Quote:
Originally Posted by retiredguy123
I admit that I am not an energy expert. But, I don't think you can just compare the efficiency of an electric vehicle to the efficiency of a gasoline vehicle. You also need to consider the efficiency of the power plant that burns the fossil fuel to generate the electricity that charges the electric vehicle. That efficiency is only about 33 percent. A gasoline vehicle burns the fossil fuel directly inside the vehicle, whereas the electric vehicle needs to get electricity from a power plant that is only 33 percent efficient at converting a fossil fuel into electricity. That would seem to indicate that, in terms of converting a fossil fuel into energy to power a vehicle, the gasoline vehicle would actually be more efficient. Maybe an energy expert can explain it better.
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I came from Minnesota to the villages last year and here the winter was described as harsh because we had 2 nights in the 20F range.
In Minnesota and north there have been several winters where 35 or more days in a row it never got above freezing. And several winters it never gets above 0F for a week or more.
When you go out to your unheated car when it is -20F it will barely turn over because the battery is so inefficient at that temperature.
I have a friend with a Chevy Volt and it will not even go 20 miles in the winter on cold days. And they keep it in a heated garage. They will not park it on the street or travel more than a few miles from home when it is cold because the fear getting stranded because the batteries might get to cold while parked at the store, movie, show, restaurant etc…