Should I buy one of those $40,000 electric cars? (legal, gasoline, regular)
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Are electric cars the solution?
Currently, there are roughly 256 million vehicles per 304 million Americans. List of countries by vehicles per capita - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
If we replaced them all with electric cars, it would cost:
256 million x 40 thousand
$10,240,000,000,000
TEN TRILLION dollar bills (no par value)
[I don't think Americans can afford THAT - even on time payments.]
Electrical motors are 95% efficient.
Internal combustion engines (otto cycle) are about 35% efficient. Diesels reach about 40% efficiency.
Purportedly, six stroke engines claim 50% efficiency.
For a unit of fuel, you can get 2.7 (.95/.35) times as much work done by electrical motors than with internal combustion engines.
These factors do not support a purchase of an electric car that won't go "the distance".
However, these same factors do recommend a transition to electric traction rail - ASAP. [Other factors]
In the post petroleum world, I foresee electric powered rail as the dominant transportation system.
If America invested 1/10 of the cost of "Lectric Car" solution, electrified mainline railroads, and rebuilt urban rail mass transit, interurban lines, and eliminated 60% of the automobiles from city streets and highways, it would cut imports of fuel to zero.
(Assuming one passenger train car can replace 1000 private automobiles, a fleet of 154 thousand train cars would suffice for 60% substitution. $1.1 million x 154 thousand = 170 billion. Based on 88,000 miles of urban track (double the 1920 peak) at 1 million / mile, that's 88 billion. Or roughly the cost for one year of the Asian unWar. Already the cumulative cost for the two unWars has exceed 1 trillion. Personally, I'd prefer investing in electric rail over fighting for petroleum. Less casualties.)
Rail : 2000 passenger miles / gallon
Diesel Bus: 280 passenger miles / gallon
Ford Explorer : 100 passenger miles / gallon (*fully loaded with passengers)
-------------------
However, based on previous performance, Americans and their government will probably dissipate another trillion in Asia and a few trillion on imports before daring to get back on track with electric traction rail.
Last edited by jetgraphics; 03-03-2011 at 10:14 AM..
I have wondered how smart buying one of those things at $40,000 would be and always seem to come to the same conclusion that old Bill Balsamico does in this blog. I think he has studied the problem out pretty well and finds that getting the thing to drive from near Pittsburgh to Cleveland next fall to see the football game would be very nonsensical. I wonder what Obama would say about such reasoning.
Electric cars are also very hard on the environment. I read a piece a while ago about the steps and damage to the environment, just to make the batteries. From the mining of the nickel in Canada, transportation to various countries that make battery parts, and final assembly of the battery, it is a nightmare - plus the cost of electricity to charge the thing.
I wonder if every inventor of a new idea started with the premise of impossibility, a non-starter. It is almost like, if something poses challenge, we should give up and continue with the old ways… the “comforting ways”.
But I refuse to buy that idiocy. I believe that it is prudent to look beyond the present, and certainly not keep dwelling in the past. Just ten years ago, NiMH pack was a big deal, and likes of GM EV1 and Honda EV-Plus got killed because the oil salesmen decided it was against their interests to let the technology progress. Perhaps engineers and scientists should have quit?
Well, Li-ion has come about, and the crocodile tears about its impact on environment by two people chatting over phone or over internet using devices that use such technology. But even then, the dismissive nature that we have reached the end of innovation and should settle for what has been comforting… oil.
Trust me, I was disappointed to see Honda Clarity launched with Li-ion battery pack, instead of the ultra-capacitor pack that the prototypes (Honda FCX) used. But at the same time, I’m pretty sure, outside of lazy people, some brilliant minds are working hard to innovate, and that just may be an ultra-capacitor pack that isn’t as bulky? Or, perhaps something very different?
But to put such things to use, platforms and infrastructure are necessary. And it takes time to develop all that, more so when there is plenty of cannibalism is expected to prevent such developments.
The major concern of alternate transportation and non-petroleum energy developers and investors is the oil companies can drop the price of oil low enough to make the competitors uneconomical. They have done this in the past and can be counted on to do it again. Controlling supply and price are why the oil producers have a cartel. It is the same reason Rockefeller formed Standard Oil in the 1800's. For nearly a decade SO controlled supply, refining and sales of oil in the US until his firm was broken up by President Theodore Roosevelt’s antitrust program.
Another problem with electrification of our transport system is it would take money away from our military programs that protect the petroleum cartel from international competition. This is why we have wasted many billions of dollars in huge airfields in Central Asia. If these countries ever decided to sell the oil they own outside of the cartel our army would be available to crush their efforts to create a separate market for oil.
I do not see the political will to take on Big Petroleum in this country because the people most damaged by high gasoline prices are not the people controlling the government policy. The people in control of our policy are the people selling the oil. The bottom line is we have the best government money can buy.
I do not see the political will to take on Big Petroleum in this country because the people most damaged by high gasoline prices are not the people controlling the government policy. The people in control of our policy are the people selling the oil. The bottom line is we have the best government money can buy.
Which was, once again proven by a bill defeated couple of days ago that asked for elimination of billions of dollars in subsidies to oil companies. Republicans, once again, voted on it in lock step. Heck, not even Ron Paul stepped out of the republican march that just may put the old Red Army to shame. I guess even he likes the idea of subsidies, if it is oil companies.
In the case of the Chevy Volt (or even the Nissan Leaf) that would all depend on what price range you are looking at. Even without government rebates and tax allowances there are quite a few comparable cars in the $40,000 plus range that would make the Volt a very attractive alternative to Mercedes, BMW, Saab, Infiniti, Lexus, or even Cadillac and one that you would immediately realize operational cost savings. Hell even a Nissan Maxima is in the same price and class.
I quite agree. $40,000 for a car is not especially outrageous (it is to me, but not to many others; of course, as a teenager the top of the line Cadillac was $5,000).
I have a brother-in-law (very conservative) who thinks the Volt and other electric cars are silly, 'liberal' and a waste of money. Mind, this is the same person who spent close to $10,000 for an electric golf cart.
I guess if the Volt were advertised as a 'state of the art' golf cart, he would buy it. Got to impress those country-club people.
The major concern of alternate transportation and non-petroleum energy developers and investors is the oil companies can drop the price of oil low enough to make the competitors uneconomical. They have done this in the past and can be counted on to do it again. Controlling supply and price are why the oil producers have a cartel. It is the same reason Rockefeller formed Standard Oil in the 1800's. For nearly a decade SO controlled supply, refining and sales of oil in the US until his firm was broken up by President Theodore Roosevelt’s antitrust program.
Another problem with electrification of our transport system is it would take money away from our military programs that protect the petroleum cartel from international competition. This is why we have wasted many billions of dollars in huge airfields in Central Asia. If these countries ever decided to sell the oil they own outside of the cartel our army would be available to crush their efforts to create a separate market for oil.
I do not see the political will to take on Big Petroleum in this country because the people most damaged by high gasoline prices are not the people controlling the government policy. The people in control of our policy are the people selling the oil. The bottom line is we have the best government money can buy.
Someone's been listrning to a bit too much of Alex Jones
But seriously, I do agree with your first paragraph 100%
I don't see the Volt becoming anything more than an albatross for GM as well as a piddling morsel to the Al Gore crowd; American shave been voting with their wallets for decades that they won't spend $40K on a car that small unless it comes from Germany.
The wage structure at GM precludes this car being profitable for GM unless production were sent overseas, and I'm very sure that Obama & his Democratic cronies would never allow that to happen.
If you don't want one don't buy one. It's just that simple.
Over the course of time the technology will improve. As it currently stand the Volt is not really designed to be a "Road Trip: car. It's a commuter car. The people that buy it hopefully have enough sense to realize that.
Would there be a way to get you to read the link I provided in post number 1? It was written by a man who thought seriously about buying a Leaf not a Volt.
Read that man's words and I think you would get some laughs out of the blog post.
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