US automakers pledge huge increase in electric vehicles

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By TOM KRISHER and AAMER MADHANI

WASHINGTON (AP) — Declaring the U.S. must “move fast” to win the world’s carmaking future, President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a commitment from the auto industry to produce electric vehicles for as much as half of U.S. sales by the end of the decade.

Biden also wants automakers to raise gas mileage and cut tailpipe pollution between now and model year 2026. That would mark a significant step toward meeting his pledge to cut emissions and battle climate change as he pushes a history-making shift in the U.S. from internal combustion engines to battery-powered vehicles.

He urged that the components needed to make that sweeping change — from batteries to semiconductors — be made in the United States, too, aiming for both industry and union support for the environmental effort, with the promise of new jobs and billions in federal electric vehicle investments.

Pointing to electric vehicles parked on the White House South Lawn, the president declared them a “vision of the future that is now beginning to happen.”



President Joe Biden smiles after driving a Jeep Wrangler 4xe Rubicon on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, during an event on clean cars and trucks. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/technology-joe-biden-business-environment-and-nature-economy-88fe6ca8e333f3d00f6d2e98c6652cea

[Walleye]

1. This is good promoting electric vehicles by a man who obviously loves cars, Joe

[NurseJackie]

2. This is a BIG DEAL. I had to chuckle at the knuckleheads who automatically replied with...

... moans and cries of "not-good-enough-Joe". What babies!

I'm thrilled to see this. It's definitely doable and once the ball gets rolling, it will pick up momentum on its own... it will be unstoppable.


Biden/Harris 2020!!
They're stronger together & can't be bought!!
Jump on the Biden Bandwagon & abandon the revolution!!

[WA-03 Democrat]

3. Agree 10,000%! N/t

[onetexan]

21. Ditto!! Need the quick battery recharge stations all over the states

As in like 10 mins, not more than that. Tech w need to come up to speed.

[IronLionZion]

4. Even Jeep has electric vehicles now

looks like he drove this one: https://www.jeep.com/wrangler-4xe.html

I hope America addresses sustainable innovations in battery technology so we don't have to exploit Africa so much to make these vehicles.

I'm a city mouse who mostly takes metro, but if I lived in the burbs and drove a lot, these new electric vehicles are looking pretty sweet.

[JohnSJ]

6. We have to, and recycling of the batteries has to be part of the plan

[JohnSJ]

5. I am not sure all electric is ready yet. The limiting factor will be the infrastructure. The grid

will have to be upgraded, and adequate charging stations need to be built along the freeways.

Within your home area level 2 charging should be adequate, but when traveling long distances dcfast charging is the fastest charging time, about 15 to 20 minutes to charge a 300 mile electric range car to 80%. A challenge though is regular DCfast charging usage will degrade the battery much quicker over time than a level 1 or level 2 charging, and the batteries are not cheap to replace.

Just taking California alone, it may need as many as 25000 dcfast charging stations in the next 5 years to support 5 million electric vehicles on the road by 2030.

As of March 2021 there are about 41,400 EV charging stations in the U.S., according to the Department of Energy. Fewer than 5,000 are fast chargers.

The other limiting factor is cost. Until the price of electric vehicles comes down to the cost of ICE, without subsidies, I think the electric car market will be mostly limited to the more affluent.

Another question that needs to be addressed is how are the batteries recycled and disposed of.

I think ultra low emission hybrid type vehicles will serve as transition vehicles until the issues above and more are resolved.

Producing 50% all electric vehicles by 2030 is going to be tough to achieve. We are talking eight years from now.

but we have to start somewhere. We are already four years behind because of trump

[IronLionZion]

7. Charging stations need to be standardized and interchangeable

Tesla has charging stations all across America even in many rural areas. We shouldn't need separate types of stations for each brand of vehicle.

[JohnSJ]

10. A good point. Musk has said he will open up Tesla Charging stations to other electric vehicles that

support the interface

[hibbing]

9. How is all this electricity going to be produced? Coal? n/t

[JohnSJ]

11. A point that doesn't get talked about enough. In reality Coal is becoming less and less the primary

source for generating electricity. It is other fossil fuels are more prominent.

If one is looking for "clean" energy, I think nuclear really needs to be seriously revisited

[PoliticAverse]

8. Promises, promises. n/t

[CentralMass]

12. It seems to be happening. Ford has an electric F150 that is very impressive, now the Jeep Wrangler.

Hopefully the domestic jobs piece of it will happen.

[Miguelito Loveless]

13. Pledges are worth the word of the people making them

and with Detroit that is not much. GM has two EVs, one pretty new, one with fire problems and on recall. Fords has one EV, and is promising a truck. Chrysler/Fiat/Stellantis has one EV and one PHEV.

Pictures of EVs are not EVs. Concept cars are not production cars. These companies have plenty of EVs in the EU and China, but practically nothing in the US.

Deeds not words.

[MichMan]

16. and those people that will decide to buy them

[Miguelito Loveless]

24. Hard to buy what is not available

or what has obscene dealer markup added to it for no other reason than spite.

I have had the opportunity to inquire at three different local dealerships about EVs offered, specifically the Bolt EUV, and I can tell you that dealers do not want EVs, don't want to sell them, and try to dissuade people from buying them by means of lies and exaggerations.

[Aristus]

14. Offer generous subsidies, Mr. President, or it ain't going to happen.

These are greedy corporate assholes we're talking about. They don't respond to anything but the Benjamins.

[MichMan]

17. They respond to the benjamins of customers lined up wanting to buy electric vehicles

[Zorro]

15. The slower the car companies are to adapt to EVs

the further behind Tesla they'll be.

[MichMan]

20. Might take awhile

2020 US sales

General Motors 2,537,644

Tesla 293,000

[Zorro]

22. Think you're about 200k short on the Tesla number

[MichMan]

23. Here is the link with the sales for 2020

https://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2020-us-auto-sales-figures-by-manufacturer/

[Zorro]

26. Think your Tesla sales number is for US only

Here are the numbers Tesla released:

https://ir.tesla.com/press-release/tesla-q4-2020-vehicle-production-deliveries

[MichMan]

27. Since the OP is regarding the US, that was why I posted US sales and stated as much

I don't understand the relevance of sales in China, Europe, & South America to a discussion about US auto rules

[Zorro]

29. Whatever...

[MichMan]

30. OK, if you want to discuss worldwide sales we can

General Motors 6,829,000

Tesla 499,550

That means GM sells 13 & 2/3 vehicles for every one of Tesla. Actually a lot bigger ratio than the US only.


https://stockdividendscreener.com/auto-manufacturers/general-motors-vehicle-sales-and-market-share/

[Zorro]

31. You seem to be a General Motors aficionado

That's great. I want to see them be a major player in the EV market, and hope they will be building a better Chevy Bolt in the future.

[MichMan]

33. I have lived in SE Michigan my entire life and have many friends who work for them

I spent most of my working career as a GM supplier. So considering GM, Ford and Chrysler are responsible for our livelihoods in my state, yes I am.

They have the expertise for large volume manufacturing. I have no doubt they can engineer and manufacture EV very successfully. I'm not sure the buying public is quite yet ready yet.

[LanternWaste]

32. Much as IBM once sold that many more times PCs than all other companies combined.

Oddly though, time advances and prophecies don't count.

[Miguelito Loveless]

28. I think it is correct counting only US sales

What it ignores is that Tesla has gone from less than 1% to 10% in five years. This year it will sell double last year's numbers, so they will go from 10% to 20% of GM's sales of vehicles that literally damage the owner's health when operated as recommended.

Not a trend that bodes well for GM long term because those sales will come from their customer base. Every EV sold by GM also cannibalizes its ICE sales, meaning lower margins, fewer spare parts, and stranded assets.

[Miguelito Loveless]

25. EVs sold by GM...

less than 60K. Apples to apples, please.

[CentralMass]

18. In my current situation I don't think an electric vehicle would work for me.

I have been renting an apartment and while I have a carport it is not in front of my apartment and there is no easy way for me to plug in at night. I could drive to local charging location and or charge at my place of employment that has chargers when they pull us back in but not being able to charge at home is probably a deal breaker.

[marie999]

19. Is there enough lithium being mined

and if not will there be in the future? Is our infrastructure capable to handle more electric cars and if not how long will it be before it can? What is being done or will be done to handle used batteries? These plus I am sure other questions must be answered soon or it will slow down the number of electric cars being made.