Re: my piece on changing attitudes to electric vehicles, guest blogger Arlene Allen writes:
I’ll roll with you on shifts in attitude. They are, however, notoriously difficult to predict. I don’t particularly give such a shift good odds when it comes to cars….I’m not yet a believer that people will come to embrace the little ducklings of our industry such as the original Insight, the Smart, i MiEV, etc. And even if such an event happens, there will be a general disgust rather than embrace…
You bring up a good point when you mention “disgust.” I notice that some people sneer at drivers of clean little cars — as if those of us who care about our world and the well-being of those around us are weak, pathetic, bleeding hearts. It’s an interesting phenomenon. And it will be more interesting to see how — or if — this dynamic changes over time.
But speaking of dynamics, one thing that is evident to anyone who’s every driven an i-MiEV or a Mini E is that they perform like little rocketships. The Mini E has a 200 HP motor (about the size of a basketball). With maximum torque at zero RPM, the G-force when you hit the accelerator from a dead stop is absolutely ridiculous. In my test-drives of both cars, I notice that this creates a kind of fun little dynamic in the minds of both drivers when my little EV blasts past a Corvette or a Porsche.
I started to write a blog post on this subject: how our appreciation for clean energy will cause a shift in our relationships with the cars we drive. Then I decided to make short video out of the concept. I hope it’s of some value.
I encourage readers who may be interested in electric transportation to sign up for Paul Scott’s blog. Paul is a spokesperson for Plug-In America, and one the great forces for progressive environmental policy. He also happens to be a terrific writer. I notice that he gathered a number of rave reviews to a recent post in which he concluded:
I don’t I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait till the day when it’s rare to see an internal combustion car. At some point, they’ll be anachronistic reminders of a day when people didn’t think twice about spewing poisons into the common airshed. Like smoking in line at the grocery store, you won’t believe people used to do it everywhere.
I responded:
Paul, I agree with the others — you really are one of the great writers on the subject. For what it’s worth, the analogy I use is women wearing mink coats — all the rage in the mid-60s, but completely gone from our culture a few years later, when we all gasped in the collective recognition that it was simply wrong. And this is exactly what I expect will happen with internal combustion engines: they will become regarded as something we used to do – something that no longer has a place in our world.
I happen to be looking through an issue of Car and Driver yesterday and noticed their discussion of the EPA’s struggle to measure and report MPG ratings for plug-in hybrids. Apparently, there are people who fail to realize that this is a completely meaningless number. Those who never exceed the battery-only range never need gasoline, and thus experience an infinite number of miles per gallon. Those who never charge their cars experience whatever number is associated with the size and efficiency of the internal combustion engine as it operates their car, given its weight, wind resistance, etc. Of course, most people will experience a number in between – say between 100 and 1000.
But is that really helpful? Can’t we just note that this is metric that doesn’t apply? I had a friend in college who would ask, “How long is a piece of string?” and “Is it shorter to New York, or by car?” It seems to be that the people seriously pursuing MPG ratings for the Chevy Volt and the Fisker Karma are asking questions that have no more meaning than that.
Nissan is taking care of this for EVeryone with their new Nissan LEAF. It’s made in the far east, Smyrna Tennesse …. They are much safer that gas cars; you don’t die from fires when gas explodes or burns after an accident…
Jim: I’m with you all the way.
I was down in Santa Monica a couple of weeks ago interviewing Rick Sikes (their fleet manager) for my book on renewables. If you didn’t know, Santa Monica is an extremely progressive city in a lot of ways – and one of them is the city fleet, which is 87% alternatively fueled.
In any case, I saw all those tanks of CNG, propane, and hydrogen, and I asked about safety. In his answer, which I found more than satisfactory, he pointed out that, on average, 6 people burn to death in gasoline-powered vehicle fires every day. It’s a phenomenon so common that we don’t even report it — like cats getting stuck up in trees.
To be honest, I had never heard of this. So I asked a few colleagues: May I have some comments on this, please?
Here is the dialog:
From Bill Moore, EV World: The issue here is COST. This will work if it’s incorporated into a dedicated toll-road like the bypass around Denver or from DC out to Dulles. Feds, states and cities just won’t have the money to tear up streets and roads and embed this technology. I see a tough road ahead in the US. It’s more likely to make sense in China and India where they are building new roads. America is just too broke.
My response: Yes, I’m sure it’s pricey to install; I wonder how much per mile, and what the efficiency of the charging is. I would think another issue would be billing the energy to the consumer. And aren’t there safety and other feasibility issues with electromagnetic fields that powerful? Having said all this, one such lane in each of a city’s major freeways would be a huge step in the direction of charging ubiquity.
From Bill Moore: Exactly…. you pretty much hit them all. I am going to comment on this idea in Currents (on the EV World home page)
From: Douglas S. Wilson of ECO-Holland: Stationary induction systems will be feasible before roadways are built or retrofitted with such systems. I could see consumers’ garages and specific parking spaces at businesses or city parking lots could have induction systems embedded. A matching induction pickup coil could be built in or installed aftermarket to any electric vehicle. I think it’s a great idea. (Asks another colleague) Gary, How much power can be transferred with standard household voltages. How does the distance between the active and passive elements affect rate of energy transfer?
My colleague Trevor Parker is one of the founders of a company soon to be called Green Collar Machines. The company has a unique business plan that defines the micro assembly and distribution of a patented compact electric tractor that comes is available with a variety of accessories for mowing lawns, plowing snow, etc. It’s a good reminder of the fact that very few aspects of our lives will remain untouched by the migration to renewable energy and electric transportation.
Perhaps the most newsworthy aspect of Green Collar Machines is the enormous help they have received from the state of New York and the local governments in Buffalo and Niagara. “We’re extremely grateful,” Parker says. “A lot of Americans—especially from within the GOP—question the validity of the stimulus package. But it’s not a handout. They have huge unemployment, and we have jobs. It’s a true win-win.”
“Do you want to talk about energy independence?” Parker continues. “The most independent you can be is living off the grid. Lots of folks up here are on micro-wind. The green sector is no longer tree huggers and granola eaters; it’s mainstream. It’s the single most important phenomenon occurring in our economy – and in our society at large.”
Re: my piece on changing attitudes to electric vehicles, guest blogger Arlene Allen writes:
I happen to be looking through an issue of Car and Driver yesterday and noticed their discussion of the EPA’s struggle to measure and report MPG ratings for plug-in hybrids. Apparently, there are people who fail to realize that this is a completely meaningless number. Those who never exceed the battery-only range never need gasoline, and thus experience an infinite number of miles per gallon. Those who never charge their cars experience whatever number is associated with the size and efficiency of the internal combustion engine as it operates their car, given its weight, wind resistance, etc. Of course, most people will experience a number in between – say between 100 and 1000.
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