New all electric car

But it still won't pull my work trailer.

For the majority of people, our electricity is generated with fossil fuels.

That charge time is pretty long even at 220 volts. 

How does the air conditioning work?  There can't be a belt to run the compressor is there?

I think it is cool that you have all that solar and such but, talk about a huge investment just to reduce your utility costs.

It is still more practical for me and my family to pay cash for a sub 7500.00 vehicle and just put gas in it.

 
WarnerConstCo. said:
But it still won't pull my work trailer.

For the majority of people, our electricity is generated with fossil fuels.

That charge time is pretty long even at 220 volts. 

How does the air conditioning work?  There can't be a belt to run the compressor is there?

I think it is cool that you have all that solar and such but, talk about a huge investment just to reduce your utility costs.

It is still more practical for me and my family to pay cash for a sub 7500.00 vehicle and just put gas in it.
Click to expand...

Here's my 30 second elevator pitch on solar (and electric vehicles).

Disclaimer: I live in a passive solar (no furnace or AC) straw bale house which I built largely by myself over a 3 year period (I can send you a link to the blog and sordid details/pics if you want). I also installed my own Solar PV array (5.6 kW max output) to power both units (granny unit included) so we use no fossil fuels). Saving the planet aside, going all electric on appliances was the only way for us to supply our own power for everything.

So on to the pitch (maybe we should start another thread):

1) did you buy the cheapest house you could find in Auburn? No? Was it because you put a quality component into your decision process? (better neighborhood, nicer interior, etc)

2) did you buy the cheapest vehicle you could find? No? Was it because you put a quality component into your decision process? (maintenance, reliability, etc)

3) did you buy the cheapest tools you can find? No? Was it because you put a quality component into your decision process?

If you answered "no" to 1 through 3...

4) Why don't you put a quality component into your decision on the cost of fuel/power that you use? Is it because you think there isn't one? If you believe that, would you buy a house next to a coal burning power plant? Or a Nuclear power plant? If the answer is "no" to this, then you are simply ignoring the cost of your choices because they aren't in your back yard.

That being said, nobody expects you to pull a work trailer with a Leaf...  [big grin]
 
fritter63 said:
WarnerConstCo. said:
But it still won't pull my work trailer.

For the majority of people, our electricity is generated with fossil fuels.

That charge time is pretty long even at 220 volts. 

How does the air conditioning work?  There can't be a belt to run the compressor is there?

I think it is cool that you have all that solar and such but, talk about a huge investment just to reduce your utility costs.

It is still more practical for me and my family to pay cash for a sub 7500.00 vehicle and just put gas in it.
Click to expand...

Here's my 30 second elevator pitch on solar (and electric vehicles).

Disclaimer: I live in a passive solar (no furnace or AC) straw bale house which I built largely by myself over a 3 year period (I can send you a link to the blog and sordid details/pics if you want). I also installed my own Solar PV array (5.6 kW max output) to power both units (granny unit included) so we use no fossil fuels). Saving the planet aside, going all electric on appliances was the only way for us to supply our own power for everything.

So on to the pitch (maybe we should start another thread):

1) did you buy the cheapest house you could find in Auburn? No? Was it because you put a quality component into your decision process? (better neighborhood, nicer interior, etc)

2) did you buy the cheapest vehicle you could find? No? Was it because you put a quality component into your decision process? (maintenance, reliability, etc)

3) did you buy the cheapest tools you can find? No? Was it because you put a quality component into your decision process?

If you answered "no" to 1 through 3...

4) Why don't you put a quality component into your decision on the cost of fuel/power that you use? Is it because you think there isn't one? If you believe that, would you buy a house next to a coal burning power plant? Or a Nuclear power plant? If the answer is "no" to this, then you are simply ignoring the cost of your choices because they aren't in your back yard.

That being said, nobody expects you to pull a work trailer with a Leaf...  [big grin]
Click to expand...

well, I did buy a pretty cheap house.

The last 3 vehicles I bought were pretty dang cheap and covered all the needs I needed. 

I can't afford cheap tools, they put food on the table.

I just plug stuff in and turn the heat on when it gets cold.
 
I'm not interested in dropping $80k on the Tesla sedan that has the 300 mile range, but I desperately want the car, hah.  I have a hard time changing my view that vehicles are depreciating assets that will ultimately be effectively worthless by the time I'm done using them.  The next place my wife and I buy will definitely be all electric (with the exception of gas for cooking) - electric tankless water heaters ... plug in for an EV (hopefully there's a nice crossover / small SUV electric by then with a decent range).  I just need to look into electric heating options that don't include radiant floors.
 
A friend of my wife's has a Prius which she gets 50mpg regularly on (she needs it; she has a 120 mile round trip commute out in the countryside where she lives) and she loves it - the car, not the commute  [smile].  I drove it around the last time she was here and I was impressed; it's quiet and very large inside.  I sit with the seat all the way back in most cars and there was still  a lot of knee room for a 6 foot tall adult in the seat behind me.  Prius is coming out with a plug in version next year and a wagon this year.  If it's as well thought out as the sedan and they can make it a plug in/hybrid combo; I'd be tempted.
 
rookie08 said:
A friend of my wife's has a Prius which she gets 50mpg regularly on (she needs it; she has a 120 mile round trip commute out in the countryside where she lives) and she loves it - the car, not the commute  [smile].  I drove it around the last time she was here and I was impressed; it's quiet and very large inside.  I sit with the seat all the way back in most cars and there was still  a lot of knee room for a 6 foot tall adult in the seat behind me.  Prius is coming out with a plug in version next year and a wagon this year.  If it's as well thought out as the sedan and they can make it a plug in/hybrid combo; I'd be tempted.
Click to expand...

I like the idea of an electric car, but they seem very expensive here and don't yet have sufficient autonomy as we live in the countryside. Don't see many Prius's (or should that be Prii) here, but then most small diesel cars here turn in 50 miles to the smaller, puny, American gallon  [laughing] [laughing]

My work van (A citroen berlingo - same size as the Ford Connect which I think they sell in the US) returns 40 to 45 miles to the US gallon (but it is small by US standards)
My new work van probably does gallons to the mile.  [laughing] and it's not very eco friendly on your ears either as its only got a 3 speed box.  Top speed about 40mph
Maybe I could convert it to electric - there's certainly plenty of room for batteries as you can stand up inside
[attachimg=#]
 
rookie08 said:
A friend of my wife's has a Prius which she gets 50mpg regularly on (she needs it; she has a 120 mile round trip commute out in the countryside where she lives) and she loves it - the car, not the commute  [smile].  I drove it around the last time she was here and I was impressed; it's quiet and very large inside.  I sit with the seat all the way back in most cars and there was still  a lot of knee room for a 6 foot tall adult in the seat behind me.  Prius is coming out with a plug in version next year and a wagon this year.  If it's as well thought out as the sedan and they can make it a plug in/hybrid combo; I'd be tempted.
Click to expand...

My complaint about hybrids is that they bring you the worst maintenance issues of both worlds, all in one neat package that the Dealer loves to see pulling into the service department!

So I'm waiting for a good pure EV that gets rid of things like oil changes, exhaust, etc.
 
richard.selwyn said:
rookie08 said:
A friend of my wife's has a Prius which she gets 50mpg regularly on (she needs it; she has a 120 mile round trip commute out in the countryside where she lives) and she loves it - the car, not the commute  [smile].  I drove it around the last time she was here and I was impressed; it's quiet and very large inside.  I sit with the seat all the way back in most cars and there was still  a lot of knee room for a 6 foot tall adult in the seat behind me.  Prius is coming out with a plug in version next year and a wagon this year.  If it's as well thought out as the sedan and they can make it a plug in/hybrid combo; I'd be tempted.
Click to expand...

I like the idea of an electric car, but they seem very expensive here and don't yet have sufficient autonomy as we live in the countryside. Don't see many Prius's (or should that be Prii) here, but then most small diesel cars here turn in 50 miles to the smaller, puny, American gallon  [laughing] [laughing]

My work van (A citroen berlingo - same size as the Ford Connect which I think they sell in the US) returns 40 to 45 miles to the US gallon (but it is small by US standards)
My new work van probably does gallons to the mile.  [laughing] and it's not very eco friendly on your ears either as its only got a 3 speed box.  Top speed about 40mph
Maybe I could convert it to electric - there's certainly plenty of room for batteries as you can stand up inside
[attachimg=#]
Click to expand...

An H van! Coolest van ever made!Essence ou Diesel?A guy who had a petrol one told me it drank juice like a hole but who cares,it's a classic for sure.Looks like a corrugated bread tin.
Congratulations Richard. [big grin]
 
GPowers said:
You have three option depending where you are and what voltage is available:
110V 21 hours
220V  8  hours
440V  .5 hour
Click to expand...
Must be something wrong with my logic, but I'd be tempted to use a 4:1 step-up transformer on a 110V source  [big grin]
30 minutes is a lot better than 21 hours ...
 
An H van! Coolest van ever made!Essence ou Diesel?A guy who had a petrol one told me it drank juice like a hole but who cares,it's a classic for sure.Looks like a corrugated bread tin.
Congratulations Richard. [big grin]
[/quote]
It's a diesel, but is probably going to vive about 25 mpg, but since it is so slow and noisy it won't be using all that much fuel. I want to respray it and use it for advertising my carpentry business.
Richard
 
Mavrik said:
GPowers said:
You have three option depending where you are and what voltage is available:
110V 21 hours
220V  8  hours
440V  .5 hour
Click to expand...
Must be something wrong with my logic, but I'd be tempted to use a 4:1 step-up transformer on a 110V source  [big grin]
30 minutes is a lot better than 21 hours ...
Click to expand...
Depending on the current required a step up transformer at 277/480 Could be very expensive.
 
WarnerConstCo. said:
That charge time is pretty long even at 220 volts.  
Click to expand...

Over the last two months I average 4 to 5 hours, every other day, to charge the batteries.

WarnerConstCo. said:
How does the air conditioning work?  There can't be a belt to run the compressor is there?
Click to expand...

It is an electric A/C unit with its own electric motor, as it the steering.

WarnerConstCo. said:
I think it is cool that you have all that solar and such but, talk about a huge investment just to reduce your utility costs.
It is still more practical for me and my family to pay cash for a sub 7500.00 vehicle and just put gas in it.
Click to expand...

Depends, We are getting ready for retirement. By the time I retire the Solar will be paid off as will the Leaf.  So no monthly cost during retirement.
 
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