4 ms·

"Everything I've seen says that isn't the case, that by about 50,000 miles you are in the black compared to an ICE." Yes, perhaps, but that is comparing a new

"Everything I've seen says that isn't the case, that by about 50,000 miles you are in the black compared to an ICE." Yes, perhaps, but that is comparing a new EV to a new ICE. I am talking about keeping your old ICE running vs buying a new EV. That is where the major problem is, and it is a big problem because EVs, and Tesla particularly are marketed as the new must-have gadget. Edit: And people are upgrading earlier than they normally would, due to the hyped and unsubstantiated green credentials of EVs.

mcv 5y ago
Maybe don't immediately trash your perfectly operational ICE car, but if you're ever considering buying a new car, that's probably the moment to switch to EV.
- dTal 5y ago
  You don't trash perfectly operational cars, you sell them. The people who buy them are themselves replacing older, more worn out cars, which they in turn sell for a lower price. Thus it ripples down the line, with the net effect being an increase in supply in the used car market and therefore a reduction in price, which encourages people driving the very oldest, most worn out cars to scrap them and get something better. Those cars are probably not "perfectly operational", but falling to pieces, in constant need of spares and repair, and very likely less efficient. The running cost, and therefore almost certainly the environmental impact, of an old banger is higher than that of a new cars - and for the people driving them, the capital expense of a better car is likely a significant barrier, even though they'd save money in the longer term. So it's not clear that having the richest people upgrade to electric isn't a net positive all the same. tl;dr rich people upgrading to electric is like a privatized "cash for clunkers" scheme.
theluketaylor 5y ago
Engineering Explained covered this is a recent video. tldr while it obviously depends on how much you drive, you need a pretty efficient ICE car for sticking to lower carbon overall. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2IKCdnzl5k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2IKCdnzl5k
- tonyedgecombe 5y ago
  I wonder where plugin hybrids would fit in to those calculations. I can't help feeling that we are squandering our limited battery supply by only using them in full blown EV's.

mcv 5y ago

Maybe don't immediately trash your perfectly operational ICE car, but if you're ever considering buying a new car, that's probably the moment to switch to EV.

dTal 5y ago
You don't trash perfectly operational cars, you sell them. The people who buy them are themselves replacing older, more worn out cars, which they in turn sell for a lower price. Thus it ripples down the line, with the net effect being an increase in supply in the used car market and therefore a reduction in price, which encourages people driving the very oldest, most worn out cars to scrap them and get something better. Those cars are probably not "perfectly operational", but falling to pieces, in constant need of spares and repair, and very likely less efficient. The running cost, and therefore almost certainly the environmental impact, of an old banger is higher than that of a new cars - and for the people driving them, the capital expense of a better car is likely a significant barrier, even though they'd save money in the longer term. So it's not clear that having the richest people upgrade to electric isn't a net positive all the same. tl;dr rich people upgrading to electric is like a privatized "cash for clunkers" scheme.

theluketaylor 5y ago

Engineering Explained covered this is a recent video. tldr while it obviously depends on how much you drive, you need a pretty efficient ICE car for sticking to lower carbon overall. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2IKCdnzl5k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2IKCdnzl5k

tonyedgecombe 5y ago
I wonder where plugin hybrids would fit in to those calculations. I can't help feeling that we are squandering our limited battery supply by only using them in full blown EV's.