I don't need to, you're the one making outlandish claims and stamping
your feet, pouting, etc. because everyone's making fun of you for
being a moron.

Like Wikipedia?  You're a moron.

A working knowledge of physics.  I could explain but it'd go right
over your head and you're not worth the time it takes to type out a
more detailed response.

Honestly I really don't care if you take me seriously or not.  Nobody
takes you seriously and your uninformed opinions make as much
difference as a rat's fart.  I'd have killfiled you by now but I don't
think you've received enough abuse for your stupidity yet.

Why is it that we, as a society, aren't nearly rude enough to stupid
people so that they eventually learn to STFU instead of going on and
on about things that they don't know anything about?

nate

But it doesn't *matter* if the "know" they won't be driving. If
something comes up that suddenly requires a change of plans, the only
way they can possibly be ready is to plug in the car as soon as they can.

Huge is the word.  By my calculations, energy needed to charge an
electric car is roughly equal to the total energy use of the rest of a
household.

Ah, but many of the same people who are all for electric cars are also against
burning fuel, splitting atoms, damming streams, covering up the
desert, harnessing wave power (might screw up ocean currents),
harnessing geothermal energy (yes, really), and against building
distribution and transmission lines as well.  There's no placating
them.

Sorry, but you're simply ignoring the real limitations of the far more
limited range and slow re-"fueling" speed of electric vehicles as
compared to IC vehicles.

My Miata easily goes 400km on a tank and it takes so little time to
re-fill that I never need to consider whether or not to fill up.

If there's an emergency that requires me to drive 400km all of a sudden,
filling it takes only a few minutes.

Oh yes, absolutely.  Probably a worse issue than getting a bad tank of
gas too, and that's a problem we deal with now.

The smart thing to do is to charge cells individually anyway, because that
way you can individually tailor the charging current to that cell.  As a
battery ages, the individual cells age slightly differently and if you charge
as a series string, invariably some cells get undercharged and other cells
get overcharged.  This dramatically reduces the pack lifetime.  Charging
cells individually eliminates that and these days with computer charging it's
not much more difficult.

What I was suggesting is different, though... to split the cells up into
smaller paralleled cells.  If you do it right, you get a cell with lower
ESR and faster charging and discharging, but you also get more weight and
lower total capacity so it's not a total win.
--scott

N> Well, sure.  this is why the Tesla is based on a Lotus, which makes
N> sense, as opposed to that monstrosity that KRP is pushing.  The
N> problem is that a) a Lotus is smaller than most people want (not me
N> mind you; I'd be happy to find a home for any spare Loti you have
N> floating around) and b) the real, practical electric car, given the
N> current state of the art, would have to be smaller and lighter yet to
N> get real practical range.

   You call it a "monstrosity." Many people find it elegant. The car has
amazing handling characteristics according to race car drivers who have
driven it on a race track. Exceptionally stable. My bet is that it would not
be deterred by snow or icy roads. There are people who believe that the
Pontiac Aztec is a work of art. Modern art has admirers, even though to me
it looks like anger time in a special education class. I have a feeling that
when the car actually goes into production it will look somewhat different.
But then I am not working to pick it apart.

   I am reminded of the "reviews" of the first Star Wars film. The
predictions of disaster. It was universally panned. Yet Star Wars set
records and is a revered franchise to this day more than 30 years later. The
1957 Chevrolet was panned in its day - yet is considered one of the most
beautiful and collectible cars of all time.

   Your problem is that you have a blind spot against electric cars.
Perhaps you have some personal or economic axe to grind or you are just one
of those people who fight change their entire lives because they can't
handle it. In Florida I see loads of old geezers like that. Still with a 19
inch LOW definition CRT TV set they bought 25 years ago. My mother was like
that. I gave her a VCR one year for Christmas. She begged he to take it
back. Florida has frequent power interruptions. Which meant the clock would
flash. She was certain it was signaling aliens. One thing I have adapted to
in my life is that technology keeps changing, you are either at the front of
the loop or you are roadkill. When I was a kid there was 78 rpm records.
Today even MP3 is old tech. Clinging onto the past is a sure way to brain
death. Learning and adapting to change is what keeps us alive.

   So you fear the electric car. I see it is technology's next step and
believe there is something new coming to replace even that. I used to race
cars years ago. Last night I had a long discussion with a guy into some of
the same stuff as I was. The AMX and Javelins and Trans Am racing etc.
Racing in general, reminiscing about people we knew and raced with. My times
to gas burners is long and runs very deep, but that was long ago and are
fond memories. Some day cars, buses, trains, airplanes will all be gone.
Look to the day that Scotty will "beam" you anywhere you need to go and the
world will change radically. You could live in Paris and work in Chicago. Or
you could live in Bermuda and work in New York. Maybe even on the moon.

   I am not "pushing" anything Nate. Just riding the surf of the inevitable
future. Enjoying the ride, thrilled by it and not afraid like you.