Hertz to Sell 20,000 EVs in Shift Back to Gas-Powered Cars (Bloomberg)

Selling off that many EVs for cheap might help popularize things.

Right now, a lot of poor folks like myself drive clunkers…while there are many new cars going to waste:

The real emissions scandal is that these cars—even if not as clean as promised—are likely both greener and safer than many junkers out there. They should be given away, but eco-zealots don’t like that.

The Right doesn’t want to pay good wages, and the Left wants us in caves.

A pox be upon both their houses.
 
edwest4 said:
www.nada.org

Hertz to Sell 20,000 EVs in Shift Back to Gas-Powered Cars (Bloomberg)

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. plans to sell a third of its US electric vehicle fleet and reinvest in gas-powered cars due to weak demand and high repair costs for its battery-powered options.
www.nada.org www.nada.org
Click to expand...
Car rental seems an unfortunate choice for early-adopters in EVs. People generally rent cars when they either need to take a long trip, or drive around unfamiliar locations. Neither is good with a vehicle that requires specialized charging stations rather than gas stations that are easy to find. Additionally, people in rentals tend to need to get where they're going ASAP, and spending hours sitting at a charging station is suboptimal.
 
Regarding charging stations, which could be built in large numbers, no one wants to pay for them. The formula is: You want to be a billionaire, demand cheap. Cheap labor in China and cheap parts from China. I drove a clunker till last May when it showed signs of dying. The dealership for my new car had me buy something with way too many electronic bits and about 100 useless buttons and a screen on the dash.

And let all the wealthy drool over government (meaning taxpayer) subsidies because then "their" costs go down.

fox59.com

Biden administration pushes for EV production

The Biden administration is moving ahead with its plan to install half a million electric vehicle charging stations across the country.
fox59.com fox59.com

Meanwhile, China gets American dollars and they're a threat - at the same time.
 
This is where Tesla and Sonic need to do business.

At Sonic...you have wiring going to individual parking areas...so recharge while you eat. Play a video game against other customers and the winner gets the recharge free. The recharge goes from chore to a destination in its own right.
 
publiusr said:
Selling off that many EVs for cheap might help popularize things.

Right now, a lot of poor folks like myself drive clunkers…while there are many new cars going to waste:

The real emissions scandal is that these cars—even if not as clean as promised—are likely both greener and safer than many junkers out there. They should be given away, but eco-zealots don’t like that.

The Right doesn’t want to pay good wages, and the Left wants us in caves.

A pox be upon both their houses.
Click to expand...
I would hope that VW has disposed of all of those repurchased diesels in the last 6 years. Diesel ownership is not for the poor in North America, as the fuel is always more expensive than gasoline and the maintenance was always a headache, even before the joys of common rail injectors, DEF and particulate filters. I might also mention that VWs of that era had electrical gremlins and are notorious expensive to repair. Nope, I wouldn’t take one for free.

From my own standpoint, I don’t drive very far and I spread my mileage out over multiple cars. As a result, I keep them for 15, 20 or 25 years. I honestly couldn’t repay the “carbon debt” of an electric car and I’m greener staying with petrol. Also, I pay the highest electricity rates in North America, so high that plugging in a plug in hybrid would cost me more than owning a conventional hybrid.

The biggest issue with EVs is the weight. Teslas are hard on tires. I also suspect that giant electric trucks will require routine suspension component replacements. Indirectly, EVs can be hard on brakes but not in the way you’d think. Electric cars use regenerative braking to such an extent that the rotors will rust and pit, requiring replacement.

Then there’s the fact that EVs are hugely to expensive to insure
because of repair costs. They tend to get totaled out in comparatively minor accidents. Insurance is a huge consideration. I pay more in premiums than I will ever pay at the gas pump.

Finally, the electric clunkers of the future will be routinely be blocking traffic at rush hour. With petrol cars, the working poor had just about as much driving range as the rich, assuming a full tank of gas. 20 year old EVs will have a range of tens of miles, not hundreds.
 
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publiusr said:
This is where Tesla and Sonic need to do business.

At Sonic...you have wiring going to individual parking areas...so recharge while you eat. Play a video game against other customers and the winner gets the recharge free. The recharge goes from chore to a destination in its own right.
Click to expand...
That's honestly not a bad idea, except for needing 240V (minimum) run out to the chargers.
 
Some fresh trenches--but the lay-out overall will work.
You have to turn that into a facility that folks want to go to---more so than a typical service station.
No liquor or cigarettes. Free internet. sort of like truck stops but for cars.
 

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