Some are. But some are fully aware that this 'energy transition' will limit mobility and other freedoms.Originally Posted by willtill
Here's a sample of what they may want. In the UK, mandated 'smart chargers' shut off from 8-11 AM and 4-10 PM. And when the grid is short on power, the chargers reverse flow and take power FROM your EV! Imagine the government siphoning gas out of your tank when others 'need' it more.
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Last edited by SpencerPJ; 08-21-2022 at 07:26 AM.
2013 F6B 1800B
Don't be a thermometer, be a thermostat
Quite an interesting topic here. I drive a Tesla and it weighs in at 5381 pounds. I used to drive a 2003 Tahoe Z71 that weighed in at 5050 pounds. That said, how much extra wear on the roads do you believe that additional 330 pounds will produce?
I researched these things for a few years and made a choice to purchase. I am not a fanboy, still have my F150, and know most of my electricity currently comes from coal fired plants. I also know that there is no way a complete and immediate switch to EV is possible or even expected given our current grid. (I also work in the renewable energy space)
This kind of reminds me of the perceptions and opinions associated with the darkside debate, which I also tried and did not burst into flames as a result.
If you have any additional questions, ask away.
I was surprised to see that in Tennessee, nuclear provides most of the electricity. The major sources are nuclear (44%), nat gas (20%), hydro (11%), and coal (23%). Biomass, solar, and oil provide the other 2%. Source: https://www.electricrate.com/data-ce...rces-by-state/
My statement regarding coal was not literal, but rather in general. We have one of the lowest power costs in the nation as a result.
Save me a bachelors cabin there somewhere. Deep in the woods. I need a getaway place when my wife retires. Seriously.
21 years Army (retired)
...been everywhere, seen everything, done almost everything.
IBA 80537
That's a balanced mix of electricity sources. I can see how your rates have stayed low. And it's very clean, with 75% from nuclear, nat gas, and hydro.
It should be interesting to see what happens to electric rates now that natural gas and coal prices have more than tripled from just a year ago. Those commodities provide over 2/3 or our electricity, but utilities have long term contracts which have shielded ratepayers from the worst of the increases. As those contracts expire Americans are in for some shocking utility bills this winter.
It will be interesting to watch utilities as the EV market continues to heat up and demand increases. Here is an older 2016 article regarding TVA, the main reason the region has such low rates.
Balanced Fuel Portfolio Helps Reduce Ratepayer Costs (tva.com)
As I said earlier, lithium ion (and similar chemistries) battery technology has been a revolution for personal devices and tools, and works great for smaller vehicles, especially when driven short distances. It's when the vehicles get large, like the new Hummer with a 3000 pound battery, that ICE power has a big advantage. Elon has built an impressive charging network. No other manufacturer even comes close. For that reason alone if I were interested in an EV I'd only consider a Tesla.
A few questions. What is the Tesla's primary use? Do you have a level 2 charger at home? Have you taken long, multiple day trips, and if so what was your charging experience?
Yes, that Hummer is quite a beast. Tesla has certainly built the best charging network given they had about an eight year head start.
My primary use is commuting to work. I was burning about $450/month in fuel and now use an equivalent $30/month in electricity for the same mileage.
I do have a level 2 charger at my home and I simply plug in every evening when I get back to the house and charge it to 80% of capacity. That keeps me off of the Superchargers unless I am traveling.
I have taken one extended trip to Panama City from Chattanooga which took about 9 hours. It was my first extended trip and I initially suffered from range anxiety. The strategy, as mapped out by the software, is to arrive at the next charger with around 10-15% charge left, then charge just enough to get you to the next charger. They charge the fastest up to around 70-80% and then trickle off so that last 20% can take as long or longer than the first 80%. When traveling, it is just not worth the wait to top off. You charge fast and move on to the next stop. That range anxiety caused me to stay a little longer at a couple of the stops and grab a little more just in case. In all it was about 4 stops with the longest being 50 minutes (lunch break) and the remainder being around 20-30 each. While there I was able to charge at a Supercharger 5 miles up the road and saved about $400 in fuel that week.
In all it added a couple of hours to the travel time which were used for breakfast/lunch breaks. I have not considered a longer multi day trip yet but there are people doing it every day so who knows. I may do it one day.
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