Experience with Electric Vehicles?

[PanthersATL]

I still think it's too early to go all-in on EVs *if* you're one of those people who like to keep cars for as long as possible. There's not enough data supporting how repair costs/replacement costs beyond maintenance are for an EV after 10+ years compared to hybrids like the Prius that have longer track records. Is an EV just another disposable commodity, or can it be a long-term, uh, investment in transportation?

Tesla falls in the middle of the pack on expected reliability (per Consumer Reports). Not enough data on Rivian to suggest if their even lower reliability level is normal or related to lack of information over an extended period of time

JD Power has Tesla ranked super low in reliability (albeit with an asterisk)

 

[PanthersATL]

If fuel economy is what's driving (heh) your EV interest, take a look here for MPG comparisons

https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/findacar.shtml 

 

[Paa Langfart]

On 8/21/2024 at 12:48 PM, Cullenator said:

and before you ask, no I dont charge my phone or laptop overnight

 

Its definitely a me thing

I own several LI type tools in addition to the usual electornics- I don't charge them overnight either - nor leave Li electronics plugged in when I leave the house - 

[Lame Duck]

I like my cars running on Dino fuel.  Sorry folks.  
 

They need to find better alternative to lithium for EVs to be successful.

Edited August 22 by Lame Duck

[LinvilleGorge]

On 8/22/2024 at 6:45 PM, Lame Duck said:

I like my cars running on Dino fuel.  Sorry folks.  
 

They need to find better alternative to lithium for EVs to be successful.

They're gonna have to go nuclear for EVs to have a chance from a power grid perspective. Put an EV or two in every household and the extra demand on the power grid is insane. We don't have the infrastructure to support it. That's the elephant in the room that no one seems to be talking about whole lobbying for EV adoption legislation.

[d-dave]

21 hours ago, LinvilleGorge said:

They're gonna have to go nuclear for EVs to have a chance from a power grid perspective. Put an EV or two in every household and the extra demand on the power grid is insane. We don't have the infrastructure to support it. That's the elephant in the room that no one seems to be talking about whole lobbying for EV adoption legislation.

I'm all for more nuclear reactors.  Solar isn't efficient enough.  Wind is great where you can get it, but it's far from perfect.  Coal is bad and creates a TON of pollution from the ash and smoke.  

Nuclear is much cleaner and more effective right now.  The problem is the waste, but we don't have a high enough quality option right now.  

C'mon fusion!!!

That being said, if I were a lottery winner, I'd definitely go for a solar system with battery backups, and possibly an EV.

[LinvilleGorge]

18 minutes ago, d-dave said:

I'm all for more nuclear reactors.  Solar isn't efficient enough.  Wind is great where you can get it, but it's far from perfect.  Coal is bad and creates a TON of pollution from the ash and smoke.  

Nuclear is much cleaner and more effective right now.  The problem is the waste, but we don't have a high enough quality option right now.  

C'mon fusion!!!

That being said, if I were a lottery winner, I'd definitely go for a solar system with battery backups, and possibly an EV.

I'd love to go pretty much off grid I just can't make the math make sense. Solar is gonna be a loser for years for me and I even looked into small hydroelectric setups but my stream flow just isn't enough to make it make sense.

But yeah, if I won the lottery I'd do both tomorrow.

[OHYO]

1 hour ago, LinvilleGorge said:

I'd love to go pretty much off grid I just can't make the math make sense. Solar is gonna be a loser for years for me and I even looked into small hydroelectric setups but my stream flow just isn't enough to make it make sense.

But yeah, if I won the lottery I'd do both tomorrow.

One of my go to channels on YouTube is this guy from New Zealand? I’ve actually snagged one of the washing machines he uses to make this.

You can find part 2 yourself. Very easy to do this if you’re handy.

Edited August 24 by OHYO

[cookinwithgas]

I’ve had friends go on four hours about how great their EVs are, how fast etc. but then they started talking about the money and time and hassle Tesla demands from them. Seems like in theory, and in their planning, they had it all figured out, but when the rubber hit the road, it was a lot more of a challenge than they expected. As a techie, I would be all into this. As a person who travels,it’s just not there yet. 

[d-dave]

18 minutes ago, cookinwithgas said:

I’ve had friends go on four hours about how great their EVs are, how fast etc. but then they started talking about the money and time and hassle Tesla demands from them. Seems like in theory, and in their planning, they had it all figured out, but when the rubber hit the road, it was a lot more of a challenge than they expected. As a techie, I would be all into this. As a person who travels,it’s just not there yet. 

Tesla's do have their fanbois for sure.  A fair amount of Musk brigade in that group.

When I look at reasonably reputable places where they do long term reviews, EVs still come out ahead in terms of month to month costs.  They have the benefit of already having the "home" charging set up, which for individuals is extra cash.  Now deprecation is another thing....

I think for EVs to really take off in America, they need to prove their value to people.

1. Cost of vehicles will have to come down.  That's the problem with Detroit and other US EV retailers, they are looking at the $40k+ segment instead of the budget price ranges where a lot of people have to buy.

2. How long can they last?  Despite the very complicated nature of cars, if you do the basic maintenance, many will easily run for 100k+.  Not all will, but by in large, a majority of cars on the road will last and last.  EVs are very new.  It's hard to get a handle how they will hold up at 50k+ miles.  I'm sure mechanically they'll be fine, but what about the battery?  That's where a lot of people are worried since they are so hard/expensive to change out.

3. Real range anxiety.  That's going to be based on the basic infrastructure.  Getting more level 3 DC chargers is really important to easing this.  Also, setting up cars to handle more than 200kw of charging (like high speed usb charging).  I've read stories about cars taking 10-12 minutes to go from 10-80% while others take 45 minutes for that same charge.  Getting better battery tech (hearing a lot of things about solid state batteries) is coming down the pipeline, but again: how will it age.

I think government needs to showcase this in their fleet vehicle purchases.  That will be a great first step because it will require cheaper vehicles, force spending on EV infrastructure, and give more lay people a chance to drive one that aren't at all thinking EV in the future.  Who will make the first fleet EV?  China??? (I'm interested to see how BYD does in Mexico).

[jayboogieman]

4 hours ago, d-dave said:

That's the problem with Detroit and other US EV retailers, they are looking at the $40k+ segment instead of the budget price ranges where a lot of people have to buy.

What budget segment? The average used ICE car price is over 27000 while the average new price is over 47000. EVs are even higher. The car companies are pricing themselves out of business.

[cookinwithgas]

Better batteries have always been the key but the technology is not reaching an efficiency/value point needed for me to consider them at present. But condensing multiple energy users to one energy provider will provide macro economic advantages and hopefully we will get better at energy storage .

[d-dave]

16 hours ago, jayboogieman said:

What budget segment? The average used ICE car price is over 27000 while the average new price is over 47000. EVs are even higher. The car companies are pricing themselves out of business.

There is still a plenty large market for the cheaper vehicles.  Heck, I just saw that the Nissan Sentra's top trim is cheaper than a base model Honda Civic...

https://www.motortrend.com/news/2025-nissan-sentra-price-msrp-trim-levels/

For me, I'm going to drive my car until the wheel fall off.  Just out of necessity.  I have a very fuel efficient car (2019 Honda Accord Sport 6MT).  Knocking on wood it keeps on running as I take care of it.  My wife just paid off her car, and it's so liberating to have that payment back.  While I hate helping to drive record profits in oil and the other bad parts of it, EVs aren't cheap enough for folks like me.

I don't know how people can afford a nearly $50k car unless you're trading in something you paid off that has good value or you've saved for a long time. In the EV space, I see nearly half of new vehicles are leased.  Heck, you can lease a 90k Lucid Air GT for $850 a month!?  I'm not sure how I feel about renting a car like that.  Paying for depreciation.  I also drive too much for a lease as well.

I'm still excited by the technology, and hoping for a better future.  Heck, hopefully these self driving features can save some lives.  The times I almost get killed on my commute to work daily is astounding.

[PanthersATL]

12 minutes ago, d-dave said:

I don't know how people can afford a nearly $50k car unless you're trading in something you paid off that has good value or you've saved for a long time.

Advice: after you pay off a car and no longer have a car payment, continue to put a "car payment amount" into a basic index fund monthly

By the time you need a new vehicle, the fund (should) be able to pay for the car entirely

Thinking a reasonable achievable amount, like $300/month and not the +$800/m payments some people are making