quote:

Originally posted by Prefontaine:
Stick to models that have been around quite some time, and buy used, and you can do well.

IE Tesla, Tesla, Tesla......


Rivian would be on my list as I just think they look cool, or a nice electric Hummer, those were selling for way over sticker when they came out, now I'm sure they will be pricy but not "hey I gotta buncha FU money" expensive.

Expensive cars/trucks/stuff late model, always depreciate, watch Mecum or BJ auctions and you'll see 10 year old Bentley Convertables going at $.20c on the dollar.. or less...

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:

Until then, no and double no.

This two year old post still reflects my opinion on EVs.

Fuck no.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:

quote:

Originally posted by Prefontaine:
Stick to models that have been around quite some time, and buy used, and you can do well.

IE Tesla, Tesla, Tesla......

Nah. Driven every one of them, and still don’t like any of ‘em. Never have. Too expensive (S/X) and the lack of physical tactile controls/buttons is a no go for me. No instrument cluster either. I’m not driving anything that is completely dependent on an iPad for everything. The insurance on them, here, is very expensive. More than triple than what I pay for mine. And that is at least partially due to Tesla controlling where you can get work done on them. If the insurance rates are high that means they are very expensive to fix at the body shop. Too expensive for a daily driver to me anyway and weigh too damned much. A daily to me, is something inexpensive comparatively, fuel efficient, reliable, on the smaller side so it can be parked anywhere, real easy on the insurance, and on the lighter side vs heavier side. It’s been quite enjoyable to watch these mfr’s lose their ass, to the tune of billions, because most of them have been so focused on heavy, expensive, and large electric vehicles vs. making smaller more affordable options. EV’s are perfect for a run about, a daily driver, or a beater. I have no use for them outside of that. They suck as trucks, and they suck as sportscars. Commuter vehicle, perfect for that.

The Tethla stealer by me is completely chocked full of their vehicles. I’ve never seen a place that overloaded by vehicles. Not just the massive stealer lot. They have a parking lot behind the stealer, with just rows of Cyberfucks. They ain’t selling. Dipshits should have been focused on the common man, the working men and women.

Just ordered a new Tesla Model Y Awd

At this point my Model 3 is 4+ years old. My kid will need a car in 3 years. Thinking of giving him the Wifes BMW X2 and passing my Model 3 to the wife. Then getting another Model 3. Maybe a Performance for a bit more zip.

quote:

Dipshits should have been focused on the common man, the working men and women.

Large government subsidies have a way of distorting markets that way.
I can somewhat understand why they were subsidized in the early days. Now it's time to wean them completely off and see where things really stand, or not.

The EV is alive and sort of well.

I am waiting for the next battery breakthrough.

I want to drive from MA to FL in about the same time it takes to drive now.

With short stops to recharge while I eat instead of a fill up.

Toyota SSBs are supposed to hit the market by 2028. 600 to 700 mile range and 15 min charging time.

quote:

Originally posted by sig2392:
The EV is alive and sort of well.

I am waiting for the next battery breakthrough.

I want to drive from MA to FL in about the same time it takes to drive now.

With short stops to recharge while I eat instead of a fill up.

Toyota SSBs are supposed to hit the market by 2028. 600 to 700 mile range and 15 min charging time.

Skuttlebutt is Solid State Batteries will be changing the game with charging times of 5 minutes.


Link
That will be fantastic as it will eliminate much of the fear of an EV which is range. When we first got the wifes EquinoxEV we didn't have the home charger installed yet so we constantly felt the need to charge. A month or so in and adding the home charger that fear just goes away, it's completely unfounded with todays EV's and may end up where you can get up to 700 miles range as battery tech improves and we know how quick technology is moving, especially with AI

Range on a single charge isn't the big issue for most people, especially for most commuters. The bigger issue is when you need to take a trip requiring multiple recharges from a low battery charge. If everything works out perfect and you can stop for lunch for 45 minutes, find a convenient recharge that is available and actually works, that's great. If you are searching and waiting, that's not so great.

I always say the current electric vehicles are kind of like the compact fluorescent light bulbs. Better for some people, but no widespread adoption because they aren't better for most. At some point in the near future though, there will be a technological breakthrough that will make them clearly better for most people, and those electrics will begin to take over. I love that thought not for environmental reasons, but because with a decent solar system it will operate free from the whims of the petroleum industry.

quote:

Originally posted by sig2392:
The EV is alive and sort of well.

I am waiting for the next battery breakthrough.

I want to drive from MA to FL in about the same time it takes to drive now.

With short stops to recharge while I eat instead of a fill up.

Toyota SSBs are supposed to hit the market by 2028. 600 to 700 mile range and 15 min charging time.

You can pretty much do this now, at least with a Tesla and their supercharger network. People have been doing that very thing for years. Map the superchargers out and you’re on your road trip. It’s not that difficult.

People are always on about range. The more range the higher the weight of the vehicle. Some of the EV’s are crazy, weighing 5000, 6000 pounds and such. Weight is not your friend as it pertains to driving dynamics. And for 12 years driving one, people always bring up “road trip”. I mean it’s like everyone out there is going on a road trip every single weekend if you read the comments on vehicle reviews. And it’s repeated so often that it gets comical. Well that kind of range (600-700 miles) is going to come with a very high cost of the vehicle itself, and it’s going to be awfully heavy. That kind of defeats the purpose of going electric in the first place. What is most of your driving entail? If 90% of your driving, or more, is just kind of local stuff, well cheap EV’s at least, have been a functional thing for over a decade.

Most people do road trips just a few times a year. If you don’t have a gas car in the household, rent a car. 12 years ago when I first leased my first EV people would ask “what do you if you need to go out of town?” I’d answer, rent a car. Our springs here, it’s hail and tornado season. Perfect for renting a car with the optional insurance. Hail hits, not my vehicle and doesn’t go on my insurance. Someone hits me and they don’t have insurance, well it doesn’t go on my insurance. Rental cars have all the 24 hour roadside assistance you could ask for. And my favorite thing is I’m not racking up miles on my personal vehicles. I mean I have gas vehicles today that even with an EV that had say 500 mile range, I’d still take the gas truck for road trips as I’m usually towing when I go out of state. But either way, providing you don’t buy some fancy expensive EV, and get one for a good price..well the fuel savings going from gas to kWh, and the lack of maintenance you’ll have to spend money on will well pay for a nice rental car a few times a year for road trips. I have no want or interest in a 600-700 mile range EV because it’s going to have a pricetag or MSRP to reflect that and be pretty expensive which kind of defeats the entire point of having electric propulsion. I think they need to focus on lighter, less expensive EV’s. Commuter cars and such with say, a 300 mile range. 700 mile range EV is going to be heavy, and very expensive.

Once again I will point out the obvious. Donut Labs doesn’t have a mass produced solid state battery. They are claiming they can make it. That ain’t the same. At all. Start making them. Publish prices. Put them in cars. Until they do that it’s all VC propaganda.

Somebody back in 2024 responded to my posts and said we should pin them and see what the future holds. Well, I went back and reread them. They stand pretty well. (except for prefontaines bolt/volt lol).

The EV isn’t dead but it’s a metric shit mile away from “well”.

Which is not to say you wealthy multiple car owners can’t go buy an amazing car. Of course you can. It ain’t taking over the world yet though. Not even close.

My Tesla added 2 hours to the drive from CHS to Miami.

But, for many drivers, leasing a model y as their “suburban” car is cheaper than paying the gas/maintenance on a nicer car/the acceleration is a safety factor in traffic.

And, I think the FSD is a good option for some drivers.

If my mother lived in a large city, I think that’s better, and once my wife gets her DL, it’s how she plans to drive. (Her whole life was in high rises, until we moved to Charleston.)

quote:

I am waiting for the next battery breakthrough.

I think we're very close--probably 3 years is my guess. That will be a game changer:
1. More efficient means greater range/less weight
2. Safety: less fire risk with accident
3. Possibly lower cost

Edited to add: Grok Super Heavy had four agents working on it, came down to this conclusion:

quote:

I expect the first volume manufacturing for EVs to begin in late 2027 or 2028, starting with premium or limited-edition models from leaders like Toyota, BYD (higher-end), Factorial partners, and some Chinese OEMs. These will be initial runs—enough for real customer vehicles but not yet flooding the market. True widespread, cost-effective high-volume production (enabling affordable mass-market EVs with 500+ mile range and 10-minute charging) should ramp significantly by 2030.
This is 1–2 years away for the earliest examples and 4 years for broader impact—faster progress than the decade-long hype suggested, thanks to pilot lines now running and real-world testing (e.g., 745-mile Mercedes demos). But don’t expect solid-state to dominate EV lineups overnight; lithium-ion (and semi-solid variants) will bridge the gap.
If you’re shopping for an EV today, current LFP or NMC packs are still the practical choice. Solid-state will be a game-changer once scaled—worth watching Toyota’s 2027–2028 launches and BYD’s rollout closely.

I just learned that Honda is rolling back on EV production and likely canceling planned new models in the US

400 mile range is ok but what happens at night driving in the rain. Lights lower range. Wipers lower range. AC will lower range. Let’s toss in a few hills.

As of March 2026

Pure EV's have peaked, hybrid is the way to go.

1. Cold weather blues - two winters ago, CHicago area got hit hard with snow and low, low temps. Pure EV's dont charge well in below freezing temps and their batteries drain even faster. For those of us who live in Northern climate, it's a no-go.

2. No more charging stations - Testa's charging stations are the only ones worth a damn, everyone else's chargers suck. Tesla disbanded their charging station rollout team last year, no new ones are being implemented as far as I know. Private single family homes with garages make installing a charge worth it. NYC?? Chicago??? Forget about it.

quote:

Originally posted by Dave Bean:
As of March 2026

Pure EV's have peaked, hybrid is the way to go.

1. Cold weather blues - two winters ago, CHicago area got hit hard with snow and low, low temps. Pure EV's dont charge well in below freezing temps and their batteries drain even faster. For those of us who live in Northern climate, it's a no-go.

2. No more charging stations - Testa's charging stations are the only ones worth a damn, everyone else's chargers suck. Tesla disbanded their charging station rollout team last year, no new ones are being implemented as far as I know. Private single family homes with garages make installing a charge worth it. NYC?? Chicago??? Forget about it.

Pardon me but if you’re stupid enough to live in NYC or Chicago you don’t need any vehicle so it’s a moot point. My grandparents lived in NYC for 60 years and never had a car. Just walk or took a bus. In the rare occasions you do just rent one.

The EV scenario makes the most scenes for the majority of people who don’t live in a big city, have a garage and two cars. Then having an EV is a no brainer.

As far as cold weather you are right but the same situation is applicable to ICE vehicles… I drove from NC to NH in the middle of the winter a few years ago with temps around zero and had no problem finding chargers.

And as far as most people’s daily commute according to Grok…

The average one-way commuting distance in the U.S. is approximately 12 to 15 miles, with many workers averaging around 42 miles of total daily travel. While distance varies, the average one-way commute time in the U.S. is roughly 27 minutes.
So in this average scenario having an EV and being able to charge at home once or twice a week would actually save you time and money over taking an ICE vehicle to work every day.

FWIW

The new huge Korean EV battery plant up the road just laid off 1,000 employees.

This was a wet dream for the progressive wack jobs!