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As long as we can efficiently move stuff from point A to point B, who cares what motor we use?
Sure - I guess we can then be OK with government pushing these ideas, and friends of government financially benefiting from these ideas.
I don't think people in general have a problem with the gas powered cars... until someone told them they should have a problem.
Europe has cars with much higher MPGs, but they aren't allowed here for some reason.
The problem I see down the road is who controls the flow of electricity - and how will that effect freedom of travel down the road. And how reliable will that energy be - especially since the same people pushing for electric cars are pushing for less reliable means of electricity.
I think both types of vehicles should exist and let the public choose what they want. Why limit ourselves to one type of vehicle? It makes no sense.
If I could refuel an electric vehicle as fast as I can an ICE vehicle, I would have an electric vehicle. Less maintenance, no direct emissions, fewer moving parts, 100% torque output at 0 RPM, etc. ICE engines are good, electric motors are better.
I hate how liberals always play the technology card against IC engine. The electric motor is an older and simpler technology than the internal combustion engine. Electric is not really lower emission and is boring and soulless like the liberals who are forcing it on us. Driving late model cars is an artificial experience sort of like the '80s arcade game Pole Position but less fun.
I think we are clearly in the golden age of the internal combustion engine. When I was a kid, every garage in every home smelled of gasoline because of carburetors. It was very common to be stuck in traffic and both smell and see the exhaust of other vehicles that were poorly tuned and "running rich." These days, it's extremely rare to see a gas powered vehicle smoking from the tailpipe, or smell one in traffic. The environmentalists did do something right.
I daily drive a 20 year old Honda with a 2.3L 4-cylinder making 150hp. It doesn't smoke from the tailpipe, or burn any appreciable oil between changes. It was certified as a Low Emission Vehicle when new, and I have every confidence it could pass such a test today. Engines didn't used to be that good.
My dad has a nearly new Honda with a 1.5L turbocharged 4-cylinder making 190hp, with far better gas mileage than mine, and you can hardly hear the thing run it's so quiet. That's some progress.
Electric cars are undeniably cool. I've ridden in a Tesla and the acceleration is amazing. But, if everyone had to switch to one tomorrow, I have many questions:
1. Can the power grid handle it?
2. What about all the metals that go into the batteries? They have to come from somewhere, and what is the plan to deal with worn out packs?
3. How would cross-country travel work? Right now I can take off and drive to either coast, along any route I choose, and there is gasoline along the way. Sure, Tesla has Superchargers, but they're not on every exit like gasoline is, and certainly not in small towns. Some local convenience stores have generic chargers, but people around here that own them pretty much charge them at home.
4. What about poor people? Today, they can drive a 20-year old car like mine for a few thousand dollars. Those cars were new once, and trickled down through 2nd and 3rd owners to get to them. How are they supposed to afford a $50k electric car? I'm going to go ahead and disallow any response that refers to public transportation. We all know that people in practice hate using it, even in places where it's hard to own a car and very convenient. Those places are actually fairly rare. The United States is a BIG country, and designed for the automobile. You don't have to like it, but you do have to accept it because it's reality.
I think we are clearly in the golden age of the internal combustion engine. When I was a kid, every garage in every home smelled of gasoline because of carburetors. It was very common to be stuck in traffic and both smell and see the exhaust of other vehicles that were poorly tuned and "running rich." These days, it's extremely rare to see a gas powered vehicle smoking from the tailpipe, or smell one in traffic. The environmentalists did do something right.
I daily drive a 20 year old Honda with a 2.3L 4-cylinder making 150hp. It doesn't smoke from the tailpipe, or burn any appreciable oil between changes. It was certified as a Low Emission Vehicle when new, and I have every confidence it could pass such a test today. Engines didn't used to be that good.
My dad has a nearly new Honda with a 1.5L turbocharged 4-cylinder making 190hp, with far better gas mileage than mine, and you can hardly hear the thing run it's so quiet. That's some progress.
Electric cars are undeniably cool. I've ridden in a Tesla and the acceleration is amazing. But, if everyone had to switch to one tomorrow, I have many questions:
1. Can the power grid handle it?
2. What about all the metals that go into the batteries? They have to come from somewhere, and what is the plan to deal with worn out packs?
3. How would cross-country travel work? Right now I can take off and drive to either coast, along any route I choose, and there is gasoline along the way. Sure, Tesla has Superchargers, but they're not on every exit like gasoline is, and certainly not in small towns. Some local convenience stores have generic chargers, but people around here that own them pretty much charge them at home.
4. What about poor people? Today, they can drive a 20-year old car like mine for a few thousand dollars. Those cars were new once, and trickled down through 2nd and 3rd owners to get to them. How are they supposed to afford a $50k electric car? I'm going to go ahead and disallow any response that refers to public transportation. We all know that people in practice hate using it, even in places where it's hard to own a car and very convenient. Those places are actually fairly rare. The United States is a BIG country, and designed for the automobile. You don't have to like it, but you do have to accept it because it's reality.
It ain't happening over night. But the automobile displaced the horse from American roads in a fairly short time: 30-40 years. Gas to electric should be a quicker transition than that; maybe 10-20 years?. But we need to start building battery-swapping stations. Nobody wants to wait hours for their battery to charge.
Many oilfields now being drilled have lower grades of oil without diesel fuel. The machines that mine materials, maintain roads, and deliver everything have diesel engines. Without diesel, gas engines will be less useful. Electric cars and hydrogen fuel cells are greenwashing gimmicks so wealthy fake environmentalists can delay energy conservation and loss of personal luxury. We will eventually be riding horse-drawn wagons and walking more, but meanwhile I have bikes.
Sadly, the Machine Age Extremists Will Eventually Kill The Wonderful Steam Engine.
Steam isn’t dead, we still use steam turbines to generate electricity from thermal sources like coal and nuclear.
The old reciprocating steam engines (found mainly on steam locomotives) are mostly gone.
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