Electric Car thread

The first electric supported glider flight in New Zealand ended in a ball of flame and a dead pilot.

thats a sobering ordeal,perhaps when building a machine like that the battery pack should be configured to be able to jettison it,really i do not think it would be that hard to make,call me crazy i am waiting on batteries that actually can be built into the airfoil as part of the structure,you probably wouldnt be able to jettison something like that,i would imagine chemistry involved by then would make the batteries more fire resistant,i once asked cummins to consider making a gas engine,they are doing it now.
not the first time i was prescient on things. safety is paramount on a lot of things especially on aircraft, batteries will get there probably never as range intensive as liquid hydrocarbons but in every way safer. My condolences to the family of the glider pilot.
 
Well plenty of gas powered planes have caught fire, but there simply is something more inherent in their energy storage that people can relate to.
Is it leaking, does that pipe look dodgy, is that exhaust melting something, it smells funny.

Batteries can look completely fine, but inside they can be one jolt away from disaster.

Electric paramotors are becoming mainstream, 4Kwh battery strapped to your back, is it worse than a plastic tank of gasoline?
Would you notice a leak before a fire?

Hot air balloons scare the bejesus out of me, massive gas flame inches from the thin structure that holds the entire thing in the air, massive HP tanks of propane right next to you.

My mates do call me the doomster 😂
 
Well plenty of gas powered planes have caught fire, but there simply is something more inherent in their energy storage that people can relate to.
Is it leaking, does that pipe look dodgy, is that exhaust melting something, it smells funny.

Batteries can look completely fine, but inside they can be one jolt away from disaster.

Electric paramotors are becoming mainstream, 4Kwh battery strapped to your back, is it worse than a plastic tank of gasoline?
Would you notice a leak before a fire?

Hot air balloons scare the bejesus out of me, massive gas flame inches from the thin structure that holds the entire thing in the air, massive HP tanks of propane right next to you.

My mates do call me the doomster 😂
if you are around people with 3rd degree burns from gasoline its rather sobering how much damage even a small event can cause, sometimes batteries and electric things give warnings any battery that has ben wet should be discarded( recycled ideally)the slightest swelling,abnormal warmth,chemical smell,just be cautious,i have never had any problem with battery fires,seen plenty of ice things cook off.
 
Kinda makes everyone want a big battery in your attached garage or under a bedroom ... that smoke alone looks poisonous.
 
Bring on the iron-air battery.
the "immortal" edison cell would be my pick,what in the heck is in that electrolyte? battery recycling should be carried out like explosives or fireworks manufacturing,the campus needs to be big enough to dilute the concentration of materials,what always killed me about tire fires i never seen any effort to remove any of the tires that were not involved in the actual fire they just sprayed water on the piles and it really made a toxic stink then,any hazardous materials need to be stored in smaller groups.
 
A friend here and I took a road trip in my Honda CRV hybrid yesterday. He hadn’t driven a hybrid before so we chatted about several different features of such vehicles.

However, I neglected to mention one feature that was although not unique to this vehicle, had at one time made me think, huh? This time different?

Anyway, there is this feature I was first reluctant to use. But it is not unique to this car and I have frequently pressed the same labeled button on previous cars. You likely have the same or very similar feature on your cars.

Initially I had to think through just how it might function being it possibly a new, and possibly a radically new design and such.

But, eventually one day I felt oddly compelled to use it. Anyway, I have pushed the button and it does work.

Although you may now give an extra pause and thought each time you press the button in your car.

It is labeled “rear wiper.”
 
The first time I pressed the rear wiper button on my new Buick, nothing happened. At least I thought nothing happened, since I couldn't see the wiper moving in the rearview mirror.

Then, it occurred to me the rearview mirror is actually a camera mounted on the rear hatch above the glass where it can't see the wiper.

Good thing I discovered this before making a complete idiot of myself by making a service appointment. 🙄
 
The first time I pressed the rear wiper button on my new Buick, nothing happened. At least I thought nothing happened, since I couldn't see the wiper moving in the rearview mirror.

Then, it occurred to me the rearview mirror is actually a camera mounted on the rear hatch above the glass where it can't see the wiper.

Good thing I discovered this before making a complete idiot of myself by making a service appointment. 🙄
You use the digital mirror full time? I appreciate that it’s available when I have things stacked in the hatch blocking the actual mirror but it’s not something I like to use daily.
 
You use the digital mirror full time? I appreciate that it’s available when I have things stacked in the hatch blocking the actual mirror but it’s not something I like to use daily.
Yes, I use the camera mirrors in all three of my vehicles. I like the fact that the field of view can be adjusted for different driving conditions. They are also self dimming and adjust for ambient light conditions, as well as the headlights on following vehicles.

There is a learning curve associated with their use though. The camera lens can also get fouled by road debris. One of my vehicles has a lens cleaner, but it must be done manually on the other two.

All can be quickly flipped up to convert to a standard mirror if necessary.
 
I was very excited at the prospect of getting a digital camera mirror when we bought our Bolt, but after trying it, I had to give up.
I don't know if it is an age thing, but the focal distance change taking place when going from looking at the road to looking at the mirror gave me a headache.

I think that these mirrors should not be placed where the traditional mirror is, but at the bottom middle of the windshield.
This would have two major advantages:
First you would not have to take your eyes of the road so much, so it would be safer.
And second, the distance from your eyes would be longer, hopefully easing out the focal distance shift.

The only reason traditional mirrors are where they are, is because this is the only way to get a line of sight to the back road, but with camera mirror, this is no longer an issue. Similar to heads up display that are placed right in front of the driver at the bottom of the windshield.

My 2 cents
 
I was very excited at the prospect of getting a digital camera mirror when we bought our Bolt, but after trying it, I had to give up.
I don't know if it is an age thing, but the focal distance change taking place when going from looking at the road to looking at the mirror gave me a headache.

I think that these mirrors should not be placed where the traditional mirror is, but at the bottom middle of the windshield.
This would have two major advantages:
First you would not have to take your eyes of the road so much, so it would be safer.
And second, the distance from your eyes would be longer, hopefully easing out the focal distance shift.

The only reason traditional mirrors are where they are, is because this is the only way to get a line of sight to the back road, but with camera mirror, this is no longer an issue. Similar to heads up display that are placed right in front of the driver at the bottom of the windshield.

My 2 cents
I agree, they are not for everyone. The salesman told me candidly that they make some drivers nauseous. Luckily, it's simple to switch to a conventional mirror.

Another thing I find annoying is, camera mirrors, like convex mirrors, make things appear farther away. This often causes other drivers who use them to cut you off when changing lanes.
 
There was an advert on the radio today for the new BMW EV suv, the entire advert was its connectivity features and the full dash screen that plays video games.
presumably to keep the kids entertained while you are geofenced to balance the grid.
Or 200 dollars for a premium pass to get home
 
Battery cars are fun as Sunday Funday : Beyond that they are very much a royal pain to go any great distance in . Buttttt that seems to be the whole plan .
 
Battery cars are fun as Sunday Funday : Beyond that they are very much a royal pain to go any great distance in . Buttttt that seems to be the whole plan .
I am already getting range anxiety on my next trip with my EV and it's not til June!!
 
I considered taking the plunge and getting a Tesla 3 at the end of last year while the $7,500 tax credit was still in place. Even went for a test drive, and enjoyed it. However, when it came down to it I could not reconcile the cost with the limited range. My hope is that my next car will be a PHEV. This will give me the best of both worlds where virtually all of my driving will be electric only, I can charge it in my garage each evening, and when I have to go on a longer trip I will get the efficiency benefit of a hybrid but not have to worry about range anxiety.
 
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