TWC The "Brave New World" of automobiles

[oshunluvr]

TL/DR: - just jump to the end

A funny thing happened on the way to the garage....

Seriously, a couple weeks ago my wife purchased our first all-electric vehicle, a Volvo "C40 Recharge Twin Ultimate" (there's a little hyperbole in the name, isn't there?). We went out of town for 10 days and I left the car plugged in. Since I don't yet have a high voltage/amperage charger yet, I had it plugged into a 110v/20a outlet. This is supposed to take 8-10 hours to fully charge the car and it was 48% when we left. So I assumed half way through the night, it would be fully charged and would stay that way until our return. Nope. Four hours after we left, I checked the charge via the Volvo app and it was still at 48%. OK, so either I did something wrong or the charger cord was bad. No big deal, This was the first time I ever plugged it in so I assumed it was probably my fault.

Nope again. When we got home the motor battery was at 0% - totally dead. So I called Volvo On-Call and they sent a tow truck to take it to the dealer. It was late in the day, so I didn't hear from them until about 1 pm the next day when I was told to come pick it up. I checked the app before leaving and the car was at 60% and climbing on their charger. When I got to the dealership, I looked at the service sheet and the fix was a software update. Apparently, in the week I was gone Volvo had fixed this bug in the software which normally would have installed itself had the car not died first - it has both wifi and cellular connectivity built in.

TL/DR: When I got home my wife asked what was wrong. I told her "software update". She looked at me for a moment then asked "They had to reboot it?" I just nodded yes.

This happening allowed me to recall the first time I had a car get a software update - in 1998 when I purchased my very first Volvo, an S70 T5. Seems maybe it isn't that much of a "Brave New World" after all.

[Bings]

I just finished reading this article and then see this thread Does the volvo app let you know if someone's stealing the car?

[oshunluvr]

I don't think theft protection is part of the app but a good idea none the less.

Interesting article. We waited for Volvo to have the electric car we wanted because my experience with them is excellent. They have been making cars that last 1,000,000 mile for a long time and I'm hopeful they are still doing that. I doubt any electric car will last more than 5 years before replacement is a needed option, but only time will tell. We never liked the Teslas at all. For $100,000 US dollars I would expect a better fit and finish than they provide.

We don't drive very far often (small town) but my wife hadn't had a car she really really wanted in a long time until the C40 came along. The long term plan is to install house batteries and solar which will allow us to charge the car with the sun. A hefty initial investment but one that will protect us from power outages (we live in a hurricane state) and lower our overall electric costs as well as zero out the gasoline bill.

One of my kids has a new Kia Niro Hybrid (not plug in) and he's getting 45 mpg and no charger needed. IMO an excellent option if you're shy to jump into full electric.

[Snowhog]

Going solar might not be as much of "A hefty initial investment" as you think. Look at what the Government is still (?) offering as tax incentives for installing 'Green Energy' alternative. Look to your State as well, as some States also offer tax incentives.

[oshunluvr]

Going solar might not be as much of "A hefty initial investment" as you think. Look at what the Government is still (?) offering as tax incentives for installing 'Green Energy' alternative. Look to your State as well, as some States also offer tax incentives.

Good point. We get a $7500 tax credit on the Volvo which is about a 12.5% discount.

[claydoh]

The real question is how many solar panels will charge an electric vehicle in how many days , on top of ,what is needed for household usage.
I think a Tesla needs about 10 panels (what size??) about 5 sunny days to charge, at 110vac. No idea how many watts that is.
My Mrs wishes for a Tesla, and to power it via Solar - being in Oz, this is a bit easier/cheaper. Not sure if 10 panels even fit on the house, though the shed + house might provide enough space for everything.
Considering mostly short driving distances, and adding a battery storage system, it does make a lot of sense.

But even with Tesla's improvements in quality (supposedly), a shorter-ranged but better-built, potentially better looking vehicle would a wiser choice.

[GreyGeek]

Would electric cars be self-sustainable if the gov were not subsidizing them? I don't know, but considering all the "incentives" mentioned in this thread I got to wondering.

Most "alternative" energy sources are competitive solely because of gov subsidies. Nebraska's major agricultural crop is corn. Some years ago it became fashionable to support the replacement of gasoline with ethanol from corn, as promoted by our Sen Nelson, who stated "we must replace oil fields with corn fields". It was a totally ignorant but politically correct msg at the time.

He didn't know that in terms of net energy content after production, it takes 7 gallons of corn Ethanol to replace 1 gallon of gasoline, and to replace the 20M bbls of oil we imported every day, at that time, would take 4 million more acres than all the potable land in America.

Our unicameral approved the subsidizing of 18 Ethanol Production plants in Nebraska, "to help the farmers". The price of corn on the commodity market rose from a long term average of around $2.45/bu to over $6/bu. Farmers were in hog heaven and began plowing and planting road to road, instead of fence to fence. In some situations they plowed up the road as well.

Regular ethanol disappeared from most gas stations, replaced by 10% ethanol gas, and in some special locations, like the Dept of Revenue gas pumps in their parking garage, one could pump %15 ethanol gas. In 2012 the price of corn hit $8/bu. Cereal prices in the stores experienced a similar hike.

I knew in 2002 that I would be retiring in 2007 or 2008. So, I bought a 2002 Saturn SL2 5 speed stick shift with 4 doors and a fiberglass body, because it gave the best millage at the time and was based on a Honda. 20 years later that body is still almost pristine even after being dinged by doors and bumpers so many times that I've lost count. The engine has 111,000 miles on it and it purrs like a kitten. The tranny is getting a little touchy. The AC pump has been replaced. Other than that its just been regular maintenance. Until 2012. That car was designed for 87 octane regular fuel. Within a few months the engine began running rough. My fuel mileage dropped from 33 town-40 county to 22 t-32 c. The engine seals weren't meant for gasohol.

Voters seemed to have noticed that Ethanol wasn't the panacea it was claimed to be and the Unicameral voted to discontinue state subsidies of Ethanol plants. Within the year 17 plants ceased production because Ethanol purification couldn't pay for itself. Regular gasoline began re-appearing at the pumps. My Saturn took about a year but its purring resumed. My millage increased to 27-36. My piston pressure is down somewhat so that explains the drop in millage at this time.

There is one thing that I didn't foresee in 2002. That Saturn looks like a dart and sits really close to the road. Besides being economical and reliable I thought it looked really cool. That shape gave it a very reduced drag, which increased millage. At 80 it is really hard to climb out of. Had I realized that I would have probably bought a Honda 4WD SUV.

[kc1di]

I currently have a gas powered Volvo S10 - got 164K miles and still going strong. So won't upgrade to electric just yet

[Snowhog]

Very happy with my 2021 Honda Insight Hybrid. I didn't consider an EV for a number of reasons. Primarily their cost, secondarily their driving range, and thirdly the cost of replacing the batteries.

A quality Hybrid is, IMO, the best compromise.

[GreyGeek]

Very happy with my 2021 Honda Insight Hybrid. I didn't consider an EV for a number of reasons. Primarily their cost, secondarily their driving range, and thirdly the cost of replacing the batteries.

A quality Hybrid is, IMO, the best compromise.

Last spring and summer I seriously considered giving up my driver's license instead of renewing it on my birthday last August, and using public transportation. For three months I compared what it would cost me to use my car (insurance, fuel and maintenance) with what it would cost me to use public transportation (buses and cabs).

With our car my wife and I could leave and return when we wanted to. This morning, for example, we left at 11:45AM for my wife's 12:15PM echo-cardiogram appointment. It was over at 12:45PM and we immediately left for Raisn' Cane take-out for dinner. Then we returned home by 1:00PM. Total round trip: 12 miles. Cost: about $1.25.

A well-timed cab could make the same journey in about the same time. It would have cost about $30 and we probably would have had to wait for it to arrive here to take us and at the hospital to pick us up. Taking the bus would have been much, much worse. First, the buses run only on the hour, and only between 7AM and 7PM. We would have had to leave home at about 9:45AM in order to walk to the bus stop in time for the 9:52AM pickup. We'd get to within a block of the hospital at 11:18AM and walk the rest of the way. My wife uses a walker. The next bus would arrive at 12:18PM, after our appointment was scheduled, so we would have had an hour to burn, setting around, waiting for the appt.
After the appointment ended at 12:45PM we'd walk a block to the bus stop and wait until 1:18PM. We'd get home at about 3PM. Total cost: $7.20 and about a whole day. Go shopping? Not with a cab, and I couldn't carry all our groceries for two weeks or a month onto a bus. The frozen goods would melt before we got home, especially in the summer. Grocery delivery? We've been doing that for about half the pandemic. Medicines are delivered by mail. Then there is the occasional emergency request from my son or daughter-in-law, "could you pick up Jordan at 2PM?"
How could I say no?

I decided to keep my driver's license.

[Snowhog]

Keep your drivers license as long as you can keep getting it renewed. Having it but not using it is better than needing it and not having it.

[GreyGeek]

The thing that is most aggravating to me about "old" drivers are those who putt along at 20mph in a 35 mph zone, or do 45 on the 75mph Interstate, and never signal their intentions. I always drive the speed limit in town and set my cruise control to 65mph on the Interstate, and stay in the right lane. However, I've ventured onto the Internet only once in the last 8 years, and that to deliver the eulogy at the funeral of a relative three years ago. Other than that, I haven't driven out of town since 2014.

[Snowhog]

However, I've ventured onto the Internet only once in the last 8 years,

That's fascinating! How ever did you get your vehicle onto the Internet?

[GreyGeek]

That's fascinating! How ever did you get your vehicle onto the Internet?

It wasn't easy! It took a lot of computer foo!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiUmrX7CxGA