What do you see as the 'gaping flaws' of a pure electric vehicle? I would never want a hybrid, as I would optimize for either an ICE or EV but there doesn't seem to be space in a consumer vehicle to have a workable hybrid that is better than either of its pureplay counterparts.
Median daily distance is actually close to about 30 miles in the US. I'd be surprised if the 95th percentile (equating to more than once per month) wasn't already within the range of a Tesla, though the report doesn't have that figure.
I travel regularly to NYC from Albany (about 150 miles). Many other people do as well, based on the NYC->ALB traffic you see on weekend evenings.
It's a trip that is definitely in the range of a Tesla from a point A to point B point of view -- but you end up with lots of overhead. Did I fully charge before the trip? Will I do a side trip? Will I drive around when I get there?
The electric car adds a lot of complication, and doesn't really solve any problem right now.
Its similar to the decision process of common carrier vs. car for any moderate/long range trip.
I want to say straight out, I agree that range-anxiety is real. People need to be comfortable that the car will be able to go wherever they need to go, whenever they need to do there. That is, at least in America, the cultural equivocation that driving === freedom.
That said, this statement:
> The electric car adds a lot of complication, and doesn't really solve any problem right now.
leaves me obligated to point out a few things. I will reason from analogy for point:
1. I just quit smoking, it wasn't obvious that it solved a problem right now, but I hope it will eliminate some later ;).
2. It doesn't matter, at least by Tesla's conception, that electric cars solve anything. Obviously, it is a mission driven company but that mission doesn't/shouldn't matter to the end user. Electric cars should be great for their own sake, and as good or better than a comprably priced ICE.
Someone should make a novel rental program where you can swap an electric for a fresh one every 200 miles or so, like getting fresh horses. It would let more people try the vehicles while also offering a faster solution for road trips (assuming Tesla owners would get a significant discount).
> workable hybrid that is better than either of its pureplay counterparts.
I don't really need my Prius to be better than an EV or a pure ICE, I just need something that works with existing infrastructure (not much EV infrastructure in Idaho where I live, and we make semi-regular trips to nothern Idaho to visit family) while getting decent fuel economy and reliability.
Actually, now that I think about it, from a reliability aspect my Prius trumps conventional ICE engines. The much simpler design of the Atkinson cycle engine, since it can sacrifice torque that the MG's can compensate for, leads to some pretty impressive durability and a relatively cheap replacement should it be necessary - it's much more likely (guaranteed, really) that I will need to replace the battery pack before I hit 300K miles but the engine and MG's will last until the car falls apart.
They are great cars, nice and quiet, very comfortable seats, good performance, full set of options (no self driving) and GM offers excellent warranty coverage. Puritans don't like the hybrid part, but the simple fact is that there isn't sufficient charging infrastructure to support pure EV cars in most places and certainly if I take a trip into the country I won't be able to charge it for the trip back, but can easily refuel. They do increase demand for power plugs at employers, residential buildings, shopping centres, etc so I think they help the cause and improve the practicality of pure EV vehicles. Take one for a test drive, my favourite comment is, "Oh, these are actually nice." There is enough EV trashing going on as it is, some people would do well to actually put some thought into their opinions before sharing them.
