How to take off the Aero Covers

[FlyingKiwi]

You are correct about COPD which is related to smoking tobacco. Lung disease related to smoking has gone down because fewer people smoke today. You are incorrect in trying to equate COPD to Emphysema.

Read Note 1 of the graph. COPD includes Emphysema.

 

[Sportstick]

You are correct about COPD which is related to smoking tobacco. Lung disease related to smoking has gone down because fewer people smoke today. You are incorrect in trying to equate COPD to Emphysema. Yes they are related but different. Emphysema is loss of "elastic recoil of the lung" caused by inhaling toxic fumes like polluted air. Yes, you may be driving an electric car, but how is that electricity produced for that car? In most cases that electricity is produced by hydrocarbon fuels. Increasing the range in your electric car reduces your reliance on those types of electric producing fuels. Your other option is to install solar panels on your personal residence and then you can "burn" electricity in abandon. But ultimately, it is your decision, choose wisely with the thought of your children and future generations in mind.

Emphysema is one of the two major forms of COPD, and as noted by FlyingKiwi, is included in the data I shared previously. No need to get into how I already know this.

What is COPD? | COPD Symptoms, Signs & Risk Factors | COPD Definition

The timing of this data is interesting as it is far before even the small drop in the ocean of the first electric cars, and while the national car park was increasingly comprised of more modern vehicles with improved emissions controls. Is an emission-free world the utopia we would all wish for? Of course, but completely unrealistic. But, to now suggest that one must strive for maximum efficiency in all aspects down to the (pardon the tortured analogy) less than half-grain of sand in the ocean of wheelcovers, does become, at least to me, an overly dramatic "crusade" aspect versus a reasoned analysis of this topic. If protecting future generations from COPD is your personal passion, much more would be accomplished with energy directed toward ending the use of tobacco products and working against the reopening of coal mines for the fallacy of "clean coal" while we transition to renewable sources. Perhaps you are doing that as well; we don't know each other. But, to use a set of wheelcovers raised by this thread to buttress an argument that efficiency is the pinnacle aspect of our lives, and to invoke our children over this minor component, is an extreme position to me. By adding a Tesla to my household, which will displace some usage of our ICE vehicles, I am quite comfortable with my contribution without having to blight the visual environment with those awful pie pans.

 

[T34ME]

Emphysema is one of the two major forms of COPD, and as noted by FlyingKiwi, is included in the data I shared previously. No need to get into how I already know this.

Read Note 1 of the graph. COPD includes Emphysema.

And therin lies the problem! The referenced chart includes a number of different contributors to pulmonary diseases and is not exclusive to COPD or Emphysema. Therefore the chart is useless in terms of this discussion. The fact is reduction in smoking, particularly by males has been dramatic in the last 20 years and this statistic is weighted disproportionately in the chart while other pulmonary diseases, like Emphysema, have either remained the same or have increased and are not apparent in the chart. But the important thing is we are now talking about the impact of ICE on pulmonary disease here on TMC. Each one of us can justify our decisions with excuses, but no one can deny (unless you are a science denier) that less dependence we have on the ICE and electricity produced with fossil fuels, the healthier our air will be for us and future generations.

 

[Sportstick]

And therin lies the problem! The referenced chart includes a number of different contributors to pulmonary diseases and is not exclusive to COPD or Emphysema. Therefore the chart is useless in terms of this discussion. The fact is reduction in smoking, particularly by males has been dramatic in the last 20 years and this statistic is weighted disproportionately in the chart while other pulmonary diseases, like Emphysema, have either remained the same or have increased and are not apparent in the chart. But the important thing is we are now talking about the impact of ICE on pulmonary disease here on TMC. Each one of us can justify our decisions with excuses, but no one can deny (unless you are a science denier) that less dependence we have on the ICE and electricity produced with fossil fuels, the healthier our air will be for us and future generations.

I'm not sure how to coach reading via Internet forum, but look again at the chart title. The chart is exclusively COPD which is an umbrella term including several pulmonary illnesses, including emphysema. However, to invoke your position to debate wheelcovers is so extreme that I'm sure the rest of us seem heathens to you. Best wishes.

 

[landis]

I commute 90 miles/day average speed 45-50 mpg with over half at typical 65-75 mph.
I also intend to visit my Mom more frequently which is a 1300 mile round trip.

I will be passing on 19" wheel upgrade. The aero covers are growing on me.
I am OK with the underlying 'spoke' wheels.
I plan to use the aero covers for a while and then decide if/when to take them off.

Such hysteria....fatality rates from COPD are trending down from this somewhat recent study published in 2013 by the American Lung Association

Fatality rates are not the same thing as impact.

My spouse (who never smoked!) was diagnosed with COPD this year. She is now using a Bi-PAP machine which BTW has eliminated the need for high blood pressure medication.

The technology of CPAP and BiPAP machines has been evolving rapidly which significantly affects prognosis.
So... IMHO, drawing conclusions from fatality rates is bogus.

You are correct about COPD which is related to smoking tobacco

Yes, smoking is one significant cause.

Each one of us can justify our decisions with excuses, but no one can deny (unless you are a science denier) that less dependence we have on the ICE and electricity produced with fossil fuels, the healthier our air will be for us and future generations.

Yes, clean air matters to me.

 

[T34ME]

However, to invoke your position to debate wheelcovers is so extreme that I'm sure the rest of us seem heathens to you.

The point is, that the aero wheel covers will increase range and therefore you will use less electricity for a given number of miles. IF that electricity you use is produced by fossil fuels, then less reliance on fossil fuels. There are other means to increase your range - driving at slower speeds (less than 75/80), using the most efficient LRR tires, 18" rims rather than 19", judicious use of accelerator and brakes, etc. If you use all of these strategies plus the aero wheel covers, you should be able to increase your range by 10 to 20%. Multiply that times >500K EV cars and you are looking at a SIGNIFICANT impact on reducing dependence on fossil fuels for electric generation. If promoting less reliance on fossil fuel is considered extreme, then I will proudly wear the label of extremist. TESLA is experimenting with utilizing solar panels at their SuperCharger stations which is a step in the right direction. And PV installation at private residences and public buildings is catching on like wildfire, especially here in the Southwest. Las Vegas is the perfect venue for mass PV adoption.

No, I don't consider you a heathen. We are just having a friendly discussion about some of the real issues confronting the world population. I applaud you for being an early adopter of the EV concept. You can't be a heathen if you drive an EV! Rome was conquered one Roman at a time. The more T3s you see with the aero wheel covers, the more accepting you will become of them, and I expect one day you will say, "they are growing on me and I plan to use them on my next long distance trip."

Hey, I'll make a deal with you @Sportstick. Although I live about 3 miles from a SC, the next time you are in the Palm Springs area, I will give you free charging at my house produced by my Solar City panels, IF you have your aero wheel covers on! Deal?

 

[N5329K]

I want my aero hubcaps made from compostable cornstarch. Not from oil.
Think how many more hubcaps Tesla would sell after a rain storm!
Robin

 

[kenbefound]

How about the 19" rims? Are we certain those do not have covers as well? I keep looking at them and it seems quite possible...

 

[Sportstick]

I will give you free charging at my house produced by my Solar City panels, IF you have your aero wheel covers on! Deal?

Best offer I've had since someone volunteered the sleeves from their vest! I hope you don't wait up for me...

If promoting less reliance on fossil fuel is considered extreme, then I will proudly wear the label of extremist.

Not so fast...lots of folks here, yours truly included, advocate general reduction in use of fossil fuels and take reasonable steps. I use programmable thermostats...I'm not giving up on heating/cooling my house to comfort. I use LEDs...I'm not living in the dark. Your extreme position is based on the relative pittance offered by wheelcovers (especially to someone like me who will be driving around town...not distances) becoming such a focal point of indignation, such that I'm risking my childrens' health and lives with visually non-offensive wheels. Perhaps, I do them a different service in life by teaching them about the human joy of aesthetics?

Clearly, we won't agree, but my humble suggestion is not to denigrate those with a different point of view as somehow of inferior ethical standing.

 

[T34ME]

Not so fast...lots of folks here, yours truly included, advocate general reduction in use of fossil fuels and take reasonable steps. I use programmable thermostats...I'm not giving up on heating/cooling my house to comfort. I use LEDs...I'm not living in the dark.

Great! We're on the same page but just a different chapter

Clearly, we won't agree, but my humble suggestion is not to denigrate those with a different point of view as somehow of inferior ethical standing.

I apologize if you took my viewpoint as denigrating you. You have taken your position on the wheel covers and I did not feel you were denigrating me. So when I take my position on the wheel covers you would feel I was not denigrating you.

 

[CriBDeatH]

is there an equivalent for the model x 20" wheel? I would love to get an extra 10% range on long trips......