On Mar 6, 2015, at 5:57 PM, Robert Bruninga <[email protected]> wrote:

> Sure, different strokes for different folks, but EV enthusiasts are shooting 
> us in the foot when they claim that EV's are no viable until they have 200 
> mile batteries!

That's not at all what I and others are doing.

If you re-read my note, you'll see that I wrote, "Today's EV fleet makes all 
kinds of sense for significant numbers of people, including many who might 
initially dismiss them out of hand." That's not even remotely close to claiming 
that EVs are only viable if they have a 200 mile range.

The point I'm trying to make is that most people's perception is such that a 
200 mile range crosses a threshold past which an EV becomes a general-purpose 
no-restrictions vehicle, as opposed to a specialty / niche / limited vehicle as 
it is today.

That perception is largely valid, even if a sizable fraction of the driving 
public are perfectly suited for that niche.

It's the difference between an EV being an ideal commuter car for one of the 
two people in a two- or three-car household, and an EV being an ideal car, 
period, full stop.

We need to be realistic about this, or else people will think we're just 
blowing electric smoke up their tailpipes.

Sell the EVs for what they're great at, which is quite significant. But don't 
try to tell people that they're wasteful or being uneconomical or whatever just 
because they're part of that sizable population for which today's EVs are a bad 
fit -- and _especially- not when general-purpose EVs are right around the 
corner.

> At $300/kWh by 2020, that's $20,000 for a 200 mile battery.  For an EV that 
> should only cost about $20k, then why pay DOUBLE for a battery that 66% of us 
> don't need.


That's the kind of thing I mean. Tell people that they don't need a 200-mile 
vehicle when they're used to doing 400-mile road trips without a second 
thought, and they'll think you're some sort of tree-hugging Luddite ascetic who 
doesn't understand why anybody would waste money on two-ply toilet paper or 
name-brand boxed Mac & Cheese.

Instead, tell people that EVs beat the pants off gassers when it comes to 
commuter vehicles and city cars. Tell them that full-range EVs are here if 
you've got the dough for a Tesla, and will soon be here if you've got the dough 
for a midrange non-luxury non-econobox sedan.

But _don't_ tell them that they don't actually need a 200 mile range and that 
they're idiots for even thinking about spending that kind of money on such 
waste.

Cheers,

b&
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