Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The Tesla Semi has a range of 500 miles on a single charge. Tesla says the vehicle will go into production in 2019. It also unvailed a new sports car that would be the fastest production car Tesla unveils first truck - and roadster - BBC News
Late to the game. Nikola already has a hybrid electric truck with all the benefits of electric motors without the negative benefits. Cummins already has one as well.
Hopefully this giant distraction money sucking distraction just hastens the end of Tesla.
It's apparent that Ziggy's prejudice against Tesla blinds him to the truth. Cummins and Nikola do not have any trucks yet either. Just prototypes just like Tesla.
Cummins truck will go 100 miles and recharge in an hour. Later versions will be hybrids. The 100 miles version might be competitive in local markets if the price is low enough. But not in the long haul market.
Nikola is trying to produce a fuel cell version. At a price of $350,000. In both cases the refueling stations have to be built. If fuel cell network is built out, Nikola might be a strong competitor. It would have far greater range. The question would be the economics. Can a fuel cell network compete on costs with a solar charged battery network. Tesla has promised .07 a kWh. The Nikola starts with a huge disadvantage. The price for Tesla has not being revealed but most people are pegging it at $250K. So Nikola starts with $100,000 disadvantage.
The question (especially for Tesla and Nikola) is whether these can produced in the time frame promised. Both are 2019/2020. Tesla has had serious problems meeting deadlines (see Model 3) and Nikola has basically never produced anything.
But.... the bigger picture here is....... this thing is coming. Whether it's electric or fuel cell, or both..... diesel looks like it will be out over course of next 15 years or so. Killed not by 'greens' but by economics.
It's apparent that Ziggy's prejudice against Tesla blinds him to the truth. Cummins and Nikola do not have any trucks yet either. Just prototypes just like Tesla.
Cummins truck will go 100 miles and recharge in an hour. Later versions will be hybrids. The 100 miles version might be competitive in local markets if the price is low enough. But not in the long haul market.
Nikola is trying to produce a fuel cell version. At a price of $350,000. In both cases the refueling stations have to be built. If fuel cell network is built out, Nikola might be a strong competitor. It would have far greater range. The question would be the economics. Can a fuel cell network compete on costs with a solar charged battery network. Tesla has promised .07 a kWh. The Nikola starts with a huge disadvantage. The price for Tesla has not being revealed but most people are pegging it at $250K. So Nikola starts with $100,000 disadvantage.
The question (especially for Tesla and Nikola) is whether these can produced in the time frame promised. Both are 2019/2020. Tesla has had serious problems meeting deadlines (see Model 3) and Nikola has basically never produced anything.
But.... the bigger picture here is....... this thing is coming. Whether it's electric or fuel cell, or both..... diesel looks like it will be out over course of next 15 years or so. Killed not by 'greens' but by economics.
I personally think the fuel cell is a pipe dream. The infrastructure needed for that is going to be nuts, far more expensive than electric recharging stations. Also, the sheer convenience of plugging in beats trying to hit the one hydrogen station in your town (if you even have one).
I agree about economics. Even just "fueling" my Volt, I'm spending 70% less than I was spending on gasoline. My electric bill has hardly budged. Throw in lower maintenance costs over the life of the car, and EV adoption is a no-brainer for fleet use, or anyone who drives a lot.
The Tesla Semi has a range of 500 miles on a single charge. Tesla says the vehicle will go into production in 2019. It also unvailed a new sports car that would be the fastest production car Tesla unveils first truck - and roadster - BBC News
Overall, I really like Tesla's vision for the future of the automobile. But the timing of the semi-truck announcement leads me to believe that Tesla is really hurting for cash (truck reservations require $5k deposit). The roadster will require an even bigger deposit (I believe $50k). They're behind schedule for the Model 3, which already seems to be stretching the company's resources to the limit. As expected, Elon Musk did not take questions during the unveiling event, most likely because the truck is not far along enough in the development process to stand up to further scrutiny.
Revolutionizing the automobile and freight industries takes money and I totally get that. I'm just less enthused about the truck (and roadster) announcement from an investor's standpoint.
It's apparent that Ziggy's prejudice against Tesla blinds him to the truth. Cummins and Nikola do not have any trucks yet either. Just prototypes just like Tesla.
Cummins truck will go 100 miles and recharge in an hour. Later versions will be hybrids. The 100 miles version might be competitive in local markets if the price is low enough. But not in the long haul market.
Nikola is trying to produce a fuel cell version. At a price of $350,000. In both cases the refueling stations have to be built. If fuel cell network is built out, Nikola might be a strong competitor. It would have far greater range. The question would be the economics. Can a fuel cell network compete on costs with a solar charged battery network. Tesla has promised .07 a kWh. The Nikola starts with a huge disadvantage. The price for Tesla has not being revealed but most people are pegging it at $250K. So Nikola starts with $100,000 disadvantage.
The question (especially for Tesla and Nikola) is whether these can produced in the time frame promised. Both are 2019/2020. Tesla has had serious problems meeting deadlines (see Model 3) and Nikola has basically never produced anything.
But.... the bigger picture here is....... this thing is coming. Whether it's electric or fuel cell, or both..... diesel looks like it will be out over course of next 15 years or so. Killed not by 'greens' but by economics.
Yes Tesla is late on their prototype. Everybody else has already released an EV semi prototype and we all know Tesla’s production timeline is a pipe dream.
I personally think the fuel cell is a pipe dream. The infrastructure needed for that is going to be nuts, far more expensive than electric recharging stations. Also, the sheer convenience of plugging in beats trying to hit the one hydrogen station in your town (if you even have one).
I agree about economics. Even just "fueling" my Volt, I'm spending 70% less than I was spending on gasoline. My electric bill has hardly budged. Throw in lower maintenance costs over the life of the car, and EV adoption is a no-brainer for fleet use, or anyone who drives a lot.
Pure electric is not scalable. Elon hasn’t said how much weight his battery pack will cut into the payload weight. There’s no proof of an EV battery pack even making it 1 million miles. It’s going to take more than just throwing batteries at everything and promising “mega chargers” that don’t exist. Elon is good at promising best case scenario ranges, but notice he won’t tell anybody what going up hill in the middle of winter with a full payload will do. Trucking companies will have to plan for the worse case scenario range, not some optimistic sales pitch. The quality of the Model S and X is terrible despite the “low maintenance” aspect of an EV’s drivetrain. I can’t imagine it getting any better with a much larger semi. Trucking companies expecting actual revenue from their vehicles aren’t going to be as forgiving as a bunch of rich guys in luxury sedans.
I personally think the fuel cell is a pipe dream. The infrastructure needed for that is going to be nuts, far more expensive than electric recharging stations. Also, the sheer convenience of plugging in beats trying to hit the one hydrogen station in your town (if you even have one).
I agree about economics. Even just "fueling" my Volt, I'm spending 70% less than I was spending on gasoline. My electric bill has hardly budged. Throw in lower maintenance costs over the life of the car, and EV adoption is a no-brainer for fleet use, or anyone who drives a lot.
Comparing the Volt to a Prius and Corolla which don't require electricity...
Prius II 50 miles / 50mpg @ $2.50/gal = $0.05/mi $22k
Volt 50 miles / 3.14kwh per mile @ 0.12kwh = $.0382/mi $30k
Corolla 50 miles / 35 mpg @ $2.50/gal = $0.0714/mi $18k
It takes a long time to recoup the extra cost of a Volt, not even counting battery replacement. Roughly 678,000 miles in the case of the Prius...assuming you do the entire trip on the battery with the Volt. Only 361k for the Corolla.
No brainer? Ehhh not so much. A smooth driving car for sure, but the economics aren't there yet. Used ones maybe.
Comparing the Volt to a Prius and Corolla which don't require electricity...
Prius II 50 miles / 50mpg @ $2.50/gal = $0.05/mi $22k
Volt 50 miles / 3.14kwh per mile @ 0.12kwh = $.0382/mi $30k
Corolla 50 miles / 35 mpg @ $2.50/gal = $0.0714/mi $18k
It takes a long time to recoup the extra cost of a Volt, not even counting battery replacement. Roughly 678,000 miles in the case of the Prius...assuming you do the entire trip on the battery with the Volt. Only 361k for the Corolla.
No brainer? Ehhh not so much. A smooth driving car for sure, but the economics aren't there yet. Used ones maybe.
Used ones make sense because thanks to their horrible depreciation, you can a get a used EV for peanuts. Otherwise for the original owner, the economics are the worst part of owning an EV.
Comparing the Volt to a Prius and Corolla which don't require electricity...
Prius II 50 miles / 50mpg @ $2.50/gal = $0.05/mi $22k
Volt 50 miles / 3.14kwh per mile @ 0.12kwh = $.0382/mi $30k
Corolla 50 miles / 35 mpg @ $2.50/gal = $0.0714/mi $18k
It takes a long time to recoup the extra cost of a Volt, not even counting battery replacement. Roughly 678,000 miles in the case of the Prius...assuming you do the entire trip on the battery with the Volt. Only 361k for the Corolla.
No brainer? Ehhh not so much. A smooth driving car for sure, but the economics aren't there yet. Used ones maybe.
I got it used. Same price as a comparable used Corolla. Actually, probably less. What's the price of a 2 yr old used Corolla S with 30k miles?
Nobody in their right mind is paying $30k + for a Volt. With the tax credit and massive GM incentives, many people are paying in the low twenties for a new Volt. If you have a GM credit card, they're paying even less.
And you're only counting fuel costs. How about reduced maintenance? How about the convenience factor? My point stands.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
