- Thread starter Tashi Siu's Dad
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This Ain't Tesla Territory....
Not sure if that is yet an option. The amount of energy such a small panel would provide is more a gimmick than anything else.
http://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-says-tesla-to-offer-solar-roof-on-cars-2016-11
Whoa! Apparently, this is the first public electric car charging 'station' in the DR. The guy says a lot of things except the location. He does offers a link where it can be located. By the looks of the building, it reminds me of Diamond Mall in Santo Domingo.
only problem with those things is that they probably do 10 mph. it would take a month from Samana to Nagua.
I had several long conversations with Zero and Brammo about participating in our documentary. Ironically, the then marketing director of Zero held the similar position with KTM when he told Ewen McGregor that KTM was pulling sponsorship for Long Way Round...a decision that cost KTM multiple millions of dollars and put BMW at the top of the ADV world. The decision cost him his job at KTM.
Zero said they'd love to participate, but in real life and road conditions, the best their bikes could do were maybe 60 miles and then needed 8 hours to charge. So basically 50-60% of what they claim on the older battery (standard) packs. He did, however, offer participation in a subsequent planned project that only requires maybe 50 miles per day with extended overnight stays where a Quick Charger could be properly installed.
I would project the same is true for the larger battery packs: discount range claims by a considerable margin.
The charge times quoted are using their "Quick Charge" tech, like other electric cars. Problem is the Quick Charge stations are few and far between, and still require 2-3 hours to charge. In our case we talked about mounting Quick Charge stations on a mobile platform powered by a large diesel generator, and he claimed it would still take 4-6 hours for full charges. We talked about spare batteries being charged then swapped on the road, but it gets expensive and complicated.
I am sceptical of range and charge times manufacturer claims in real-world usage.
I have two good friends who are prominent moto-journalists, and both have reviewed electric motorcycles. They state while fun and intriguing, with amazing "right now" full torque, the weight distribution, balance, CG and suspension geometry make them not handle like a "regular" motorcycle and they never felt fully planted in conditions other than a straight line. There are, however, some purpose-built electric motorcycle racers. The Isle of Man TT has an electric motorcycle class.
CB. Those are the battery technology issues that I refer to. Add that to marketing claims that outright lie about the capabilities.
Lithium Ion batteries have been fully explored and future improvements will be minimal with respect to range. Prices will go down as volume goes up, but range will remain the problem with Lithium Ion batteries.
Perhaps there will be a revolutionary new technology with higher storage capacities, lower weight, fast charge times and low cost.
Don't hold your breath on that.
Lithium Ion batteries have been fully explored and future improvements will be minimal with respect to range. Prices will go down as volume goes up, but range will remain the problem with Lithium Ion batteries.
Perhaps there will be a revolutionary new technology with higher storage capacities, lower weight, fast charge times and low cost.
Don't hold your breath on that.
So if the answer is not in the batteries themselves, then the solution will likely come from technological advances in charging, wireless or otherwise.
Your point on range claims is well taken. The claims are under ideal weather and usage conditions and are from a full charge to empty.
Put that into modern practice and you will find that the batteries over time will no longer fully charge. Add in traffic conditions at idle, use of climate control (heat/A-C), and those range claims shrink rapidly.
Now add in being away from a home charger and trying to get to that one charging station in the DR before your batteries are dead.
Then add in Dominican technology that will figure out a way to adapt that lone charger to provide power to charge cell phones............
The DR has not even fully embraced hybrids yet, let alone trying to embrace full EV's.
The car dealers in the DR have discussed EV's and are preparing for change one day.............that change is just not today...or tomorrow....or...
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
Tesla isn't the future. there are many new technologies coming. Here is the newest
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/New-Battery-Design-Could-Crush-Tesla.html
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/New-Battery-Design-Could-Crush-Tesla.html
I have been following the battery technology area. Graphene batteries do have potential, but it remains to be seen how that potential will be fulfilled.
https://www.graphene-info.com/graphene-batteries
If graphene turns out to be the best solution, then Musk's super factory could be retooled to make graphene batteries instead of lithium-ion batteries.
What is graphene and ...
https://www.graphene-info.com/introduction
Perhaps the DR could be the worlds primary producer of graphene?
https://www.graphene-info.com/introduction
Perhaps the DR could be the worlds primary producer of graphene?
You beat me to it. There is lots of development and research into battery technology. At the moment the most advanced we have is Li-ion but they have their limitations. But advantages include high current delivery, light weight and fairly economical to manufacture. Downsides are complex charging requirements and potential danger when they explode or are pierced.
Perhaps there will be more development into miniature nuclear cells, like the ones that power satellites. But if people have range anxiety now, imagine how they will feel driving around with their own Hiroshimas!
As a general rule, I don't really see people outside the transportation industry traveling a few hundred miles a day for their regular commute. In DR, do you really think there's an expectation someone would exceed two hundred miles on a daily PriceSmart run?
And, there's plenty of charging stations - at their home. That's the one I've used nearly 99% of the time.
Regarding costs, let's use the $.11/kWh mentioned by another poster. My car, a Ford Fusion Energi Hybrid, has a 7.6kWh battery which provides about 20 miles of real-world range before switching to hybrid mode. Note: that's a non-stop pull on the battery on a highway. In stop-and-go city driving, the regenerative braking probably increases that by 40-50%.
Anyway, $.11/kWh cost multiplied by the 7.6kWh battery capacity is around $.80 for the equivalent range that would be provide by a gallon of regular unleaded gas. Which I believe is sitting above $4.25 per gallon.
So, a savings of $3.50 per gallon equivalent. And my car only has a fraction of battery capacity of a Tesla 3, which costs about the same new.
Personally, I like the idea of having a small engine to reduce my "range anxiety" issues. That said, for 90-95% of the driving someone in the cities or well-developed "tourist friendly" areas in DR would likely do, an electric car would be just fine.
And, there's plenty of charging stations - at their home. That's the one I've used nearly 99% of the time.
Regarding costs, let's use the $.11/kWh mentioned by another poster. My car, a Ford Fusion Energi Hybrid, has a 7.6kWh battery which provides about 20 miles of real-world range before switching to hybrid mode. Note: that's a non-stop pull on the battery on a highway. In stop-and-go city driving, the regenerative braking probably increases that by 40-50%.
Anyway, $.11/kWh cost multiplied by the 7.6kWh battery capacity is around $.80 for the equivalent range that would be provide by a gallon of regular unleaded gas. Which I believe is sitting above $4.25 per gallon.
So, a savings of $3.50 per gallon equivalent. And my car only has a fraction of battery capacity of a Tesla 3, which costs about the same new.
Personally, I like the idea of having a small engine to reduce my "range anxiety" issues. That said, for 90-95% of the driving someone in the cities or well-developed "tourist friendly" areas in DR would likely do, an electric car would be just fine.
Thank you for contributing an intelligent, articulate, in depth response to my query.