The writer's anti-EV bias is plainly on display in this Reuters piece, but I think it's worth reading.
Recently we were talking about RTR. Part of that is making vehicle data available to third parties and owners. Insurers say that they want that data for EVs so that they can more easily determine whether the battery in a vehicle that's crashed can be salvaged, because in some cases a damaged battery means that they'll total the car. Full article: https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/scratched-ev-battery- your-insurer-may-have-junk-whole-car-2023-03-20/ or https://v.gd/ZyKb33 Excerpts: "For many electric vehicles, there is no way to repair or assess even slightly damaged battery packs after accidents, forcing insurance companies to write off cars with few miles - leading to higher premiums ... "While some automakers like Ford Motor Co (F.N) and General Motors Co (GM.N) said they have made battery packs easier to repair, Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) has taken the opposite tack with its Texas-built Model Y, whose new structural battery pack has been described by experts as having 'zero repairability.' "Allianz has seen scratched battery packs where the cells inside are likely undamaged, but without diagnostic data it has to write off those vehicles. Ford and GM tout their newer, more repairable packs. But the new, large 4680 cells in the Model Y made at Tesla's Austin, Texas, plant, are glued into a pack that forms part of the car's structure and cannot be easily removed or replaced, experts said. "Recently adopted EU battery regulations do not specifically address battery repairs, but they did ask the European Commission to encourage standards to 'facilitate maintenance, repair and repurposing,' a commission source said." ----- For me, this article raises some questions. 1. I suspect that the insurance companies want that vehicle data for a lot more than battery evaluation - and I don't think that I want them to have it all. We need legislation that not only opens up the data, but also puts it under the full control of vehicle owners. WE, not the vehicle manufacturers, should be the ones to release our EVs' battery data to insurers. 2. The piece briefly mentions independent battery repair shops, but rather glosses them over This could be an outstanding business opportunity. EV battery refurbishers might be the bumper rechroming shops of the 2020s. :-\ 3. Why wasn't - and apparently isn't - battery repairability considered right from the start in production EV design? (Rhetorical question, I guess.) 4. I'm not convinced that the situation is everywhere quite as bad as they portray it, though there's certainly room for improvement. Our Renault Zoe was rear-ended in late autumn. The body shop had to get the battery independently inspected for safety - they said that this was a legal requirement. It took literally months, but the battery eventually passed inspection. Is officially-approved EV battery inspection service just not available at all in the US, the UK, and Germany? Or is the problem the time and labor that's required? What do y'all think of this? David Roden, EVDL moderator & general lackey To reach me, don't reply to this message; I won't get it. Use my offlist address here : http://evdl.org/help/index.html#supt = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = What has allowed so many psychopathic personalities to rise so high in corporations, and now in government, is that they are so decisive. Unlike normal people, they are never filled with doubts, for the simple reason that they cannot care what happens next. -- Kurt Vonnegut = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = _______________________________________________ Address messages to [email protected] No other addresses in TO and CC fields HELP: http://www.evdl.org/help/
