Electric car thread

[Ted Striker]

yeah. A lot of the facebook commenters and culture warriors can't quite square up with the fact that you can own an EV but also own an ICE truck for hauling shit where you drive that truck the 5% of the time you need it.

Or just a utility trailer behind whatever ICE vehicle you might have as the other car (because very few American families have only one car)

They also fucking love the idea that we use coal to produce power ignoring the fact that it's more efficient to have one fossil fuel plant providing the energy to move thousands of vehicles vs thousands of less efficient engines moving thousands of vehicles.

I know this would be lost on them because they don't believe in manmade climate change, but even if the electricity came from coal, it's much easier to mitigate single point emissions than millions of people driving around in their personal smokestacks.

I was a (sort of) earlier adopter of the Prius - first year of the second gen (that most people mistakenly believe is the first gen). I lived in a big city with terrible traffic, and the car was just perfect for my commute (and honestly had no trouble driving it to any ski area). People had one of two reactions to the car: amused curiosity or contempt. When they would repeat the propaganda like coal, nickel mines, the battery will cost 3 grand to replace, blah, blah, I just pulled a we rate dogs on them: But it's a good car.

[NBABUCKS1]

Or just a utility trailer behind whatever ICE vehicle you might have as the other car (because very few American families have only one car)

The new f150 lightning is not pulling my 7000 lb tractor or my 3500 lb rv trailer very far before it needs recharged.

Agree w/ every point about pollution too


I also still have my gen 2 prius I need to sell. The pickup on that thing is abysmal lol but man can thing haul some shit. Also for car camping it was great. Lie flat seats in the back and you can turn it to the ready state and it will keep a temp (hot or cold!) all night long with only turning on engine to warm up or charge batteries for ac.

[Long duc dong]

I'll put a couple of days from my trip in.

I started in the afternoon on the first day, and just drove to Vegas. I did that because I was worried about driving too much across the desert during the day with my dog. It made it easier to just start with a mellow day.

I spent the night in Vegas at a Holiday Inn Express. Not the nicest one I've stayed at, although it was pet friendly.

I didn't take note of exactly when Ieft Vegas or what the charge was.


MESQUITE NEVADA

My first stop was Mesquite Nevada. It's right on the border of Arizona.

I arrived in Mesquite with a 31% charge at 8:57 am.

I left at 9:17 am with a 80% charge.

There are lots of chargers and the are 250kw. It was pretty empty when I was there.

The chargers are located right next to the Casablanca Casino. You could go in there to get food or use a restroom. There are also gas stations with convenience shops right there. It was not hard to find, and very close to the 15.

BEAVER UTAH

My next stop was in Beaver. The drive was hot, and you are climbing coming out of Nevada, so you don't get great range.

I arrived with a 22% charge at 1237 (mountain time).

I left at 107 with an 86% charge.

There is a big Chevron station with a large convenience store. There is also a Timberline restaurant, I have no idea if it is good or not. There is a Quality Inn right there too. There are lots of chargers, although I don't remember how many.

There is a good area to walk your dog.

GREEN RIVER UTAH

This one was a bit of drive off the 70, although not a big deal. It took 5 minutes at the most.

I arrived at 4:09 pm with a 20% charge. I left at 430 pm with a 74% charge.

There were plenty of chargers, although they are only 150kw max.

The chargers are in the parking lot of a museum. There is a very nice park there to walk your dog, but there are no restrooms. There are gas stations with convenience stores you could stop at, but I didn't see any within easy walking distance.

GRAND JUNCTION COLORADO

I stopped here in part because I was hungry. As I recall I could have gone further. I also wanted to decide where to spend the night and make a reservation. The chargers in Grand Junction are located in a shopping mall, so lots of food options. I recall it being a bit of a drive from the I70, but not too bad.

I didn't take down the time unfortunately, but I arrived with a 33% charge and left with 88%.

Stopped in Palisades Colorado to pick up some gummy bears. The town is insanely beautiful, I was wishing I had decided to stay there.

I ended up staying the night in Parachute Colorado, at the Grand River Inn. This was another Beautiful spot. I don't remember what time I arrived. The drive up the river is just awesome.

I will say that I was probably not as efficient with the charging as I could have been on this day. I wanted to be cautious, since I didn't know the drive well. Also, since I had my dog I really didn't want to have a dead battery.

I should also add that the navigator DOES NOT CHANGE TIME ZONES UNTIL YOU ACTUALLY CROSS THE TIME ZONE. I found this confusing at first, you see when you are supposed to arrive an hour earlier than it seems you should, because it is putting you there at the time it will be in the CURRENT time zone. When you cross into the next zone it updates. This is not all that big of a deal, you adjust.

[Long duc dong]

A few photos from the day.

First few are from the San Rafael Swell. The next couple are Parachute Colorado, taken the next morning. Sorry the quality sucks.

[Beaver]

Joined the club by getting an Ioniq 5 last week. Super fun to drive. I make an almost weekly trip from Ogden to just south of Jackson, WY and the only reason I was able to get the vehicle was the new addition of the Electrify America charger in Evanston. The property I goto has no winter access via car so I'm not sure how this works in the Winter and will probably have to drive my F150 with the snowmachine in the back - Unless I can find a local willing to let me park at their place and charge while also leaving my snowmachine behind - which is asking for trouble when you post something like that in Wyoming lol.

One thing that needs to happen is more DC fast charging in rural places. Wyoming is a desert for non tesla charging pretty much anywhere. It has a grand total of 2 DC fast chargers (>50kw) that are CCS. Luckily the current administration is plowing money into this because I don't really think it's economically viable for rural areas to install these at the moment. I'm sure in time they will come, but for now it's going to be a bit dicey. I literally have no plan B between Kemmerer (11kw tesla destination charger) and Bondurant. There are always RV parks in La Barge, Big Piney and Marbleton and I should probably approach them about getting on plug share and setting up a model to attract EV drivers but I doubt it'd drive much business.

and god dam do I want that canoo.

Welcome to the club. It is indeed a fun car. My only gripe is the speedo hidden by the steering wheel/left hand.

[heckacali]

I've seen a sudden influx of S-line Audi Etrons here in town.
Like a car carrier parked downtown for the well heeled and they all just appeared.

Nice looking though.

[riser4]

OMG. This is the perfect timing for the ever popular "Dong, where is my aut-toe-moh-beelll?!?!"

[Toadman]

Saw my first Ford F-150 Lightning this morning on my way to work here in Bend.

[Long duc dong]

OMG. This is the perfect timing for the ever popular "Dong, where is my aut-toe-moh-beelll?!?!"

It was certainly in some cool places!

I'll add a few more photos and some details on other days later. Driving across Utah and Colorado is pretty awesome. Nevada and northern Arizona don't suck either.

[Long duc dong]

Saw my first Ford F-150 Lightning this morning on my way to work here in Bend.

Nice!

I still have yet to see one.

The Rivian R1T is pretty common around here, relatively speaking. Their headquarters are in Irvine, so I suspect some of the early ones I saw were employees.

I did see my first R1S a few weeks ago, and I have to say it looked great. I was impressed.

I put down a deposit on a Fisker Ocean a few days ago. For now I'm getting the Extreme. I might downgrade to the Ultra, which has almost the same range, but I've got plenty of time to decide.

I have been thinking about an R1T for a while now, but they still have not gotten the max pack ones going. I have heard speculation that part of the issue might be that they can put out 4 large pack R1Ts for the same battery investment as 3 max pack ones, and right now they just want to get as many cars out as possible. That actually makes sense.

Fisker is going to have a smaller pack, as it is a smaller car. They are delivering the Ocean One first, which is the largest pack. I won't get one of those, but I'm hoping to get my Ocean Extreme by next fall, which seems very possible.

Fisker is having Magna build their cars, which I think is wise. Starting a car company is tough enough without having to build a factory. Magna has a great reputation, so I'm now pretty confident I will be getting the vehicle. Of course, who knows what will happen, but I am excited. Truth be told I don't really like bigger SUVs, and the Ocean is more of what I would want size was than the R1S.

[frorider]

I’m seeing one or two Rivian pickups pretty much every day. I rarely drive, so this is just what I see walking to post office etc here in Tahoe.

I’m not a fan of RTT but I see them on some Rivians & it makes sense—addresses the short bed length issue for sleeping in a relatively low height solution when folded.

[warthog]

Friend of a friend got the Hummer EV. Thing is really sweet looking, massive, and faster than the Taycan that another friend got.
The Hummer top comes off completely, which I didn't know. Really like the look of it. Time will tell on reliability. I think he has already had it in the shop a few times for leaks in the top. The price is insane.

I think him and TB 12 are the only two in town that have one so far.

[frorider]

That Hummer is ridiculous. 3000 lb battery.

[Toadman]

I’m seeing one or two Rivian pickups pretty much every day. I rarely drive, so this is just what I see walking to post office etc here in Tahoe.

I’m not a fan of RTT but I see them on some Rivians & it makes sense—addresses the short bed length issue for sleeping in a relatively low height solution when folded.

Seeing Rivians in Bend also. Seen them late ski season heading up to Bachelor. Last one I saw was on a tow truck. So, suspect there were some technical issues, which would be expected with a brand new vehicle in its infancy and initial production.

[Tips^Up]

Dubuque Iowa actually seemed pretty cool

My hometown. It is a relatively nice place. If you happen to be there in the winter, Sundown is worth a ski day.
I'm not ready for an electric car yet myself, but I appreciate your tales of real world e-driving, especially from a skier's perspective (with cold weather performance over mountain passes, etc.).

[uglymoney]

The Tesla chargers are backed right up to 151 at HyVee in Dubuque. Really a perfect scenario with groceries, Starbucks, and full foodservice options inside.

Sent from my SM-G991U1 using Tapatalk

[possum]

Seeing Rivians in Bend also. Seen them late ski season heading up to Bachelor. Last one I saw was on a tow truck. So, suspect there were some technical issues, which would be expected with a brand new vehicle in its infancy and initial production.

They deliver them to buyers on flat beds

[NBABUCKS1]

The Tesla chargers are backed right up to 151 at HyVee in Dubuque. Really a perfect scenario with groceries, Starbucks, and full foodservice options inside.

Sent from my SM-G991U1 using Tapatalk

i literally could not grocery shop fast enough without clogging a charger and idling with my vehicle because it charges too fast. I'd feel bad occupying a spot I'm not using and would give me anxiety while shopping.

[uglymoney]

Fair and congratulations on the IQ5 and cabin. My post was for LDD's excellent cross country trip report that came right by me.

Also for that report, agreed Iowa is absolutely a shithole state but you see almost none of the better parts from the interstate. You came right through my town for instance but the bypass around CR to Dubuque gives you literally 0% view of this place.

Sent from my SM-G991U1 using Tapatalk

[riser4]

My hometown. It is a relatively nice place. If you happen to be there in the winter, Sundown is worth a ski day.
I'm not ready for an electric car yet myself, but I appreciate your tales of real world e-driving, especially from a skier's perspective (with cold weather performance over mountain passes, etc.).

My employer, Dunder-Mifflin, was trying to get "volunteers" to relocate to Dubuque and take a pay cut. Hard pass.

[toast2266]

I’m seeing one or two Rivian pickups pretty much every day. I rarely drive, so this is just what I see walking to post office etc here in Tahoe.

I’m not a fan of RTT but I see them on some Rivians & it makes sense—addresses the short bed length issue for sleeping in a relatively low height solution when folded.

I don't get that. The whole point of a pickup truck is the utilitarian nature of the bed. So they have a super expensive pickup truck which they then immediately remove the utilitarian aspect of by bolting a shitty tent on top of the bed. Why not just get an SUV and fold the seats down? More comfortable sleeping, and you don't have to stuff your bag and fold up your tent in the morning when you want to drive from your glamping spot into town for overpriced coffee.

[adrenalated]

I don't get that. The whole point of a pickup truck is the utilitarian nature of the bed. So they have a super expensive pickup truck which they then immediately remove the utilitarian aspect of by bolting a shitty tent on top of the bed. Why not just get an SUV and fold the seats down? More comfortable sleeping, and you don't have to stuff your bag and fold up your tent in the morning when you want to drive from your glamping spot into town for overpriced coffee.

The SUV doesn't get as many likes on TikTok, that's why.

[skaredshtles]

My employer, Dunder-Mifflin, was trying to get "volunteers" to relocate to Dubuque and take a pay cut. Hard pass.

Yeah... FTS.

[Boissal]

Seeing Rivians in Bend also. Seen them late ski season heading up to Bachelor. Last one I saw was on a tow truck. So, suspect there were some technical issues, which would be expected with a brand new vehicle in its infancy and initial production.

I've seen 4 or 5 in SLC in the past month, surprised how common they seem to be already.

[gravitylover]

Banged up Rivian R1T that passed me a few days ago

F150 Lightning the next day
Yesterday an R1S went by but I didn't have the camera ready. It looks better than the pickup.