OT: Electric vehicles

RUevolution36

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As I was out driving last Sunday, I got to wondering, do Teslas or other EVs offer opening sunroofs or convertibles or other open top variants as options? On the road, I never see any. This would kind of be a deal breaker for me in ordering an EV. I loves me some sunroofs.

I suppose range will suffer if a sunroof or convertible top is opened. And they add weight, which also negatively affects range.

But in my SUV shopping, one of my key requirements is to have a lot of open glass at the top (lots of cars, including EVs) have those, along with at least one operable sunroof. Makes me wonder if the Macan EV will offer the same sunroof option as the ICE Macans.
Tesla used to take Lotus' roadster...and I believe they're coming out with a new one in the future.
 
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mdk02

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I wouldn't say "not happening," since it has happened, continues to happen and will happen more once ranges and recharge rates improve.

As for "autopilot," the average person isn't an airline pilot. The term popularly means to not do the work yourself. A poor name and Tesla trying too hard to be cool and edgy and pretend it's a couple steps ahead of where it is. Again.

How dare you question the genius and perfection of the Tesla. Why the next version will stop and let little old ladies cross the street even if the light is green.
 
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mildone_rivals

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All Teslas have glass roofs.
Convertible or sunroof would negativity effect drag coefficient. Not happening with EVs.
I suspect that, eventually, EVs will be produced w/both convertibles and sunroofs. Just need battery tech to improve to the point where range is increased and the increase in drag is acceptable.

EV makers are already making compromises in range for performance and appearance. For example, having skinny tires with minimal contact patches lowers friction thereby increasing range. So skinny tires are common with EVs.

But some EV makers are (Tesla w/the Plaid, for instance) increase the size of the contact patch via wider wheels/tires, sacrificing some range in the process. Same with Porsche and Audi EVs.

This is why I am curious if the Macan EV will offer a sunroof option. I'm not buying an SUV without a sunroof. I'll buy a track focused sports car w/out a sunroof, but not an SUV.
 

mdk02

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On the surface this would fit right in with the Chinese belt and road initiative. Not sure how the Taliban feel about the Uyghurs. But the Chinese would have no problem with forced marriages and school bannings and would have a new fertile ground for harvesting organs from Muslims. And ISIS and Al Queda has seemed to given them a pass thus far.
 

mildone_rivals

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Oct 19, 2010
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On the surface this would fit right in with the Chinese belt and road initiative. Not sure how the Taliban feel about the Uyghurs. But the Chinese would have no problem with forced marriages and school bannings and would have a new fertile ground for harvesting organs from Muslims. And ISIS and Al Queda has seemed to given them a pass thus far.

They share a (short) border. But no roads connect the countries.
 
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If I’m reading that chart correctly, I’m very surprised to see Tesla not be much, much farther ahead in those rankings. I figured with the head start they’ve enjoyed, nobody else would be close.

Guess I was wrong.

Read the article - this is for L2 chargers. They get about 30-40 miles per hours. Tesla has a wider leader on the L3 chargers.
 

fsg2_rivals

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What is it with EVs and butt-ugly wheels? The wheels on that thing are hideous. Overall, not liking the styling of that prototype. With a few exceptions, I’m not generally a fan of overly long hoods like that.

Oh, and all this automated driving nonsense... We’re nowhere near ready for it. But all the manufacturers seem high on the idea.

To be fair, auto cos have been playing with self-driving concepts for over 80 years. So being technologically ready isn't a barrier.

Audi ran with it in a fun way. I love when they go full old school concept car with something weird and forward-looking. Much better than a near-production "concept" or droning on about the artistry of their new "motion while standing still" design language preview. Give me a transformer every damn show ; )
 
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mdk02

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Pretty soon, as more and more states start implementing bans on the sale of new ICE cars, the value of old ICE cars in good condition is going to start climbing fast. Even Lebarons. 🙂

Ban on the sale of new ICE cars? Hybrids????? States other than California? You and I will be older than Beaced before that happens.
 

mdk02

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They share a (short) border. But no roads currently connect the countries.

FIFY. But that's what the belt and road initiative is all about. And the only thing that will prevent the Chinese from having huge mining operations with no environmental safeguards a few years down the road would be the prospect of facing a Taliban guerilla insurgency.
 

mildone_rivals

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Ban on the sale of new ICE cars? Hybrids????? States other than California? You and I will be older than Beaced before that happens.
I hope you're right. But I think more bans are coming, although they are not current bans, but targeted bans even in CA. A lot will change in the next decade, so I won't be surprised to see such future-targeted bans on ICE engines eliminated due to big improvements in clean internal combustion tech. I'm not at all convinced that stored electricity is the long-term future of automotive power.
 

mildone_rivals

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To be fair, auto cos have been playing with self-driving concepts for over 80 years. So being technologically ready isn't a barrier.

Audi ran with it in a fun way. I love when they go full old school concept car with something weird and forward-looking. Much better than a near-production "concept" or droning on about the artistry of their new "motion while standing still" design language preview. Give me a transformer every damn show ; )
True (about the tech not being a barrier to discussion on conceptualization). And you're right, on the positive side, Audi's concept is very forward looking versus a lot of essentially near-production cars being labeled concept cars these days.

Still, I hate the ugly wheels trend, and it's not just EVs doing it. For example, I like the work Genesis has been doing recently, but the GV70 Sport Prestige's wheels are a design abomination. If I bought one, I'd bring a set of aftermarket wheels to the dealership and have them swap them before I drove it off the lot.
 

mdk02

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I hope you're right. But I think more bans are coming, although they are not current bans, but targeted bans even in CA. A lot will change in the next decade, so I won't be surprised to see such future-targeted bans on ICE engines eliminated due to big improvements in clean internal combustion tech. I'm not at all convinced that stored electricity is the long-term future of automotive power.

If anything I could see tax credits expanded. Congress loves placating the free **** army.
 

mildone_rivals

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If anything I could see tax credits expanded. Congress loves placating the free **** army.
I expect to see tax credits expanded, but am not a fan of it. However, no amount of tax credits would force me, or many others, to abandon new ICE purchases. Only an outright ban would do that.

As for Congress, seems to me that those who want to get reelected are almost always throwing various forms of "free ****", using various techniques at their disposal, at almost everyone almost everywhere for all kinds of reasons, good and bad, almost all the time. Just seems like how the game has been played for a long time. And both sides do a lot of it, each side targeting their voting base.
 

RUevolution36

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I expect to see tax credits expanded, but am not a fan of it. However, no amount of tax credits would force me, or many others, to abandon new ICE purchases. Only an outright ban would do that.

As for Congress, seems to me that those who want to get reelected are almost always throwing various forms of "free ****", using various techniques at their disposal, at almost everyone almost everywhere for all kinds of reasons, good and bad, almost all the time. Just seems like how the game has been played for a long time. And both sides do a lot of it, each side targeting their voting base.
i could see a phase in approach of charging a carbon tax for ICE in densely populated / sensitive areas (cities, the northeast, much of CA) before banning the sale of new ICE once the charging infrastructure in those areas is mature. rural areas would come later.
 
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Ban on the sale of new ICE cars? Hybrids????? States other than California? You and I will be older than Beaced before that happens.

California - 2030
Massachusetts - 2035

Washington's governor vetoed an ICE ban by 2030 because the legislation didn't include a road user fee to replace or augment the gas tax.

Also:
Governors of 12 US states are campaigning for President Biden to take a leaf out of California and Washington’s play book, and ban combustion engined cars by 2035.

The states campaigning for the move are: California, New York, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington State, and Rhode Island.

 

RUevolution36

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California - 2030
Massachusetts - 2035

Washington's governor vetoed an ICE ban by 2030 because the legislation didn't include a road user fee to replace or augment the gas tax.

Also:
Governors of 12 US states are campaigning for President Biden to take a leaf out of California and Washington’s play book, and ban combustion engined cars by 2035.

The states campaigning for the move are: California, New York, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington State, and Rhode Island.

The road use fee is the biggest elephant in the room. This WILL need to be implemented to offset the loss of gas tax revenue in order to maintain and upgrade our road infrastructure. And how that gets implemented is going to be a stick in the mud. People aren't going to want to have trackers in their cars involuntarily to facilitate ORT. If they don't have the trackers though, how do states and the feds collect? Do you need to take it to the DMV every quarter to have them check your odometer and have you pay on the spot? Do you do it annually? That would cause some burden on lower income folks who drive a great distance...
 

mdk02

Heisman
Aug 18, 2011
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California - 2030
Massachusetts - 2035

Washington's governor vetoed an ICE ban by 2030 because the legislation didn't include a road user fee to replace or augment the gas tax.

Also:
Governors of 12 US states are campaigning for President Biden to take a leaf out of California and Washington’s play book, and ban combustion engined cars by 2035.

The states campaigning for the move are: California, New York, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington State, and Rhode Island.


And since Biden will be dead by the time the shitstorm hits in 2035 I won't say it's impossible.
 

mdk02

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Aug 18, 2011
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The road use fee is the biggest elephant in the room. This WILL need to be implemented to offset the loss of gas tax revenue in order to maintain and upgrade our road infrastructure. And how that gets implemented is going to be a stick in the mud. People aren't going to want to have trackers in their cars involuntarily to facilitate ORT. If they don't have the trackers though, how do states and the feds collect? Do you need to take it to the DMV every quarter to have them check your odometer and have you pay on the spot? Do you do it annually? That would cause some burden on lower income folks who drive a great distance...

More unionized state workers manning the DMV. Careful, someone might read this.
 

RUevolution36

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More unionized state workers manning the DMV. Careful, someone might read this.
its not something they're not already thinking about, i assure you. there are plans for the expansion of ORT already. this just adds another business case for the expansion of that effort.
 

DHajekRC84

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And since Biden will be dead by the time the shitstorm hits in 2035 I won't say it's impossible.
He may not make it past the shitstorm he created in the first 8 months of 2021. The next POTUS can come in and EO his crap away day 1 ..God Willing.
 

mildone_rivals

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He may not make it past the shitstorm he created in the first 8 months of 2021. The next POTUS can come in and EO his crap away day 1 ..God Willing.
Wait, if it’s all about God’s will, then doesn’t that mean God made Sleepy Joe Biden president in the first place? Are you now, blasphemously, saying God made a mistake?

Well, either way, you should probably stay home on Election Day ‘cause God has a plan and we don’t need you screwing it up. 😇
 
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mdk02

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Wait, if it’s all about God’s will, then doesn’t that mean God made Sleepy Joe Biden president in the first place? Are you now, blasphemously, saying God made a mistake?

Well, either way, you should probably stay home on Election Day ‘cause God has a plan and we don’t need you screwing it up. 😇

I'll leave God out of this. But the only way such a ban would be put in place is if the politician putting it there knows he/she will be out of office (death may not prevent voting but does stop office holding) when the reaction and consequences take place.