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According to the article that was a calculation made during interview. The conclusion is Tesla uses much larger batteries than needed for typical usage. You're
by danjoc 9y ago
According to the article that was a calculation made during interview.
The conclusion is Tesla uses much larger batteries than needed for typical usage. You're driving back and forth to work, not across the country. Emissions grow linearly with battery size. The result is excessive but unnecessary pollution.
Your range anxiety is bad for co2 emissions. If you're not just signalling and actually care about co2 emissions, you choose a car with smaller batteries.
- greglindahl 9y agoAnd that conclusion is wrong, because a bigger battery has a longer life... the lifetime of a battery is better thought of as being a number of miles, instead of a number of years.
- danjoc 9y agoA bigger battery results in greater co2 emissions. Over 17 tons in the case of a model s. 8.2 year worth. A Tesla battery has an 8 year shelf life based on Tesla's warranty coverage. Nice spin though. https://forums.tesla.com/forum/forums/battery-technology-guaranteed-8-years-then-what https://forums.tesla.com/forum/forums/battery-technology-gua...
- greglindahl 9y agoHere's some longevity data on real batteries: http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1110149_tesla-model-s-battery-life-what-the-data-show-so-far http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1110149_tesla-model-s-ba... As you can see, the actual lifetime is projected to be a lot more than 8 years for a typical car. Also, please don't post insults like "Nice spin" on Hacker News. Data works a lot better.
- danjoc 9y agoYou're still spinning. Your argument is invalid. You're not making a direct comparison. A direct comparison would ask how much CO2 is generated in the production of an internal combustion engine vehicle. A quick search tells me a similar sized sedan, a Ford Mondeo, produces 17 tons of CO2 in the manufacture process. That's about the same as the battery alone on the Tesla. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/green-living-blog/2010/sep/23/carbon-footprint-new-car https://www.theguardian.com/environment/green-living-blog/20... You're trying to change the subject. That's what spin doctors do. If you find that insulting, try not spinning instead. I find your anti-science spin insulting. Please don't do that.
- greglindahl 9y agoI'm pointing out an error in the article about the effect of battery weight on CO2, and also your error about Tesla battery lifetime. I have no idea what you think this discussion is about! Have fun name-calling on HN!
- namlem 9y agoThe actual life of the cells is much longer than 8 years. It's probably up to double that. Even after the cells degrade to the point where they are no longer useful in cars, they are still perfectly good for stationary storage.
- Fjolsvith 9y agoWhy not grow some greenery on the car to offset the larger batteries, a la Chia Pet? Then you would really be signalling you cared!