Electric Vehicles: General topics

[Yoused]

I drove my cousin to the airport this afternoon, and there was a vehicle behind us that had these distinctive headlights that looked like the vertical white outlines of cold capsules. I was not even aware that those things had hit the streets yet, so I had doubts about what it was and did not recognize the hood emblem. But the front was grill-less, and I could see a lot of airspace underneath the front end.

It fell too far behind, so I was never able to make a positive ID, but on my way home, I saw another one (I suppose it could have been the same one, just a different neighborhood), and this one slid past me to get on the freeway so I was able to see the name on the side.

 

[SuperMatt]

Has anybody used Turo to rent cars before? It looks similar to AirBnB. You rent cars from people in your local area.

 

[Renzatic]

Today, I read about front trunks. It was a good day.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Today, I read about front trunks. It was a good day.

Here the get called frunks. That’s weird though as we call it a boot when it’s at the back. But a foot wouldn’t work.

 

[DT]

Here the get called frunks.

They do here too I guess not formally, but it's pretty common in the EV sector.

 

[Renzatic]

Here the get called frunks. That’s weird though as we call it a boot when it’s at the back. But a foot wouldn’t work.

Why not just call them what they are? Car Storage Container Spaces?

 

[Apple fanboy]

Why not just call them what they are? Car Storage Container Spaces?

Mine is quite small. So perhaps just charging cable retaining receptacle?

 

[Apple fanboy]

They do here too I guess not formally, but it's pretty common in the EV sector.

There are lots of things where the name will change as we move away from ICE vehicles I guess. On an ice car the cover for the engine is a bonnet. I guess that’s what we should say.
Or for you Americans, ‘what have you got under the hood? V8, V12?
Nope. A charging cable and a warning triangle!’!

 

[Renzatic]

Mine is quite small. So perhaps just charging cable retaining receptacle?

It's still a storage container space, even if it is too small to be useful.

 

[DT]

This is the kind of concept work that gets attention, so awesome:

The all electric, Ford Supervan ... hahahaha, it's ~2000HP

Here it is running at the Goodwood FOS:

 

[Nycturne]

As someone who’s been waiting for the market to mature a little before jumping in, what are the options for the crossover market segment like the Outback currently serves, which I’ve been using for the last 8 years?

I know there’s the Solterra/bZ4X from Toyobaru, but with the range on the Solterra being around 220mi, and limited Level 3 charge rates, I am curious what else is out there for those of looking for something more wagon-like that can do some light towing (teardrop trailers) in national forest areas.

Edit: Should point out I’m not necessarily in the market right now, so upcoming vehicles are interesting as well.

 

[DT]

Looks like the Solterra supports CCS/DCFC (aka, "Level 3"), at 100 kWh max? A little on the slower side, but it kind of depends on your use case. I see the L2 charging from home or destination is only a max of 6.6 kWh, again, a little slow.

I think there's going to be some good offerings in this market segment in the next generation from Subaru, VW, etc., but in general it's a bit vacant (even considering ICE vehicles), when I think of that sport/wagon type vehicle, I pretty much think of Subaru.

 

[DT]

Yikes, maybe avoid that Toyobaru for a few ...

Toyota recalls nearly 3,000 bZ4X EVs over potentially deadly wheel defect

Toyota is recalling nearly 3,000 bZ4X EVs over wheel hubs that can't stop, won't stop falling off the cars at speed.

www.engadget.com

This recall notice ...

After low-mileage use, all of the hub bolts on the wheel can loosen to the point where the wheel can detach from the vehicle. If a wheel detaches from the vehicle while driving, it could result in a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash. The cause of the issue and the driving patterns under which this issue could occur are still under investigation.

Hahaha, the part in bold, yeah, ya think?

Just goes to show you, manufacturing, QA, etc., is hard, even for Toyota.

 

[Nycturne]

I think there's going to be some good offerings in this market segment in the next generation from Subaru, VW, etc., but in general it's a bit vacant (even considering ICE vehicles), when I think of that sport/wagon type vehicle, I pretty much think of Subaru.

Yup. It's one of the reasons I've been waiting. The Subaru Solterra and VW ID.4 are at least in the general area that I'm wanting if not a direct Outback replacement. Looks like VW will bring the ID Space Vizzion to production as the VW Aero B which would be interesting. In the luxury segment there seem to be a few options from BMW, Lexus, and Audi on the way but I'd prefer to keep it in the price range of the Solterra or ID.4 to be honest.

Oh well, mostly just curious if there's something I'm missing or should be considering if I'm willing to go further afield. I did look at the Model Y, but since then I've been less interested in pushing money Tesla's way if I can avoid it.

Yikes, maybe avoid that Toyobaru for a few ...

Toyota recalls nearly 3,000 bZ4X EVs over potentially deadly wheel defect

Toyota is recalling nearly 3,000 bZ4X EVs over wheel hubs that can't stop, won't stop falling off the cars at speed.

www.engadget.com

This recall notice ...

That's the other reason I kinda ask. If Subaru is going to be more dependent on Toyota going forward, and they both are seemingly noncommittal to BEVs, it might be a while.

 

[SuperMatt]

I saw one of the Kia EVs today. It looked really nice. My coworker was telling me he’s thinking of getting a Fisker once it comes out…

 

[DT]

Yup. It's one of the reasons I've been waiting. The Subaru Solterra and VW ID.4 are at least in the general area that I'm wanting if not a direct Outback replacement. Looks like VW will bring the ID Space Vizzion to production as the VW Aero B which would be interesting. In the luxury segment there seem to be a few options from BMW, Lexus, and Audi on the way but I'd prefer to keep it in the price range of the Solterra or ID.4 to be honest.

Oh well, mostly just curious if there's something I'm missing or should be considering if I'm willing to go further afield. I did look at the Model Y, but since then I've been less interested in pushing money Tesla's way if I can avoid it.

That's the other reason I kinda ask. If Subaru is going to be more dependent on Toyota going forward, and they both are seemingly noncommittal to BEVs, it might be a while.

I really dig on the ID.4, mostly as a reaction to the design, which is course subjective, but I was able to compare - back to back at the NY Auto Show - the VW, the EV6, the Ioniq 5, I prefered the VW (though it's more of a traditional SUV vs. the Kia/Hyundai which are more crossover/CUV).

I get the apprehension with the Tesla, don't get me wrong, our Model 3 Performance is stellar, and there's only one other car in the same category (price/performance/size) that's not quite there yet (i4 M50), plus the charging network, etc.

There are some incredibly capable towing vehicles out/coming out, but the're big, expensive, and who knows when they'll deliver.

Toyota has been very slow to move to EV, specifically BEV, they were all in on Hydrogen, and very anti- charged electric, and while there are some good, specific use cases for hydrogen, passenger vehicles are not one.

 

[Nycturne]

I really dig on the ID.4, mostly as a reaction to the design, which is course subjective, but I was able to compare - back to back at the NY Auto Show - the VW, the EV6, the Ioniq 5, I prefered the VW (though it's more of a traditional SUV vs. the Kia/Hyundai which are more crossover/CUV).

I got a chance to see and drive the ID.4 AWD yesterday. Three big things jumped out to me:

1) Turning radius is really good for something this big.
2) Lack of body roll on something this big (one reason I like the Outback vs the Forester).
3) I’ve been driving an anemic gas car for a decade.

Overall, I liked the handling of the thing on the road. I could really get used to regenerative braking during heavy traffic. The instrument cluster was perfectly usable, and easy to see no matter what you do with the steering wheel. The infotainment system works well enough for what I’d use it for. I’m just letting my phone take over via CarPlay anyways so it mostly just needs to not suck at that.

The downside is that coming from a Subaru, the brake action feels very alien. I’d have to spend some time getting used to it. Same with the placement of the pedals, where the brake juts out past the gas and the gas is up against some plastic, making it a bit more awkward to move your foot between them. Also, the touch controls were just “okay”. I prefer buttons that can be used without looking at them, and these kinda get there, but physical buttons would still be an improvement.

I get the apprehension with the Tesla, don't get me wrong, our Model 3 Performance is stellar, and there's only one other car in the same category (price/performance/size) that's not quite there yet (i4 M50), plus the charging network, etc.

Apprehension, not so much, but rather the more I look at the engineering decisions, I cringe. Not a fan. But the thing that eliminates them from consideration is the Model Y’s aggressive slope in the back makes using the back for larger items much more awkward than with the Outback, if the item will fit at all. Musk’s behavior just makes it easier to ignore Tesla.

There are some incredibly capable towing vehicles out/coming out, but the're big, expensive, and who knows when they'll deliver.

For sure, but my towing is on the small end. The Outback isn’t exactly a champion towing vehicle either.

 

[DT]

I got a chance to see and drive the ID.4 AWD yesterday. Three big things jumped out to me:

1) Turning radius is really good for something this big.
2) Lack of body roll on something this big (one reason I like the Outback vs the Forester).
3) I’ve been driving an anemic gas car for a decade.

Nice, I haven't had a chance to drive one, just spent a little time in/around one at the show.

The body roll, even given the size and height, is not unsurprising - these bespoke EV platforms are basically a skateboard, with that very low deck being a significant amount of weight, so the center of gravity is exceptional (and a ratio that's nearly impossible to achieve in an ICE vehicle). I've seen crashes/testing for Teslas - like side exits from the road - where the car simply does not roll over, like it seems to defy the laws of physics, but of course, my perception is based on the behavior of cars with a much higher COG (it's a reason Tesla has an outstanding crash safety rating, what I'm sure will translate to other manufacturers).

I've had some fast cars - a Z06 with some weight reduction that was just around 2900# and 460rwhp (540fw) a 4th Gen Supra with ~800HP that would pull sportbikes - but the BEV performance is just nuts. It's especially wild when you compare it to cars like the aforementioned that were loud, smelly, had zero warranty, required all sorts of launch management, the Supra had to run very expensive 100+ octane fuel.

Around town, our M3P will just quietly, fume and drama free, without any action other than pressing the go pedal, run as fast, and in most cases, faster than anything I've owned - and it does it with 4-doors, very roomy back seats, tons of storage, excellent visibility and comfort and when not at WOT, at a cost of around $0.03 a mile

 

[Apple fanboy]

So I had to drive Mrs AFB car to get petrol today. Stalled twice. Seems I've forgotten I east in an automatic! Only took a few weeks for that to kick in!

 

[Eric]

So I had to drive Mrs AFB car to get petrol today. Stalled twice. Seems I've forgotten I east in an automatic! Only took a few weeks for that to kick in!

I had to drive my wife's X1 last week while mine was in the shop and was definitely thrown a bit as I haven't driven ICE in a long time, the biggest thing I noticed was how it would roll on it's own (in idle) with your foot off the breaks.