Another Reason Against These EVs...

[OneWheelPeel]

I also got a ride in a tesla. No thanks.
It is heavy. That is why it feels heavy.
If you take your '77 to any area besides a drag strip, you could drive circles around your son's car. Custom tuned EV's haven't been able to beat 15 year old records on the nurbergring. Last I checked a Caddy CTS-V was still faster then the best EV time posted by a fair margin. When was that record set, 2008 or so?
Teslas are for people that prioritize the ability to make your turn signal sound like a fart.

No EV is a driver's car. It is transportation and has been proven 100x over to be less efficient then an ICE vehicle when you capture the entire process of actually producing and transmitting the electricity, plus the car, plus the charging, etc. Electricity has inherently less energy in it then any fuel. Then you consider loss during transmission, loss to storage, battery life and the loss involved with charge and discharge, on and on you find efficiency losses that no one wants to admit to because it destroys the green narrative about EV. I won;t even start on what happens when you put one into sub zero temps in winter because most people wouldn't run a driver's car in that weather either, but the tesla is supposed to be daily transportation so I won't forgive it on that front either.

I don’t agree with the blanket statement about not being a drivers car. Maybe it depends on the kind of driving but a friend with an 11 sec ICE bought a Tesla and now has two 11 sec cars. It’s reckless but both get a chance to eat.

 

[Detective D]

Maybe it depends on the kind of driving

That was my entire point. EV's can do the drag strip. That's it. I know in America and especially on a traditional muscle car forum that of course gets some bias, but a lot of people value the driving experience as much if not more than tickets times at the 1/4. Myself included. I choose my rusty 5.2/5 speed Dakota over a brand new tesla. My Dakota is fun. It is an experience driving it, you have to interact with the truck and it interacts with you. But I value a snarly V8 giving me feedback, a 5 speed manual to row the gears, a clutch to push, and road feedback from the suspension and steering.
EV's are simply not mechanical wonders in the same line as 100 years of ICE vehicles. Sure EV's have a lot of neat engineering, but it is not the same by a long shot. EV's have a fast go pedal and are otherwise numbing to ride in or drive. The fart noise turn signals are good for a short laugh but hardly a replacement for rowing the gears and listening to the engine to know when it is time to grab the next one.
Besides, if speed was all that mattered, I learned many moons ago the ultimate speed rush is on a motorcycle. Not every motorcycle is a speed demon, but there are some, and no car is going to compare to a 180mph, 600lb noisy bicycle as you hang on for dear life. Something like that puts you IN the speed. Just you and the wind, as fast as your nerves allow. I would consider an EV almost the opposite end of that spectrum, if it wasn't for the surge you can feel for the acceleration there wouldn't be anything to talk about.

 

[OneWheelPeel]

Well there were the little Lotus based Teslas but those are few and far between, I also don't take the EV just to mean OEM EV, I was interested in the things when you had to build them.
I just go with different strokes for different folks. I could have a Tesla or one of the many other electric cars and I don't, by choice(so why the hell do I defend them huh?).
Just not for me, at least currently, full stop. I don't need to point out what they lack or what is wrong with them as part of that.The people who have them love them (that same friend says his does curvy roads well too but I haven't ridden with him so might be a subjective thing) I would feel hypocritical because:
Drag raced an 81 Accord and also took it in canyons regularly, people said souless slow econobox.
Lived at a drag strip with a 78 Pontiac (same time as the Accord) people said its just a malaise era car. The list goes on for a dozen cars or so, I enjoyed them all despite the popular view on them, so I can see someone feeling the same about their EV.
I could go on, its subjective and the people who enjoy them that aren't just commuters are still car people in my book. They are also mechanical/electric wonders in my book as well, just a very different approach.

 

[RemCharger]

Do what we did back in the day. Put a pair of THESE on the carView attachment 1882549

My Charger had the Original Sound of Powers on it when I got it. Been seriously considering finding them again. Exhaust note that can't be beat

 

[Cranky]

Ok ..... just for FUN how many of you ever rode or drove an EV ?

Me:
Toyota Prius , First notice is how heavy it felt. Other than that is was butt ugly ( friend took me for a ride)

Tesla model 3. Super fast performance. A lot of wild new technology, again seems heavy. ( my son bought one new)

The Tesla is faster than my 1977 (3.0) Porsche 911S by far, but is NO where near in the fun factor. Also the Porsche take about 10 minutes to gas up and go 400+ miles.


Don't get me started on the build cost of a classic Porsche.

View attachment 1882361



View attachment 1882363

Had a chance a few years ago to drive a new Tesla.....I declined. And 10 minutes to fill up your car? Either you are going to places with slow pumps or your car has a huge tank lol

 

[Detective D]

Well there were the little Lotus based Teslas but those are few and far between, I also don't take the EV just to mean OEM EV, I was interested in the things when you had to build them.
I just go with different strokes for different folks. I could have a Tesla or one of the many other electric cars and I don't, by choice(so why the hell do I defend them huh?).
Just not for me, at least currently, full stop. I don't need to point out what they lack or what is wrong with them as part of that.The people who have them love them (that same friend says his does curvy roads well too but I haven't ridden with him so might be a subjective thing) I would feel hypocritical because:
Drag raced an 81 Accord and also took it in canyons regularly, people said souless slow econobox.
Lived at a drag strip with a 78 Pontiac (same time as the Accord) people said its just a malaise era car. The list goes on for a dozen cars or so, I enjoyed them all despite the popular view on them, so I can see someone feeling the same about their EV.
I could go on, its subjective and the people who enjoy them that aren't just commuters are still car people in my book. They are also mechanical/electric wonders in my book as well, just a very different approach.

I don't begrudge anyone that likes an EV. I instinctively list off their bad spots because the "glorious savior to the planet EV!" is thrown in our face daily and the powers that be were mandating them into our lives if we liked it or not. I have always been of the opinion the market should choose and they should be parked alongside modern ICE and let people buy what they like. Not everyone enjoys driving the same way, or even likes driving.
Any normal gearhead would not chastise your Honda or Pontiac either. Gearheads understand that little concept of weight. People were all about crapping on late 70's cars but the entire lot of them is lighter then the current crop of muscle cars and certainly lighter then the modern trucks and SUV's, and most crossovers. Your Poncho was lighter than my 2013 Charger for example. I have a 78 Monaco sedan(ex-county detective car) and that is lighter than my charger by about 650lbs. When I am done replacing the sound deadening with modern materials and some other updated things like aluminum engine bits, it will probably be more like 825lbs. That's no joke, 600+ lbs means a lot. Part of why I am critical of EV is that weight. If they could figure out how to make the battery in those things weigh 1/3 what it does now they would have cracked the code and be a lot closer to competing IMO. Maybe some day they will get there. Of course, if we can get the EPA and the safety police off our backs with ICE vehicles we could go back to 1900lb Hondas also.....

 

[OneWheelPeel]

I don't begrudge anyone that likes an EV. I instinctively list off their bad spots because the "glorious savior to the planet EV!" is thrown in our face daily and the powers that be were mandating them into our lives if we liked it or not. I have always been of the opinion the market should choose and they should be parked alongside modern ICE and let people buy what they like. Not everyone enjoys driving the same way, or even likes driving.
Any normal gearhead would not chastise your Honda or Pontiac either. Gearheads understand that little concept of weight. People were all about crapping on late 70's cars but the entire lot of them is lighter then the current crop of muscle cars and certainly lighter then the modern trucks and SUV's, and most crossovers. Your Poncho was lighter than my 2013 Charger for example. I have a 78 Monaco sedan(ex-county detective car) and that is lighter than my charger by about 650lbs. When I am done replacing the sound deadening with modern materials and some other updated things like aluminum engine bits, it will probably be more like 825lbs. That's no joke, 600+ lbs means a lot. Part of why I am critical of EV is that weight. If they could figure out how to make the battery in those things weigh 1/3 what it does now they would have cracked the code and be a lot closer to competing IMO. Maybe some day they will get there. Of course, if we can get the EPA and the safety police off our backs with ICE vehicles we could go back to 1900lb Hondas also.....

Yeah I can agree with that, I don't feel so much like they are thrown in my face because to me its lost in all of the other California noise that seems to be against the cool cars, its just where my focus is because of SMOG BS (My Corvette did just pass tho, so yay there).

I think lighter batteries will come, I grew up when it was considered almost impossible to have the battery capability for a car that we have now, which relegated EVs to a very niche status, then boom it became feasible. I just hope the weight thing is solved in my lifetime. I would like to see all choices side by side.

 

[Coelacanth]

Yeah I can agree with that, I don't feel so much like they are thrown in my face because to me its lost in all of the other California noise that seems to be against the cool cars, its just where my focus is because of SMOG BS (My Corvette did just pass tho, so yay there).

I think lighter batteries will come, I grew up when it was considered almost impossible to have the battery capability for a car that we have now, which relegated EVs to a very niche status, then boom it became feasible. I just hope the weight thing is solved in my lifetime. I would like to see all choices side by side.

I know battery technology and chemistry has changed a lot over the years, but battery weight? Not so much.