4 ms·

OTOH electric cars are much simpler than IC cars, so getting one running again in 70 years will probably be mostly an issue of finding a new battery.

redis_mlc 7y ago
> OTOH electric cars are much simpler than IC cars Unfortunately, not in the case of Tesla. Every subsystem is a computer, even the door handles. Also, the battery is at the wheel level, so Teslas are more prone to flood damage than any other car. If you buy a Tesla, get a warranty.
ChuckNorris89 6y ago
Electric cars are simpler mechanically, but electronically much more complex and electronics can fail super easily, as in not necessarily the hardware itself but the firmware controlling it has no idea how to account for 70 years worth of decay to the mechanical components so it'll probably not let you run it until you visit a service and have if reset with the manufacturer's proprietary tools with DRM and online connectivity. Good luck sourcing those in 70 years. A Tesla Model 3 suffered a catastrophic failure while parked[1], I have no idea how people expect them to last 70 years in storage. That's not just a Tesla issue BTW, but all modern cars with too many computers. OTOH, old school ICE cars are much simpler to get started if they've been sitting for 70 years. Replace battery, sparkplugs, fluids, gaskets and any other rubber bits and flip the ignition. Done. [1] https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30361800/tesla-model-3-long-term-failure-stranded-while-parked/ https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30361800/tesla-model-3-lo...
driverdan 6y ago
I downvoted you because the complexity of the software and electronics in a modern electric car is much higher than an old ICE car. The source code is private, schematics are hard or impossible to get, and replacement chips can't be fabbed at home like metal engine parts.
- dreamcompiler 6y ago
  Fair enough, but I was also assuming that integrated circuits wouldn't wear out from sitting in a cow pasture quite as fast as a steel engine block would. Software doesn't rust. Then again maybe I'm being naive. Lightning strikes happen, power supply glitches happen, and the lack of schematics and source code would indeed be a huge barrier to debugging. Unless somebody develops AI-enabled JTAG reverse-engineering systems in the future.
  - Moru 6y ago
    Software does not rust but the board it sits on does. Not to mention we still haven't managed to create any longterm storage that does not loose data...

redis_mlc 7y ago

> OTOH electric cars are much simpler than IC cars Unfortunately, not in the case of Tesla. Every subsystem is a computer, even the door handles. Also, the battery is at the wheel level, so Teslas are more prone to flood damage than any other car. If you buy a Tesla, get a warranty.

ChuckNorris89 6y ago

Electric cars are simpler mechanically, but electronically much more complex and electronics can fail super easily, as in not necessarily the hardware itself but the firmware controlling it has no idea how to account for 70 years worth of decay to the mechanical components so it'll probably not let you run it until you visit a service and have if reset with the manufacturer's proprietary tools with DRM and online connectivity. Good luck sourcing those in 70 years. A Tesla Model 3 suffered a catastrophic failure while parked[1], I have no idea how people expect them to last 70 years in storage. That's not just a Tesla issue BTW, but all modern cars with too many computers. OTOH, old school ICE cars are much simpler to get started if they've been sitting for 70 years. Replace battery, sparkplugs, fluids, gaskets and any other rubber bits and flip the ignition. Done. [1] https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30361800/tesla-model-3-long-term-failure-stranded-while-parked/ https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30361800/tesla-model-3-lo...

driverdan 6y ago

I downvoted you because the complexity of the software and electronics in a modern electric car is much higher than an old ICE car. The source code is private, schematics are hard or impossible to get, and replacement chips can't be fabbed at home like metal engine parts.

dreamcompiler 6y ago
Fair enough, but I was also assuming that integrated circuits wouldn't wear out from sitting in a cow pasture quite as fast as a steel engine block would. Software doesn't rust. Then again maybe I'm being naive. Lightning strikes happen, power supply glitches happen, and the lack of schematics and source code would indeed be a huge barrier to debugging. Unless somebody develops AI-enabled JTAG reverse-engineering systems in the future.
- Moru 6y ago
  Software does not rust but the board it sits on does. Not to mention we still haven't managed to create any longterm storage that does not loose data...