I used to like hybrids, and obviously series hybrids are the coolest kind of hybrids, but now that I’m driving a budget EV, I honestly don’t see the point anymore. Just get the EV and skip the awkward half-way step that inherits the most expensive and complicated parts from both designs.
Seeing a sleek modern car pull away whisper quiet and then start the ICE 3 seconds later with a stutter and a puff of water vapor from underneath is the most schizophrenic sight, it somehow feels more dated than actual ICE cars.
Unless you live in bumfuck nowhere with expensive electricity, zero solar power and a daily 5 hour commute, an EV will likely work just fine for you.
> bumfuck nowhere with expensive electricity, zero solar power and a daily 5 hour commute
If we put aside 5 hour commute, this describes central Tokyo, not bumfuck nowhere. Bumfuck nowhere has land for offgrid solar and therefore free home charging.
If the city you're in offers free roadside parking with L1 or L2 charging on light poles, good for you, but Tokyo and Japan at large isn't like that at all(unattended roadside parking is banned nationwide and robotic garages are everywhere).
That's true for majority of cases, but a small percentage of Tokyo that needs to visit places taxis and trains don't go is still a large number.
Thinking 10 years down the road, will autonomous rentals be geo-fenced and not suitable for multi-day trips to rural places?
A car should always be a major consideration for someone's needs. Especially if you have a family with young children or are disabled. Discounting cars as useless because mass transit exists is a terrible idea.
Walkable towns and cities should always be a major consideration for human needs. Especially because most people go through stages in their lives of themselves being young children, sickness, injury, having young children, ageing and losing ability with age in a way that isn't traditionally considered 'disabled' but functionally is. Relying on being able to afford and drive a car as a neccessary part of life is a terrible idea.
Even in Japan there are plenty of places that public transit does not reach. Or, public transport is incredibly rare.(eg: Only one bus in the morning and afternoon, and nothing else.)
Walkable "towns" stop working when you need to leave town.
I do not have a car, because I do not need one. The same does not apply to my friend who is a forester.
Transit options are a major consideration, and cars are absolutely part of that. They aren't cheap, and assuming it's just a car company issue is daft and disrespectful.
Yeah, so few households that still own a car but don't use for commute choose cheaper ICEs that require no attention during weekdays. Then company cars driven weekdays when necessary remain ICE for familiarity as well as various EV chicken and egg problems.
The canonical American setup of a house with a garage where you can charge your car is exceedingly rare in Tokyo. Most people live in apartments and don't have cars, and even suburbam houses rarely have garages. If they have cars, they're parked in the apartment garage or a monthly contract parking lot, neither of which has charging.
It's a solvable chicken and egg problem, and China cracked it, but for time being Japan is way behind the curve in EV adoption.
The trays that hold cars are either passed between different rails or rotated around like a paternoster lift(the Prague city hall weird elevator thing). It's just incompatible with the concept of a cable, and a third rail or giant bus bar docking plug upgrades for those systems would be too costly and risky.
Maybe that might have happened already if Japan was as insane as it was in 1995, but it just costs too much right now.
You’d think they could have a connector which lined up fairly easily when storing them and building a new one. Have a standard 30kW supply which automatically plugs in, then powers an on ramp charger. Not every ramp/spec would need the electic, only cars that need charging.
Yeah, they do exist but IIUC, real world deployments are rare. I totally forgot about this when writing the original comment, but a lot of these systems can't take many SUVs and all Tesla vehicles(including Model 3) mainly due to width and also to height. Maybe that is a compounding factor for rarity of those upgrades.
Toutouxc · · focus · HN ↗
Seeing a sleek modern car pull away whisper quiet and then start the ICE 3 seconds later with a stutter and a puff of water vapor from underneath is the most schizophrenic sight, it somehow feels more dated than actual ICE cars.
Unless you live in bumfuck nowhere with expensive electricity, zero solar power and a daily 5 hour commute, an EV will likely work just fine for you.
numpad0 · · focus · HN ↗
If we put aside 5 hour commute, this describes central Tokyo, not bumfuck nowhere. Bumfuck nowhere has land for offgrid solar and therefore free home charging.
If the city you're in offers free roadside parking with L1 or L2 charging on light poles, good for you, but Tokyo and Japan at large isn't like that at all(unattended roadside parking is banned nationwide and robotic garages are everywhere).
WarmWash · · focus · HN ↗
axus · · focus · HN ↗
Thinking 10 years down the road, will autonomous rentals be geo-fenced and not suitable for multi-day trips to rural places?
kraig911 · · focus · HN ↗
yason · · focus · HN ↗
jodrellblank · · focus · HN ↗
Walkable towns and cities should always be a major consideration for human needs. Especially because most people go through stages in their lives of themselves being young children, sickness, injury, having young children, ageing and losing ability with age in a way that isn't traditionally considered 'disabled' but functionally is. Relying on being able to afford and drive a car as a neccessary part of life is a terrible idea.
Prickle · · focus · HN ↗
Even in Japan there are plenty of places that public transit does not reach. Or, public transport is incredibly rare.(eg: Only one bus in the morning and afternoon, and nothing else.)
Walkable "towns" stop working when you need to leave town.
I do not have a car, because I do not need one. The same does not apply to my friend who is a forester.
Transit options are a major consideration, and cars are absolutely part of that. They aren't cheap, and assuming it's just a car company issue is daft and disrespectful.
numpad0 · · focus · HN ↗
flakeoil · · focus · HN ↗
motionlessveloc · · focus · HN ↗
It's a solvable chicken and egg problem, and China cracked it, but for time being Japan is way behind the curve in EV adoption.
hdgvhicv · · focus · HN ↗
numpad0 · · focus · HN ↗
Maybe that might have happened already if Japan was as insane as it was in 1995, but it just costs too much right now.
hdgvhicv · · focus · HN ↗
Indeed this seems to be an available product:
<a href="https://www.ip2.co.jp/parking/kikaishiki/products/ev-charging-system/" rel="nofollow">https://www.ip2.co.jp/parking/kikaishiki/products/ev-chargin...
<a href="https://www.tokyo-gas.co.jp/news/topics/20220930-04.html" rel="nofollow">https://www.tokyo-gas.co.jp/news/topics/20220930-04.html
With this being a retrofit
<a href="https://www.mhi.com/jp/news/1101285025.html" rel="nofollow">https://www.mhi.com/jp/news/1101285025.html
So it just seems to be a commercial question of demand rather than a technical question of feasibility.
numpad0 · · focus · HN ↗