"There's only one customer for electric vehicles" - Article link

[RingoDingo]

Unless the perspectives come from an authoritative, informed, well-respected source like the Washington Post, they obviously lack merit.

This isn't really the place for us to hash out media bias, not that we could if we wanted to, so I won't take your bait. Just pointing out that, in this particular case, it is reasonable to question the intentions of an unabashedly conservative newspaper when it comes to matters like electric vehicle adoption and attitudes (though, sure, I could have said that instead of Washington Examiner op-ed = maybe dumb).

I'll add... that shocker of shockers... the non-American car manufacturers, many of whom are profitable and have never needed BIG 3 big gummint bailouts, are also curiously "all-in" on EVs... which sort of throws a bunch of cold water on this guy's entire premise.

 

[Jhenson29]

Did I miss it? Who is the “one customer for electrical vehicles?”

 

[RingoDingo]

Did I miss it? Who is the “one customer for electrical vehicles?”

The government, clearly.

 

[Jhenson29]

The government, clearly.

Oh. I see. Sorry. Sometimes something is so dumb I miss it.

 

[RingoDingo]

Oh. I see. Sorry. Sometimes something is so dumb I miss it.

You’re not alone. I really wanted a Dodge Challenger Hellcat, but Nancy Pelosi forced me to buy a Taycan so she could bail out Porsche someday.

 

[Fletch]

I am torn on these 2035 mandates. On one hand, necessity is the mother of invention. If it has to be solved, it will be. There’s a ton of money to be made solving it too.

I do worry about the power grid. Not sure all the grids can support a car in every garage plugged in. But again, a great problem to solve and a good reason to (finally) solve it (I’m in Texas, we love not solving Grid problems here). I also worry about the supply chain and access to lithium. Finally, i hope these laws are about “no ICE” rather than “EV” because we need to be free to explore alternatives like hydrogen. Again - there’s a ton of money to be made by solving this, Tesla has shown that. Just need some constraints to force the issue otherwise it will drag out forever.

I do believe the car manufacturers are on board for a variety of reasons, one is that they see it as a chance to bypass the dealers and go direct. Ford already announced this, others will follow. Dealerships, in general, are doing a disservice to both parties here (manufacturer and consumer). The direct model will give more margin to the manufacturers, and will ultimately make the process of buying a car waaay easier, more accessible and less intimidating. Plus all these dealer markups - I’m over it.

In the Tesla model, they have showrooms and in most places you can even test drive. While in Texas they can’t discuss anything related to price and configuration, in sane states they can help you make informed choices. Then just buy online and have it show up at your door. Next up is service centers, but thats not NEARLY as intense as ICE and there are going to be independent service stations popping up all over for EVs. Yet another way capitalism will help here.

There’s no going back. The timeline may not be great and hopefully will be adjusted realistically as we get closer to the deadlines. But you gotta start somewhere.

 

[Archimedes]

I just realized that article is from the Washington Examiner…

Best not to get your ‘journalism’ from a right wing blog…

 

[bj33813]

Face it: we are all screwed as the majority of govts around the world will only react to a problem, and usually too late. And then blame the opposing party.

 

[TYKHAAAN]

I am torn on these 2035 mandates. On one hand, necessity is the mother of invention. If it has to be solved, it will be. There’s a ton of money to be made solving it too.

I do worry about the power grid. Not sure all the grids can support a car in every garage plugged in. But again, a great problem to solve and a good reason to (finally) solve it (I’m in Texas, we love not solving Grid problems here). I also worry about the supply chain and access to lithium. Finally, i hope these laws are about “no ICE” rather than “EV” because we need to be free to explore alternatives like hydrogen. Again - there’s a ton of money to be made by solving this, Tesla has shown that. Just need some constraints to force the issue otherwise it will drag out forever.

I do believe the car manufacturers are on board for a variety of reasons, one is that they see it as a chance to bypass the dealers and go direct. Ford already announced this, others will follow. Dealerships, in general, are doing a disservice to both parties here (manufacturer and consumer). The direct model will give more margin to the manufacturers, and will ultimately make the process of buying a car waaay easier, more accessible and less intimidating. Plus all these dealer markups - I’m over it.

In the Tesla model, they have showrooms and in most places you can even test drive. While in Texas they can’t discuss anything related to price and configuration, in sane states they can help you make informed choices. Then just buy online and have it show up at your door. Next up is service centers, but thats not NEARLY as intense as ICE and there are going to be independent service stations popping up all over for EVs. Yet another way capitalism will help here.

There’s no going back. The timeline may not be great and hopefully will be adjusted realistically as we get closer to the deadlines. But you gotta start somewhere.

Most of the grid will eventually be able to handle the cars. The grid has grown over the many decades to accommodate our lives and needs and will continue to do so with proper investment and management. Texas tho….ay yi yi….you guys have a unique mess that will take quite some doing to fix, but it’s not impossible. Let’s not forget tho that EV transition will not happen over night, nor by 2035. Most Americans will probably still be using gas cars into the 40s and 50s. When our younger generation takes over, and they are very tech heavy and more future looking forward than we and previous generations, they will dictate the flow and buy the EVs and any other cleaner techs more than gas cars. It wont even be a big thing to them. We (our generation) just had to get that grid and charging infrastructure, as well as battery advances, up to point.

This video from a really smart channel does a great job explaining how the grid will be fine:

 

[gnop1950]

I am torn on these 2035 mandates. On one hand, necessity is the mother of invention. If it has to be solved, it will be. There’s a ton of money to be made solving it too.

I do worry about the power grid. Not sure all the grids can support a car in every garage plugged in. But again, a great problem to solve and a good reason to (finally) solve it (I’m in Texas, we love not solving Grid problems here). I also worry about the supply chain and access to lithium. Finally, i hope these laws are about “no ICE” rather than “EV” because we need to be free to explore alternatives like hydrogen. Again - there’s a ton of money to be made by solving this, Tesla has shown that. Just need some constraints to force the issue otherwise it will drag out forever.

I do believe the car manufacturers are on board for a variety of reasons, one is that they see it as a chance to bypass the dealers and go direct. Ford already announced this, others will follow. Dealerships, in general, are doing a disservice to both parties here (manufacturer and consumer). The direct model will give more margin to the manufacturers, and will ultimately make the process of buying a car waaay easier, more accessible and less intimidating. Plus all these dealer markups - I’m over it.

In the Tesla model, they have showrooms and in most places you can even test drive. While in Texas they can’t discuss anything related to price and configuration, in sane states they can help you make informed choices. Then just buy online and have it show up at your door. Next up is service centers, but thats not NEARLY as intense as ICE and there are going to be independent service stations popping up all over for EVs. Yet another way capitalism will help here.

There’s no going back. The timeline may not be great and hopefully will be adjusted realistically as we get closer to the deadlines. But you gotta start somewhere.

On the power, if the Solar incentives help increase Solar adoption that will help alleviate some of the load on the power grid. I recently installed Solar at my home and it will not only greatly reduce my energy bill and charge my car, but by my calculations, including the tax incentive, it will pay for itself in about 6 years. Of course the EV charging infrastructure still has a ways to go but, at least to me, it seems they are making good progress in that area.

I agree that he car manufacturers are on board and it is no surprise that dealers are not since EVs will eventually greatly reduce their very profitable maintenance business. I doubt that the premier auto manufacturers like Porsche will ever go to completely on-line sales, but it wouldn't surprise me if many manufacturers do.

With California mandating no new ICE sales by 2035, and a number of other states looking to follow, it is pretty much a done deal. CA has led the emissions charge for quite a while and since it is the largest consumer of vehicles in the US manufacturers usually fall in line.

 

[ptilley42]

Will it really happen, When these statements were made of all cars to be EV by 2035 the energy crisis was not here. In UK if electricity hits £1 per Kwh next April, EVs will cost twice as much to run as a gas guzzler. Tax intensives will stop as governments need money . Wonder how many orders are being cancelled at the moment. a 911 is about 15-20p a mile , a Taycan will be at best 35p to 50p in winter and that at home charging , probably 70 - 90p on fast chargers. Maybe Taycan owners can afford it but not every day users. Companies will not pay this cost. Goverments will back down and the great green revolution will end. just my humble opinion.

 

[snstevens]

Most of the grid will eventually be able to handle the cars. The grid has grown over the many decades to accommodate our lives and needs and will continue to do so with proper investment and management. Texas tho….ay yi yi….you guys have a unique mess that will take quite some doing to fix, but it’s not impossible. Let’s not forget tho that EV transition will not happen over night, nor by 2035. Most Americans will probably still be using gas cars into the 40s and 50s. When our younger generation takes over, and they are very tech heavy and more future looking forward than we and previous generations, they will dictate the flow and buy the EVs and any other cleaner techs more than gas cars. It wont even be a big thing to them. We (our generation) just had to get that grid and charging infrastructure, as well as battery advances, up to point.

This video from a really smart channel does a great job explaining how the grid will be fine:

I don't think the politic leanings Op-Ed writer at the Washington Examiner is the issue here. Everyone has an opinion these days, but I think he raises a question that is worth addressing.

Thanks @TYKHAAAN for the great video. It does a terrific job of communicating the feasibility of both energy production AND the grid scaling to support 100% EV adoption over a 6.5-10 year period. I love that the presentation is mathematical in approach, and not simply handwaving.

I also agree that we have to move ahead in spite of challenges.

I'm dating myself here, but I remember listening in May of 1962 to Kennedy tell a joint session of Congress that the US should commit itself to putting a man on the moon and bringing him safely back to earth by the end of the decade. His reasoning was also interesting and I love these lines from the speech - "We choose to go to the Moon. We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organise and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too."

Adapting to and mitigating climate change is IMHO much more complex than the moon race, and while I can't predict our success in that entire endeavor, I do know that it is well within our capabilities as a nation, and as a people, to transition to all 100% new cars being EVs in the 2035 timeframe (Hell, that is 13 years, not 8 like the moon program so we have time to spare ).

While a lot of people are anti-science these days, I am totally confident we have the skills, the abilities, and the will to get this done. Thank God that CA put a stake in the ground so we can get going.