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This seems disingenuous...80% drive less than 40 miles a day on average.. I drive less than 40 miles a day most of the time, but that doesn't mean I never drive more than 40 miles in a day. Some days I don't drive at all, some days I only drive maybe 10 miles, other days I drive 300 miles to visit family. I'd take that 80% number and reverse it. I'd say 80% of American car owners drive more than 40-100 miles a day at least several times a year. You yourself exceed 45 miles in a day, if only rarely.
What I find disingenuous is the oft repeated criticism that because electric cars don't work for "me,"
today, in their current configuration, that they aren't really any good, are worthy only of ridicule, and will never amount to anything until and unless they exactly match the performance characteristics of a gasoline powered car.
But in point of fact the US Department of Transportation says there are now already 250,000 highway capable electric vehicles on the road in the US, and that the sales trend is upward. So they may not be right for "me," but increasingly there are people who are finding EVs to be right for them.
Not only do 78% of American commuters drive less than 40 miles a day, but millions drive far less than that. Again, from DOT figures...
American Commute Distance
(One Way) Percent..... Solo drivers (75% of total)
1-5 Miles 29 %..... 27,900,000
6-10 Miles 22 %..... 21,000,000
11-15 Miles 17 %..... 16,400,000
16-20 Miles 10 %..... 9, 600,000
21-25 Miles 7 %.... 6,750,000
26-30 Miles 5 %..... 4,800,000
31-35 Miles 3 %..... 2,890,000
35 + Miles 8 %..... 7,700,000
Now clearly, some of those have the need to be able to drive longer distances once in a while, but just as clearly, some don't. Some of those commuters are in 2-car families in which the "soccer mom"' SUV is the vehicle of choice for long trips. Some of those are single people who have no need for long drives. Or countless other permutations... I have a buddy who has a wife and child, and he commutes to work in a small, thrifty 2-seater and has no second car. So when they go on vacation to the beach he rents a larger car, and when they go to visit family they fly. It might not work for you, but it works for him.
And even if EVs only work for some of those who have no need of long car ranges, that still amounts to millions of drivers. And with impending improvements in battery technology, even more will fall within the workable range of EVs.
They may not be right for you now, and they may not be right for you ever, but for an increasing number of American drivers, EVs are definitely the right choice for them.
And let's not forget, gas buggys were once ridiculed, and only considered to ever have niche appeal.
the only people dodging it are the people that don't realize that it's not actually as big a deal as you make it out to be for the vast majority of drivers IF they are more realistic about their daily use. if you start out every day with a full tank, you're better off than the person that refills every week.
My average is probably only 10 miles per day, but there is no way I would buy a car that only goes 40 or 60 miles on a charge, or even 100 miles. On the occasion when I want to go 100 or 200 miles, I don't want to have to stop half way and recharge.
Clean EV's and hybrids are given an economic lift to get them off the ground and accepted. Once most cars are EVs then the financial incentives will be dropped. We cannot go on slowly killing ourselves.
My average is probably only 10 miles per day, but there is no way I would buy a car that only goes 40 or 60 miles on a charge, or even 100 miles. On the occasion when I want to go 100 or 200 miles, I don't want to have to stop half way and recharge.
The Tesla S with the 85 mW battery has a 300 mile range, today. And with the advances in battery technology coming down the chute, that could easily be doubled within the next year or two.
Re: EVs are zero-emissions
Quote:
Originally Posted by Roadking2003
No, they are not. Not even close.
In fact, they are. They do not emit pollutants, and are classified as Zero-Emission vehicles by both the Feds and the State of Californi, among others. And if they are charged from a non-polluting renewable energy source, such as hydro-power, solar power, wind power, geothermal power, or tidal power, there is no pollution at all from their operation.
Even when charged from the dirtiest of all common power sources today, a coal powered generator, they are still responsible for far less pollution than any fossil fuel burning ICE powered car, because a large coal generator is far more energy efficient than an automobile, and because the scrubbers and other pollution controls on a single very large "tailpipe" releases less pollution than than do the thousands of individual car tailpipes that can be eliminated by switching to EVs. That's why California, among a dozen other states that follow its lead, is requiring auto makers to sell more zero-emissions cars next year. And more the next year, etc.
And EV owners also get some nice perks, like financial blandishments offered to the end users and the right to use the HVO lane without a passenger...
Oh, and then there are the factors that the fuel/energy cost per mile for EVs is typically less than half what gas or diesel costs in most locations, and that recharging at Tesla Supercharger sites while traveling across country is free for all but the cheapest model, which tip the scale for some people. Not you? Oh, well.
In fact, they are. They do not emit pollutants, and are classified as Zero-Emission vehicles by both the Feds and the State of Californi, among others.
Total lie.
Lots of pollutants are produced when the car is manufactured and most electricity production produces pollutants.
Originally Posted by OpenD
In fact, they are. They do not emit pollutants, and are classified as Zero-Emission vehicles by both the Feds and the State of Californi, among others.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Roadking2003
Total lie.
Apparently you don't know what a zero-emissions vehicle is. Perhaps you don't know what emit means.
emit, def. - produce and discharge (something, especially gas or radiation).
emission, def. - something produced (like a gas) and sent out, esp. by an internal combustion engine.
In any case, The State of California officially classifies the Tesla S as a "White Sticker" EV and explains "Cars that meet these requirements are typically certified pure zero emission vehicles (100% battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell) and compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles.
Here's the official list from the State of California Environmental Protection Agency's AirResources Board. If you wish to check for yourself. Tesla is listed under 2014 models because it hasn't released a 2015 model yet.
Lots of pollutants are produced when the car is manufactured
Yes, as is the case with all cars. They are not, however, counted as part of the emissions of any vehicle, because they are not emissions. Is that so hard to understand?
Quote:
and most electricity production produces pollutants.
Sure, if it is not sourced from renewable energy, production of the electricity used to charge an EV does release pollutants, but even in the worst possible case the total pollution released per mile of travel is less than half of what any fossil fuel powered vehicle can achieve. The ultimate goal, of course, is to replace all the polluting electricity sources with non-polluting ones, but until that happens we can still significantly reduce the amount of pollution due to automobile travel simply by replacing ICE vehicles with EVs.
Partial replacement equals partial improvement, but that's why the goal of the California Clean Air regs are to reach a goal of 15% of the new cars sold being zero-emissions vehicles (ZEVs) by 2025
And here's a link to the "roadmap toward 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on California roadways by 2025" and "annually displace at least 1.5 billion gallons of petroleum fuels."
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