We do neither with our Tesla unless we are going on a trip. In CA, at least with our electricity company, we have an option to charge at very low rates for large parts of the night and the day. That saves TONS of money, making it much cheaper than gas (even before the extortionate prices charged by oil companies this year). We are saving TONS in not buying gas.
Many electric dryers are 220 v. So, to the extent that there is a fire hazard, it exists with dryers etc. I am not sure what fire hazard charging a car adds.
You do NOT need a special charger for any EV or PHEV. Courtesy of the fine folks on CC last year, I learned that a NEMA 14-50 outlet will generally work for any car. If you want to, you can get a special charger to make it that much faster, but it is most definitely not required.
All of us have our different preferences. There are downsides to EVs and PHEVs, but the ones you have named aren’t downsides.
I absolutely guarantee that your experience is far less common than my experience. Far fewer folks live in such rural areas as yours than in major metro areas as mine. So my experience is not an outlier.
@Sweetgum mentioned getting a free new battery for a Bolt, which was due to a recall involving manufacturing defects that could cause batteries to catch fire.
However, gasoline cars also catch fire and have recalls for defects that can cause them to catch fire, at much higher rates than electric vehicles in general, according to https://www.autoinsuranceez.com/gas-vs-electric-car-fires/ . Hybrids actually have a rate of catching fire higher than non-hybrid gasoline vehicles. But most of these recalls are logistically less difficult for the manufacturer, since the replacement parts are easier to ship and install than electric vehicle batteries.
Doritos, Cheetos and Planters nuts are available as well too at some charging stations. There’s money to be made while you wait for the charge to finish.
Again, the broader context with which I originally mentioned these convenience foods is the irony of buying them while you’re driving your EV or just enjoying them in your backyard, while sipping La Croix sparkling water.
Probably many of the “former BMW drivers” who now drive Teslas are not doing so for any environmental or energy cost reasons, so there is no irony there. The “former Prius drivers with money” who now drive Teslas probably are not doing the stuff you find ironic.
I prefer a Moon Pie and RC Cola myself on my driving breaks. Doritos and La Croix are too high falutin’ for me and my kin…
Seriously, though, I guess the point finally is that we DON’T visit the gas station or charging station. EVER. Let me clarify: we have used Tesla superchargers, but VERY rarely. And in those cases, there is usually a shopping center/mall where we can easily combine the rare act of super-charging and shopping in one go.
It TRULY is not an issue, especially in many parts of the West Coast.
I guess good old Elon will now bring his electric charging solutions to Texas given his move there.
Well, I don’t run the dryer when I’m sleeping either. The charger would go in my garage under my bedroom and the car would presumably charge at lowest rates (ie overnight). YMMV. Very Low risk/almost no risk, of course but I’m not willing to take it. When the tech improves, I’ll make a different calculus.
@BunsenBurner Yes, where you live and how you drive and how much goes into YOUR calculus of whether an EV or hybrid is good for You. For me, no time at all to get gas. My kids would never wait even 5 minutes to charge up. Neither would I. But I like to fill up once a week and that’s it. On long trips same thing.
Of course there are more people in major metros than in rural areas. No one would argue differently. But again, it’s great it works for you. Might not work for me or someone else. My conclusion is, some of these cars are great for certain purposes, people and desires. Some aren’t good choices for some people ( more reasons). Finally, only the buyer can decide if they make sense.
Do you have an on-demand water heater? (I want one next time we have to get a new water heater.) Most standard electric water heaters run on 240 too and they run in the background
like your home charger.
I’m not getting an electric car but I am getting an electric bike through a rebate program my city is running. I’m hoping to use it for commuting to work (at a school) most days. School is about 7 miles away.
Tesla are expensive vehicles and the people driving them are definitely viewed as wealthy around my area. We don’t see many around here because not many can afford one and not many charging stations around.
At the moment EV are an option for upper middle class+ and not for the average American, I think the prices will need to come down significantly before they are an option for everyone.
And that’s wonderful. I try to WFH as often as possible, manage my trip taking to cut the gas bill down on our cars.
But I visit an office complex sometimes, where I can view charging EV owners (specifically Teslas in this case) buying Doritos, Cheetos, burrittos, or whatever, while they’re waiting for their car to charge up. And that’s fine too, really. I just personally find it all “interesting.”
And there’s also what we do at home or work, whether we’re an EV owner or not, during the height of the day, where energy consumption is off the charts, like for example, keeping that thermostat off or set high, in order to help conserve energy too. Riding a bike, electric or not, if and when you can, instead of using the car.
Buying an EV is fine, if that’s what you want, but there’s ALOT more work to do.
Our power has gone out twice in the last 7 days. Each time for 6-7 hours. We just had another power outage - this one for only about 10 minutes. California here…no way in heck would I rely on an all electric vehicle.
My biggest fear is another fire evacuation. Which of course is preceded by power outages. Then what. All several thousand of us hit the freeway and hope to make it to the next electric charging station where we can then wait for hours?
I thought that there was too, last year. However, having the Tesla for nearly a year now, there is absolutely nothing we do except save on gas, Doritos, Moon Pies, money, and time. The 110V works perfectly fine for day-to-day driving. At most, the issue arises for folks that drive large distances to their office or on trips. Even then, we’ve personally had no problems.
Good luck when your gas powered vehicle explodes with the fire.
That is said in jest and in all seriousness. We too are in CA: I don’t disagree with what you are saying about power outages. The local electrical companies have made all our lives hell.
That being said, we had a unique chance last year to trade in two cars for an EV and a PHEV. We got top dollar for our old cars, and it made the switch much easier. It is PRECISELY for the reason you mention that we hedged our bets with one EV and one PHEV: if the electricity goes, we have a car, and if gas goes/gets crazy, we have a car.
I don’t think we have an on demand water heater. We have a geothermal system. Honestly the system is really complex. But it works well and very low cost.
Personally I don’t think parts of California are sustainable any more. I used to live in LA long years ago, but would not move back to CA now myself. My husband loves San Francisco, though. I think he’d move. We might have to have a discussion about that if it ever came to it.
So in your fire evac situation (which I know is an ever present danger) and several thousand of you hit the freeway during a power outage, what do you do if you need gas and the pumps are down because the power is out? Do y’all have emergency generators for the gas pumps like hospitals do?
The thing about most EVs is that at home you usually start with a “full tank” so to speak because you charge at home so if you don’t have a “full tank” it’s because you forgot to plug in like you forgot to plug in your phone or computer. I pretty much always keep my car topped up and charge my phone every night too. If I had to evacuate for whatever reason I could easily get 200 miles away from the danger before needing to charge up and that’s in my old 2017 Chevy Bolt. Newer vehicles can go farther.
Well, the OP asked will you buy an electric or hybrid. So, there are many people whose answer to the question is no. Those are the ones who are responding why they wouldn’t buy an EV/hybrid. What’s to consider?
