Why I Don't Like EV Vehicles

Discussion in 'Dodge Challenger General Discussions' started by SRT-Tom, Sep 26, 2024.

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  1. Sep 26, 2024 at 9:55 AM #1
    SRT-Tom

    SRT-Tom Well-Known Member Staff Member Super Moderator Article Writer

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    My problem with electric vehicles is their range and availability of quick charging stations.


    This was made evident in an experience the Motor Trend staff had while driving a Ford F-150 Lightning in northern California (between Harris Ranch and Sacramento)- a 600 mile trip. (Note- The truck is EPA-rated for 320 miles).


    Their first stop was at Kettleman City- about 200 miles into the trip. At this point in time, only 30 miles remained with a 14% charge. At the Electrify American (EA) charging station, two chargers were occupied, two were offline, and two were open. The two open ones, however, were "tagged for maintenance." Across the freeway overpass were three slower ChargePoint DC fast chargers, but they were offline, too.


    The drivers returned to the EA charging station and waited in line for two hours to use one of the two operable chargers. The 350-kW charger, however, charged at an absurdly slow rate of 33kW. After an hour of charging,

    the F-150 had received a 64% state of charge- good for only 182 miles of range.


    The drivers then cut their losses and planned to stop at another EA station Ford's route planner added for them- 100 miles up the road. Once there, they found a working charger and spent 25 minutes charging their truck.


    A few days later, for the return trip, they used PlugShare and FordPass app's route planner to select three charging stations with good ratings. Supposedly, things would be much better this time.


    Not so. As soon as they started their trip, the range meter dropped to 200 miles, instead of 324 miles, due to "Range Revised Due to Route." It wanted them to stop four times at different charging stations than those selected. They then had to spend 10 minutes swapping back to their initial choices.


    The MT Garage article concludes with this: "We'll eventually, hopefully, get to a point when EV travel is easy as it is with a gas-powered vehicle, but trips like this remind us that huge pains remain."
     
  2. Sep 26, 2024 at 10:20 AM #2
    Sexy Blue

    Sexy Blue Full Access Member

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    EVs have been one disaster followed by another.

    Actually my stepson that used to own a Volt, traded up for the Rivian SUV. A $90K paperweight. He came to visit us for the holidays, and used 52% of his range, he came one more time for another holiday, and never came back again. I assume sitting in line for hours to charge his silly vehicle, with a wife, and a kid was enough? We'll probably never hear the story of that? All of my vehicles fuel up in less than 3 minutes, even my truck with the 35 gallon fuel tank. And rarely a wait to get to a pump either.


    https://www.youtube.com/@mguytv

    https://www.youtube.com/@StacheDTraining
     
  3. Sep 30, 2024 at 9:45 PM #3
    Green with Envy

    Green with Envy Full Access Member

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    I have no use for an EV but in my opinion a vehicle like the new Ramcharger 1500 would be the best way to go. According to Ram the truck will be somewhat like a Diesel Electric Train which have been running the tracks for many years! It will come with a Pentastar V6 under the hood which does nothing but turn the generator which sends power to a battery that supplies the wheel motors with electricity. The 1500 will have over six hundred hp and over 600 lb of torque I can't remember the exact figures but do remember over 600. The mileage distance is estimated to be around 630 miles between the gas and battery. With this setup you can operate like any gas powered vehicle and just pull into a gas station and be ready to go in five minutes.
     
  4. Oct 1, 2024 at 9:55 AM #4
    Noah224

    Noah224 New Member

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    I agree that range and availability of charging stations are serious issues for EVs.Many people have false sense of charging being like fueling up, and that’s just not true.On longer trips, there’s always a risk of encountering out-of-service stations or long waits.We really need to wait for better infrastructure.Moreover, the charging differences between stations can be frustrating.Sometimes even new stations might not work or be overloaded, adding uncertainty to travel.Such experiences can discourage many potential buyers.:)
     
  5. Oct 1, 2024 at 12:14 PM #5
    Sexy Blue

    Sexy Blue Full Access Member

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    I say we scrap the entire idea, and let the ICE vehicle manufacturers go back to make ICE. i have nothing against EVs in the free market. and all was fine when Tesla was a niche vehicle, before the govt had to stick their nose where it don't belong.

    Then again, I would like to go back to pre Stellantis, and Mopar performance. Sigh...

    I saw a Hornet up close, AKA re-badged Alpha Romeo. Has a hood similar to my Scat, but that is where it all ends.
     
  6. Oct 1, 2024 at 9:41 PM #6
    baccaruda

    baccaruda Full Access Member

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    Sexy Blue Didn't you say you bought a EV or a hybrid for your wife back in the pandemic And if so how is this car working out? Any problems with it?
     
  7. Oct 2, 2024 at 3:09 PM #7
    Sexy Blue

    Sexy Blue Full Access Member

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    Plug In Hybrid EV.

    It had a couple of recalls, one is it actually has a heat pump, and it would intermittently sound like a train horn.
    Two is had a part called a DC-DC adapter that could cause it to catch on fire if you charged it below 40 degrees.

    Other than that all good. I hate driving it especially at night, none the controls are illumined except for the power window, and some in the dash, are not visible behind the steering wheel. The infotainment center looks like an Etch a sketch popping out of the center of the dash with 2 knobs at the bottom, left and right. Dodge is the best I saw with the U connect, followed by Ford Sync. After all I heard about Toyota being so great, they should fire the engineers.

    The heat sucks in it too, so you press this button for Engine charging, and you can get good engine heat.
     
  8. Oct 2, 2024 at 10:50 PM #8
    baccaruda

    baccaruda Full Access Member

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    I cannot see driving at night without good lighting......
     
  9. Oct 3, 2024 at 7:26 AM #9
    Sexy Blue

    Sexy Blue Full Access Member

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  10. Oct 3, 2024 at 10:01 AM #10
    baccaruda

    baccaruda Full Access Member

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    Sexy Blue likes this.
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