There’s no problem so bad that the government can’t complicate it further. ~ Ronald Reagan
Here is why the electric automobile will remain a niche market for the foreseeable future, likely never exceeding 10% of the cars on the road. One of the most unjustifiably hyped innovations of our lifetime is the electric vehicle (EV). The federal government and the state of California are wrong to think that the internal combustion engine is destined to end up in the dustbin of history in the next few decades. It will not happen for many obvious reasons that governments are blind to, and some reasons that are not so obvious.
Jan 09, 2020 · So far, states predict they will be able to sufficiently boost power production. But whether electric vehicles will become an asset
or a liability to the grid largely depends on when drivers charge their cars. Electricity demand fluctuates throughout the day; demand is higher during daytime hours, peaking in the early evening.
North American power transmission grid – Wikipedia
The electrical power grid that powers Northern America is not a single grid,
but is instead divided into multiple wide area synchronous grids.[1] The Eastern Interconnection and the Western Interconnection are the largest. Three other regions include the Texas Interconnection, the Quebec Interconnection, and the Alaska Interconnection.
Each region delivers power at a nominal 60 Hz frequency.
The regions are not usually directly connected or synchronized to each other, but there are some HVDC Interconnectors.
In the United States[2] and Canada,[3] national standards specify that the nominal voltage supplied to the consumer should be 120 V and allow a range of 114 V to 126 V (RMS) (−5% to +5%). Historically 110 V, 115 V and 117 V have been used at different times and places in North America. Mains power is sometimes spoken of as 110 V; however, 120 V is the nominal voltage. The most obvious one is that EVs are so expensive that the average American cannot afford to own one.
Vehicles powered by internal combustion engines will always be significantly cheaper and will transport you much farther. Regardless, EVs can never be produced in the numbers the government wants because of a lack of necessary rare earth elements needed for EV battery production, minerals that are mostly held hostage in China. Fortunately, the situation has improved slightly in recent years, as the below figure shows, but China still has the largest known deposits of rare earths.
In addition, as The Wall Street Journal reported on May 21:
“China is tightening its grip on the global supply of processed manganese, rattling a range of companies worldwide that depend on the versatile metal—including the planet’s biggest electric-vehicle makers. China produces over
90 percent of the world’s manganese products.”
Availability of charging stations will also never be adequate. And the time required to recharge on a long trip will so frustrate most drivers that they will undoubtedly return home and, if they still have one, begin the trip anew with an internal combustion engine-driven car.
The cost of a battery replacement will certainly be a turn-off for many would-be EV owners, as well.
Here are the even less obvious deterrents. If you remain an EV fan after reading about these problems, please write to us and explain why.
We commit to writing another article explaining your point of view.
TESLA
Let’s first get Elon Musk and Tesla out of the way. While he did make many cars in the $40k to $50k range in the past year, Tesla is now and will remain a car for the affluent, with his primary models checking in around $100k. Nevertheless, Musk will always be successful because he really is the smartest person in the room. He is now unbelievably wealthy with a net worth of $156 billion because so many people recognize his brilliance and so buy Tesla stock at nonsensically high values.
BIDEN AND NEWSOME
To support the president’s goal of a nation powered by EVs, on April 22,
the Biden administration announced that $15 billion will be devoted to building a national network of 500,000 charging stations [by 2030], to “increase confidence for drivers that they will always have a charging option when they need it.” Also, embedded in Biden’s proposed $1.7 trillion infrastructure plan is a whopping $174 billion to boost the domestic EV market with tax credits and grants for battery manufacturers, and other incentives.
Things are equally crazy in California, where, on September 23, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order requiring sales of all new passenger vehicles to be zero-emission by 2035.
For the reasons below, running American on EVs cannot happen.
But fear not, Biden and Newsom will be long gone and replaced by more reasonable folks long before the years of their directives come to pass.
AVAILABLE ELECTRICITY
The Laurence Livermore Laboratory of the US Department of Energy states that America’s current electrical generation capacity is 11.4 trillion kilowatt-hours per year. The energy used for transportation today is equivalent to 8.5 trillion kilowatt-hours per year, of which only an infinitesimal part is already electric. Where would the additional power come from? Were all cars to be electric? The same governments in charge plan for no more energy from oil, natural gas, coal, or nuclear. The obvious answer, liberals tell us, is wind and solar power, which currently produce a mere 0.7 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. Where and how will we build enough solar and wind installations to keep us all driving EVs?
We have neither the economic resources nor land area to even consider this.
RANGE
Just as golf carts may be fun and legal to run around your neighborhood if you are inclined, so are electric cars. However, few normal people would want to plan a long trip in one, but let’s try. We will go first class in a Tesla on a trip of 270 miles which only a Tesla can now do on a single charge. It will take us 4.5 hours to drive 270 miles and about 6.5 hours to recharge the battery unless you can find the rare supercharging station. If you cannot, you have brought your average trip speed, including charging time, down to under 25 mph.
Unless you have planned adequately, you will always be driving with what is called range anxiety. But still, they are great in the neighborhood, but they definitely cost more than a golf cart.
MILES PER GALLON
The term mph is disappearing as an advantage when buying an EV.
The reason is that in order to increase the range of EVs, a great deal of extra weight in batteries has had to be added. That has largely canceled the claim to yield less carbon dioxide (CO2) than internal combustion engines. Yet, less CO2 emissions remain the primary selling point for EVs, even though the production of these batteries generates huge amounts of CO2. In fact, because of the greater manufacturing demands of EVs over normal gas-power cars, by the time an EV arrives at the showroom, it has already double the ‘carbon footprint’ of traditional vehicles (although climate campaigners will eventually be concerned about this, we are not—after all, CO2 is wonderful as it is greening our world).
On top of that, everyone seems to assume the energy that flows from the wall or recharging station is free. In fact, back at the power station, someone is burning a lot of coal or natural gas to create it. Perhaps your electric car should more accurately be called a coal or natural gas car. And, oh yes, the tax on your gasoline to keep our roads maintained will soon have to be replaced by a special tax on your electric vehicle registration, and well, it should be.
The United States Power Grid
COLD CLIMATES
The nature of batteries is that they yield less energy in cold climates.
EV owners will all learn this soon enough. Advertised ranges on a fully charged battery will not be achieved. The shortfall will be significant and good luck trying to charge your EV battery overnight if the temperature in your garage gets too low.
THE CALIFORNIA JOKE
California plans to have 25 million EVs in the not-too-distant future.
It already has 50% of the nation’s EVs. Thus far, the utility companies have had little to say about the alarming cost projections or the certain increased power rates that will be required to charge their customers. It is not just the total amount of electricity required, but also the transmission lines and fast charging capacity that must be built at existing filling stations. Neither wind nor solar can support any of it.
To match the 2,000 cars that a typical filling station can service in a busy
12 hours, the station would require 600, 50-watt chargers at an estimated cost of $24 million and a supply of 30 megawatts of power from the grid. That is enough to power 20,000 homes. And, it can take 30 minutes to 8 hours to recharge a vehicle between empty or just topping off. Will charging station hotels have to be built along our highways for drivers awaiting a full recharge?
By the way, the 49 states not named California have the other 50% of EVs, an average of about one percent each. It would appear that those states understand the problems California faces.
USED CAR MARKET
The average used EV will need a new battery, pricing them well above used internal combustion cars. The average age of an American car on the road is
12 years. A 12-year-old EV will be on its third battery. A Tesla battery costs $10,000, so there will not be many 12-year-old EVs on the market.
EVs PER BLOCK IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
A home charging system for a Tesla requires a 75-amp service.
The average house is equipped with 100-amp service. On most suburban streets, the electrical infrastructure would be unable to carry more than three houses, each with a single Tesla. For half the homes on your block to have electric vehicles, the system would be wildly overloaded, or massive electrical infrastructure rebuilds would be required.
BATTERIES
Although the modern lithium-ion battery is four times better than the old lead-acid battery, gasoline still holds 80 times the energy density. The great lithium battery in your cell phone weighs less than an ounce, while the Tesla battery weighs 1,000 pounds.
EMERGENCY VEHICLES MUST CONTINUE TO BE POWERED BY INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
The electric automobile will remain a niche market for the foreseeable future, likely never exceeding 10% of the cars on the road. Automobile manufacturers that are heavily investing in EVs will be very disappointed in their sales. Perhaps they know this and instead will soon make only what they know they can sell. And then President Biden and Governor Newsom’s plans will crumble with the inevitable return of the gasoline-powered vehicle.
In the meantime, consumers who made the leap to EVs will increasingly
find themselves freezing in the dark on the side of remote highways with their EV batteries depleted. If they are lucky, they will be rescued by a tow truck operator who had the common sense to stockpile gasoline and keep their internal combustion engine-driven trucks tuned up and ready to go.
Toyota has no love for pure-electric cars, hence it falling out with Tesla
Motors and the subsequent war of words between the two. Once again, Toyota is declaring that electricity isn’t the fuel of the future, reiterating its belief that hydrogen is the way to go.
This time around, the chief engineer for the Toyota Mirai 2021 fuel cell car,
Yoshikazu Tanaka, made some controversial assertions about why battery-electric cars won’t work in large quantities. Reuters Canada reports that Tanaka said that too many cars charging up will overload the power grid,
which in turn will cause problems for households and businesses.
What about rapid battery charging technology?
Tanaka said it wouldn’t help, because even if you could charge up an electric car in a mere twelve minutes, it would probably be “using up electricity required to power 1,000 houses.”
Tanaka and his employer aren’t anti electric cars, but instead see hydrogen as a more practical fuel source. The only way they’d word is if virtually all electric vehicles were charged at night and weren’t driven very far each day. In reality, some people must drive long distances every day, and not everyone has the ability to charge their car nightly.
Interestingly enough, no mention was made by Tanaka about what role solar panels would play in helping keep up with daytime energy demands.
As Toyota is pushing hydrogen vehicles such as the Mirai, it’s meeting considerable resistance from electric car fans. The company has been accused of “knowing” that electric cars are better, but being part of a worldwide conspiracy, among other outlandish things.
Toyota is an incredibly powerful force in the automotive industry, having single handedly jump started the hybrid powertrain revolution. Now that it’s putting its full weight behind hydrogen fuel cell technology, the question is when not if such vehicles will become common on U.S. roads. Just how mainstream they’ll eventually be is still up in the air.
An important milestone was achieved by Toyota recently as the Mirai was the first fuel cell car to pace a NASCAR race.
Prius Battery Life: Everything You Need to Know
A Toyota Prius’ battery life is not definitive, as it will depend on how far you drive and the conditions that you drive it in. However, the battery does have a warranty, which is good for either 10 years or 150,000 miles in states that have California emissions laws. In all other states, the warranty on your Prius battery is good for 8 years or 100,000 miles. This means that if you need your battery replaced within the warranty period, you can get a new one with no out-of-pocket cost.
Things to Know about the Prius Battery
Driving a Prius will save you a lot of money at the fuel pump, but what
happens when you have to switch out the battery? The warranty is good for at least 8 years, but many people drive their cars much longer than that; especially Toyotas, as they are known for having long lives. So if you own a Prius, it’s likely that, at some point, you will need to replace the battery. This can be very expensive at about $4033 for the new hybrid battery pack. Of course, this is from the Toyota dealership, but a Prius owner from Forbes explains that there is a less expensive option. Buying a reconditioned battery could potentially save you thousands of dollars, and, if you have it installed by a reputable company, there will still be a warranty period. Some people may not feel comfortable installing a reconditioned battery pack, but for the savings you’ll receive, it may be worth looking into.
Benefits of Driving a Prius
Aside from the obvious fuel efficiency, there are many benefits to driving a Toyota Prius. Here are some of the top reasons for owning one:
Spacious interior
Standard safety features
Easy entry and exit
Easy-to-use controls
Good visibility
Up-to-date technology
Plenty of cargo capacity
Responsive steering and handling
In addition, the people at Motorcells say that you’ll likely be able to get at least 200,000 miles of life out of your Prius if you take care of it and stay on top of routine maintenance.
The Prius may look compact from the outside, but anyone riding in the front seats will find plenty of headroom and legroom. And with all its standard and available safety features, you and your passengers will feel safe and secure out on the road. It comes with Toyota Safety Sense, which includes features such as a pre-collision warning and lane departure alert. Getting in and out of this car is a breeze with doors that open wide. There is plenty of clearance so you won’t hit your head on the doorframe when entering and exiting the vehicle.
With all the controls easily accessible from the driver’s seat and clearly labeled, any driver will find this car easy to drive. It even has some of the controls mounted right on the steering wheel to help you keep your eyes on the road. The large front windshield helps to make seeing the road a simple task and the front roof pillars won’t obstruct your view. You’ll find that there’s plenty of cargo room thanks to the 60/40 rear split seats. They can quickly be folded down if you have large items you need to transport.
There are plenty of high-tech options available to go along with this hybrid car. You’ll find an infotainment system with a touch-screen display that has an optional navigation system to help you find your way.
Other technology features include:
USB ports
Bluetooth
Voice-commands
Stereo system
Enjoy the ride in your Prius, thanks to its responsive steering and exceptional handling. The steering responds to your commands naturally, and won’t jerk you around. Feel the quick, secure handling that lets you take on the highway or winding road with confidence.
How Does a Prius Compare to Other Hybrids?
Although the Prius was one of the first widely marketed and popular hybrids, there are many available today in a variety of makes and models. So how does the Prius compare?
First of all, you have to understand that there are two types of hybrid vehicles:
Full hybrids
Plug-in hybrids
The main difference between the two is the way the battery is charged. A full hybrid is charged from a large battery pack that draws power from the gas engine and the brakes. The plug-in versions can be just that, plugged in. They can be charged by plugging them into an outlet for a period of time is what Consumer Reports tells us.
Hybrid vehicles will vary based on the automaker and the features each one provides. Body styles and interior design will also be different depending on the make and trim level you choose. However, the real difference between hybrid vehicles is the battery. You’d be surprised at the differences in this regard. We’ll look at the batteries for the following vehicles to see how they
all compare:
Chevy Bolt EV
Toyota Prius
Lexus RX 400h
Ford Escape
Honda Insight
Nissan LEAF®
Saturn Vue Green Line
A Prius’ battery consists of 28 Panasonic nickel-metal hydride modules.
Each of these contains six 1.2-volt cells says Green Car Reports. They are connected in a series and will produce a total of 201.6 volts. The Lexus RX 400h has a nickel-metal hydride battery that’s packaged in a newly developed metal casing. It has 240 cells that, in conjunction with the boost converter, can deliver up to 500 volts.
On the Ford Escape, you’ll find a battery pack made by Sanyo that contains
250 individual nickel hydride cells explains hybrid CARS. Each cell is in its own stainless steel case.
These are all welded and wrapped together in groups of five, and they produce 1.3 volts.
With the Honda Insight, you get 120 Panasonic nickel hydride D cells that put out 1.2 volts. This allows it a 100 amp discharge and a 50 amp charge rate.
The Saturn Vue Green Line’s battery is made in the United States by Cobasys.
Its nickel-metal hydride battery provides 36 volts and can deliver and receive 14.5 kW of power. Not all hybrids are created equally, and you’ll want to make sure you understand the differences before making your choice. Toyotas are known for being safe, reliable vehicles that can be in the family for generations. Maybe a Prius is in your family’s future.
Prius Hybrid Battery Replacement in Less Than 15 Minutes?
What Happens to EV and Hybrid Batteries? | Edmunds
Sources:
Gore pressed Biden to stick with climate plans as liberals fear White House is softening its agenda (msn.com)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tonybradley/2014/04/09/replacing-a-dead-prius-hybrid-battery-doesnt-have-to-cost-thousands-of-dollars/#581966d93ee9
https://www.consumerreports.org/hybrids-evs/hybrids-101-guide-to-hybrid-cars/
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1059907_the-ultimate-guide-toyota-prius-battery-life-cost-and-warranty
https://www.hybridcars.com/hybrid-car-battery/
https://hybridbatteryrepairservice.com/prius/
The zombie apocalypse is gonna be LIT.
Kid Covid-19 vaccines: 3 takeaways from the FDA’s big meeting – POLITICO
A link between Covid-19 vaccination and a cardiac illness may be getting clearer.
Evidence grows stronger for Covid vaccine link to heart issue, CDC says (msn.com)
Passengers on first fully vaccinated North American cruise test positive for COVID
Idk about zombies but the vaccine will lower men’s sperm count and get women’s menstrual cycle out of whack. Maybe that was the plan to make
it hard for people to have kids. ALSO IT MIGHT pierce & destroy what’s
left of their pineal gland in order to take HUMANITY down. God help us.
I’m watching Walking Dead Full HD Film.