Electra Meccanica (three Wheel Electric) Email-11/2/15

[Elio Amazed]

Several European countries have mandated total bans on ICE passenger vehicles to take effect by 2025.

 

[Sethodine]

Several European countries have mandated total bans on ICE passenger vehicles to take effect by 2025.

Several European countries went to war a hundred years ago and decimated an entire generation. Nobody ever said that several Eurpoean countries was smart.

 

[Marshall]

But you must also consider the mitigating factor of HOW that electricity is used. Electric cars are not responsible for 100% of the carbon-costs associated with building a hydro dam, because that same hydro dam is powering a million other homes and devices. When the carbon-cost for that electricity has been divided amonst all of those other areas (based on kw/h of usage) the electric car still comes out cleaner than the ICE car.


I'm of the "never buy a new car" crowd, but my wife and I have been talking and we've already decided to buy a Bolt in three years-or-so, when they start coming off of leases. But we still haven't decided if we'll be trading in our 2012 Leaf or simply growing our electric fleet. But aside from the Elio, we've decided never to go back to ICE cars if we can help it.

I do not doubt that some electric generation is cleaner than others. But saying they are "CLEAN" is what irks me. But people should look at their own needs and buy accordingly. I wish you well with your Bolt.

 

[Elio Amazed]

Several European countries went to war a hundred years ago and decimated an entire generation. Nobody ever said that several Eurpoean countries was smart.

No judgement was meant either way.
Thought you'd appreciate it. Just stating a curious fact.

 

[AriLea]

I do not doubt that some electric generation is cleaner than others. But saying they are "CLEAN" is what irks me. But people should look at their own needs and buy accordingly. I wish you well with your Bolt.

It certainly is a muddled concept. I think the bigger opportunity is that it "could be" made to be clean. And selectible for where, the actual location, it will be 'unclean' and where not. The old system based on gas is limited to just how clean it can be, and when, and where. And very entrenched at the infrastructure to do otherwise. Electric Drive itself , I'm not focusing tightly on batteries here, is much more flexible.

For example if Thorium Reactors would turn out to be as good as promised, EV infrastructure would be able to readily adapt. If it goes to ward H2 fuel-cells, that's not a giant leap either, at least not for the technology of the drive as installed in the vehicle itself. CNG, propane? Less limitations to change than an ICE-only environment, at least in theory.

 

[Rickb]

I do not doubt that some electric generation is cleaner than others. But saying they are "CLEAN" is what irks me. But people should look at their own needs and buy accordingly. I wish you well with your Bolt.

Renewable energy sources that burn clean.

 

[bunchathrees]

But you must also consider the mitigating factor of HOW that electricity is used. Electric cars are not responsible for 100% of the carbon-costs associated with building a hydro dam, because that same hydro dam is powering a million other homes and devices. When the carbon-cost for that electricity has been divided amonst all of those other areas (based on kw/h of usage) the electric car still comes out cleaner than the ICE car.

By far. In the report I linked to in post #50 of this thread, Hydro was one of the cleanest generation sources when all of the construction and transportation carbon footprints were added in. I was actually surprised by the middle-of-the-road ranking of photo voltaic generation, but it makes sense after thinking about it. I still might get some installed on my house, but I'll have to just a tad less smug about it.

 

[Sethodine]

By far. In the report I linked to in post #50 of this thread, Hydro was one of the cleanest generation sources when all of the construction and transportation carbon footprints were added in. I was actually surprised by the middle-of-the-road ranking of photo voltaic generation, but it makes sense after thinking about it. I still might get some installed on my house, but I'll have to just a tad less smug about it.

Haha I'm fully planning on getting some PV, no smugness at all. While I don't consider myself a "prepper", I like the idea that in the event of an emergency I can use the panels to charge the batteries in my Leaf, and use the inverter in the Leaf to run appliances.

 

[bunchathrees]

A Rube Goldberg machine.

 

[Marshall]

Several European countries have mandated total bans on ICE passenger vehicles to take effect by 2025.

What countries ban, they can easily unban upon facing reality. But that is itself questionable over whether they would face reality or not.

I think of the requirement that we change from the English measurement system to the Metric. I think it was mandated to have occurred about 30 years ago. Did that mandate work out?