High density housing will pretty much soon mean you will be doing some form of public transport, or uber or other such non metered taxi service, where the supplier will have the infrastructure to charge an EV in off peak periods, and thus you will not really need the personal vehicle but will time share. Here where there are long distances, the electric vehicle or hybrid is still a good match, as most people typically do up to 100km in a day maximum, and for longer rare trips you are frankly a lot better off renting a vehicle for that.
If I need to move something big I will just go to the Whynott service station 15km away from me, and rent a "Whynott Rent a Bakkie" for a hourly rate or daily rate. No associated costs with depreciation, servicing, insurance and all you have is the well used Toyota/ Isuzu or Nissan with a full tank of fuel, and when you are finished you drive it back, fill up again at the garage, park it literally 5m away from the pump, go pay with your credit card and away you go. Rent for a month a year and still come out ahead on a rental vehicle.
That's very much a fantasy. Yes, you may not need a car to commute to work everyday if the public transport works because you live in the middle of a large city and have a good paying job (so you can afford renting the car occasionally too). But we are far from public transport being ubiquitous, going everywhere where needed (and not only where there are enough paying clients to make it profitable) and it still doesn't cover long distance travel.
Using "Uber" or renting a car works great in theory - if you are rich enough to be able to afford it. I suggest you visit e.g. one of the Parisian suburbs (which I live some 40minutes from) and tell the people there they should get rid of their old polluting cars and call a taxi/Uber or rent a car. These suburbs or "banlieues" are usually full of blocks of flats, being typically homes of low income families.
Only few of these suburbs are served by train/public transport, so the car is often the only option how to actually get the 10-20km to work. There is also little to no infrastructure there (schools, hospitals, shopping, etc., certainly no car rental or even self-service car sharing - that is only downtown), so again, without a car you are screwed. And most people living in the blocks of flats there are low wage laborers (if they have work at all), so very ill suited to renting a car or taking a taxi to work every day. I guess you haven't checked how much would that actually cost you if you had to take e.g. a 10km commute every day by calling a taxi (or Uber).The low wage workers around these parts have figured out how to avoid needing the cost of owning multiple cars per household, they ride share with other employees to the work site. Each morning you see the planned pickups occurring on their sharp little schedules, stopping no more than a few seconds for the waiting worker before heading off again. Sharing all the costs of fuel, parking, etc makes it much more affordable while still retaining most of the benefits of a direct journey at the required time.
Through my life I've car pooled, caught public transport, used the company bus, walked, cycled, and combined all of those travel modes in various combinations to get to and from work. Not everyone can access public transport but it sure is convenient (and usually cheap) when you can, thats all part of the decision making which should be going in to deciding where to live and work. I wouldn't want to live in an environment where I'm dependent on having a car but some people are happy to choose that for their own reasons.
mainstream? probably not with today's technology, however as a cheap runabout shopping trolley.
when cheap electric cars get recycled as an aluminium can on wheels.
a $15.000 disposable electric production car. that has
less automation = millennials, need to learn how to drive a car,
no power steering, no power windows ,less doors less glass
a 3 door hatchback, no in car entertainment system. that's an extra.
lower gearing 95kmh max speed. = less powerful motors. 80 km range. its a four seat shopping trolley.
Electrics will be fairly niche for the foreseeable future barring some drastic price drop (don't see that happening bar a new battery innovation), massive government subsidies, or a huge oil shock.
Convenience is everything to most people. You simply can't beat topping up a tank with 500km+ range in a couple of minutes at a petrol station every couple of square km.
Imagine what would be needed if say 80% of the population switched to electric cars overnight, you wouldn't be able to find a spare charging port anywhere.
And even if they replaced every current petrol pump with an electric charger (ignoring grid infrastructure issues etc), you still wouldn't be able to find a spare charging port anywhere because people would need to leave their cars there for much longer than currently available.
I imagine that once people with an electric car have to experience having to wait 15-20 min at a charging station for a "quick top up", they will likely regret buying one.
After a few hours of driving someone needs to have break for at least 20-30 minutes anyway, which is enough to super charge your car for something like 90% or so.
After a few hours of driving someone needs to have break for at least 20-30 minutes anyway, which is enough to super charge your car for something like 90% or so.Only if you drive alone. My wife and I take turns driving and changing takes a few minutes max.
mainstream? probably not with today's technology, however as a cheap runabout shopping trolley.
(...)
tesla designs are too up market. to expensive to be mainstream.
if you can afford a tesla you can also afford a 4x4 suv with towing capacity.
After a few hours of driving someone needs to have break for at least 20-30 minutes anyway, which is enough to super charge your car for something like 90% or so.Only if you drive alone. My wife and I take turns driving and changing takes a few minutes max.I guess personal preference. Most people I know really would like to take a break after a couple of hours.
But again, the biggest part of how traffic is being used it not for these few holiday trips, but for commuting to work.
We have to solve the underlying issue first.
That already exists and is called a golf cart. I've seen these being used for just what you describe.
After a few hours of driving someone needs to have break for at least 20-30 minutes anyway, which is enough to super charge your car for something like 90% or so.Only if you drive alone. My wife and I take turns driving and changing takes a few minutes max.I guess personal preference. Most people I know really would like to take a break after a couple of hours.
But again, the biggest part of how traffic is being used it not for these few holiday trips, but for commuting to work.True it is personal preference. Taking a 20 to 30 minute break every 2 hours would make a trip very longwinded for us. With breaks that long you also arrive much later at the hotel (or other destination) which just cuts into dinner time and/or sleep time.
As several have written before: most people buy a car based on 1% of their usage scenario because they can't have multiple cars for several reasons (purchase price, taxes, parking space, etc). This makes the 'most trips are commutes' point completely moot because that is not the driving factor when buying a car. For example when people tow a caravan once or twice a year they look for a car which is up to that task and it is number one on their requirement list.
After a few hours of driving someone needs to have break for at least 20-30 minutes anyway, which is enough to super charge your car for something like 90% or so.Only if you drive alone. My wife and I take turns driving and changing takes a few minutes max.I guess personal preference. Most people I know really would like to take a break after a couple of hours.
But again, the biggest part of how traffic is being used it not for these few holiday trips, but for commuting to work.True it is personal preference. Taking a 20 to 30 minute break every 2 hours would make a trip very longwinded for us. With breaks that long you also arrive much later at the hotel (or other destination) which just cuts into dinner time and/or sleep time.
As several have written before: most people buy a car based on 1% of their usage scenario because they can't have multiple cars for several reasons (purchase price, taxes, parking space, etc). This makes the 'most trips are commutes' point completely moot because that is not the driving factor when buying a car. For example when people tow a caravan once or twice a year they look for a car which is up to that task and it is number one on their requirement list.Which neatly brings us right back to the point that when you're travelling long distances there is usually more than one person in the car so their "daily" car doesn't need to have those capabilities. Either you're both needing to travel long distances independently at which point charging while taking breaks is a good idea, or you're travelling with another person who isn't using their vehicle and you can pick the most appropriate for the particular journey.
After a few hours of driving someone needs to have break for at least 20-30 minutes anyway, which is enough to super charge your car for something like 90% or so.Only if you drive alone. My wife and I take turns driving and changing takes a few minutes max.I guess personal preference. Most people I know really would like to take a break after a couple of hours.
But again, the biggest part of how traffic is being used it not for these few holiday trips, but for commuting to work.True it is personal preference. Taking a 20 to 30 minute break every 2 hours would make a trip very longwinded for us. With breaks that long you also arrive much later at the hotel (or other destination) which just cuts into dinner time and/or sleep time.
As several have written before: most people buy a car based on 1% of their usage scenario because they can't have multiple cars for several reasons (purchase price, taxes, parking space, etc). This makes the 'most trips are commutes' point completely moot because that is not the driving factor when buying a car. For example when people tow a caravan once or twice a year they look for a car which is up to that task and it is number one on their requirement list.Which neatly brings us right back to the point that when you're travelling long distances there is usually more than one person in the car so their "daily" car doesn't need to have those capabilities. Either you're both needing to travel long distances independently at which point charging while taking breaks is a good idea, or you're travelling with another person who isn't using their vehicle and you can pick the most appropriate for the particular journey.I my situation it doesn't work that way. It can depend on all kind of things like needing a repair (car temporary out of order), the car needs to be washed, there is still has some luggage inside, different kind/state of tyres, not wanting to make too many kilometers with one particular car to postpone purchase, etc, etc which car gets used most.
Having 1.5 cars instead of 2 will limit your freedom no matter how you turn it around. The article you linked to earlier states that very clear. And need I remind you people buy cars based on 1% of their usage scenario so how likely is it they are going to adapt? If they would be willing to adapt they would already have bought a smaller (cheaper & more limited) car. Ergo your assumption people want to 'make do' with an electric go-kart is wrong because there is a distinct difference between 'can do' and 'willing to do'.
We can all come up with little personal and individual reasons.
The way how the market works is look at the bigger numbers.
Like I said before, how are most cars being used and how can you cut the most significant number from that.
90% of all cars are being used by just one person only (yes, using a >1000kg machine to move 70kg person)
We can all come up with little personal and individual reasons.
The way how the market works is look at the bigger numbers.
Like I said before, how are most cars being used and how can you cut the most significant number from that.
90% of all cars are being used by just one person only (yes, using a >1000kg machine to move 70kg person)What you see nowadays is that electric cars get bought by people to whom an electric car is beneficial. Saying that an electric car works for nearly everyone with the big IF they change the way they use the car is just plain wrong. In such a situation an electric car basically gets degraded to a make-do crutch and is similar to advising people to use a horse & carriage instead of a proper car. If you look on car related fora at why people buy a certain car the 1% usage scenario is at the top of the requirements list so a car which can't do what is important to the buyer isn't going to fit the requirements. It is as simple as that. Nearly good enough isn't good enough.
All in all let the market do its job indeed and when better/cheaper/more versatile electric cars become available more people will buy them.
However, in the UK at least, now is probably the best time to drive an electric car because of low second-hand prices and substantial running cost savings compared to a petrol or diesel vehicle. My 2015 Nissan LEAF saves me around £2000 ukp per year compared to my previous diesel car and is far more suited to the daily commute, it's the closest thing to free driving we are ever likely to see.
However, in the UK at least, now is probably the best time to drive an electric car because of low second-hand prices and substantial running cost savings compared to a petrol or diesel vehicle. My 2015 Nissan LEAF saves me around £2000 ukp per year compared to my previous diesel car and is far more suited to the daily commute, it's the closest thing to free driving we are ever likely to see.Most European countries developed a model of massive taxation on transportation fuel to fund their transport infrastructure. They are always going to need that money which current electric car users are saving. As the electric car market grows it will be interesting to see how they try to manage the transition from subsidising electric cars as a stimulus, to clawing enough cash from electric car users to fund the roads.
Think I've said this before but the major issues are:
Not having a dedicated driveway or garage at which to charge the car is a pretty fundamental problem. Many Scottish houses do not, and even the new ones are often built with separate shared parking. The problem there would be that an illegal parker in your space means no use of the car tomorrow.
Not everyone is a commuter. Some people only use their cars for longer distance journeys. Even with a 200 mile range, as soon as you go beyond 100 miles you risk being stranded if there are no charge points. Or if they are all in use.
The cost of a hotel room for an overnight charging stop totally outweighs any fuel cost saving. (and when you consider the extra energy used in an overnight stop, overall energy use is probably more than returning home with an IC engine)
The majority of the car market is for used cars. Buying new is very expensive in terms of depreciation. Used electric cars will be a big gamble due to battery condition questions.
We are constantly being told to turn off lights to save the limited amount of energy provided by renewables. One electric car motor, 2000 lightbulbs or more. No calculator needed for this one. It is simply unsustainable to add transport to the demands placed on renewables.