The electric car is an abomination
But this misses the biggest point: since when is driving a car supposed to be so complicated? The whole point of technology is to use the machine’s energy and yes, to burn up natural resources, in order to save human effort. The machines are supposed to work for us; we don’t work for them. This is especially true of the automobile, which is all about freedom, independence, going out on the open road and deciding on the spur of the moment where you want to go—not about filing a flight plan and having technicians talk you through your trip.
I understand that the first round of a new technology doesn’t always work well and early adopters may have to make tradeoffs and accept limitations. But the Tesla is supposed to be the electric car without tradeoffs. This is supposed to be a mass-market car, the first wave of electric vehicles that can be manufactured and sold in truly industrial-scale quantities. It’s not supposed to be for hobbyists who don’t mind tinkering around with an experimental vehicle for the sake of technology curiosity.
But the folks at Tesla have gotten swept up in the quasi-religious hype of environmentalism. They’re not just manufacturing a curiosity for hobbyists. They’re saving the planet, one preening and sanctimonious upper-middle-class driver at a time.
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We’ve come so far since the Detroit Electrics of 1910, one of which went 211 miles on a single charge during a test.
Canadian Imperialist Running Dog on February 22, 2013 at 10:20 PM
Did it have a heater, or windshield wipers, antilock brakes? any of the new fangled
things we’re so fond of?
Qzsusy on February 22, 2013 at 10:37 PM
This new invention may just make the electric car viable http://www.upworthy.com/see-the-scientific-accident-that-may-change-the-world-or-at-least-your-battery-l
Kjeil on February 22, 2013 at 10:45 PM
actually — it isn’t.
The travesty is when one tries to make electric cars behave like gasoline ones – hauling their power around as an integral part of the car. Even gasoline cars suffer when they are full — for you are then hauling around a load of unused fuel (one gallon of gasoline weighs about six pounds). But the energy density of gasoline is such that we hardly notice that problem.
The energy density of anything capable of holding electricity at the present is far lower. That’s why an electric car has such a short range.
If one had an electric car which drew power from the grid in real time, we’d have a vehicle which had limitless (well, nearly so) range, and which, because it carries either no or very little fuel (enough to get you to the highway where you can recharge in real time), would be more efficient than a gasoline car.
One doesn’t have to electrify every foot of a highway or road to make electric vehicles viable — one merely has to electrify enough to recharge a fuel cell (be it a capacitor or a battery) during each powered segment to allow the vehicle to use the stored power (either via motor or via inertia) to reach the next powered segment.
unclesmrgol on February 22, 2013 at 11:00 PM
The electric vehicle was always a stupid enterprise from a practical viewpoint. If anything, it was a roll of the dice promoted by the marketing departments at the car companies.
Remember “hydrogen economy”? There is another great example of how a basic understanding of high school chemistry and physics is lacking among too many of our fellow citizens.
Saltysam on February 22, 2013 at 11:02 PM
Sadly, the thing that killed Detroit Electric was the cost of the battery as the price of oil came down and self-starting gasoline cars came online.
Again, it’s the battery that killed the electric car, and may well this time around too.
unclesmrgol on February 22, 2013 at 11:08 PM
Plus, electric cars are totally gay.
Pork-Chop on February 22, 2013 at 11:10 PM
This is an interesting concept.
I’m naturally skeptical that it would be more efficient, but I suppose it’s possible.
If I understand you right, you’re saying that taking an energy source, transferring it into mechanical energy, transferring that into electricity and run it (I assume you mean under the road) and storing it onboard the vehicle, and then transferring it back into mechanical energy, would be more efficient than gasoline combustion transferred directly into mechanical energy carrying the weight of the gasoline?
I’m curious if it would be more efficient.
The vehicle you propose would simply be lighter by the difference of how much, the bigger battery minus the lighter one, right?
And then the gasoline powered car isn’t always carrying a full tank of fuel. It obviously is providing more efficient propulsion as the tank empties.
I don’t know the answer. I’m just asking.
Saltysam on February 22, 2013 at 11:34 PM
Nothing, I mean NOTHING in this World will replace the sound of a 440 Six Pack 1970 Dodge Challenger Screaming down the freeway with its outboard carbs wide open, consuming hi-Octane like you were flushing a toilet and with all eight firing hot and tight.
Bulletchaser on February 22, 2013 at 11:53 PM
Government sure does have a knack for picking losers rather than winners.
WisCon on February 23, 2013 at 12:09 AM
I think this is just another example of us trying to solve a soon-to-be-obsolete problem. Right now, we tend to want to own a vehicle that is suitable for every likely purpose we think we might have and to have it available to us even when we don’t need it. At least for city-dwellers (and most of us are), I think it will soon be more efficient and cost effective to pay for access to any type of transportation we need, whenever we need it.
Another of our transportation problems is perfectly illustrated to me when I see two identically-loaded log trucks passing each other on the interstate, one carrying logs to where the other one brought them from, pardon the grammar.
Knott Buyinit on February 23, 2013 at 1:06 AM
How much would that cost per mile of highway on average?
How many miles of highway do we have?
How many years at even a trillion dollars a year would it take to do this?
What is the maintenance/upkeep costs of this per mile per year?
I don’t know any of these numbers; but I suspect the answer will be problematic.
Not a bad idea, if you can stop people from being people… what I mean is, people treat a rental car much differently from a car they own. “Access” to a vehicle that isn’t yours is likely to be problematic in ways that don’t appear in theory.
Communal property often isn’t well maintained or cared for property.
gekkobear on February 23, 2013 at 2:14 AM
The only worthwhile electric car comes complete with a hand-held remote control!
OldEnglish on February 23, 2013 at 2:28 AM
Corrected
Dingbat63 on February 23, 2013 at 7:10 AM
Nothing, I mean NOTHING in this World will replace the sound of a 440 Six Pack 1970 Dodge Challenger Screaming down the freeway with its outboard carbs wide open, consuming hi-Octane like you were flushing a toilet and with all eight firing hot and tight.
Bulletchaser on February 22, 2013 at 11:53 PM
Archie Noble on February 23, 2013 at 7:23 AM
The thing that these quasi-educated idiots either do understand, and purposefully mis-represent to the low-information public, or are so blind by environmentalist zeal is that the energy to run a car has to come from somewhere. Currently, better than 42% of the electricity in this country comes from coal, a much nastier fuel than petroleum. Other fossil fuel sources add another 26%, so fossil fuel burning makes up 68% of the electricity in this country. Another 20% from nuclear, which the green weenies have been fighting for decades. Hydro-electric only makes about 7% and is feasible only in geographically favorable areas, and other renewables make up the last 5%.
Another thing they ‘forget’ is that long-distance transmission of electricity has large amounts of losses, which really cuts into the efficiency. The further out they try to send the juice, the more they lose they incur. That means, the more electricity they need to generate to get the juice to reach certain areas, since the green weenies also fight, tooth and nail, any new power plant construction.
And speaking of educated fools, the best story I’ve heard in a long time was the green weenie that spend thousands of dollars on solar panels for his house so that his electric plug-in hybrid can get charged up for free overnight.
Phil-351 on February 23, 2013 at 8:00 AM
Stay silent during the past two weeks of the Tesla-NYT fight where NYT columnist John Broder was proven to have lied, then post this trash in the headlines. Really, Hot Gas?
mythicknight on February 23, 2013 at 8:05 AM
Transmission losses + battery problems = Rube Goldberg cars.
petefrt on February 23, 2013 at 8:23 AM
Did you actually read the article? Half of it discusses the rift, in spite of his larger point.
Sheeeesh!
Saltysam on February 23, 2013 at 8:28 AM
I see Tesla plans (this I gotta see) to build solar recharging stations along certain interstate routes.
I wonder how that’s going to go over if they sell more than 50 cars along those routes.
The low-information educated idiots are so numerous that there is actually viable marketing schemes on $100,000 products. This, to me, is the most amazing aspect of these types of circumstances.
Saltysam on February 23, 2013 at 8:32 AM
It flippantly went over the lesser ones, leaving out details like the half-mile of driving in circles to run down the battery, skipping charging stations in plain view, making a show of having it towed despite still having enough charge to get where he was going, etc. My main [sigh] is just with Hot Gas not commenting any which way on it while it was headlining multiple sites and aggerators for the past two weeks, instead going for the blatantly slanted opinion piece heart-warmingly calling for the status-quo.
Sigh.
They’re working on the Boston-NYC areas so far IIRC. This site lists most connected stations; zoom into an area and they’ll pop up after a second.
mythicknight on February 23, 2013 at 8:48 AM
ike the half-mile of driving in circles to run down the battery
Saltysam on February 23, 2013 at 9:02 AM
Oops…I posted before I was ready…^
Saltysam on February 23, 2013 at 9:10 AM
Well, if you’re attached to the idea of electric vehicles (which I have no problem with…in general), I can see how you might see it this way.
I don’t see it calling for the status quo, so much as I see it staying critical on an idea that has yet to prove itself as a bonafide improvement on the staus quo.
And, so far, I have yet to see any theoretical argument that suggest the electric vehicle can do this (improve the status quo).
Saltysam on February 23, 2013 at 9:17 AM