved out of California.
Also that Porsche was the only thing that might be close to even the Model 3 in Chill mode. I can’t imagine Insane or Plaid.
I have a July 2020 built Model Y with over 105k miles on it. I’ve only replaced tires, plus had the FSD computer break and need replacing at 102k miles ($1700 fix, ouch). Battery is at 89% capacity which is above average, avoided $18k in gas purchases, and have solar at home to charge the car with. It’s not perfect for everyone, but it’s working fine for me. If I have a bad day at work, just a few stomps on the go pedal can bring me back to smiling.
@user25119821 Man, the pedal, on gas cars I’ve heard it called the loud pedal, but on this it’s just whoosh. And I just have the basic model so I get Chill and normal, I guess. A contractor was here and had the sport version and he said he had Insane. Another guy in Colorado was an early adopter with too much money and has the Model S plaid model which comes with ludicrous and plaid. (Spaceballs reference; that Elon is a funny guy)
My family has been a 1-car, EV-only household for eight years now. Ours is the Chevy Bolt EV. We love it. Never going back to gas-powered cars.
All the people spouting misinformation and lies about EVs are missing out. I don’t even bother arguing with people who have convinced themselves that EVs are terrible. There’s no point. If they want to keep driving an inferior type of car, that’s their choice.
By the way, not directly related… if you travel in Wyoming and Eastern Colorado, you might notice towns are “few and far between,” this was by necessity. As the railroads went in (long before highways) about 100 miles was what a maintenance crew could cover in a day and when a steam locomotive would need more fuel (coal or wood) and water, and the crew rest for a night. In time cities sprung up and houses, schools, churches. This explains the oddly-regular spacing of towns in that part of the country. Which probably will match charging locations today, though I have not attempted the trip yet.
@pmarin And towns (and local governments) going so far as to rip out existing EV charging stations (to save pennies of electricity on the municipal bill… while creating temporary jobs to tear them apart)
One problem I’ve heard from a friend who’s a Tesla owner in Dallas was the issue of the car not coasting if the motor(s) stop. She had an electrical failure due to the mouse eating through some of her wiring. While cruising down an interstate she had a catastrophic power failure and was fortunate (and clear headed) enough that she could reboot and get enough life out of it to get to the side of the road while she was going 65 mph!
Fu k tesla!
@ragingredd I agree Duck the. tEsla
@ragingredd there are other brands of EVs.
@kittykat9180 Well yes, but still I will pass. Not a tree hugger but, Battery production has a terrible environmental impact. Then there are few options for battery recycling and disposal, Upfront cost, charging you more when registering you car. Cost and convenience of charging if/when you can’t charge where you typically park. Lack of available charging infrastructure for your needs.
Lack of range when any extra aerodynamic load (trailer, roof box, etc) is added.
Significant range penalties at cold temperatures.
Battery range diminishes with age.
I’ll stick with my gas car, though I like the fact the electric cars have instant torque.
@kittykat9180 @ragingredd Hope you are on the upward path for job promotion at Chevron.
@kittykat9180 @pmarin lol The environmental impact of producing an EV often exceeds the total emissions my gas-powered car will generate over its lifetime. The pollution is just shifted out of sight most consumers don’t realize that the factories building EVs are powered by fossil fuels. If electric cars become mandatory, we’ll need to build even more power plants, likely fueled by coal or natural gas, which contradicts the goal of achieving cleaner air.
Hybrid EV. Love it.
I don’t trust that the battery would fair well in our winters. Also I don’t drive much any more due to wfh.
@kjady they seem to do fine in Norway. How cold does it get where you live?
@kittykat9180 In any given year our temperatures can swing from -30 to 110 f. We have several Teslas in our area and they all have issues with charging in the extreme cold. Living in a rural area doesn’t help.
@kittykat9180 @kjady there are a bunch of YouTube reviews from guys in places like Norway. They seem to handle it fine. They do have a lot of charging infrastructure there. On a Tesla you can tell it when you want to use the car so it will pre-heat, even the batteries if it thinks it needs. It will work without that but will tell you you won’t have max power at first. Same with charging, if you want to super-charge it will precondition batteries on the way. I don’t think the older Teslas did this; might be part of your disinformation campaign, dear Chevron employee.
EDIT maybe you can answer why price/bbl of crude oil is back to where it was about 6 years ago and price at pumps is about 2x as much. And those record oil company profits and bonuses. Must be nice.
If an electric vehicle was given to me free, I doubt I’d drive it more than just to the store. Rather have a high end golf cart.
@eq52515 You at Mar-a-Lago?
We have a hybrid. Despite the fact that it’s got twice the chance for malfunction and slightly higher maintenance cost, this is offset by its excellent fuel economy. If EVs continue to improve at the current rate, the plan is to switch to a mid-range example of the breed.
I have a PHEV and I adore her. I wish the battery had a touch longer life but truthfully, I love having both options. I buy fuel so infrequently but when I need to put serious miles on, I don’t have to wait ages to get a full charge. It’s pretty ace and I’ve saved LOADS on petrol.
Elon is a notsee but I really like the idea of other brands of EVs. Just not in the budget
@reidk5307 Proof? (CNN and MSNBC don’t count). Notsees are not known for reducing waste and graft in govt, benefiting the taxpayers.
@reidk5307 @sjk3 what exactly has he saved? His shenanigans cost almost as much as those “savings.” Throw in trump spending 27% of his days at Mar-alago golfing and his upcoming “I love me” parade and we’re down by tens of billions.
@reidk5307 @sjk3 nether is FOX & it’s Parrots
@kittykat9180 @reidk5307 @sjk3 you want to talk about how much Biden didn’t work? he was one permanent vacation.
@catthegreat @reidk5307 @sjk3 Biden sucked too, the dude had dementia.
But I’m confused as to what Biden has anything to do with a conversation about Trump. Can you explain?
We’ve been an electric-only household for over a year now, and we’ve owned at least one EV since 2022. 2014 Spark EV (had for two years and sold it to someone who needed an around town car), 2021 Bolt EV (current), and 2025 Equinox EV (signed the paperwork to lock in April discounts, but it’s still in transit). I will never go back to burning fuel and breathing exhaust every day. The ownership experience has been great, and I highly recommend (non-Tesla) EVs for anyone who can charge at or near home.
EDIT: We put ~23,000 miles on the Bolt in our first year of ownership, including a road trip from Wisconsin to Virginia and back. Ask me anything
.
@gnafuthemeh My wife had a '21 Bolt on a 3-year lease. We generally liked the car, but all the battery drama was a PITA (paid full price for 80% of the utility). We didn’t consider keeping it after the end of the lease (especially since the lease buyout was ~$7K more than the equivalent used models were going for locally). We did take the $1400 bribe from GM to not join the class action suit.
Now she drives a hybrid Toyota SUV and we love it.
Haven’t had an electric vehicle since I was a kid.
@phendrick
Made me laugh
I’ll end up with one eventually, but for now, my hybrid is economical enough. 252k miles in 17 years, original battery.
@ragingredd As long as the bears keep off you tail…
@kjady @ragingredd go double-nickels (55) as you hit the ridge, there’s a Smokey picture-take on the side of the bridge.
I can’t afford any new car, and until the EVs swap to a battery system that’s less susceptible to thermal runaway, I think I’ll remain on the sidelines even for used ones.
@werehatrack maybe the Slate when it’s released.
@werehatrack The upcoming Bolt refresh is supposed to use LFP cells like my old Spark EV. Those don’t catch fire when punctured like some chemistries. The new Bolt is likely to retail for under $30k, so there’s a chance you could get a new one for under $20k with discounts if the tax credit holds (I know, that’s a big “if”). My wife and I just secured an Equinox EV AWD for $12,000 off retail (financed ~$30,000 with $0 down), and I’m sure the upcoming Bolt will have similar discounts available.
And statistically, battery fires are much less common than fires in combustion vehicles.
One thing to consider with this or any plugged in electric vehicle, charging equipment for home,
Spend the $50 extra to have your plug upgraded to handle large loads of electricity for extended periods of time. Even your home oven or home dryer outlets are not typically designed to be turned on and transmit power all night long once or even multiple times a week.
Please don’t let your plug melt or catch fire in your home. It’s a very simple swap out that many electricians will do for a very low fee.
It looks like there are two things that degrade batteries, faster overtime. One is frequent changes in state of charge and battery staying very high or very low for extended periods of time such as leaving it fall or leaving it empty. Vehicles that sit around 50% state of charge seem to show almost no where over time. So even though some vehicles can travel very long distances, the more you keep them in the middle of the battery pack, the more time you will have with them able to keep as much range available to you. I just passed 125,000 miles on mine and the degradation was pretty minimal. I hope it went to a very good second home. It will just keep it charged to around 50% and do mostly short trips around the state.
Some batteries need to be charged to 100% approximately once a week in order for the battery management software to recalibrate the battery. It sounds like this should be done and completed as close to departure time as possible on a day where you will drive more to get the battery pack away from that 100% and then just inched down for the rest of the week as low as you need to go. This is only the case for nickel metal hydride batteries. If your manufacturer does not tell you, what kind of batteries are in the vehicle, you can tell because the software will remind you to charge to 100% once a week. Other vehicles will suggest anywhere between 70 and 90% maximum state of charge for normal days and boosting to 100% as needed.
I love road trips in my electric vehicle because I can pop into a charger along the way plug-in and run in to pee and either get another drink from my car or the closest convenience store. Many times it charges up to where I need it to be before I’ve even finished the bathroom.
Definitely don’t go out and just purchase any old electric vehicle before doing plenty of research to make sure it will meet your needs and you will be able to enjoy the charging schedule. It’s as easy as plugging in a phone. You just need to understand a few things about how and when to charge.
@5665150 this is interesting. Since I WFH and drive about 1x per week to the grocery store, I probably shouldn’t get an EV.
@5665150 @kittykat9180 Sure, for that little usage you probably shouldn’t own a car at all. It would be a lot cheaper to take a local taxi service or ride a cargo e-bike to the grocery store.
@5665150 @gnafuthemeh I love my car. I’ve had it since 2008.
Drove a Prius for 10 years. I loved it. Hardly ever had to stop for gas. And when I did it was only about 8 gallons to fill it. I easily got 500 miles to the tank. Then Tesla said they were going to have an affordable EV. We put down a deposit before even seeing it. Waited and made fake car payments to our savings account. By the time we could order we were able to write a check for it. Got the extended range Model 3 in red. June 2018. I like to think of it as I got mine before crazy came into it. I drive it everyday. I love it. I hope no one hits it because I can’t afford to replace it. I love watching Netflix in the car when I have to wait for people. It’s a great car that is catching the brunt of crazy right now. We already have a home charger installed. I charge it to 72% and when it gets down to 45% or so I plug it in to charge back up to 72%. Before long trips I charge to 100%. Orlando to Jacksonville and back if you want to get home with very little left. We like to stop at Buc-ee’s and top up. And that’s way more than anybody wanted to know about my EV.
Proud owner of a Rivian! Absolutely the best vehicle I’ve ever owned. nay, driven! Faster than many supercars, all while hauling 7 people. Not quite Quiet as a whisper, but definitely improving over time. Good range too.
@gsrivast My nephew has one. Seems happy. Have not been in it. At the time basic Tesla was available and about 1/2 the cost which made it an easy decision. Maybe a Rivian next time, if stock market recovers.
Fun fact about EVs, IIRC, you have to drive them 60,000 miles to break even with ICE vehicles’ carbon footprint. Because EVs require more copper, nickel, lithium, and other rare earth minerals, and these minerals come from Third World countries with poor environmental regulations, EVs just shift the pollution from the tailpipe to some Third World country.
When EVs get in a collision, they light up like a roman candle and are very difficult to extinguish. Gasoline burns too, but extinguishing that is super easy, barely an inconvenience.
I’ve since learned that EVs don’t have physical door handles. This means if the battery fails, e.g. in a collision or other electrical fault, you cannot exit the vehicle.
Technology Connections YouTube channel did a video about EV taillights. Long story short, if you use aggressive regenerative braking to slow down and stop, your brake lights will not illuminate. The car behind you is not warned you are slowing down and thus increasing the risk of rear end collision. The brake light only illuminates when you press the brake pedal. The exception is the Chevy Volt, which uses a G-force sensor and will illuminate the brake lights for you.
I will say that EVs are neat when they aren’t producing toxic smoke when they are incinerated by an environmental activist at a “mostly peaceful protest.”
Seriously kids, don’t vandalize other people’s stuff because the person on TV or TikTok told you to. Please seek psychiatric help.
@sjk3
…FIFY
@chienfou @sjk3 LOTS of incorrect statements here…
Every Tesla I have had uses the brake lights on regen decel.
My model 3 and Model Y BOTH have physical handles you can use to get out - you just pull up like a regular handle.
Those mineral stats are WAY off - re-posted from Facebook/etc.
ICE vehicles are far more flammable than EVs - they have fires ALL the time - another easily verifiable fact. You can find lots of proof on Ben Sullins’ Youtube channel.
I agree about not vandalizing other people’s stuff just because a certain auto CEO is a dick.
@chienfou @mprachar @sjk3 What’s the environmental footprint to pump, transport, refine, transport, store, and resell the fuel needed for those miles?
Also there are batteries that rely much less on rare earth minerals, but I don’t see it being made available in the US anytime soon – for … reasons. One battery manufacturer considered but pulled their North American investments because for fears of
espionagetechnology transfer to the US.@chienfou @mprachar @sjk3 Yeah the brake lights on decel was always there at least in my year (2023). The whole thing about being stuck inside was an internet hoax. The manual door handle always was there and works. When we first got the car my wife kept using it (you’re just supposed to press the button to lower window a bit and unlatch).
The car would send notifications of “why are you using the emergency door handle please don’t do that!”
I just remembered. A person in Jacksonville had their home destroyed by an EV. They took their Mercedes in for service and got a Mercedes EV as a loaner. The car was sitting in their garage doing nothing when it spontaneously caught fire and burned the house down. Fortunately the residents were able to escape safely.
@sjk3 That’s one case with one EV. Of course there are others, but there are fires with gas/diesel vehicles too and if you can believe what others have posted here, the latter is more common than the former.
@ItalianScallion @sjk3 think of the number of burned-out hulks of RVs you see by the side of the road. All gas. Some still smoldering. OK maybe not built to the highest standards. Maybe a few Diesel but those tended to be built on better chassis and generally safer. The gas ones (I had one) had the engine cooking away and a few inches from the incredibly hot exhaust manifold was flammable plywood you were basically sitting on.
Would love to drive one… Or just ride in one…
I am a buyer when there is a hybrid Suburban sized one.
@rustyh3 I have a hybrid electric Hyundai Tuscon - not quite Suburban sized but we love it.
I don’t have an EV but I’d consider one if I ever have to replace my car. My car is 17 years old and runs great. I hope to keep it the rest of my life and pass it down to my nephew.
I’d really like to have an EV, but I’m a renter and I have to park on the street, so no charging at home for me. There are far too few public chargers, and I even live in a very progressive city. IMHO, the lack of a robust nationwide charging infrastructure, and charging speed to a lesser extent, is going to hold back adoption of EVs. It’s unfortunate because cities are where EVs are especially useful because range isn’t a big deal, but cities are also where there are large numbers of renters that can’t plug in at home and therefore where lots of public chargers are especially needed.
@ItalianScallion We definitely need charging points everywhere people park their cars for extended periods. I’ve seen some good examples of streetside charging options, and I hope those become ubiquitous. We need something to force stingy landlords’ hands as well. Fast charging for road trips, slower charging the other 90% of the time our cars are just sitting there.
@gnafuthemeh @ItalianScallion I feel it’s not so much range anxiety but rather charger anxiety that’s holding adoption back. If someone’s commute is 50 miles a day, it’s not a big deal for a 150 mile range EV if they’re able to charge every night while it’s parked. They’ll be waking up to a “full tank” every morning.
Without such, then it means having to recharge elsewhere every other day – and that will get tedious.
@ItalianScallion @narfcake You read about return-to-office mandates, and it makes me think employers who want their employees to make the drive should provide at-work charging. It helps with two issues: charger availability for wider EV adoption, and giving a reason to drive to an office to do what could be done from home.
@gnafuthemeh
Good point, @narfcake. Yeah, I think of the tedious task of looking for a public charger near my house to do overnight charging, then having to walk a good distance home in lousy weather, or worse, finding another EV already using the nearest charger to my place. That problem won’t be solved until there are a gazillion public chargers on the streets or there is a new way of charging, like induction charging imbedded in streets.
@gnafuthemeh @ItalianScallion @narfcake My old Silicon-Valley company added a few free chargers, but I was remote wfh so never got to try them. They became so heavily-used that they needed to enforce max charging time. (Like, come in in the morning, move to another spot before lunch). Sounds like almost everyone had EVs soon.
My medical office has 2 free chargers but they are often in use and not that fast.
One benefit of the Tesla was the charging network but now other cars can access it too. Just drove by one yesterday and was thinking wait, that wasn’t there before!
My car registration in WA state includes $150 to make up for lost gas tax revenue, plus $75 for statewide charging infrastructure.
@gnafuthemeh @ItalianScallion @narfcake @pmarin
I remember having a Hardee’s in International Falls and we had outlets on the outside of the restaurant in order for people to be able to plug in their engine block heaters when the weather was below zero.
As for plugging in your car than walking home. Has was mentioned in the business that made you move your car, once your car is full you’re taking up the space that someone else could use to charge their car.
I had this issue a couple of times while I was in Guadalupe with an EV rental. They had some chargers out in front of restaurant/bar areas and people would plug in their EV then be gone for 4 hours… long after the car had fully charged! What a PITA
I’m really interested in the truck they just announced. I love the idea of no paint. And the ability to service my own vehicle.
@Fuzzalini The Autopian delved a bit deeper into the chassis and design:
https://www.theautopian.com/heres-the-engineering-behind-jeff-bezos-20k-slate-ev/
@narfcake thank you! That was very informative. I’m already figuring out ways to dress it up like Bender from Futurama. Foghat Gray.
@Fuzzalini @narfcake LOL my friend who watched the show also thought the thing about bending metal, was the real point and didn’t realize it was about continuously consuming alcohol. (I.e. on a bender as they used to say)
EDIT what’s on casemates today; I haven’t checked. I heard a box or two showed up today.
I plan on being a late adopter of this tech. I’m waiting for the infrastructure to fill out and normalize. Repair and maintenance to become more common with more experienced techs, and less expective, and resale value to not drop off a cliff. Basically, the tech and infrastructure need to mature before I would be comfortable purchasing an electric vehicle.
@jerry559 You and I will both be waiting for a long time for the infrastructure to fill out, I think. For-profit companies aren’t going to want to build out a charging infrastructure until they’re sure that their investment will pay off, and many people (like us) aren’t willing to buy an EV until the charging infrastructure is there. Who’s is going to be the first one to take the risk? Is government going to need to step in with funding, loans, tax credits, etc. to get the charger-building companies to go for it?
@ItalianScallion @jerry559 Good news! EV sales are up, and there are several companies working on building out charging infrastructure with or without federal grants. GM is doing more than most from what I can see, bringing prices down and equipping their dealer service network while working with charging partners to build out fast charging (see EVgo/Pilot and IONNA).
@jerry559 That’s good to hear, @gnafuthemeh. The build-out can’t happen fast enough!
@gnafuthemeh @ItalianScallion @jerry559 the politics aside, which is hard to do these days, the last Joe Biden budget had a lot of money for EV charging infrastructure, and I believe a sizeable contract to Tesla for building more Superchargers. Part of this would be they would have to be accessible to other brands, many of which will now come using the NACS standard, and others can use the cheap adapter.
I don’t know if Trump and Elon have canceled the contract; that would ironic, don’t you think? A little too ironic, don’t you really just think? It’s like rain…
@gnafuthemeh @ItalianScallion @jerry559
Part of the Tesla vision from about 10 years ago was to set up travel corridors even in remote places to counter the range-anxiety. The first was like West coast, both I-5 and 101 corridors. Then other regions and East-West interstates.
At this point I’m not that worried about the range anymore. Might do a cross-country trip later this year might be a bit challenging but sure there will be charging (the car will tell you) but yeah maybe longer stops. I started seeing some motels with charging. But if you stop at a Supercharger only needs 20-30 minutes and the map will lead you there and pre-set-up the batteries.
Never owned an EV, but I have rented one three times now.
First time was a Polestar in France last Summer for a week. Enjoyed the driving experience, though my wife hated the glass roof as she felt that made the car too hot inside and sun is hard on her skin. For some reason they had no inside cover for the roof on that one. My biggest problem with that one was charging while on the road since there are several different charging “universes” in France and each uses a different app. Had my best luck using the chargers that are on the autoroute since most of them took credit cards. Second EV was in Guadalupe early this year. Great driving experience and was able to plug it into my Airbnb at night (slow charge, but they used 220v locally so it worked fine) so never had much to worry about as far as charging until the last day when I had to return it across the island. Actually wish I had had an EV when I was on St Lucia or Martinique on that trip since both of them are mountainous and driving a standard (ie stick) is a PITA. EVS are ideally situated for mountainous roads with their pickup and torque. My last rental was another Polestar for a one-way trip from Atlanta home after being gone to the carib. It was about a 130 Mile drive and I arrived at my house with about 10% charge left. I figured that would be fine and I could trickle charge it overnight and have plenty of charge to get to Montgomery after 18 hrs for the return the next day. Unfortunately when I popedp the trunk there were no damn cables! I limped to the nearest charger 20 mi away (I live in rural Alabama) arriving with about 3 miles of range left. It was a slow charger and took forever to put enough charge in to get to the fast charger at Sam’s 15 miles away from there. One (small) bonus was the fast charger at Sam’s was messed up, and set to run on guest mode so didn’t charge me for my top off! I would drive an EV if I had assurances of a good charging infrastructure, especially since I would definitely put a charger in at the house.
Nothing against EVs in general, I just travel too much in areas where there aren’t as many charge stations as I’d like. So. hybrids. (for a bit longer anyway).
Strongly condemn any vandalism, but you could sell these for $1 and I wouldn’t buy a Tesla product.
@laurasword I don’t see any Tesla products mentioned in this poll, and the unit for sale today is not from Tesla.
My bad. I misread “designed for cars made by Tesla”
I saw one of these in a parking lot nearby and was impressed - it’s an extremely beautiful car! Hyundai Ioniq:
That second photo is the 5 but I think what I saw was the 6.
@Kyeh Two of the best EVs on the market right now!
@Kyeh Correct – top one is the Ionic 6, bottom is the Ionic 5.
The lead designer for the 6 hailed from Bentley.
@narfcake Oh, wow. If I could afford one, I’d get one.
@Kyeh @narfcake cool! I spend time in Asheville NC and these are the most common (plus ubiquitous old Leafs). Seem to be very nice EVs. Oddly don’t see as many Teslas because for some reason people have to drive a long way to get one (no local dealer; makes no sense; think there was some political finagling going on). My friend got a Tesla model Y and he likes it (except got flipped-off in town), but he had to go a couple of hours to pick it up.
@Kyeh @narfcake Cool about the Bentley designer. I have a Model 3 which I thought was nice and hate to say it but the Ioniq 6 is sexier.
@narfcake @pmarin The model 3 is pretty but yes, I think the Ioniq has it beat. I see a fair number of Rivians around these days. They’re pretty odd looking.
@Kyeh @narfcake I hated that almost everything looked like mini-SUVs, or as I called them, minivans without sliding doors. At least the Model 3 wasn’t that.
We haven’t had many sexy cars in a while. I will admit I had a crush on my old Porsche 911 Targa. So sorry I got rid of it when I moved out of California.
Also that Porsche was the only thing that might be close to even the Model 3 in Chill mode. I can’t imagine Insane or Plaid.
I have a July 2020 built Model Y with over 105k miles on it. I’ve only replaced tires, plus had the FSD computer break and need replacing at 102k miles ($1700 fix, ouch). Battery is at 89% capacity which is above average, avoided $18k in gas purchases, and have solar at home to charge the car with. It’s not perfect for everyone, but it’s working fine for me. If I have a bad day at work, just a few stomps on the go pedal can bring me back to smiling.
@user25119821 Man, the pedal, on gas cars I’ve heard it called the loud pedal, but on this it’s just whoosh. And I just have the basic model so I get Chill and normal, I guess. A contractor was here and had the sport version and he said he had Insane. Another guy in Colorado was an early adopter with too much money and has the Model S plaid model which comes with ludicrous and plaid. (Spaceballs reference; that Elon is a funny guy)
My family has been a 1-car, EV-only household for eight years now. Ours is the Chevy Bolt EV. We love it. Never going back to gas-powered cars.
All the people spouting misinformation and lies about EVs are missing out. I don’t even bother arguing with people who have convinced themselves that EVs are terrible. There’s no point. If they want to keep driving an inferior type of car, that’s their choice.
By the way, not directly related… if you travel in Wyoming and Eastern Colorado, you might notice towns are “few and far between,” this was by necessity. As the railroads went in (long before highways) about 100 miles was what a maintenance crew could cover in a day and when a steam locomotive would need more fuel (coal or wood) and water, and the crew rest for a night. In time cities sprung up and houses, schools, churches. This explains the oddly-regular spacing of towns in that part of the country. Which probably will match charging locations today, though I have not attempted the trip yet.
@pmarin And towns (and local governments) going so far as to rip out existing EV charging stations (to save pennies of electricity on the municipal bill… while creating temporary jobs to tear them apart)
One problem I’ve heard from a friend who’s a Tesla owner in Dallas was the issue of the car not coasting if the motor(s) stop. She had an electrical failure due to the mouse eating through some of her wiring. While cruising down an interstate she had a catastrophic power failure and was fortunate (and clear headed) enough that she could reboot and get enough life out of it to get to the side of the road while she was going 65 mph!
@chienfou That’s why if I bought an EV, I would never select the “mouse” option.
@macromeh
Interesting poll results. Zero or one in the have one but hate it.
Definitely not a good fit for everyone but I think that is true for any vehicle.