The downside of heavy electric overpowered trucks and SUVs

[kach22i]

An interesting article from the Atlantic.

January 4, 2023
Electric Vehicles Are Bringing Out the Worst in Us
The downside of heavy, overpowered trucks and SUVs
By David Zipper
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/01/electric-vehicles-suv-battery-climate-safety/672576/?utm_source=pocket-newtab

Reaffirms some of my own observations and concerns.

One of the hotlinks in the above article leads to a possible solution.

Norway Became an EV Paradise, Now It's Imposing a Weight Tax and Bringing Back the VAT
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/norway-became-an-ev-paradise-now-it-s-imposing-a-weight-tax-and-bringing-back-the-vat-200685.html#:~:text=EV%20owners%20will%20also%20ha ve,powered%20cars%20(including%20hybrids)

It will apply after the first 500 kg (1,102 lb)

[shadowjack1]

Good read. Thanks

[GH85Carrera]

I saw the first Rivan pickup in the wild a couple of days ago. One of my friends has a deposit down on the Tesla pickup. So far it is vaporware.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

I saw the first Rivan pickup in the wild a couple of days ago. One of my friends has a deposit down on the Tesla pickup. So far it is vaporware.

Yeah, I saw a Rivian a while back.

[kach22i]

I talked to a Rivian owner while he dried off his car in a parking lot of a building I was working on this summer.

His previous car was the top of the line Mach-E (mega HP), and he said his Rivian was scores more powerful (and faster).

I was totally impressed by the build quality.

[rcooled]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

I saw the first Rivan pickup in the wild a couple of days ago.

I spotted this one on Highway 1 recently, and there are a few others in the local area too.

[herr_oberst]

Tons of Rivian pickups around here, hadn't seen one of these until the guy around the block brought it home. What's weird is he parks it on the street, there's not a charger present. I wonder if he charges it at work.
Doesn't matter, really. It's his business. The car looks good from this angle, but I find the headlights and front end on all Rivian's to be awkward.

[speeder]

Rivian PU trucks are everywhere in LA, I probably got passed by 3 of them on the way up to Mammoth yesterday. I like the SUV a lot better, they are starting to pop up in my neighborhood. I'd buy one right now if I was in the market for a $100k SUV.

[unclebilly]

These VinFast Vietnamese EVs looked ok when we saw them in Santa Monica last fall… they wouldn’t work for us but I get that if you live in a warm climate and don’t drive far on most trips, they would be OK.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a37012830/vinfast-vietnam-ev-maker-expanding/

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

I saw the first Rivan pickup in the wild a couple of days ago.

I saw my first today at the trash recycle station. Looked excellent, except the front grill which looks like a Japanese Anime character, but I didn't intrude on the folks driving it.

So, just get back and decide to do some homework. Let's just start at the Rivian website.

What a mess.

"Vehicles made for the planet."

"Whether it’s taking families on new adventures or helping fleets electrify at scale, our vehicles all share a common goal — preserving the natural world for generations to come."

What a joke.

[McLovin]

I agree, it’s a joke. A 120 pound housewife driving a SEVEN THOUSAND POUND vehicle to the store is “saving the planet.” C’mon.

[Arizona_928]

That first article is very bias. What about the rare earth metals....?


The lack of fuel tax for eletric is going to lead to states keeping track of your annual mileage.. it's already being investigated by laws earmarked into random bills....


And the real issues for electric outside of taxation is that the power grid can't support them all charging at once...

[McLovin]

I also agree the govt forced move to electrics is a mess.
Will it work out? The honest answer is nobody knows. Because it depends highly on future technologies, that may or may not work out.
But the way it is now, it can’t feasibly be scaled to mass use. Not even close. Esp not if one cares about the environment. Where are the millions of tons of battery raw materials (lithium etc) going to come from? How is it going to get out of the ground into the batteries? How is all the electricity going to be generated?
The govt has basically forced everyone to abandon any other alternatives, which may have proven in the future to be better (synthetic fuels, hydrogen and any number of other alternatives).
Current electric vehicle tech is ok for some uses, but is far from ok for mass use across the entire US and world. For example, they are super inefficient in cold climates, and much of the US is very cold for a significant part of the year. They also are not as efficient as claimed, I’ve never even come close to the “estimated range,” under any conditions.
I say this as an electric vehicle owner. I’m open to the possibility that it turns out ok for true mass use, but at this time I’m skeptical.

[Ayles]

A friend of mine has a Rivian truck that he took delivery of over the summer. Yhey make use of space in some pretty cool ways. But one thing is for sure for a 7k lb vehicle its insanely fast. We did a pedal to the floor merge on to the freeway from almost a standstill and its by far the fastest accelerating vehicle I have been in.

See quite a few Rivian trucks around but have yet to see the suv.

[matthewb0051]

Originally Posted by McLovin

I agree, it’s a joke. A 120 pound housewife driving a SEVEN THOUSAND POUND vehicle to the store is “saving the planet.” C’mon.

That and the electricity used to charge the batteries comes from pixie dust and unicorn farts, cause it surely doesn't come from fossil fuels.