Ford News EV Bronco and Ranger

[Jamesb]

You are wrong. But what do I know, only an engineer on the field for 30 years

I'm no expert in this field like yourself so I"ll ask the question:. Is it the fact that renewable energy cannot suffice demand or the grids cannot handle it? Or both?

Most Tesla roofs for example generate enough electricity for the home and are able to redistribute electricity back to the grid. If everyone had one how would that effect the grids and the use of fossil fuels?

I live in BC Canada and well over 90% of our electricity is generated by hydro, and less than 1% by patroleum. Is hydroelectricity not considered renewable?

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[Jason B]

So we taxpayers borrow $ 12,500 for each of us to buy an EV, then finance the remainder ourselves, rather than just financing the entire cost of the vehicle ourselves. I don’t see how this makes any sense. The original concept was to subsidize manufacturers to get quantity up to lower the costs. That doesn’t seem to have worked with Tesla.

And as long as the Gub'ment subsidizes the buyer, manufacturers have no incentives to lower the prices.

 

[AzScorpion]

what are the structural requirements for adding solar panels to your existing roof?
lets think about those old homes and communities? can they safely manage an array of solar panels on their roof? in snow belt areas, can they handle the snow loading? in hurricane and tornado areas, can they be secured safely?
we know the yards are barely big enough for a kids wading pool and a garden shed, so plunking down some solar panels in the yards is not only impossible, it would be unsightly. how well to they handle hail?
all things to consider when talking solar for a homeowner.

Windmills in my area are plenty. but as you drive into the countryside, its not uncommon to see less than half of them turning at any time. and again, they are unsightly beasts. NIMBY people abound everywhere and supposedly they give your kids epilepsy and brain tumors.

I think they are a viable alternative to fill gaps, but as the world population grows, so will our demands obviously.

better come up with a better gap stop

I'm sure in the older homes they have to have an engineer come in and design stronger beams (scissor them) as the older homes were much small and no trusses back then. I have them on my house and while they don't weigh all that much the biggest headache will be doing any repairs or replacing the roof. The whole system (racks and panels) has to come off then put back up so there's added expense there. I have a friend who has over 40 panels on their roof and had a micro burst hit his area and his panels took off like a rocket along with his tile roof. ? His neighbors house had pieces of roof tile stuck into the exterior stucco and some pieces penetrated inside.Most of solar panels were no where to be found.

Windmills lol I love when the environmentalist push these. Have you seen all the dead ones and all the oil leaking into the ground? I haven't seen them myself but have been told by several friends and customers that there's a stretch of highway from AZ-CA and half the windmills are dead and leaking oil. But by all means lets cancel the Keystone Pipeline fast!

While I am looking forward to EV I just think we're still very far away from what they're trying to push right now. Seems like they're trying to kill ICE vehicles before they have perfected EV which will only cause massive problems but that's what the govt is good at.

 

[Jason B]

Sure it can, the only problem is storing and distributing the power wind & solar make. Musk is doing it in Australia right now. So, your statement is not fact just hyperbole. Similar to those that once thought you could only start a car by a cranking a handle.

Australia has a population of 25 million, US has 350 million. Shoot, New York state has 21 mill, Cali 40 mill. It will be difficult to scale up to that level, but eventually it could be done.
Too bad too many people are afraid of the 'N' word (nuclear, that is).

 

[Hounddog409]

I'm no expert in this field like yourself so I"ll ask the question:. Is it the fact that renewable energy cannot suffice demand or the grids cannot handle it? Or both?

Most Tesla roofs for example generate enough electricity for the home and are able to redistribute electricity back to the grid. If everyone had one how would that effect the grids and the use of fossil fuels?

I live in BC Canada and well over 90% of our electricity is generated by hydro, and less than 1% by patroleum. Is hydroelectricity not considered renewable?

Hydro is most certainly renewable and a great source where possible.

There are problems with solar.
1. it is DC. The grid is AC. So for those that use straight solar, there is no sourcing the Grid. Those that convert to AC, sure but that would be minimal.
2. Storage. Battery technology is no where near it needs to be for solar to be viable. Have you seen how many batteries are needed for a single house? Image the storage needs for a city. Or 1 auto manufacturing plant. Or chemical plant.
3. What happens when grid demand jumps 40% on a hot day? Where is this coming from?

Folks forget or do not know the grid demand is not stable. It changes constantly. There are power plants that are "peakers". They only run when grid demands call for it. They provide the extra megawatts when needed. You can't turn on a wind turbine or call for more sun when power demands increase. The battery or storage technology is not even close to being able to handle this.

 

[Jamesb]

Seems like they're trying to kill ICE vehicles before they have perfected EV which will only cause massive problems but that's what the govt is good at.

If your mean EV as in evolution I'd agree . But if you mean govt. Politicians also sway with the masses..

I also agree the the ev vs. ice will be around for a long while yet. But eventually I think things will move to EV"s.. I can't remember the last time I saw a steam engine but have not doubt there was a long crossover period..

Cheers.

 

[AzScorpion]

I think Neptune is green (colored) if I remember right...

So are the Hulkan8ors.

 

[FoD]

So are the Hulkan8ors.

Good call, all you other slackers, "Get some..."

 

[Michel Jeanneau]

Until we can figure out how to make the sun shine at night so solar panels (or wind turbines, since wind is a product of solar radiation) can charge all those EV's AND run our refrigerators, ranges, ovens, AC's heat pumps, lightbulbs, IPads, Iphones, etc; an all-EV world is but a pipe dream. The only reliable carbon zero technology now is nuclear. Hydro power is also carbon neutral but the impoundments needed to turn water turbines do heat up water (and consecuently afect the environment). Another problem with wind/solar and storing that energy for night time use is the losses inherent with converter/inverter technology; that has improved over the years but there still is loss. Transmitting DC current over long distances is also impractical. So we either become nocturnal and drive our vehicles at night (when they would use more energy) and charge them during the day....but then where do we get the energy for our nighttime use...which would also increase.
This is but a rant...but until we have a terchnological breakthrough to solve the energy issue, we need to reconsider the nuclear option

 

[JJG]

You are wrong. But what do I know, only an engineer on the field for 30 years

And those 30 years have been spent with 30 year old technology. Remember when they said increasing the MPG of vehicles from 10 to 30+ was totally impossible for a vehicle that was practical. I sure do, and had similar experts explaining away why it could never happen. But here we are, a Ranger that gets mid to upper 20’s in MPG and can tow 7500 pounds, without a V8! And guess what, for every MPG vehicles improve, and for every new EV and solar panel used, it decreases the demand of the supply and reduces cost overall for everyone. These are simple economics that will benefit everyones wallet.

 

[Jrel209]

Ever seen an iron mine? Also disappointing.
I'm not saying lithium mines are great. Just saying that mining of all kinds destroys the surrounding area and environment.

One of the largest lithium mines, Greenbushes AUS:

One of the many iron mines near where I live:

Note the scales I've added.

Has a ‘mine’ ever been great to look at lol. Some arguments are just so poorly thought out it kills me.

 

[Jrel209]

Until we can figure out how to make the sun shine at night so solar panels (or wind turbines, since wind is a product of solar radiation) can charge all those EV's AND run our refrigerators, ranges, ovens, AC's heat pumps, lightbulbs, IPads, Iphones, etc; an all-EV world is but a pipe dream. The only reliable carbon zero technology now is nuclear. Hydro power is also carbon neutral but the impoundments needed to turn water turbines do heat up water (and consecuently afect the environment). Another problem with wind/solar and storing that energy for night time use is the losses inherent with converter/inverter technology; that has improved over the years but there still is loss. Transmitting DC current over long distances is also impractical. So we either become nocturnal and drive our vehicles at night (when they would use more energy) and charge them during the day....but then where do we get the energy for our nighttime use...which would also increase.
This is but a rant...but until we have a terchnological breakthrough to solve the energy issue, we need to reconsider the nuclear option

Who said anyone wants a full solar society..... the idea is ‘green’ energy society. And if we dont try we’ll never know. But to your point, ya i believe nuclear energy could be included iono, im not a scientist lol

 

[TechnicallyReal]

ITT: A lot of people who don't know what the hell they're talking about, but have a lot to say about it (and yes, I'm a hypocrite). Even those in related fields are pigeon-holed in their views and everything is anecdotal. This thread is waste of time if you ask me, so I'm out!

 

[Hounddog409]

And those 30 years have been spent with 30 year old technology. Remember when they said increasing the MPG of vehicles from 10 to 30+ was totally impossible for a vehicle that was practical. I sure do, and had similar experts explaining away why it could never happen. But here we are, a Ranger that gets mid to upper 20’s in MPG and can tow 7500 pounds, without a V8! And guess what, for every MPG vehicles improve, and for every new EV and solar panel used, it decreases the demand of the supply and reduces cost overall for everyone. These are simple economics that will benefit everyones wallet.

Still wrong. Coal. Gas. Nuke. Air. Solar. We do it all. Leaders in renewable.

Stop arguing in a subject you are not educated in.

And those 30 years have been spent with 30 year old technology. Remember when they said increasing the MPG of vehicles from 10 to 30+ was totally impossible for a vehicle that was practical. I sure do, and had similar experts explaining away why it could never happen. But here we are, a Ranger that gets mid to upper 20’s in MPG and can tow 7500 pounds, without a V8! And guess what, for every MPG vehicles improve, and for every new EV and solar panel used, it decreases the demand of the supply and reduces cost overall for everyone. These are simple economics that will benefit everyones wallet.

You should really stop. Still wrong.

We do coal. Gas, wind, solar, nuke. In fact a leader in renewable energy.

You are living in fantasy. I deal with reality

Nothing you have said is correct.

 

[Jim C]

ITT: A lot of people who don't know what the hell they're talking about, but have a lot to say about it (and yes, I'm a hypocrite). Even those in related fields are pigeon-holed in their views and everything is anecdotal. This thread is waste of time if you ask me, so I'm out!

OK

so then you wont see me say have a good one

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