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Charging an EV takes significantly more time than filling up a gas tank. There are also far more gas stations then electric charging stations. This means a sim

Charging an EV takes significantly more time than filling up a gas tank. There are also far more gas stations then electric charging stations. This means a simple trip like going upstate for the weekend would be hindered by needing to know where and when to charge the car. If the entire trip could be done on a single charge, that is a lot of freedom.

emodendroket 5y ago
Somebody who didn’t need the car for regular errands and commuting probably wouldn’t buy it just for the occasional trip, though, wouldn’t you agree?
- dahfizz 5y ago
  I don't understand the strawman you are trying to construct. Obviously pickup trucks and long range EVs are not for you if you don't need them. That's a non statement. Of course, there are lots of people who do need those things. There are lots of people in the world living in lots of environments that look different than yours.
  - emodendroket 5y ago
    I don’t really think it’s a straw man. If you look into it the vast majority of pickups are used to tow or haul once per year or less. People aren’t actually buying them for practical reasons.
    - dahfizz 5y ago
      Do you have a source? Have you spent time in the Midwestern, Sourthern, or Northeastern parts of the USA? Or is it that you live in the Bay Area, and the few people that own trucks in the Bay Area don't use them much?
      - emodendroket 5y ago
        I have spent less than a week of my life the Bay Area, so you can stop repeating that line. Here is a source: https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-size-pickup-truck-you-need-a-cowboy-costume https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-siz... > And they might also protest that trucks provide capabilities that other vehicles lack. But, as it turns out, a significant portion of truck owners never use their trucks for these capabilities. According to Edwards’ data, 75 percent of truck owners use their truck for towing one time a year or less (meaning, never). Nearly 70 percent of truck owners go off-road one time a year or less. And a full 35 percent of truck owners use their truck for hauling—putting something in the bed, its ostensible raison d’être—once a year or less.
        dahfizz 5y ago
        > And a full 35 percent of truck owners use their truck for hauling—putting something in the bed, its ostensible raison d’être—once a year or less. contradicts >> the vast majority of pickups are used to tow or haul once per year or less. According to your article, 65% of trucks are used for hauling multiple times every year.
        emodendroket 5y ago
        well, you are right, I got that number wrong. I would guess that few of these couldn't also be achieved by, say, minivan with the seats down, given how few trucks have full-size beds (another hint they're not for work).
        zdragnar 5y ago
        I have a truck without a full suze bed and use it for (personal) work at least once a week throughout the year, daily during logging and snow plowing season. I might consider an electric truck, except that even new gas trucks are way outside my budget. It'll be at least a decade or two before even used electric trucks are reasonably priced.
mattlondon 5y ago
There are increasingly more and more chargers everywhere now. Especially 100kw+ rapid chargers are getting more and more common. A lot of the petrol stations here in London now also have multiple 100kw+ chargers. Even when looking at non-exotica every-day vehicles like current-gen nissan leaf you get ~200 miles of range, and can recharge 240mph (more than 4 miles per minute) [1] More recent cars getting launched now (and again, not necessarily exotic brands, but even Hyundai and VW) have even faster charging rates. So even a 15 minute break for the toilet and getting a takeout coffee will give you 60 miles of range. Stop for 45mins for lunch? Add 180 miles of charge, or 3 more hours of driving at 60 when you might want to stop again for a toilet break or to stretch your legs. If you truly need to drive for 7 or 8 hours (400-500 miles at 60) without any kind of significant breaks on a regular basis, then I'd argue that you are probably taking quite a risk to your safety (and those around you - both inside and outside your car) due to tiredness. 1 - https://ev-database.uk/car/1144/Nissan-Leaf-eplus https://ev-database.uk/car/1144/Nissan-Leaf-eplus
- packetlost 5y ago
  That's great, but the USA is an entirely different story. > If you truly need to drive for 7 or 8 hours (400-500 miles at 60) without any kind of significant breaks on a regular basis, then I'd argue that you are probably taking quite a risk to your safety (and those around you - both inside and outside your car) due to tiredness. I've done 350~ mile trips pretty often (about 5 1/2-6 hours) and I usually only stop for 10-15 min to go to the bathroom and fuel up. Driving for a few more hours isn't really that bad, and very common in countries with 10x the square mileage of yours.
  - emodendroket 5y ago
    I have lived here for my whole life and I wouldn’t agree that it’s “very common” to do.
    - dlivingston 5y ago
      It probably depends where in the country you are. Here in New Mexico, I make > 4 hour drives at least twice a month, and most people I know have similar driving habits.
dreamcompiler 5y ago
> Charging an EV takes significantly more time than filling up a gas tank. Not if you use HVDC superchargers. I've taken several cross-country trips in a Tesla and it's not an issue. It takes 20 minutes to recharge and I do so about every 150 miles. Time enough to get out, stretch, pee, buy a snack, get back in your air-conditioned car (climate controls are fully functional while charging), check your email, and then it's time to go.
- turtlebits 5y ago
  Not all EVs charge at the same rate Tesla = 250kW Bolt/Bolt EUV = 50kw Kona EV = 75kw (almost an hour to 80%) Leaf = 100kw
  - dreamcompiler 5y ago
    That's true today. But within 2 years, almost all mainstream EVs will charge quickly. I base this on the experience Tesla, Ford and VW customers are rapidly gaining with HVDC charging and the speed at which Electrify America is getting built out. In two years the only market for EVs that don't have a fast-charge option will be ultra low-cost urban commuter cars. And even then I'm doubtful; cars that can only charge with HVDC might even be cheaper since they don't need an onboard AC/DC converter. Couple that with economies of scale and the car companies might just decide slow-charging cars don't make sense to build.
- listenallyall 5y ago
  > several cross-country trips Which country?
  - dreamcompiler 5y ago
    USA.

emodendroket 5y ago

Somebody who didn’t need the car for regular errands and commuting probably wouldn’t buy it just for the occasional trip, though, wouldn’t you agree?

dahfizz 5y ago
I don't understand the strawman you are trying to construct. Obviously pickup trucks and long range EVs are not for you if you don't need them. That's a non statement. Of course, there are lots of people who do need those things. There are lots of people in the world living in lots of environments that look different than yours.
- emodendroket 5y ago
  I don’t really think it’s a straw man. If you look into it the vast majority of pickups are used to tow or haul once per year or less. People aren’t actually buying them for practical reasons.
  - dahfizz 5y ago
    Do you have a source? Have you spent time in the Midwestern, Sourthern, or Northeastern parts of the USA? Or is it that you live in the Bay Area, and the few people that own trucks in the Bay Area don't use them much?
    - emodendroket 5y ago
      I have spent less than a week of my life the Bay Area, so you can stop repeating that line. Here is a source: https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-size-pickup-truck-you-need-a-cowboy-costume https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-siz... > And they might also protest that trucks provide capabilities that other vehicles lack. But, as it turns out, a significant portion of truck owners never use their trucks for these capabilities. According to Edwards’ data, 75 percent of truck owners use their truck for towing one time a year or less (meaning, never). Nearly 70 percent of truck owners go off-road one time a year or less. And a full 35 percent of truck owners use their truck for hauling—putting something in the bed, its ostensible raison d’être—once a year or less.
      - dahfizz 5y ago
        > And a full 35 percent of truck owners use their truck for hauling—putting something in the bed, its ostensible raison d’être—once a year or less. contradicts >> the vast majority of pickups are used to tow or haul once per year or less. According to your article, 65% of trucks are used for hauling multiple times every year.
        emodendroket 5y ago
        well, you are right, I got that number wrong. I would guess that few of these couldn't also be achieved by, say, minivan with the seats down, given how few trucks have full-size beds (another hint they're not for work).
        zdragnar 5y ago
        I have a truck without a full suze bed and use it for (personal) work at least once a week throughout the year, daily during logging and snow plowing season. I might consider an electric truck, except that even new gas trucks are way outside my budget. It'll be at least a decade or two before even used electric trucks are reasonably priced.

mattlondon 5y ago

There are increasingly more and more chargers everywhere now. Especially 100kw+ rapid chargers are getting more and more common. A lot of the petrol stations here in London now also have multiple 100kw+ chargers. Even when looking at non-exotica every-day vehicles like current-gen nissan leaf you get ~200 miles of range, and can recharge 240mph (more than 4 miles per minute) [1] More recent cars getting launched now (and again, not necessarily exotic brands, but even Hyundai and VW) have even faster charging rates. So even a 15 minute break for the toilet and getting a takeout coffee will give you 60 miles of range. Stop for 45mins for lunch? Add 180 miles of charge, or 3 more hours of driving at 60 when you might want to stop again for a toilet break or to stretch your legs. If you truly need to drive for 7 or 8 hours (400-500 miles at 60) without any kind of significant breaks on a regular basis, then I'd argue that you are probably taking quite a risk to your safety (and those around you - both inside and outside your car) due to tiredness. 1 - https://ev-database.uk/car/1144/Nissan-Leaf-eplus https://ev-database.uk/car/1144/Nissan-Leaf-eplus

packetlost 5y ago
That's great, but the USA is an entirely different story. > If you truly need to drive for 7 or 8 hours (400-500 miles at 60) without any kind of significant breaks on a regular basis, then I'd argue that you are probably taking quite a risk to your safety (and those around you - both inside and outside your car) due to tiredness. I've done 350~ mile trips pretty often (about 5 1/2-6 hours) and I usually only stop for 10-15 min to go to the bathroom and fuel up. Driving for a few more hours isn't really that bad, and very common in countries with 10x the square mileage of yours.
- emodendroket 5y ago
  I have lived here for my whole life and I wouldn’t agree that it’s “very common” to do.
  - dlivingston 5y ago
    It probably depends where in the country you are. Here in New Mexico, I make > 4 hour drives at least twice a month, and most people I know have similar driving habits.

dreamcompiler 5y ago

> Charging an EV takes significantly more time than filling up a gas tank. Not if you use HVDC superchargers. I've taken several cross-country trips in a Tesla and it's not an issue. It takes 20 minutes to recharge and I do so about every 150 miles. Time enough to get out, stretch, pee, buy a snack, get back in your air-conditioned car (climate controls are fully functional while charging), check your email, and then it's time to go.

turtlebits 5y ago
Not all EVs charge at the same rate Tesla = 250kW Bolt/Bolt EUV = 50kw Kona EV = 75kw (almost an hour to 80%) Leaf = 100kw
- dreamcompiler 5y ago
  That's true today. But within 2 years, almost all mainstream EVs will charge quickly. I base this on the experience Tesla, Ford and VW customers are rapidly gaining with HVDC charging and the speed at which Electrify America is getting built out. In two years the only market for EVs that don't have a fast-charge option will be ultra low-cost urban commuter cars. And even then I'm doubtful; cars that can only charge with HVDC might even be cheaper since they don't need an onboard AC/DC converter. Couple that with economies of scale and the car companies might just decide slow-charging cars don't make sense to build.
listenallyall 5y ago
> several cross-country trips Which country?
- dreamcompiler 5y ago
  USA.