General Discussion

Honeycombe8

(37,648 posts)

38. I can have only one car. So my car can't be electric.

Sun Feb 12, 2012, 11:29 AM

Feb 2012

I can't have my only source of mechanized transportation be something that relies on the power grid. If my power goes out & my car isn't fully charged, I may not have any transportion to get to work or wherever. I also can't use my own car to take a long car trip; I'd have to rent a gasoline vehicle. Etc.

I didn't get a hybrid 'cause they cost more than regular, and I don't drive enough miles to justify it (plus I didn't find one that had things I was looking for in a car). So I bought a small hatchback that gets good gas mileage (a Honda Fit). A good compromise, I think. I get about 30mpg in the city with the combination city/tollroad driving I do (drops down to 27mpg with a/c which is most of the year).

If I could have two cars, I'd love my 2nd one to be a small electric vehicle.

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Shocking Factoid of the Day: Gas cars use more electricity to go 100 miles than Electric Cars do! [View all] grahamhgreen Feb 2012 OP

That's only fair if you compare the energy it takes to make the batteries Lionessa Feb 2012 #1

That energy is already calculated in the energy it takes to build the vehicles, building an electric grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #2

Really? Got a link for that? I doubt you do. TheWraith Feb 2012 #6

No, the fact that it will take about as much energy to make a gas guzzler as an EV is common sense grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #22

No, it's not. It's a fairly large and unsupported assumption. TheWraith Feb 2012 #52

I'm pretty sure the batteries are not made on site but by battery manufacturers and then shipped for Lionessa Feb 2012 #7

That's true for a great many components of automobiles, the majority in fact.. Fumesucker Feb 2012 #11

Correct. Prius batteries travel a great distance before placement into the cars themselves. cherokeeprogressive Feb 2012 #18

About the same thing that happens with the oil. But over and over again, every time you fill your grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #23

"About"? Nuclear Unicorn Feb 2012 #56

The energy to make the batteries is a 1 time expense, energy to make a gallon of gas is per gallon ShadowLiberal Feb 2012 #9

You have a point, but batteries don't last forever, even if there corrosive chemicals do. Lionessa Feb 2012 #13

Batteries can be recycled. grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #31

Those "corrosive chemicals" do not last forever. PavePusher Feb 2012 #53

Batteries have to be charged as gas tanks have to be filled. NCTraveler Feb 2012 #28

The question isn't that focused. It's an energy-side question. joshcryer Feb 2012 #15

What about the energy it takes to provide the fuel hughee99 Feb 2012 #50

For the purposes of this discussion it is not useful to measure energy in kwh lumberjack_jeff Feb 2012 #3

Far less. Every time you drive a Gas car 30 miles, you use a gallon of gas PLUS whatever grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #5

You're looking at this backwards. lumberjack_jeff Feb 2012 #8

Eh, while true, it's not particularly useful. joshcryer Feb 2012 #19

The electricity comes from some source of fuel as well. antigone382 Feb 2012 #17

The point is that it requires 7.5 kwh of electricity to make a gallon of gas; so grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #32

Erm, if you're consuming less energy, and that energy is still fossil fuel based... joshcryer Feb 2012 #16

No. If I buy electricity to generate kinetic energy... lumberjack_jeff Feb 2012 #20

Nah, even if you take the nuclear plants in Lousiana and California... joshcryer Feb 2012 #21

You'd lose the argument, and by quite a bit IDemo Feb 2012 #36

It all depends on where you live. lumberjack_jeff Feb 2012 #49

Won't THIS piss off the hybrid-bashers on Craig's List? WhoIsNumberNone Feb 2012 #4

Hybrids cause more greenhouse gas emissions in many areas tabasco Feb 2012 #10

You're missing the point of the post - the gas powered car uses the electricity PLUS the gas. grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #26

No, you're missing the point. tabasco Feb 2012 #35

This tired old myth pops up on each and every EV thread online IDemo Feb 2012 #37

The "tired old myth" comes from Argonne National Laboratory tabasco Feb 2012 #44

Look at it this way, refining one gallon of gas requires 7.5Kwh of electricity. So, grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #40

I want an electric car but can't afford one Rosa Luxemburg Feb 2012 #12

Mitsubishi Imiev or the Prius-C (under 20K)??? Me, I ride a bike. grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #25

I can have only one car. So my car can't be electric. Honeycombe8 Feb 2012 #38

The problem with these type of calculations is they ignore the power plant. former9thward Feb 2012 #14

No, the gallon of gas uses NOT ONLY the electricity, BUT ALSO the oil!!! grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #24

Really? Got a link for that? LOL just kidding. Zalatix Feb 2012 #27

Thank you! I don't understand why they want to use the electricity AND the gas to go the same distan grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #29

K/R and DAMN, there's a LOT of misinformation in this thread... NYC_SKP Feb 2012 #30

K&R Scuba Feb 2012 #33

Damn, only 22 miles per gallon average? Art_from_Ark Feb 2012 #34

The calculation is wrong -- 21000 BTU can generate about 2.4 kWhr of electricity FarCenter Feb 2012 #39

It takes 7.5 kWh of electricity to just to REFINE one gallon of gas; the car still has not moved. grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #41

No, it takes 21000 BTU of chemical and heat energy FarCenter Feb 2012 #42

I know that US refineries used 48,891,000,000 kWh of electricity in 2005. grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #46

It works out to 0.35 kWHr/gallon of gas. FarCenter Feb 2012 #48

There is a deeper discussion of how they arrived at the 7.5 kWh figure grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #51

shocking factoid...we can MAKE electricity...we can't make oil spanone Feb 2012 #43

K&R for an awesome discussion. The debate here is fascinating and coalition_unwilling Feb 2012 #45

Interesting libtodeath Feb 2012 #47

What's not factored into all of this HarveyDarkey Feb 2012 #57

Yes, but what if I want to go more than 100 miles HarveyDarkey Feb 2012 #54

Well, if you can afford it, buy a Tesla... grahamhgreen Feb 2012 #55