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President of GM taught us what it takes for EV to go mainstream
- Thread starter Lanzer
- Start date
doghousePVD
My grandfather’s car
Right, especially if you choose a Taycan. 201 miles is a joke. EA is barely functional, but at least it's expensive.
Let me guess, you park your 718 on street, right?
Krugerrand
Meow
I park in an open parking lot with only a roof and no walls.
Yes 201 miles is bad. But so is 300+, considering that there are not many super chargers. I don't travel is highways because I like to drive in hilly areas. There are 0 superchargers in such roads.
Even if traveling in highways, 40 minutes or more for a full charge is too much. What do I do for that long? Filling gas takes at most 10 minutes. I don't want to eat at restaurants in supercharger locations. So I have to waste 40 minutes to 1 hour just to charge and then go elsewhere to eat.
ralph142
Member
Yeah, I'm in a multi-car household. I got my X and my Tundra. The X has been parked for the last couple of weeks and I'm getting used to the Tundra again. One big advantage is stopping once a week for 10 minutes to fill the tank instead of twice and worrying about when I need to find another charger again. I honestly thought that with a 300 mile range it just wouldn't be a problem. lol!
Yes, I think this needs to improve. I don't think there has to be any fundamental breakthroughs for EVs to be mainstream.
Personally while improvements in range and charging speed would be good, I think the only real improvement is the visibility of chargers. Every town over 10,000 needs to have a bank of Tesla fast chargers. Every big box store needs to have enough level 2 chargers that no one goes without. It's not even about the need to charge. It's the marketing.
When I was looking at EVs the Chevy dealer told me about the Bolt and I asked about charging. The reply I got was basically "Well, charging happens". The response needed to be, "look out the window, see those pedestals? There's more all over town. Oh, and of course you won't need them because I can give you a list of approved electricians who will install a charging outlet at your home which you will use 99% of the time".
The Chevy Bolt did nothing to advance EVs in the market place and may have actually set things back a bit. Tesla chargers need to have more presence so people see them and then ask about the cars!
ralph142
Member
^^ exactly my experience with the local Chevy guys when I finally got to test drive a bolt mid 2018. You can charge anywhere he said, don’t worry about it. Lmao. 5-10 hrs at any Chevy dealer, no problem, oh wait ....
2 weeks later test drove a model 3. Never looked back.
2 weeks later test drove a model 3. Never looked back.
Audi2000
Member
Can you fill up at home with an ICE. I fill up every night at home and don't have to spend any time at a gas station.
RFernatt
Solar/EV Owner/Enthusiast
I agree with your statement since it applies to me, but to be fair, there are a chunk of folks without garage parking or it's a communal garage without charging or very low speed charging. So, the better the charging options, the more people will be interested in EVs. I think we're at the practical stage for many, but probably not desirable for the rest compared with gas.
I have solar, so driving two EVs and powering my house for "free" is a big draw. Stopping for 20-30 minutes to Supercharge when traveling isn't a huge deal for me in my driving, especially when timed with a rest stop. But, without access to convenient home charging, it's an issue. This would be doubly problematic in cold weather states.
doghousePVD
My grandfather’s car
About 65% of homes are owner occupied, and therefore usually can install charging. EVs may not a good choice for many of the 35% who do not own their homes, such as greater NYC, LA, and SF.
No, but if I need to travel 300 miles plus with no time to spend 30 min. at a SC there is a Gas Station just about everywhere that will fill up the car in less than 5 min.
Or how about this scenario
Heavy holiday traffic leads to long lines at Tesla charging stations
Granted I have both ICE and EV so I like many others can plan for this. Others who only have 1 Vehicle will not have a choice.
Audi2000
Member
Agreed, it'll be a hassle when we drive back and forth to Maine. But that's 2x/year.
San Luis Obispo, CA is a choke point. It has more stalls than the older Atasacadero, CA site, which is known to have problems, leading to people avoiding it. Atasacadero, CA to Salinas, CA is 111.9 miles, San Luis Obispo, CA to Salinas, CA is 130.2 miles. That gap means more people hitting the Supercharger with relatively high states of charge, slowing charging down.
I think that one extra Supercharger, somewhere like King City, CA, which splits the gap, would make a big difference on that route, as people would hit at more optimal states of charge, speeding up charging sessions.
That's not a range issue. That's infrastructure.
Lower cost of vehicles to increase demand.
Increased demand increases infrastructure.
Increased infrastructure increases coverage.
Increased coverage increases demand.
Increased demand increases infrastructure.
It also ignores the fact that the vast majority of drivers are driving on major highways. To be mainstream does not mean taking 100% of the market.
ralph142
Member
around here on a normal day you can wait in 10-15 minutes line at Costco or Fred Meyer for gas, on holiday weekends it’s worse
Yup, pros and cons. I know someone who works on cars and has a three bay garage with a lift and all manner of electric outlets. He tried to tell me it would be too hard to install a 240 volt outlet inside. I told him he could put the HPWC outside! lol He just hates the idea of electric cars. If he wasn't such an idiot, I'd ask him to electrify a retro sports car for me. A Karmen Ghia or a TR7 or something else with good brakes. So no MGA.
Even without home charging, cars likely spend nearly as much time at work, so that would work as well. Charging needs to be more integrated with our lifestyles. Always Be Charging (ABC). People are just too used to stinky gas stations like fast food for their cars.
I don't think covering the "major" highways will cut it. I think a large segment of the population will exepect a charger to be somewhere they travel in their daily routine. Most people don't really know anything about EVs. They think in terms of driving for the week and filling their tank. Driving the first leg of a long trip and looking for gas when the needle gets below 1/4. The reality is EVs are very workable, but it is a very different paradigm. High visibility of the chargers will go a long way to arousing people's interest.
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