I bought a car with my fingerprint (sort of).

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by imwjl

I'm not in the to me goofy mindset or wrong thinking some have to use wrong tools for the job. In other posts I've mentioned how I rent pickups, other trucks and trailers when needed. Just recently I rented a Jeep for 2000+ miles of mountain driving for $477.15. I just can't see choosing an EV to be much of a problem. Especially when no one will even see it for 1.5-2 years.

The Jeep rental does have me thinking about quality and reliability. The airport dude claimed we were its 2nd renter. The defroster often did not work and one speaker kept going on and off. Now I see there's a recall for the defroster. Come on Stellantis. You can't make a reliable defroster and sound system? Did I miss those being cutting edge new technology?

It will be fun to watch the time ahead and hope no troubles for the vehicles we have now.

Don't misunderstand there was absolutely criticism in my post I was just in my old fart humor mode commenting on the location in the photo and the oval lights
My son in law drives a Nisan Leaf for his work commute about 90 miles Round trip and loves it and it has been very very reliable

[LiveMusic]

Those who experience less mileage between charges of an EV... I know a guy who has a Tesla and said something along the lines of... he tested the range on a road trip (I think it was about 300 miles), but a road trip where he had plenty of charging options. And the range was much less than promoted. I don't recall how he found out, who he got the info from, but the bottom line was his understanding of it is that his vehicle (or some other he was talking about, don't recall) uses regenerative braking and if you are on a road trip, you are not braking much at all. And that this reduces the range. If lots of in-the-city driving, it's better.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by imwjl

......


We get those as Toyota dealer loaners, have associates with them. They are good but I would buy another Outback first. The Outbacks center of gravity, traction and space are best for our needs. I drive off road a lot but also don't want a pickup or bigger SUV again. I will for sure watch for a next gen RAV4 too. It with the current Outback are getting aged and due for new generation models.

......

The only "off road" we do is pulling into our driveway

[fitness1]

Brace yourself - a good friend of mine was in line for a Rivian pickup and was told a similar timeline - in 4-5 months he got a call and went to Detroit (I believe) to pick it up.

I got a ride in it a couple months back - pretty impressive.

And obviously VERY, VERY quick.

[imwjl]

I will guess our ops director drives his original Rivian in a way between how car testers do and something optimal.

It's not everyone but many are really off base for the overall topic. In one of the most EVs sold counties in the nation we do not see any of the disasters people with their strings pulled by pundits or too much faux news evidently see. It's not exactly commensurate but our delivery fleet uses more gasoline and diesel fuel when it is cold too.

We're aiming to have one vehicle ideal for long distances we travel and one ideal for most driving that is chasing in and between metro areas. More worry than any of this is what we have now remaining reliable and no major expenses in the next 1-2 years.

[LAPlayer]

Originally Posted by Murphy Slaw

I've often wondered what someone might buy if they stole my phone and chopped off my thumb, maybe a few fingers, or even my face.

Often wondered this you say........??? Hmmmmm 🫣

[KevinH]

Originally Posted by RP

Just curious, those of you who are buying EVs do you install a charging station at your homes? If so, what does that add to the bottom line of these vehicles?

I had a Level 2 charger installed at my house after buying my first EV. Our local utility offered a $600 rebate. It ended up costing a few hundred $. That cost was recouped in the first few months of driving because I only pay about 1/6th the fuel cost/mi, compared to my 30MPG Subaru. Charging at home is definitely the way to go, assuming you have a place and the power capacity to install one.

[KevinH]

It depends on how one drives as well. As with any vehicle, aggressive driving, or high speeds on the freeway will kill the mileage. Here is a graph of data I collected on my Hyundai Kona EV for the 2+ yrs I owned it:

k.jpg

The vertical axis is the range (miles) if one were to use the full battery. Blue points are when I was driving mostly around town. Orange is freeway driving on road trips. Overall, city driving gave a little more range, but there were times when the opposite was true.

It surprised my how much the range varied through the seasons. In the winter, when the temps were around freezing, the range was 200 miles. In the summer, when we're usually below 90F, we got 350 miles. If I average over all those data I got very close to the quoted 270 miles range. I'm sure if I lived in a colder, or warmer climate, I would have got worse, or better than that.

Originally Posted by LiveMusic

Those who experience less mileage between charges of an EV... I know a guy who has a Tesla and said something along the lines of... he tested the range on a road trip (I think it was about 300 miles), but a road trip where he had plenty of charging options. And the range was much less than promoted. I don't recall how he found out, who he got the info from, but the bottom line was his understanding of it is that his vehicle (or some other he was talking about, don't recall) uses regenerative braking and if you are on a road trip, you are not braking much at all. And that this reduces the range. If lots of in-the-city driving, it's better.

[TomB'sox]

Originally Posted by imwjl

I will guess our ops director drives his original Rivian in a way between how car testers do and something optimal.

It's not everyone but many are really off base for the overall topic. In one of the most EVs sold counties in the nation we do not see any of the disasters people with their strings pulled by pundits or too much faux news evidently see. It's not exactly commensurate but our delivery fleet uses more gasoline and diesel fuel when it is cold too.

We're aiming to have one vehicle ideal for long distances we travel and one ideal for most driving that is chasing in and between metro areas. More worry than any of this is what we have now remaining reliable and no major expenses in the next 1-2 years.

If this is directed at me, my apologies, just trying to help as we have 3 years of EV experience.

[TomB'sox]

Originally Posted by RP

Just curious, those of you who are buying EVs do you install a charging station at your homes? If so, what does that add to the bottom line of these vehicles?

We did not as my wife works every other day. This gives us time to "trickle" charge it on 110. It gains 7 miles for every hour it is plugged in and pulls 1.8 KWH from our solar grid. I have a meter that allows me to see this. If we keep it plugged in over night, so 12 hours, it takes about 24 kwh or roughly $2.64 cents for 84 miles worth of driving. If you need to drive everyday, I would definitely go with a 220 charger and those are anywhere from 500 to 1200 installed. Interestingly, it is healthier for the battery to charge low and slow, so all the people trying to find the fast chargers that give you 80% charge in 30-45 minutes are actually hurting the longevity of the battery, catch 22 I guess.

Originally Posted by KevinH

It depends on how one drives as well. As with any vehicle, aggressive driving, or high speeds on the freeway will kill the mileage. Here is a graph of data I collected on my Hyundai Kona EV for the 2+ yrs I owned it:

Attachment 105261

The vertical axis is the range (miles) if one were to use the full battery. Blue points are when I was driving mostly around town. Orange is freeway driving on road trips. Overall, city driving gave a little more range, but there were times when the opposite was true.

It surprised my how much the range varied through the seasons. In the winter, when the temps were around freezing, the range was 200 miles. In the summer, when we're usually below 90F, we got 350 miles. If I average over all those data I got very close to the quoted 270 miles range. I'm sure if I lived in a colder, or warmer climate, I would have got worse, or better than that.

Hello fellow Kona EV owner. We had the battery pack completely replaced at 20,000 miles due to a warranty recall. The new battery seems to have a larger capacity than the original as a full charge for us now is about 325 miles where it is rated at 257. A lot as you say depends on your driving and the conditions. She drives mostly highway to work, but also some winding hilly roads.

Straight thruway at 70 miles per hour eats through the battery much faster then anything else so long trips I would not expect better then 220 to 240 miles. Fortunately we have a ICE vehicle for those instances.

[LAPlayer]

Originally Posted by RP

Just curious, those of you who are buying EVs do you install a charging station at your homes? If so, what does that add to the bottom line of these vehicles?

No EV yet but we have the upcoming install scheduled with our utility company in the imminent future. I want to have the charging capability when I decide to make the leap.

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

If this is directed at me, my apologies, just trying to help as we have 3 years of EV experience.

No, I made a quick post before joining 3 friends with another variable range scenario - bicycles. Our range was better without 3 others known for always stopping at a particular country micro brewery, live music and farm to table food business.

It seems easy to understand some hesitation or reservations people have if they are without any EV experience, and even more when I catch all the pundit sorts of hype that gets amplified.

I can make some sarcastic comments or have that eye roll, face slap reaction because lots of associates have EVs and we've had (still have) them in the company fleet. Even more having to bite tongue over really misguided and out there stuff in the minds of some.

From the work experience and my city council committee experience I expect EVs to be significant in those areas maybe even more than for personal use. This morning's local news is 7 more and a new type electric bus arrived for the BRT system, and another electric fire truck is due. I have to spend more time at our stores this week so I'll likely see the electric trucks that make deliveries.

It surprised me that some are not seeking the Maytag washing machines like the link below. Why don't we still have them for sale if electrification is so bad?

[fazool]

Originally Posted by imwjl

I bought a car with my fingerprint (sort of).

My wife and I bought a house online. Really.

Crazy story - our daughter needed a place to live during a one year clinical rotations assignment. She was out of the country and we were helping her pick a place. I figured if we lose an amount equal to one year's worth of rent charges we would be even. So we shopped for a really, really, really inexpensive starter house.

Found a wonderful realtor in the destination state.

He sent my wife pictures in email. She called me while I was in an airport traveling for work. She's got great judgment so I had no qualms and she pulled the trigger - sight unseen.

Buying a guitar (or a car) that way can be nerve wracking. Buying a house was pretty exhilarating. Worked out well - we actually remodeled and made a teeny tiny profit so we were better than whole.

Who would have thought there'd be a day you buy a car with a fingerprint or a house online shopping............

[Gitfiddlemann]

Originally Posted by imwjl

It seems easy to understand some hesitation or reservations people have if they are without any EV experience, and even more when I catch all the pundit sorts of hype that gets amplified.

I can make some sarcastic comments or have that eye roll, face slap reaction because lots of associates have EVs and we've had (still have) them in the company fleet. Even more having to bite tongue over really misguided and out there stuff in the minds of some.

It surprised me that some are not seeking the Maytag washing machines like the link below. Why don't we still have them for sale if electrification is so bad?

It's really not apples to apples, though is it?

I think most people are not anti-EV. But just for the sake of argument, how do you defend these charts below, if you don't have a charger at home?
I mean, who has that kind of time to spend charging a car at a charging station, compared to how long it takes to fill up with gas? And that's if, you're first in line. How do you handle being second in line, when the first person still has an hour to go to charge? What if you have kids in the car or pets? Or live in a really cold climate when it's time to charge? Do all stations offer high speed 1000VDC charging? I find that hard to believe.
Even a Tesla and a high powered hookup can take up to an hour to just go max 240 miles under optimal conditions, according to the chart.
No wonder the rental car companies threw in the towel recently. Who wants to deal with that when you're on vacation?
Again, not being argumentative. You've made it clear that you're an enthusiastic supporter and you make good points. But this government data has me thinking the technology and infrastructure still have a long way to go before we're able to seamlessly transition away from conventional cars.
Having a charger at home seems like an absolute must have. But not everyone has one, or can easily make room for one. And it's not cheap.
These are important things to consider if someone is to turn in the gas powered car for an electric solution. Not to mention where to get them fixed if they break down, if not at the dealer who might not be close. It makes me think that some of this helps to explain the market reluctance and non-moving dealer inventories we have witnessed recently. No?

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

I researched the Rivian a little as we have seen a lot of them on the road down here in TX. I have seen no fewer than 20 of them.

They are expensive, but that is an objective consideration. What bothered me more is the test drives done by Car and Driver, they came nowhere near the reported range. I am not talking 50 miles short, I am talking like 30-40% less than the reported range. With the size of the vehicle, that was not a surprise to me.

We have a Hyundia Kona EV for my wife, she loves it and gets over 300 miles range which is more than reported range. I am not telling you to buy one as it is much smaller than you are looking for, but to let you know we do have experience with electric vehicles. Even here in the one week of TX winter where it is in the twenties and thirties, her range drops at least 30 to 50 miles per charge as does turning on the heat.

Bottom line, do not count on getting the reported range as I promise you, you will be disappointed.

Yes where we live consistent cold in the winter is a concern. Starting in Nov thru to March we can get weeks at a time of single digit to teens during the day (currently this morning a balmy 23 F )
Hopefully the battery tech will just get better on that issue