Right, that was my point in saying it has nothing to do with the power plant and everything to do with mass. Yes electric motors are torquey, but once the vehicle hits the barrier the power plant (whatever it may be) and driveline is now compromised and contributing little to nothing as far as power.
Now GM (or ‘gm’) is backtracking, saying they’ll build hybrids, ‘but we’re still going all EV by 2035!’. Interesting that a presumably well paid market analyst and definitely well paid gm execs were wrong when they ‘…anticipated EV growth to continue at the same rate’ in spite of the dealers and customers saying EVs aren’t the answer beyond the early adopters and virtue signalers. GM built a bunch of hybrid trucks and full size SUVs from about ‘08 until they, well, just quit, and now they have to start over to catch up. Where’d Mary Barra go to college? https://www.hagerty.com/media/news/gm-ceo-mary-barra-were-pivoting-back-to-hybrids/ I thought Mr. Toyoda was the only exec ballsy enough to say hybrids are better than EVs, but now I think he was the only one smart enough. Patrick
Evolution - Products go through a evolution from what the companies thought to what the market wants. Look at cell phones. Most brands started with phones shaped like the wired version. Then they went tiny, then flip, and now we have the bricks we lug around. EVs are no different. The early ones have issues that technology (hopefully) will solve. In the meantime, hybrids have most of the bases covered. My opinion is if big brother doesn't push then most consumers will continue using ICE and the technology will never evolve to where its useful.
Hybrids are the worst of both worlds. Two drive trains. Still have the blight of petroleum products, and the blight of the batteries too. Electric cars are ready. People here are stuck in the past. That's to be expected at a classic car website.
No there not. We’re not stuck in the past, I/we like the reliability of piston engines. I do like my GS, but my Tahoe does everything better and so does any newer vehicle.
Ready for what? All scenarios? Electric cars might be ready in some respects, but what I hate is that it's all been politicized and rammed down people's throats. 2035 all electric in CA? 11 years? I'll jump off the Empire State Building if they make that goal. All in the name of "climate". I'm all in favor of electric cars but I'd like to make the choice if I ever buy one. Everything has its place. If they are that great, phase them in, the market will demand it and take care of itself but I'm sick of the government mandating stuff and using fear to accomplish their goals. If I'm still alive 10 years from now, I would bet a million dollars that in 10 years California and the USA "climate" wise would be zero affected if we never made another electric vehicle and continued with gas powered cars and trucks.
One of the biggest beefs I have with EV's, besides the range and cold issue (Off topic, sort of, but the early Beetles had a gas powered heater. A friend who owned one say it had lots of heat, but sure ate up the gas.) is the lack of charging stations, and the specialized shops required to work on them. I am certain that same thing was said about cars in the early 1900's, but, this is now and a push for full adoption by 2035, they only have 11 years to build the infrastructure. So: Range, Cold reducing your range, and Infrastructure. Solve these, and the volatility of Lithium batteries (ask me how I know), and I might consider an EV. Be a hard sell though......
I don't believe that to be true for an electrical engineering perspective. The articles claim mass but that does not make it true 100%. The amount of power in those systems even at the moment of applied power cut off does not mean the motors are dead and free wheeling. ( Think generator and other transient effects) Its just that level of understanding that is lacking, even in general articles on this. The best proof is the behavior of nitro powered versus electric RC cars. Crash each one. Or better yet, let off the throttle on one versus the other. It only takes 1ms of surge power to do serious destruction and when uncontrolled due to collision....how was all of this quantified? It hasn't. Mass is not the only problem.
You throw an 8,000 pound truck at a guard rail designed for 3500-4500 pounds, it’s gonna tear it up. Patrick
I bought a Honda Accord Hybrid in May of 2023. Hybrids are the BEST of both worlds. Hybrid technology is well established. The first Prius was in something like 1997 in Japan, and 1998 in the USA, I believe. This is Honda's fourth generation of Hybrid drive train. It can run as a series, or parallel Hybrid. The gas engine functions mainly to charge the battery under the rear seat, but it can also drive the front wheels directly. Speaking of the battery, it is only 1.4 Kwh. That's small. The battery is warrantied for 8 years/100K. The whole system works flawlessly. It is seamless in operation. It's controlled by a computer, and it switches back and forth between electric motor and gas engine. You don't feel a thing and don't know what is propelling the car unless you look down at the dash. In the Summer and early fall, I was getting 49-51 MPG in mixed driving, in a 3500 lb. car with every creature comfort known to man. It is an impressive car, and that electric motor provides nearly 250 ft. lbs. of instant torque. I was shocked when I put my foot down from a stop. It really moves when you need it to, which isn't very often, but it is there. They take a hit in the really cold weather because the gas engine needs to run more if you want heat. Mileage dropped into the low 40's until I found a way around that. I now leave the climate control off first thing in the morning and use the heated seats. Once I am on the highway, the gas engine is running anyway to charge the battery, so I turn the climate control on and off as needed. But even on the highway, the car will run on full electric once the battery is charged up. It will go back and forth seamlessly. Gas mileage jumped back up to 45-46 MPG. I only drive 120 miles per week, so I only need to fill up once a month. the 12.8 gallon tank provides about 600 miles of range.Like I said, it is a really impressive vehicle. My brother has a 2018 Accord Hybrid. No problem whatsoever with the car, so the battery is lasting, and doing it's job. https://hondanews.com/en-US/honda-a...378955-honda-two-motor-hybrid-electric-system
At least with hybrids you have a gas engine as back up AND to recharge the batteries. Question, do hybrids need to be plugged in? Is it recommended? On Deboss garage, he’s in collaboration with the Edison hybrid truck, it uses a diesel engine to provide power to the generators to charge batteries to power the electric motor/s It’s an interesting concept, kinda like a diesel/electric locomotive minus the batteries, self contained so to speak, not reliant on the electrical grid. I remember when Honda came out with their hybrid years ago, it was weird looking, but didn’t cause any public uproar mostly because we weren’t being told “you gotta buy this” people could decide on their own if they wanted or needed a hybrid, perfect! I have no issues with alternative power plants, just don’t tell me what I HAVE to drive AND pay a premium for it! In my opinion, Elon Musk is a greedy jerk, smart yes, but a jerk.
There are options to have Plug-In Hybrids - been around for as many years. The convenience, at least for Honda, may not be worth the price according to a friend buying a hybrid next week.
