4 ms·

how silly it is that I have to wait for the coolant in the car to warm up before the heater starts blowing hot [EDIT: extended quote to full clause] Dude.

how silly it is that I have to wait for the coolant in the car to warm up before the heater starts blowing hot [EDIT: extended quote to full clause] Dude. The overnight LOW in SF Downtown was 49F, and I doubt anywhere in the Bay Area proper even hit 40F. You need not wait longer than 15 seconds or so to put 'er in gear and go. This isn't Buffalo.

jakemoshenko 9y ago
... the coolant in the car to warm up before the heater starts blowing hot You conveniently truncated the quote to change the issue. If they wanted heat, they have to wait longer than 15s.
- DrScump 9y ago
  I changed the quote to include the entire clause, but the concept still makes no sense to me in a Bay Area context (heck, I'm wearing shorts today). How many EVs produce passenger heat in meaningful amounts immediately (even ignoring the added battery drain), and how much of a burden is 50+-degree in-car temperatures for a few minutes while you're already in outdoor clothing?
  - lscotte 9y ago
    Few - Many electric cars use inefficient electric heat that draws as much battery power as the traction motors. Some have more efficient heat pumps, but not all. Regardless, heat is no more instant in an EV than a conventional vehicle.
    - sitkack 9y ago
      Not to be technically correct, but electric heat is 100% efficient.
      - sgc 9y ago
        A heat pump can be more than 100% efficient in the sense you seem to be talking about. It transfers heat from one area to another, and can bring in more heat to a space than the energy used could produce in heat through a resistive heating element. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_pump https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_pump
        sitkack 9y ago
        I think you were looking for this, http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/heatpump.html http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/heatpump.h...
  - Dylan16807 9y ago
    Sure, in some areas. But it's a pretty annoying drawback when temperatures hover around 0F and the car can't even start defrosting the windshield for 10-15 minutes.
CydeWeys 9y ago
The world isn't SF. Some of us do live in NY, and I can assure you, it does get actually cold here. It's snowing right now for instance.
- masonic 9y ago
  The parent commenter did specifically write that s/he is "here in the SF bay area."
  - CydeWeys 9y ago
    So? The majority of Teslas aren't sold in SF. Having access to instant-on heat, rather than having to wait several minutes for the engine to warm up, is absolutely a benefit in places with cold winters. I'm trying to redirect the conversation back to things that matter. The weather in SF last night doesn't matter, not really; it's just some ephemeral fact, and not even worth arguing about whether someone "needed" instant-on heat for it or not. What matters is electric vehicle models and sales worldwide, which is what the top-level article is about. Tesla is the most popular car manufacturer in Norway. You better believe that they appreciate instant-on heat there (as well as remote start), and that Teslas having these features gives them a competitive advantage.
rconti 9y ago
Does that make it less silly? I'm talking about the principles involved, not my lived experience. If it was merely a matter of being cold, you'd just say "put on another coat". For your information, yes, I fire the car up, put on my seatbelt, close the garage door, put it in gear and go. But even in the mild bay area (it's been around 33-35 most mornings on the peninsula), I'm all the way across town before the coolant temp even comes off the low mark which is 124f, at which point SOME warm air starts coming out of the vents. But again, it's not a comfort complaint, it's a "electric cars make ICE cars seem dated" observation.

jakemoshenko 9y ago

... the coolant in the car to warm up before the heater starts blowing hot You conveniently truncated the quote to change the issue. If they wanted heat, they have to wait longer than 15s.

DrScump 9y ago
I changed the quote to include the entire clause, but the concept still makes no sense to me in a Bay Area context (heck, I'm wearing shorts today). How many EVs produce passenger heat in meaningful amounts immediately (even ignoring the added battery drain), and how much of a burden is 50+-degree in-car temperatures for a few minutes while you're already in outdoor clothing?
- lscotte 9y ago
  Few - Many electric cars use inefficient electric heat that draws as much battery power as the traction motors. Some have more efficient heat pumps, but not all. Regardless, heat is no more instant in an EV than a conventional vehicle.
  - sitkack 9y ago
    Not to be technically correct, but electric heat is 100% efficient.
    - sgc 9y ago
      A heat pump can be more than 100% efficient in the sense you seem to be talking about. It transfers heat from one area to another, and can bring in more heat to a space than the energy used could produce in heat through a resistive heating element. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_pump https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_pump
      - sitkack 9y ago
        I think you were looking for this, http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/heatpump.html http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/heatpump.h...
- Dylan16807 9y ago
  Sure, in some areas. But it's a pretty annoying drawback when temperatures hover around 0F and the car can't even start defrosting the windshield for 10-15 minutes.

CydeWeys 9y ago

The world isn't SF. Some of us do live in NY, and I can assure you, it does get actually cold here. It's snowing right now for instance.

masonic 9y ago
The parent commenter did specifically write that s/he is "here in the SF bay area."
- CydeWeys 9y ago
  So? The majority of Teslas aren't sold in SF. Having access to instant-on heat, rather than having to wait several minutes for the engine to warm up, is absolutely a benefit in places with cold winters. I'm trying to redirect the conversation back to things that matter. The weather in SF last night doesn't matter, not really; it's just some ephemeral fact, and not even worth arguing about whether someone "needed" instant-on heat for it or not. What matters is electric vehicle models and sales worldwide, which is what the top-level article is about. Tesla is the most popular car manufacturer in Norway. You better believe that they appreciate instant-on heat there (as well as remote start), and that Teslas having these features gives them a competitive advantage.

rconti 9y ago

Does that make it less silly? I'm talking about the principles involved, not my lived experience. If it was merely a matter of being cold, you'd just say "put on another coat". For your information, yes, I fire the car up, put on my seatbelt, close the garage door, put it in gear and go. But even in the mild bay area (it's been around 33-35 most mornings on the peninsula), I'm all the way across town before the coolant temp even comes off the low mark which is 124f, at which point SOME warm air starts coming out of the vents. But again, it's not a comfort complaint, it's a "electric cars make ICE cars seem dated" observation.