Quote: @Bezerker88 said:

@JimmyinSD said:

@Vikes45 said:
Somewhere I read a Toyota Prius and Nissan Leaf have a bigger carbon footprint than a Chevy Suburban.  This seems like politics to me.  I hope they get the grifters and political animals out of the equation and let real scientists make a determination if this is the way to go.

But not our country, not our concern.  I'm sure Ford and Chevy will sell them as many battery cars as they want.

It has to do with the battery technology and disposal.  The time will come for the ecars,  they just need time like gas and diesel have had to evolve.

1870 - the first gas powered internal combustion engine was built.  1886 - Henry Ford builds his first automobile.  1913 - Ford ups his production from 7.5 cars per hour to 146 per hour.  Starting the auto revolution. 

That's just 16 years from power source to actual usage.  And 43 years before market takeover. 


Electric cars have been around since the beginning of the auto industry.  1890 a guy in Des Moines is credited for "first electric car in the US" when he basically used batteries to power a wagon.  14mph top speed.  By 1900 around a third of all autos on the road were electric. 

My point?  I think electric cars have had plenty of time to evolve and batteries are extremely limited to what they can do.  And while yes there has been advancements... it is definitely A LOT slower process.  In the meantime...  People will need to change their expectations on what they use their vehicles for.  Cold temps?  Major weather issues, Hurricanes, tornadoes and flood can all knock out power for days or sometimes even weeks.  Blackouts that just "happen"... normally they don't last that long but with more and more attacks coming our power grid is extremely vulnerable.  Do they really want to be out of vehicle during those times?   

I'm not against electric vehicles, but they are a long ways away from being an answer for people not in "cities".  I get that people who have never seen wide open spaces think anyone can live with a 40 mile travel range but it's just not the case.  It's going to take years for electric trucks to deliver the power and endurance needed to replace a gas truck.  I drive 500 miles every Monday on my in state route, and over 1,000 miles on out of state routes.  Not to mention this electric engine would have to power the Thermo King unit to keep the cargo chilled.   A hybrid will have to be used and I'm sure I'll never see a true electric truck that can cover that distance in my lifetime in the time I currently do.  It takes five minutes to fill the tank,... I haven't seen a true electric car that doesn't taking hours to charge.

True electric vehicle take over cannot happen if current standards are used.  Time, weather, weight are just too much to overcome with current and in the pipeline tech.  It will take a major break thru or like I said, a change in expectations, for it to happen here in the good ol' USA. 

            

Quote: @purplefaithful said:
EV will continue to gain most of it's traction in urban/suburban areas...I agree Zerk, its going to take some leaps in tech for it to become usable in long-distance, rural and long distance/freight types of applications. 

My wife who works out of the house? A Chevy Bolt or BMW i3 hybrid is high on the next car radar. CPO'ed i3 hybrid can now be had for  $19.9k.  

That said, Tesla is closer to unveiling their first freight-liner (er heavy-duty truck):

https://electrek.co/2017/05/25/tesla-semi-electric-truck/