The 7% "Solution?"

Do you own a plug-in electric (PIE) car?  Are you contemplating the purchase of one?

Like some 31% of the population, up from 27% in 2022?

The 31% of the population which lives in urban or suburban areas, no doubt?

If so, fellow non-Pilgrim (Pilgrims know better), I'm here to assist you away from that decision.  

Politely.

     -  Let's start with the fact that PIE's need about 2,000 pounds of battery in order to function.  Think about that.  A TON of battery!  And you'd be sitting atop it.  Sort of like waiting for the match to be lit.

     -  Smaller cars use slightly smaller batteries (60kW avg.), and larger varieties need even bigger ones (100+ kW avg).  The GMC Hummer'ss battery, as an example, weighs in at 3,336 pounds!  In other words, this beast's battery weighs more than a Volkswagon!

Oh yeah, the Hummer weighs in at a portly 8,985 lbs.  Ahem.

Annnnnd, it goes out the door at a lofty $123,000.  Gulp!

     -  It takes more than one and one-half tons of rare earth minerals, scooped out the ground using a D-9 Caterpillar, with Mother Earth crying big tears, in order to manufacture those batteries.  Which scars the heck out of Mom Earth.  And the majority of rare Earth minerals reside in China.  We've got some as well, yet the O'Biden Administration has, for some unknown reason, outlawed the mining of these minerals on our very own Gubmint-owned land!  While the Chinese have mandated no more of their dirt can come our way.  

So the O'Biden folks are mandating we buy these wonder wagons, yet make their manufacture expensive and complicated.  I wonder how much THAT policy decision enriched Biden Inc.?  

     -  Now let's talk charging.  You have to install a home charging station if you own one of these things.  That's about $3,000.  And then your electric bill goes through the roof.  And as we know, here in Taxifornia they're getting ready to charge us more if we're White.  Not sure about that one.  But probably.  And they're actually considering charging us on the basis of our annual income.  We make more, we pay more.  For the same amount of therms.  

Socialism, much?

     -  But what if we charge at work, Mr. Knowitall?  Here in Taxifornia we've reached "parity."  That means it costs about $0.35 cents per kW to charge up at peak periods, which equates to about $4.50 per gallon.  We're paying more than that now here for gas, with an average of $4.89.  They don't report that fact in the Corporate Media, now do they?  They'd like us all to believe that gas is now $3.50 a gallon, now wouldn't they?  

     -  Driving a PIE is like maneuving a three-alarm fire through traffic.  For PIE's spontaneously combust at an alarming rate!  Hardly a day goes by without a video appearing on social media documenting the blaze.  The only thing you don't know, is when.  Would tend to tighten the old bung hole, now wouldn't it?

     -  PIE's cost just about half-again more than our normal, usual ICE-operated vehicles.  Our average internal combustion engine auto sold for $41,433 last month.  PIE's listed at $62,333 on average.  

     -  What do you get for all that extra money?  Well, let's start with the fact that today's ICE cars contain 33,455 parts on average.  PIE's contain...ready for it?...1,325.  So, 3% of the parts, but almost twice the price.  Wha...?

     -  Now let's talk a bit about range.  That's the anxiety you'll develop when you contemplate the purchase of a PIE.  Range.  How far can that sucker go before you need to find a chargerthingie.  Some of these PIE's go 200 miles without charging.  Some go 300.  Few go farther. 

Oh yeah, ICE-powered vehicles can routinely travel 500 miles or more without a fillup.  Gag on that, Tesla-boy! 

If you own an ICE auto, you don't think about range.  You wonder how far it is to the next gas station.  As it's always  been.  And shall always be.

     -  Here's something I worry about.  I think the Feds are doing everything they can to micromanage our puny little lives.  And they want to make it tougher for us to just up and go someplace or other.  And if we do, they want it to be on a subway.  Or a bus.  Or, in an electric friggin' car they can control when and how we charge.  And when and where we go.  If you buy one of these things, just remember they can turn off its "switch" any time they wish.

     -  So why do they cost so much?  Did you know that the "battery" is not a battery, but rather a whole  bunch of little batteries, all linked together in series?  All the PIE manufacuters save Tesla use Panasonic's reghargeables which you can buy today, right now, for $7.89 each on Amazon.  Yet, if you link thousands of these buggers together, all in series, like carmakers do, you've got a "battery."  Just multiphy $7.89 x about 4,800 and you know part of what it costs to make an electric car.  

     -  Consumer Reports just stated it will take someone driving 15,000 miles a year more then ten years to break even on the difference in price between new PIE's over ICE's.  Drive less?  It will take proportionately longer.  You do the math.

     -  Ever wonder about the trade-in value of these growed-up golf carts?  Yeah, we all do.  They're so new nobody knows.  It's sort of a crapshoot.  The price seems to be based on remaining battery life, which is hard to judge.  You buys one, you takes your chances on resale.  Good luck.

     -  What happens if you need a new battery?  To be fair, today's batteries seem able to withstand a number of charge-recharge cycles to equal the normal car's expected lifecycle (150,000).  Buuuut, with higher mileage, or if the car comes from either very cold of very hot climes, you'll need to pay attention.  

A new Tesla battery, for instance, will set you back more than $20,000!  And if you live in cold or hot locales, you'll lose a third of its range, which will make it much more costly to operate, and a third of its lifespan, which will likely lower its resale value significantly. 

     -  Those who own PIE's worry about range, access to chargers, time to charge, price premium and hot/cold weather performance.  

Those who own ICE autos worry only about only onw thing:  the location of the next gas station. 

     -  Just my personal preference here:  Tesla has manufactured 1,700,000 cars, so far.  And every one of them looks just about the same as the last one.  Quite pretty, from some angles, yet too much of a good thing...is too much.  You even have to pay them $Thousands extra for colors other than white!  If I were a doctor or a lawyer or CEO trying to impress my neighbors with my willingness to spend a bundle of discretionary cash to save the planet, I'd at least like them to look just a little bit different, one from the other, wouldn't you?  

And folks agree with me, otherwise car companies wouldn't do sheetmetal updates every so often.  So, isn't Tesla winding up being more or less the same, while they're trying their best to be different?

     -  Haven't heard yet about roving gangs mugging PIE owners as they try to charge up in some dark location, late at night.  I hope I'm not giving them any ideas.

     -  NOTE:  I'm NOT reviewing combo gas/electric cars like the Honda Prius.  They actually use gas to generate the electricity they run on.  And they've sold waaay over a million of them.  Not bad, Honda.  But NOT a PIE...

     -  And lastly, there are 145,000 gas stations in America.  126,877 of these are also convenience stores, where you can get some snacks and a Coke.  That number of gas stations is sufficient to fuel America's PIE fleet of more than 20,000,000 automobiles.  Have you ever asked yourself how many of those handy dandy electric charging dealibobs out behind the local Costco it would take to charge up a fleet of electric cars?  Big enough to replace our current ICE-powered fleet?  Well, fellow Patriot, I have.  And that's what you pay me for, right?

And after a whole lot of digging, ready for it America?  

READY?

                   33,000,000!!!

Yes, you read that correctly.  33,000,000.  What do you think the chances are that there will be anywhere near that number within the next century?  And do you think they'll be on the plains of Nebraska?  Where other Americans live?  How about in West Texas?  Or perhaps South Dakota?  Yet this number was buried way down in a multi-hundred page report from the Department of Transportation, managed by America's most famous gay ex-mayor ("What, me Worry?"), dumped on our figurative doorstep at 5:00 p.m. on July 3rd.  The night before a lonnng holiday weekend.

Surprise!

And just in case you were wondering (I was), there are 141,580,000 homes in America.  So, just put a charging thingie in the front yard of every fifth home in the United States and we've got it covered!

Are they all smoking crack?

My analysis:  If you live on or near either coast, one of these as a second car makes some sense.  But if you live anywhere else, no way.  And as a primary vehicle, no way.  

     -  And last but far from least, only 7% of our new cars sold ion Q1 of 2023 were PIE's.  SEVEN FRIGGIN' PERCENT!  Yet, every ad you see on the Telly features electric cars.  Could it be that they're that profitable?  And if so, should you not keep your hand on your wallet?

I've only studied automobiles my entire life.  I actually have the cubic inch displacement and horsepower ratings of every car made between 1955 and 1985 committed to memory.  I used to race both AHRA and SCCA semi-professionally.  And you can either take my advice, or join in with the herd.  And remember, the slower members of the herd get eaten by lions.  

Or lose their asses on high-priced toys when America comes to its senses...