Category Archives: Electric Automobiles

Not in My Lifetime

Posted in Electric Automobiles, Gas vs Electric, Going Green by

The declaration has been made. It has been determinedgames. couple of short decades, maybe a tad more, cars made in the US will not have internal combustion engines. I would argue the point. In fact I have very vigorously. Can’t see how that will happen, but the more I argued the point the less people listened.

So, I have accepted the inevitable. In fact, I bought an electric car. For me, it is really working out well. Considering how little I drive, it is wonderful. About every 4th day, I plug it in and go quietly motoring right by all the gas stations, which brings me to the real object of this post, gas stations.

Can you foresee it, the gradual fading away of something that polkadoted our landscape since, oh, about 1905 or 1910, I guess. Some would have to remain for some gas powered vehicles: trucks, buses, police cars, ambulances, etc, etc, and so forth.

The proverbial gas station will fade, fade away. We can and will likely fight it. However, those ecologist do seem unstoppable.

This means the service station will need to change or go out of business. It makes me wonder what it will be like, though I’ll not ever see it in my lifetime. Oh, I will see a little change here and there. But just how things will be are decades away, maybe longer. To be sure, obstacles will be encountered. Problems will have to be solved.

The way I see it, the biggest problem is charge time. Mostly, it slows the long trip. Let’s say I want to go see the Grand Canyon. It’s around 1500 miles from here. If I have a car that has a 300 mile range, it means at least 5 stops to recharge, more likely 6. That does assume recharge stations are located at ideal spots along the way. Right now, that means each stop must be a minimum of 30 minutes. That does not count time waiting for a charging station. You see that family that left this area 2 minutes before me will get to that charging station before me. That means waiting 30 minutes for him to finish charging his car.

Now, let’s look at the converted recharge station. Instead of 10 pumps, it now has 10 rechargers. Instead of taking 5 minutes to refill a gas tank we’re looking at 30 minutes, six times longer to recharge the cars.

I guess we won’t have as much gas stations, but likely 5 or 6 times as many charging stations.

I suppose this problem might be somewhat resolved with a charging system that is a lot faster. That does, of course, leave those in the future with 2 more problems. Distribution of that much electricity without a big improvement to the grid. The second problem is generating that much electricity without making a bunch of greenhouse gasses.

Frozen EVs

Posted in Electric Automobiles, Going Green by

I have taken note of the stranded Teslas of Chicago. Even before I purchased my Nissan I heard about the problem of charging cold batteries. Maybe it’s worse than I heard of. So far, I have been able to charge my battery on my Nissan from my home, though Entergy has requested we not charge cars during high usage.

However, it would seem if you plan on driving an EV around Chicago, it would appear you should plan on parking it at the end of Nov for a few months.

As I have mentioned in some of my posts earlier, there are a few problems they need to work out yet. I guess frozen batteries is another one, besides, range, charging stations and charging time.

Them, there going green engineers better get it in gear if most of our cars will be electric in 2030. That is 6 years away. Just maybe someone with some common sense will ask for an extension, like maybe 50 years.

Incidentall, I still really love my almost new Nissan EV. But then, I have never driven it more than 50 miles. One thing I noticed, it does seem to handle slickery roads better than anything else I’ve driven with 2 wheel drive.

I Agree

Posted in Abuse of Power, Awkward Situation, Crime, Electectric vehicles, Electric Automobiles, Going Green by

Anytime I get the chance I get the chance, I ask police officers what will happen when they have to go to electric police cars. I do consider it a valid question. According to them that knows, gas cars will all be phased out of existence by 2030.

Every official quickly dismissed my question out of hand. I agree. I don’t think we will go to electric police cars. However, at this point, I see no way to avoid it. If Detroit stops building internal combustion engines, I see but 2 ways to keep the gas guzzlers on the highway. 1. Build their own. 2. Keep repairing the old ones.

So, I am forced back to the question. What happens when Detroit is forced into going all electric?

Another Compliment

Posted in Awkward Situation, Crazy Nuts, Electric Automobiles by

That’s right. They just keep coming. I was in the parking lot when the man approached me and told me how much he liked my car. He asked what kind. I told him Nissan, electric. Then he really became interested.

Then, I saw his car, a black Mercedes, may I add a very nice sportty looking thing. I told him that he had a nice set of wheels too. I expected him to be proud of it but he wasn’t, though he did thank me.

Whether it was his intention or not, it was a shot to my ego. I simply am not used to getting compliments on my car. It wasn’t my purpose when I bought the car. I am a very practical person. However, if people driving Mercedes want to compliment me, I’ll take.

Needed, One Bumper Sticker

Posted in Electric Automobiles, Gas tax, Going Green by

I was in a restaurant the other day. Already, I can’t remember how long I have had my electric car, but it must be close to four months. The guy that worked in the restaurant asked me if my car was electric. Not all that unusual but he was the first one that asked me.

Now, what makes that significant? Surely, there were others that noticed it was tail-pipeless. However, he was the first one that asked. It got me to thinking, which my wife will tell you, can make me dangerous, or at least somewhat crazy.

First, how many have noticed the car is electric. To be sure, if I’m going to pay 10 or 12 thousand more for the car, I think it should be noticed more easily.

Secondly, just why didn’t Nissan hide the fact it’s electric? If it add a grill in front and an exhaust in back, it would be difficult to tell it’s battery powered. Moreover, I wonder if it was intentional.

So, maybe what I need is a bumper sticker. If so, what should it say? Maybe, “This car is battery powered,” “This Auto is Smokeless,” or “Electrified!”

Maybe you have some ideas. I will welcome all reasonable ones.

Getting All Charged Up

Posted in Electric Automobiles, Going Green by

As they say, hind sight is always 20/20.  There are likely a dozen things I learned about electric cars I would have never learned had I not bought one.

Perhaps the number one thing is that there are at least three major types of charging stations.  Tesla has two of them.  Another one is better and faster, but rarer.  It is the one used by much of Europe and Nissan.  Just because you have found a charging station doesn’t mean it is compatible.  Moreover, even if it is compatible, it doesn’t mean you can use it.  Some are for public use.  Some require membership.  Still others are for private use.  I’d guess that car rental agencies will have the private type, for use only to charge the agency cars.

The whole system does not resemble gas stations at all, as I first imagined it.  To charge a car from “bone dry” so to speak, may take as much as an hour at a level 3 charge station.  Make that 6 or 7 hours from level 2 charge stations and I don’t even want to hazard a guess for level 1 charge stations.  With them you measurement is just almost in days instead of hours.

The hitch of course is that this is all variable depending on the car.  However, just so you know what I talking about, the level one is effectively plugging your car into a standard household outlet.  With my car, that means roughly a 15 to 20 % charge overnight.  Fortunately, I use but 7 to 8 percent a day.  That allows me to gain a little each night.

For those that drive more, they will either need to go to the level 2 or they will occasionally need to visit one of the level 3 chargers.  You can have a level two charger installed in your home.  However, I have an adaptor.  Once I have an electrician install a 220 outlet close to my car, I can plug my adaptor into the outlet and I effectively have a level two charger.  The adaptor was supplied with the car.

There are many Tesla level 3 chargers in my area, which are not compatible with my car, but I have an adaptor that converts the level 3 charger into a level 2 charger for my auto.  I am sure, once I figure it out, I will be able to get it to work, but so far I have had no success.  Maybe one day soon I will be able to alter that report.

Either way, I just might run into a hitch.  I tried to connect to a level 3 the other day and noticed signs all over, for Tesla only.  I don’t know if these are caution signs or if it is the equivalent of no trespassing.  If I ever get my adapter to work, I just might find out.

As an aside, in order to hook up my car, I have to park sideways.  Otherwise, the cable is not long enough.  Obviously not designed for Nissans.

Having said all this, I would like to describe a little about how it will be in the near future.  The main places you will be able to find level 2 and 3 chargers will likely be at hotels and restaurants.  I can’t imagine a gas station making any money allowing autos to sit in their facility for an hour or so.  They might be able to do this with maybe two or three cars, but what do you do while 50 cars are charging.

On the other hand, when I go into a restaurant, I generally spend about an hour there anyway.  So, in the future, I go in.  Someone plugs in my level 3 charger and I go in and eat.  I pay the bill for charging as I pay for the food.

If I am staying in a hotel, I go in and have the car charged while spending the night.  Some arrangements would have to be made to move the car once charged.  Either that or there would be a need for many more charging stations.

My guess is that some hotels would not even charge for the charge.  They would simply consider it part of the cost of doing business.  Others would likely charge just enough to cover the cost.  After all, the chargers would be a drawing card.

Oddly, I can foresee the cost of charge trucks operating similar to tow trucks.  You’re stranded.  You make a call and out comes a truck with a big generator on it.  As for the costs and level of charge, it would likely be a point of negotiation.  I’m not sure but it seems I already saw someone advertising such a service.  Maybe someone already beat me to it.

The one thing I am hoping for the most is that they standardize the chargers so that, when you get to the charger, you don’t find out it’s not compatible.  I’ll go one step further.  At least, they need to have level 2 chargers available, that is to say, 220 volt outlets.  If I have to, I can wait the 5 or 6 hours. To get fully charged, especially if I will be spending the night in a hotel.  Also, I’d not mind browsing around a mall for a while either.  If I am in a hurry, maybe I could make a 2 hour charge get me to my destination…sort of like when I just put five dollars worth of gas in the car when that is all I have.

Then, of course, all these chargers would need generator back up…in case there is a power outage.  On the other hand, maybe I should put solar batteries on my house to charge my car.  Even now, I just can’t wait to see my first electric bill now that I am charging my car at home.

If I Were President

Posted in Abuse of Power, Border wall, Christian values, Climate Change, Coronavirus, Crime, Electric Automobiles, Fantasy, Fauci, Going Green, January 6, law enforcement, Lawyers and Representation by

It is, of course. a ridiculous idea. After all, I have already admitted to being a bad leader. Still there is the little word, ‘if.’ That little word that separates reality from what might be. As I sit down her and contemplate, I wonder just how many men have considered the question before. I have heard that a person’s 40th birthday is the worst. It is when you awake to the reality that you will never be president.

Those who have read my posts already know many of the things I would do: clean out the leadership of many of the bureaucracies in DC; certainly, I would downsize many of the departments. (Education, combine intelligence agencies, etc.); I’d make other agencies more responsible as well. I would hire a ten man teem to search for waste in the systems.

I’d make sure we had a nice big wall on the border from the Pacific to the gulf. Those who are already here illegally would know to go into hiding, because I’d make sure those who are not here legally would have to leave. I’d make sure those who were not citizens or here legally would not be able to find employment. Those caught hiring people here illegally would be fined, thrown in jail or both. The deportation process would be far more effective at keeping people from crossing the border than the fence. When people know they can’t stay, they won’t go though such an effort to come here.

I simply have not one idea how I could incarcerate Fauci, but I’d have five lawyers researching it. Moreover, I’d do what I could to encourage congress to pass laws against some of the stuff he did. We have enough disease. We do not need to invent any. More importantly, we do not need to pay our enemies to develop such things.

I would encourage a few amendments. Right at the top would be term limits. While idealistically, the voters should determine term limits, history has shown us that does not work. Just look at the age of some of those senators. Therefore, I would encourage age limits as well.

I am not so idealistic as to think I could get any such thing passed immediately. Too many old codgers in there that would vote against it. It would have to be grandfathered in. In other words, it would not apply to those already in the House or Senate. Not my preference, but it would be the only way to get it to pass.

I would insist that all bills passed by congress be shortened. Long bills have a tendency to have a lot of pork and they are difficult to understand. If they send me a 10,000 page book, I’d would simply veto it. When they pass a law, the people are expected to live by these laws. Only lawyers have the time to read 10,000 page books.

Certainly, I would do what I could to help the production of oil. When Joe slowed the oil production, he did almost as much damage as everything else he did. Low prices for fuel would help to solve a long list of problems. The cost of energy affects everything.

I would appoint someone to look into those arrested on Jan 6. Most, I would pardon. Those that caused damage would be commuted to a lesser sentence. I would make sure that that Epps character would be investigated. If appropriate, he’d be tried, convicted and tossed in prison for as long as possible. He’s a good example of someone who needs to be made an example.

There are many other things I would do, but what’s the point of covering them. I’m not 40 and I’ll never be president. However, as bad a leader as I am, there is not a doubt in my mind that I would do far better than Old Joe. And I’m but five years younger than he is.

Now. As for that presidential limo. I just wonder. Would it be possible to convert it to elect power. No need angering those going green folks unnecessarily.

My Last Report on My EV

Posted in Electric Automobiles by

I don’t think it will accomplish anything if I continue to report on my Nissan beyond today. I am still pleased that I bought it but I do wish I could have afforded the model able to go 300 miles instead of 218. Even so, I don’t drive much. I generally recharge the car about every two weeks, now $45. I plan on getting a level two charger. With it, I doubt I will ever need to use a commercial charger again. The level two charger will completely charge the batteries in ten or twelve hours. More likely, I will only need to charge it a couple of hours a day with my driving habits. Even so, I will be limited to about 90 miles to, and 90 miles back should I want to go somewhere. That is where the extra mileage would have come in handy should I have been able to afford it.

By the way, you get more than just more battery with the more expensive model. You get a lot more bells and whistles too, including self-driving. Also, you get a price tag about ten grand more.

I have gotten quite an education about charging the batteries. To top it off, Nissan is going to the Tesla charger standards next year. That will make it far easier to find somewhere to charge the car. I can use a Tesla charger but only as a level two charger. That means, if I go into Berger King (Which has Tesla chargers) while I charge the car, in the hour it takes me to eat a Whopper, the batteries will take on about 2 days charge for me. This would, of course work out well for me if I go to Berger King every other day for lunch.

Actually, that is very unkind and is a false representation. When I put the car on a fast charger, it will take a full charge in less than an hour. Most times, I get the full charge after getting down to 30%, so the charge takes right around 40 minutes. That is faster than the Tesla, if I have my facts straight.

I have noticed that I have changed my attitude in driving. I do drive a little less, not much. I also keep a keen eye on the charge level. When driving my gas car, sometimes I let that meter just almost hit empty. I don’t like that charge status geting much below 30%. I’m getting too old to walk that much and it is difficult getting a charge to a car 8 or 9 miles away from a charging station.

A thought that occurred to me was that they might like the idea of an after market option of small sixty or seventy pound battery packs that could be carried in the trunk. The two small battery packs would be used when the main batteries run low.

I don’t know all the ins and outs. I am sure there would be problems to overcome. It just is that I would not be nearly so afeared of running out of electricity if I had some reserve, especially if I could recharge the smaller ones separately.

Another thing I learned about the batteries is that it is better not to fully charge them. They last longer if you only charge them to 80%. That kind of limits me. It means I must operate the car between 30% and 80%. That means I need to visit the charger more frequently.

Well, I have a 7 year maintenance contract as well as the warranty. I figure the car is going to outlast me. So I compromise. I turn the charger off at 90% or there about. I still get 2 weeks off a charge and that’s fine.

Of course, if I had plans on living another 15 years, I might pull the plug a little sooner. I have no idea what it will cost to replace 60+ KWs of batteries, but I am not anxious to find out.

One more word about chargers. Not all chargers are public. If you plan on doing some serious driving, you will need to sign up with someone. Then all you need do when running low is find one of their chargers. You then identify yourself and plug in. You’ll likely have about an hour or so wait so you might plan accordingly.

Finally, one more thing about mileage. It varies. In the summer, you’ll use the air conditioning. In the winter, the heat. My car uses a heat exchanger so I get instant heat in the winter. Regardless of how your car keeps you warm or cool, it will cost you a few miles. Obviously, in nice weather, you’ll enjoy your best mileage.

As far as I am concerned, I think the advantages make up for any problems. If you don’t know what I mean, just test drive an electric car for ten miles, especially the Nissan Ariya. You will never again be satisfied with that gas car again.

Some People Like Noise

Posted in Electric Automobiles, Going Green, Uncategorized by

Don’t know why but it is so true. When I had my BMW motorcycle, I liked the smooth quiet ride. In fact there were times it was just a bit too quiet. I’d pull up to a light and I reached down and touch the head just to make sure it was still running.

On the other hand, you have those that like the sound of a Harley Davidson. Some will actually put non-standard parts on them just so we can hear them as they go by. Well, actually we hear them as they approach and long after they leave.

It is the same as with cars. It sometime put the policeman in something of a quandary. He knows that hot rod is far too noisy to be legal but just how does he prove it. Many times, he lets it go for that reason. I guess all police should carry a device around with them that can measure the noise, but that is difficult.

Then you have the man who likes his Cadillac that just purrs silently along. Then again, it has the horses that are, what’s the word, silently standing by in case they are called upon. I guess we could call the power understated, though I’m not sure that’s the right expression either.

Although I can understand the man that enjoys the throaty sound of the big Harley engine, I’m kind of one of those that would just as soon not have to listen to it. I suppose there is a safety factor to it. If I hear the motor coming, I am more likely to know it’s there. I mean, if you can’t see that Harley in your blind spot, the noise can make a real difference.

One day I saw an article that all electric cars ought to be required to make some noise, for the blind pedestrian. The idea was, the blind person, if he hears the motor is less likely to step out in front of the car.

During the test drive of my electric, my timing was off. I was trying to get on the Interstate just as four cars were approaching in the right lane. Well, I hit the brake and decided to wait for the cars to go by. That courteous driver slowed, opening up a spot in front of him. That was nice of him but I was only doing about 30.

I guess that gave me a reason to step on it and see what it would do. Frankly, it was one of the reasons I bought the car. It took off like a shot, almost scared me. However, it made not one noise. I was expecting something. You know, even the Cadillacs make some noise when you step on them. I don’t know about Rolls Royces. Never did see one when the driver stepped on it. Certainly, even it would at least whisper.

With that Nissan, not a sound but the wind going by and the tires on the road. Not much of that. It was kind of like with the old BMW motorcycle. Other than the fact that it pinned my wife to the back seat, you’d not know there were any horses there.

By the way, there was no hesitation. Most cars would take a short time to drop down into passing gear when you gun them. I stomped on he accelerator and it accelerated, instantly.

I would suspect that, even if all else were equal, there are those who would not want an electric car. I mean, some folks just have to have the noise. In the future, somewhere along the line, maybe loud noise could be added to electric cars as an option, for those that just have to have the noise.

EV Police Cars?

Posted in Electric Automobiles by

One consideration we must eventually face is going to total EV police departments. I mean the police do buy their vehicles from those available. The design of the dems is to get gas and diesel vehicles off the road.

There will be problems, you know. Assuming the police car has a 300 mile range, that’s just about 6 hours of driving time. In addition, some time should be reserved for the possible chase, or simply the 911 call near the end of the shift.

In addition, police cars generally need more electric power anyway. Also, hopefully, the police cars should be a little better than non police cars.

Another thing to take note of is that while a car is being charged, it will be out of service. Typically, this might mean a 50 thousand dollar auto will be out of service during recharging. This would likely mean one additional car would be needed for each 6 cars needed for a police department.

And, of course, after solving these problems for EV police cars, we will need to start working on ambulances and fire trucks. By the way, has anyone started thinking of all the charging stations that will be needed?

I hope someone has given some thought about the loading on the electric grid. I mean, I know those police cars and fire trucks will need to be changed, but I assure you I also need my air conditioning. I won’t be the only one.