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Anecdotally, but in SF I am noticing more and more non-Tesla EVs every day. A lot of Hyundai and Polestar. And of course there are so many Teslas that I wouldn'

Anecdotally, but in SF I am noticing more and more non-Tesla EVs every day. A lot of Hyundai and Polestar. And of course there are so many Teslas that I wouldn't be able to tell if they are gaining market share - that's been true for a while now. Part of me is hopefully there's a quieter future ahead, but I suspect motorcycle drivers will be the last holdouts and they make most of the noise anyway.

photonbeam 3y ago
If the $7500 tax credit applied to motorcycles, I’d buy a Zero SRS in a heartbeat
kylehotchkiss 3y ago
I am also excited for less cars specifically modified to sound like loud farts driving around all night!
- floren 3y ago
  It's kinda beautiful that my Volkswagen electric SUV with the baby seat in the back can out-accelerate most any farty angry-headlights car. It'll never look as good as my old Studebaker, but by god it'll outrun all but the hottest of rods that car to rev their engine at a stoplight.
  - winrid 3y ago
    The ID4's 0-60 is 7.something seconds. An early 2000s VW GTI ($3000?) with a mild tune is faster.
    - gnicholas 3y ago
      Perhaps, but when you're driving an ID4 and riding on a high horse, you get an extra boost.
    - floren 3y ago
      All I know is that I hear a hell a lot of noise behind me. Maybe the point is to make it sound like you're working really hard but not actually go fast, I've kinda checked out of car culture.
      - serf 3y ago
        > I've kinda checked out of car culture. well -- with all due respect -- maybe leave comments like the following to people who are into cars. 6.0-7.0 0-60 hasn't been quick for 30+ years. >it'll outrun all but the hottest of rods that car to rev their engine at a stoplight. a 1992 Acura Legend will run a 7.6, a BMW 530i from 05 will run a 6.7, a 1999 Ford Mustang will run a 5.4. Not that it matters in the very least bit, i'm glad you're happy with the car -- just don't bother with the 'quickness' comparisons. Decibel comparisons? go wild. food for thought : a sibling has a very loud modified Honda that is obnoxious as hell. He drives slowly everywhere he goes , but by every indication all the traffic near him thinks that they're in a race with him just by virtue of his car being so damn loud as if it were racing. Maybe something similar?
    - r00fus 3y ago
      I out-accelerated a Porsche boxter in my ford focus EV with similar or worse acceleration stats to the ID.4 We were neck&neck but then he had to shift out of first. 0-60 is one measure but in city driving the 0-30 is even more relevant.
      - deleted 3y ago
        [deleted]
      - winrid 3y ago
        Bad driver :)
- zdragnar 3y ago
  Funny, last time I was in a place where night time loud cars were a problem, it was the stupidly loud music that was more an issue. Sadly, I doubt that switching to EVs will fix that.
  - WWLink 3y ago
    In my LA neighborhood, it's trucks with mud tires and old german cars modified to go POP POP POP that annoy me the most. Loud exhaust is a very very close third. Loud diesel being first. Followed by V6s lol. I don't understand people who put straight pipes on a Jeep Wrangler with a V6. I just don't. I have a Jeep Wrangler with a V6 and the engine sounds fine with the stock exhaust - in fact with the JLs I think that's the ONLY way they sound good. I think every third party wrangler exhaust sounds awful.
rossjudson 3y ago
EV technology is pretty much "there", for day to day living. What I'm looking forward to is (what I hope will be) an explosion of creativity in EV design. Once the base platforms are there for 3rd parties to build on and people don't care about squeezing out every last mile of range (because it doesn't matter), cheaper and more fun cars will emerge.
- ok_dad 3y ago
  I can’t wait for the first cheap EV sports car, like an MX-5, gt86, or similar size. It would be cool if you could design one with an h pattern, for the driving fun, but I’m sure it’s not necessary. It better be cheap and no frills, too, as I don’t need any tech other than a good EV drivetrain and 150 miles of charge.
  - Retric 3y ago
    Range tanks when you’re having fun, and batteries last longer with longer range cars. I’m hoping for a small sub 30k car with decent handling and 320+ miles of EPA range fairly soon. But I suspect that would seriously hurt Model 3 sales so I doubt Tesla’s going down that route anytime soon.
    - bryanlarsen 3y ago
      The main Model 3 is pretty much there already? $40k base price, -$7500 for the rebate, -$5000 for picking an inventory model. That's well below your $30k for the 250 mile variant, and not much above for the 320. And prices will continue to steadily drop all year. I'm fairly sure Tesla will prefer to sacrifice margin to maintain volume.
      - deleted 3y ago
        [deleted]
      - Retric 3y ago
        Tesla’s price is bouncing all over the place but the quote I just got from there website for a long range Model 3 = Vehicle Price $47,740 + Destination fee + $1,390 + Order Fee + $250 = $49,380. That’s the price people are generally using for comparisons. If they built a car without any self driving hardware or gimmicks like electronically controlled vents, and didn’t charge a large premium for larger batteries they could get much closer, but that’s not their business model.
echelon 3y ago
Opposite side of the country, but Atlanta is absolutely chock full of Rivian. They're everywhere.
m463 3y ago
I've seen electric motorcycles for a few years now. Not too many. Honestly, they don't sound that great, sort of like a loud R/C car. One friend got a zero recently. He told me it goes 0-60 under 2 seconds, which I don't know if is is BS or not. But most of these motorcycles are "off-brand", even zero had not-great tires. Even Harley had a bike, but I don't think it sold well. Now that the major japanese/etc brands are paying attention to electric bikes, I think the market might expand. and I thought telsa was going to make a 4-wheeler.
- jpgvm 3y ago
  I love EVs but electric motorcycles are struggling because they are trying to replicate the luxury car model Tesla used which simply doesn't apply as well to motorcycles. Big and expensive motorcycles are more about the badge/history/"character" than they are about function. You have to move down the value chain to find opportunities for new entrants where function plays a bigger role in the purchasing decision. Not to mention bikes that appeal to and are affordable by riders that don't already have that badge affiliation. Unlike most people's relationship with their car a motorcycle is inherently a more emotional connection because the experience is much more visceral. Doubly so at the expensive end where you have big cruiser daddy's on their Harley's or middle aged men buying a Ducati or trying to be "adventurous" on their BMW GSA. These buyers all bought those bikes because of the emotion they evoke but also what other people think when they see that bike. IMO electric needs to conquer scooters first. Then ship a bike like the NC750X which is an astoundingly boring but perfect bike for commuting. These are the areas without all that inertia to overcome and where you can prove out the power plant and batteries with riders that will appreciate the functional benefit without belittling the sound and lack of character etc. I currently ride a CB500X if anything riders like me are the best bet for sales after the NC750X crowd. I have my bike configured as a mini-tourer with pannier bags, top box etc. I get great range of around 450kms per tank (around 280 miles) which for the long distance trips it's set-up for is adequate. Considering I got my bike used for less than $3k and maintenance on it is less than $200/yr it's a hard sell to move to electric from a financial perspective. For a brand new bike I don't think I could justify more than $10k USD for something that can do the same thing and unless it was made by Honda or Yamaha I would be making a huge sacrifice in terms of dealership network, reputation for reliability and resale value.

photonbeam 3y ago

If the $7500 tax credit applied to motorcycles, I’d buy a Zero SRS in a heartbeat

kylehotchkiss 3y ago

I am also excited for less cars specifically modified to sound like loud farts driving around all night!

floren 3y ago
It's kinda beautiful that my Volkswagen electric SUV with the baby seat in the back can out-accelerate most any farty angry-headlights car. It'll never look as good as my old Studebaker, but by god it'll outrun all but the hottest of rods that car to rev their engine at a stoplight.
- winrid 3y ago
  The ID4's 0-60 is 7.something seconds. An early 2000s VW GTI ($3000?) with a mild tune is faster.
  - gnicholas 3y ago
    Perhaps, but when you're driving an ID4 and riding on a high horse, you get an extra boost.
  - floren 3y ago
    All I know is that I hear a hell a lot of noise behind me. Maybe the point is to make it sound like you're working really hard but not actually go fast, I've kinda checked out of car culture.
    - serf 3y ago
      > I've kinda checked out of car culture. well -- with all due respect -- maybe leave comments like the following to people who are into cars. 6.0-7.0 0-60 hasn't been quick for 30+ years. >it'll outrun all but the hottest of rods that car to rev their engine at a stoplight. a 1992 Acura Legend will run a 7.6, a BMW 530i from 05 will run a 6.7, a 1999 Ford Mustang will run a 5.4. Not that it matters in the very least bit, i'm glad you're happy with the car -- just don't bother with the 'quickness' comparisons. Decibel comparisons? go wild. food for thought : a sibling has a very loud modified Honda that is obnoxious as hell. He drives slowly everywhere he goes , but by every indication all the traffic near him thinks that they're in a race with him just by virtue of his car being so damn loud as if it were racing. Maybe something similar?
  - r00fus 3y ago
    I out-accelerated a Porsche boxter in my ford focus EV with similar or worse acceleration stats to the ID.4 We were neck&neck but then he had to shift out of first. 0-60 is one measure but in city driving the 0-30 is even more relevant.
    - deleted 3y ago
      [deleted]
    - winrid 3y ago
      Bad driver :)
zdragnar 3y ago
Funny, last time I was in a place where night time loud cars were a problem, it was the stupidly loud music that was more an issue. Sadly, I doubt that switching to EVs will fix that.
- WWLink 3y ago
  In my LA neighborhood, it's trucks with mud tires and old german cars modified to go POP POP POP that annoy me the most. Loud exhaust is a very very close third. Loud diesel being first. Followed by V6s lol. I don't understand people who put straight pipes on a Jeep Wrangler with a V6. I just don't. I have a Jeep Wrangler with a V6 and the engine sounds fine with the stock exhaust - in fact with the JLs I think that's the ONLY way they sound good. I think every third party wrangler exhaust sounds awful.

rossjudson 3y ago

EV technology is pretty much "there", for day to day living. What I'm looking forward to is (what I hope will be) an explosion of creativity in EV design. Once the base platforms are there for 3rd parties to build on and people don't care about squeezing out every last mile of range (because it doesn't matter), cheaper and more fun cars will emerge.

ok_dad 3y ago
I can’t wait for the first cheap EV sports car, like an MX-5, gt86, or similar size. It would be cool if you could design one with an h pattern, for the driving fun, but I’m sure it’s not necessary. It better be cheap and no frills, too, as I don’t need any tech other than a good EV drivetrain and 150 miles of charge.
- Retric 3y ago
  Range tanks when you’re having fun, and batteries last longer with longer range cars. I’m hoping for a small sub 30k car with decent handling and 320+ miles of EPA range fairly soon. But I suspect that would seriously hurt Model 3 sales so I doubt Tesla’s going down that route anytime soon.
  - bryanlarsen 3y ago
    The main Model 3 is pretty much there already? $40k base price, -$7500 for the rebate, -$5000 for picking an inventory model. That's well below your $30k for the 250 mile variant, and not much above for the 320. And prices will continue to steadily drop all year. I'm fairly sure Tesla will prefer to sacrifice margin to maintain volume.
    - deleted 3y ago
      [deleted]
    - Retric 3y ago
      Tesla’s price is bouncing all over the place but the quote I just got from there website for a long range Model 3 = Vehicle Price $47,740 + Destination fee + $1,390 + Order Fee + $250 = $49,380. That’s the price people are generally using for comparisons. If they built a car without any self driving hardware or gimmicks like electronically controlled vents, and didn’t charge a large premium for larger batteries they could get much closer, but that’s not their business model.

echelon 3y ago

Opposite side of the country, but Atlanta is absolutely chock full of Rivian. They're everywhere.

m463 3y ago

I've seen electric motorcycles for a few years now. Not too many. Honestly, they don't sound that great, sort of like a loud R/C car. One friend got a zero recently. He told me it goes 0-60 under 2 seconds, which I don't know if is is BS or not. But most of these motorcycles are "off-brand", even zero had not-great tires. Even Harley had a bike, but I don't think it sold well. Now that the major japanese/etc brands are paying attention to electric bikes, I think the market might expand. and I thought telsa was going to make a 4-wheeler.

jpgvm 3y ago
I love EVs but electric motorcycles are struggling because they are trying to replicate the luxury car model Tesla used which simply doesn't apply as well to motorcycles. Big and expensive motorcycles are more about the badge/history/"character" than they are about function. You have to move down the value chain to find opportunities for new entrants where function plays a bigger role in the purchasing decision. Not to mention bikes that appeal to and are affordable by riders that don't already have that badge affiliation. Unlike most people's relationship with their car a motorcycle is inherently a more emotional connection because the experience is much more visceral. Doubly so at the expensive end where you have big cruiser daddy's on their Harley's or middle aged men buying a Ducati or trying to be "adventurous" on their BMW GSA. These buyers all bought those bikes because of the emotion they evoke but also what other people think when they see that bike. IMO electric needs to conquer scooters first. Then ship a bike like the NC750X which is an astoundingly boring but perfect bike for commuting. These are the areas without all that inertia to overcome and where you can prove out the power plant and batteries with riders that will appreciate the functional benefit without belittling the sound and lack of character etc. I currently ride a CB500X if anything riders like me are the best bet for sales after the NC750X crowd. I have my bike configured as a mini-tourer with pannier bags, top box etc. I get great range of around 450kms per tank (around 280 miles) which for the long distance trips it's set-up for is adequate. Considering I got my bike used for less than $3k and maintenance on it is less than $200/yr it's a hard sell to move to electric from a financial perspective. For a brand new bike I don't think I could justify more than $10k USD for something that can do the same thing and unless it was made by Honda or Yamaha I would be making a huge sacrifice in terms of dealership network, reputation for reliability and resale value.