Tesla's Model S luxury supercar is just a 'stepping stone' towards development of a car for the average family which will be the Model 3 due for release in the next couple of years.
To gain an understanding of Elon Musk's vision of our transport future and how Tesla fits into it check out this article : http://waitbutwhy.com/2015/06/how-tesla-will-change-your-life.html A couple of hours reading in it but it puts a compelling case towards an electric vehicle future.
tony9,
Aug 23, 3:29am
A fundamental problem with battery technology is the high energy density of petrol.
A litre of petrol has about 40 Mj of "power", or 12 Kwh.
That means charging at 12 Kilowatts (or about 45 Amps on 230 Volts) would take one hour to transfer the same amount of power as one litre from the gas pump.
40 Litres a minute is the normal petrol transfer rate at service stations here. That would need a 28 Megawatt power outlet to get the same rate. Not very common, let alone the distribution network to sustain it.
Hydro-carbons are a very effective energy storage technology. There is no sign storage batteries are going to truly compete any time soon.
tony9,
Aug 23, 3:42am
Wellington has them, but they are being (or have been) phased out. No extra driver needed, but modern diesels are way cheaper to run and more flexible. They kept the electric ones running, with upgraded buses, for quite a while but it was only viable with extra subsidies from the regional council.
mharwood,
Aug 23, 3:48am
Last year, StoreDot made news with its rapid-charging smartphone battery that the Israeli startup claimed could be fully recharged in just 30 seconds, while hinting the technology could be scaled up for fast-charging electric vehicles (EVs). After completing a round of funding for a new EV business unit, StoreDot might just be able to deliver on its vision of EVs that can receive a full charge in just five minutes.
So (based on your info), we get about 120km from the 24kWh battery in our Nissan LEAF. A comparabley sized and powered ICE car is the Mazda 3 2.0L which has a published fuel consumption rate of 5.7L/100km, so 35km on 2 litres of petrol. The problem is that most of the energy in the petrol is wasted as heat in an ICE.
In regard to the rate of energy transfer ('fill time') Tesla has that addressed by way of changing out the (80kWh) battery in a purpose built facility which takes less that 2 minutes.
And of course hydrocarbons are a limited resource (which will rise in price to the point of being uneconomical) whereas so long as the sun keeps shining our EV will continue to be 'refuelled' by it by way of our 6kW of PV, for 'free', (or 3.8c/km on retail electricity prices) in less than 5 hours on our Juicepoint 7kW capable* installation. * restricted by the 3.3kW input on our current LEAF
Ford Fusion Energi 2014 review usa 21 miles in all electric mode. My guess is the Japanese manufacturers will make lower cost vehicles than these. http://youtu.be/_yjg1vGQhUo
movnon,
Nov 6, 5:46am
What do they do withe old cars (and some not so old cars) now? They are crushed & maybe be recycled to new cars. These could be conventional or electric/hybrid motivated. The more electric cars are made the cheaper they will be. Henry Ford decreased the model T price significantly & sold more as the price came down, however he did so at the lack of expense on R & D, almost losing his business to competition. The same will happen to electric vehicles but manufacturers are smarter now & technology moves faster. In the immediate future electric cars will be commuter focused around large cities giving the advantage of smaller,( more cars per car parking space - 2 or 3 in conventional spaces), quieter, cost effectiveness (fuel wise). As solar collection improves cars will be able to be recharged at car parks during daylight hours while drivers are at work. Long distance travel & where more vehicle power is a consideration, conventional fuels will be here for a long time.
nzfatie,
Nov 6, 7:19am
Electric Buses are another option for compact cities like Auckland where more than 100 diesel buses per day spew poisonous fumes over Queen St pedestrians! BYD has more than 1000 electric buses used around the world in cities that want to improve their air quality.
Yea well they had electric trolley buses in Auckland after trams (used the same overhead lines) Could be done again be way better than battery storage for power (and a lot lighter). Don't know why they were phased out really except they needed an extra to the driver to change power lines (a bit dangerous with the modern traffic volume though).
nzfatie,
Nov 7, 11:35pm
Yeah I remember the Farmers free trolley bus when I was a kid. Overhead electric is good for trains, not so for buses as it limits their route options. With the shift to suburban living, installing extra lines would have cost a fortune, so they were phased out in favour of diesel buses which are more flexible. but very bad for your lungs!
We already have a far greater charge network than this. It's called the national grid. Any domestic power socket is potentially a fill-up point and if you want a quicker charge then just install a 3kW to 50kW unit http://www.juicepoint.co.nz/products
And if you have PV then do your charging when the sun shines for even cheaper driving.
elect70,
Dec 17, 2:32am
Chevy Volt & the Tessler are on the right track , once sales take off prices will drop rest are only usefull for going to the local shop s& back with their small range , LPG will die out completely soon & not many servos have it Just like CNG -all gone
mack77,
Dec 17, 5:48am
Easily, if you buy a suitably powerful one. Electric motors have one big advantage over internal combustion engines-they develop very high torque at low revs. That's why they use them in electric and diesel electric locomotives to haul 1000 tonne trains in NZ.
intrade,
Dec 17, 6:16am
correct only hybrid making any sense is the gm-volt ampera the engine is used just to generate electricity for powering the car on extended range . i did tesd drive one in 2010 , my thread however has gone since longer now.
tmenz,
Dec 17, 7:25am
The biggest electric locomotive is around 13000 kW - imagine the size of the plug you would need to charge that overnight.
jgiblin,
Jun 4, 9:32am
To run a electric. you rob Peter to pay Paul.
it's cheaper to do that at the moment. wait till everyone has a electric and the price in power goes threw the roof. The whole supply and demand thing.
your still using energy and you have to get it form somewhere. you finish one problem by ridding the earth of nasty petrol vehicles. (not really) and you open another can of worms with the electric car.
Electricity becomes the new petrol. and your gonna be the end user and pay for it handsomely. The infostructure will cost a bomb and someone has to pick up the tab and it wont be Government.
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