Mark's Quill

Green Car Reports: "2017 Chevy Bolt EV electric car: 238-mile EPA range rating, 119 MPGe combined"

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When it comes to the claims made about EV ranges and lifespans, it's fair to say that I am very skeptical based on real world data. These big boasting claims are short-lived when the real world data comes in. Experience shows that vehicles are rated like air compressors at the local DIY store where the Hp rating is the sum total of the unit running at maximum delivery and the maximum power stored in reservoir ... two things that cannot happen simultaneously, yet the Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection does nothing about the false advertising.

One must also question why the EPA insist on using the hideous MPGe rating when it should be using the MPkW rating? EVs are primarily powered by coal-fired power plants, so how does one equate pounds of coal to horsepower of steam to generation of electricity by some mythical means to come up with MPG? Makes me SMH! 　

While we're on efficiency, note how they are so careful as to avoid discussion of the battery limitations and degradation. Nonlinear degradation increases in Li-ion batteries in temperatures above 86°F so consider the results of batteries inside vehicles exposed to internal temperatures that can easily exceed 135°F without even considering the radiant heat absorbed through the bottom from road or parking lot surfaces at 50-85 W/sqft. Consider also that cycle life of Li-ion batteries is greatly reduced by the number of full charges, and the length of time they are allowed to remain at full charge.

Going back to the range claims as they related to battery life, take note that EV manufacturers and radical proponents conveniently omit information concerning Li-ion battery life cycles and capacity degradation. Li-ion batteries loose approximately 15% of their total capacity after the first 250-500 charge cycles. The depth of discharge also negatively affects the total capacity of the battery whereby the further the battery is discharged, and the higher the level it is charged to, the greater its total capacity loss will be. Li-ion batteries are happiest when they are not discharged below 40%, nor charged to more than 70% of their total capacity. Now keep in mind that those number change according to the degradation associated with every discharge/charge cycle. Thus, after 250-500 cycles, the 70% charge level actually becomes 55% or less depending on how much the battery has degraded to that point.

So let's tie this all together and realize that your new 200 mile range EV is probably going to be limited to about 150 miles, and considerably less than that if you're running the heater or air conditioning. After the first year or so, your maximum range is going to be down to about 125 miles, and by year three you're going to be down to about 90 miles as long as you don't use lights, wipers, heater, air conditioner, power windows, phone chargers or anything else other than the actual drive motor. So before you go plunking down your purse of gold coins for a shiny new chariot with a great sales pitch, know what you're really getting into.

No, I'm not an opponent of EVs, I'm just a realist which makes me a proponent of hybrid vehicles as opposed to Evs. I do favor EVs in those applications where they are best suited, but as a matter of practical application, EVs are not going to prove efficient for the majority of Americans. However, properly designed hybrids can prove to be exceptionally efficient for a large portion of American drivers. Yes, I am an opponent of much of the hideous engineering stupidity that has dominated the vehicle industry for more than a century, and continues to do so for reasons as of yet remain unexplained. EVs that look and operate like what we would call a “normal” car, can never achieve peak efficiency. EVs should look and operate like a dedicated EV … imagine that, eh? Kind of like buying a charcoal grill and expecting it to perform like a gas grill. Thus, if they're going to build EVs, why do they insist on making them look like the same old crap they've been putting off the assembly lines for more than century? No, this doesn't make any more sense than the EPA mandating that reducing emissions by 0.0002% per gallon of fuel burned, is better than reducing fuel consumption by 33% … utter stupidity is what it is, and that's why we're devolving from world leading superpower, to just another third-world crap hole!