The Real Costs of Electric Car Ownership - CNET

[Leo]

MCgrease08 beat me to it but yeah let's take a look at California and at the current EV adoption rate they're already struggling to recharge them. How much worse does that problem become when adoption rates reach 50% or 75% or even just fleets not even personal vehicles? If they can't keep the lights on now and still charge electric vehicles, there's no hope for the future with the current electric grid. And at the same time, those geniuses are shutting down power plants not revving them up which leaves them begging neighboring states for power. Idiots!

I worked for the Westinghouse division that did instrumentation in nuclear power plants. While locally we were finishing the Byron power plant, Westinghouse was also building two huge nuclear power plants in California. They had the capacity to relieve any shortages on the west coast for multiple decades. Of course the greenies demanded the construction stopped after hundreds of millions were spent. Now they have shortages of electricity.

The greenies also want coal plants shut down, even after millions are spent on costly electrostatic precipitator stack scrubbers. They have no education in physics and think that a couple photovoltic panels is all that is needed. Of course now that eagles are getting wacked by the windmills and other weather phenomena has been reported, they will soon hate them also.

The real tragedy is we have masses of population (who vote) that lack any ability to logically learn, and discern the issues and test the application of known physics for solutions. Someone programmed at least two generations to trigger only emotionally and refuse to consider any factual evidence. Physical reality is just not something they will consider.

 

[IndyIN]

I actually have an EV, a Ford Mach-E extended range premium. If you have any real-world questions, ask away.

I didn't buy it to save the planet (sorry). I purchased it because I thought the tech was neat, and the performance was really good. It is 100% a commuter vehicle for me, and it does that really well.

I plug in at home and rarely use DC (fast) charging. I get 315 miles of range consistently. It costs me about $1.00 for electricity for 31 miles of real range, driving like I normally would. No hypermiling or taking it easy. Taking off like a rocket when I need to merge and going with traffic at 70 mph on my commute.

Something interesting to note is that they have more range in an urban setting than on the highway. Regenerative braking does work, and if the motors are not turning (stopped), it uses very little energy. Heat in an EV can use a lot of energy, though.

I want to have a choice too, so I appreciate what is being said.

 

[Leo]

I cannot believe the government has not already instituted a way to charge you $1 of road tax for every 31 miles similar to what a petro car would be paying. . It sounds like you really enjoy it. Over 300 ft. lb torque is pretty useful in everyday driving.

Like you said. you bought it because you wanted it and it is working for that purpose. That is cool.

I'll bet pushing against wind resistance is a big factor in highway range also.

 

[IndyIN]

I'm sure they will tax EVs differently at some point. With tax at $.20/gal in Texas, it is still a good deal for me.

 

[Leo]

I'm sure they will tax EVs differently at some point. With tax at $.20/gal in Texas, it is still a good deal for me.

Indiana is about $.75 per gallon excise plus now about 30 cents sales tax. I loved living in Texas.

 

[actaeon277]

They will eventually add to an electricity tax.

 

[indykid]

I actually have an EV, a Ford Mach-E extended range premium. If you have any real-world questions, ask away.

I didn't buy it to save the planet (sorry). I purchased it because I thought the tech was neat, and the performance was really good. It is 100% a commuter vehicle for me, and it does that really well.

I plug in at home and rarely use DC (fast) charging. I get 315 miles of range consistently. It costs me about $1.00 for electricity for 31 miles of real range, driving like I normally would. No hypermiling or taking it easy. Taking off like a rocket when I need to merge and going with traffic at 70 mph on my commute.

Something interesting to note is that they have more range in an urban setting than on the highway. Regenerative braking does work, and if the motors are not turning (stopped), it uses very little energy. Heat in an EV can use a lot of energy, though.

I want to have a choice too, so I appreciate what is being said.

This is the way it should be, you have it because you want it, not because it was forced on you!

 

[Percolater]

Surprised the article didn’t include cost of replacement after spontaneous combustion; as he lazily references the other false narratives debunked 10 years ago. At least experience an EV before digging thru the internet for neg rep.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

I actually have an EV, a Ford Mach-E extended range premium. If you have any real-world questions, ask away.

I didn't buy it to save the planet (sorry). I purchased it because I thought the tech was neat, and the performance was really good. It is 100% a commuter vehicle for me, and it does that really well.

I plug in at home and rarely use DC (fast) charging. I get 315 miles of range consistently. It costs me about $1.00 for electricity for 31 miles of real range, driving like I normally would. No hypermiling or taking it easy. Taking off like a rocket when I need to merge and going with traffic at 70 mph on my commute.

Something interesting to note is that they have more range in an urban setting than on the highway. Regenerative braking does work, and if the motors are not turning (stopped), it uses very little energy. Heat in an EV can use a lot of energy, though.

I want to have a choice too, so I appreciate what is being said.

If you use all or most of your range up, how long does it take to get an 80% charge? 100% charge? What is the advertised range for your car?

 

[wtburnette]

Surprised the article didn’t include cost of replacement after spontaneous combustion; as he lazily references the other false narratives debunked 10 years ago. At least experience an EV before digging thru the internet for neg rep.

No thanks. You experience one if you want to, I'll continue on with my gas guzzler...

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Surprised the article didn’t include cost of replacement after spontaneous combustion; as he lazily references the other false narratives debunked 10 years ago. At least experience an EV before digging thru the internet for neg rep.

I've experienced a lot of them. I used to play golf a lot.

 

[04FXSTS]

I worked in a foundry in Illinois for a few years in 1990"s that had electric ovens. They were big and conveyors all over the plant so it used a butt load of electricity. Every now and then the plant would shut down all the foundry operations, the offices would still run. They had a deal with the power company that they would do this if power supply was getting too low in comparison to demand. This would happen in the summer when everybody was running air conditioners full blast. Turned out by agreeing to this they got a lower rate on electric.
I also worked at a Hyster plant in Danville Illinois in the 1970"s and 80"s and around 1980 they brought in a new to us operation. They were forging the lifting forks and that also used a lot of electricity. That operation only ran on third shift because they got a better rate that way. Jim.

 

[Super Bee]

I did not want to start a new thread, thought I would drop it here.

VW is bringing back a EV Scout. If they look like a 1978 Scout SSII I am on board. The Scouts and older woodgrain Wagoneers are my favorite SUV's.

Volkswagen is resurrecting Scout as an electric American truck

Volkswagen is planning to relaunch the Scout brand with a lineup of electric SUVs and pickups built in the United States.

www.foxnews.com

 

[Ingomike]

I did not want to start a new thread, thought I would drop it here.

VW is bringing back a EV Scout. If they look like a 1978 Scout SSII I am on board. The Scouts and older woodgrain Wagoneers are my favorite SUV's.

Volkswagen is resurrecting Scout as an electric American truck

Volkswagen is planning to relaunch the Scout brand with a lineup of electric SUVs and pickups built in the United States.

www.foxnews.com

How can a German car company “resurrect” a utility vehicle from an American tractor company? This is sacrilegious…. LOL

 

[04FXSTS]

I did not want to start a new thread, thought I would drop it here.

VW is bringing back a EV Scout. If they look like a 1978 Scout SSII I am on board. The Scouts and older woodgrain Wagoneers are my favorite SUV's.

Volkswagen is resurrecting Scout as an electric American truck

Volkswagen is planning to relaunch the Scout brand with a lineup of electric SUVs and pickups built in the United States.

www.foxnews.com

A Scout was my favorite also. Had 1966 Scout, 1977 Scout, 1976 Scout Traveler and a 4X2 1975 Travelall. Seemed like they could only be hurt by rust. Jim.

 

[Super Bee]

A Scout was my favorite also. Had 1966 Scout, 1977 Scout, 1976 Scout Traveler and a 4X2 1975 Travelall. Seemed like they could only be hurt by rust. Jim.

My father-in-law worked for IH for 40 years here in town. Even throughout the 90's the driveway was full of Scouts and Travelalls.

The wifes first car was a 1972 Travelall, red with woodgrain. Not really a 16 year old girls car.

 

[IndyIN]

If you use all or most of your range up, how long does it take to get an 80% charge? 100% charge? What is the advertised range for your car?

My advertised range is 302, I believe. I'm exceeding that most of the time, but cold weather does hurt range.

Ford (and the others) use a calculation to determine the estimated range. It isn't that dissimilar to a gas vehicle, and sometimes they are inaccurate. I'm not a Tesla hater... I have friends on their second Model S, but Tesla seems to be very optimistic with their estimated range vs. real life. If I drive it long distances, the built-in Nav will not let me run out of charge. It will route me to a charger before that happens. Maybe not the path I want to take, though.

At a DC fast charger (think Tesla Supercharger), I can charge to 80% in about 35-40 minutes. 80%-100%, and the charge curve changes, and it slows down. Ford (other probably, too) built a buffer into the battery so it doesn't over/under charge for battery life, by the way. I can't see me taking it from Texas back to Indiana.

 

[IndyIN]

For you performance guys... even though you don't want one, go test drive a Mach-E or Tesla sometime. You'll like the torque and acceleration.

 

[bwframe]

 

[thompal]

When I step on the gas though I really want to feel the torque and hear the thunder. A whirring noise just would not be the same. View attachment 199797

Can you imagine what it will be like when they start using electric cars at the 500 after they get batteries that will last that long? Sit and watch a bunch of silent cars go by? I don't see that going over very well.