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all this talk about electric cars and cars that drive themselves is making everyone crazy. if you look real hard the INSURANCE COMPANIES haven't weighted in yet and they will. without them we could be back to horse back. (just saying)
all this talk about electric cars and cars that drive themselves is making everyone crazy. if you look real hard the INSURANCE COMPANIES haven't weighted in yet and they will. without them we could be back to horse back. (just saying)
Tesla offers insurance in a few states and working with other states. And with mainline insurance co.
How many MILLIONS of gasoline powered vehicles have caught on fire throughout the years? Each year, on average, about 200,000 gasoline engine vehicles catch on fire and burn.
Cars today are safe but the old classic muscle cars that have carburetors were not that safe. Leaking carbs, fuel lines, etc. all contributed to fires.
Just saw an article where Toyota is purposely putting the brakes on annoucing all Electric. Main reason is the grid distribution supply are not ready.
BTW the article mentioned you can get (almost?) every toyota vehicle as a hybrid variant.
How many MILLIONS of gasoline powered vehicles have caught on fire throughout the years? Each year, on average, about 200,000 gasoline engine vehicles catch on fire and burn.
Cars today are safe but the old classic muscle cars that have carburetors were not that safe. Leaking carbs, fuel lines, etc. all contributed to fires.
Back in 1980, over 456,000 vehicle fires were reported.
In the 1980's decade, they were averaging 430,000 vehicle fires per year.
Then in the 1990's, it dropped to around 390,000 vehicle fire per year.
Then as carburetor cars started disappearing from being on the roads and cars got safer, the number of car fires dropped to the 200,000 range in the early and mid 2000's.
200,000 out of about 250 million cars on the road = 0.1%.
The term you're looking for is "in the noise".
I understand the math, I’m just surprised vehicle fires are that common. Other than house fires, I personally don’t know anyone who ever had a vehicle fire, and in all the driving I have done I can recall seeing one vehicle fire on the road.
Once new cars are all electric, same politicians and special interest groups will work on getting every internal combustion powered vehicle off the road, including classic vehicles - either banning them outright or making gasoline so expensive with higher fuel taxes that most will no longer be able operate their classic car or truck.
Classic car and truck owners need to speak up now to politicians before they legislate irreversible plans to shut down access to affordable gasoline or access to gasoline all together.
Gasoline is a very risky material. We have had 130 years of designs and experience to make a gasoline powered vehicle as safe as possible. We're still at early stages of understanding how to make lithium ion batteries safe.
Ban gasoline! I will run wood alcohol in mine with some changes in carb and fuel system. Be cleaner, faster, be less mpg.
Wood alcohol is very poisonous for human consumption. Unless you distill it three times like we did in collage. Two parts OJ, one part pure alcohol makes a great drink. I had to be a wise ***, macho man. Mix it 50/50, just about lay me out flat drunk.
I understand the math, I’m just surprised vehicle fires are that common. Other than house fires, I personally don’t know anyone who ever had a vehicle fire, and in all the driving I have done I can recall seeing one vehicle fire on the road.
Every summer when the temperature gets into the 110s our local news stations have multiple reports about a "carbeque" on one or another of the highways. Driving around, you can see areas of melted asphalt on the shoulder - it's really amazing how many of those there are.
Occasionally I’ll hear a traffic report on the radio about a car fire, but it’s not very often.
I can’t help but wonder if the car stereo craze from a few years ago might have something to do with vehicle fires. I remember seeing some VERY sloppy stereo installations. Things like unfused 2 gauge wires run thru hacked holes in the firewall, to the trunk to power huge amplifiers.
I have seen plenty of car fires from old classic cars, usually due to carburetor fuel leaks onto the hot manifold or exhaust. Next would be due to 70 year old electrical wiring that is shorting out. The wires in those cars was NOT designed to have a 70+ year life and many "repairs" done to wiring are usually incorrect and cause fires. Then comes trans fluid, which is VERY flammable. A leaky trans cooler line or trans pan and spraying on the exhaust = fire.
I've seen some older vehicles catch on fire at a car show and of course at the race track.
Just saw an article where Toyota is purposely putting the brakes on annoucing all Electric. Main reason is the grid distribution supply are not ready.
BTW the article mentioned you can get (almost?) every toyota vehicle as a hybrid variant.
Toyota is extremely conservative with new tech. They buy interests in companies with good tech that failed to be marketable, and adopt it. Sort of like the Borg.
Most every Toyota except the V8s and/or trucks are hybrid available, and most of those are "plug in hybrid." Leaving the political noise alone for a second, my recommendation as an auto engineer is there is no downside to a plug in hybrid over an EV (electric vehicle). You can plug them both in. You can run on all electric for a while on both. The hybrid will kick the engine on, just because it wants to, to maintain the battery, but there is an ever increasing "electric range" on them that you can lock them into until battery depletion kicks the engine on.
If you run of out gas on a hybrid, and the battery falls below X%, it will shut the car down. You can't "run the battery out of power" like running out of gas, because it is not a good scene to depower and repower a hybrid procedurally.
I still believe that for highway driving, the best is a small conventional gasoline car over a hybrid. For any amount of urban driving, a hybrid is more efficient, and being a plug in negates 90% of the advantages of the EV vehicle. It's like having cake and eating it, too. Toyota knows this, which is why the ad campaigns and corporate policy make political statements, but the cars quietly give you what you need now for a safe bet.
One of my AACA buddies is a retired master electrician. When the subject of EVs comes up over there, he often says "people don't understand what goes on 'behind the wall' with electricity".
Being an old utility hand meself, I can promise most people have no idea how the electricity to their house receptacles is made or how it gets there. All they know about it is when it goes out and their electrical convenience lives grind to a halt.
For example, in Quebec, all of Tesla’s Superchargers are powered by Hydro Quebec’s hydropower electricity.
Adding solar power at the station is not the only solution for places where the grid is powered by fossil fuels.
For example, Rivian recently announced its own charging network, which it claims will be solely powered by renewable energy. However, the automaker said that it will be directly powered by renewables where possible and through renewable energy certificates where it’s not possible.
It’s not clear what will Tesla’s approach be with this new goal to power the entire Supercharger network with renewable energy this year.
Last edited by HighwayStar 442; May 16th, 2021 at 07:33 PM.
Just keep in mind that at the present time renewable energy does not mean reliable energy.
I disagree! Battery farms are being built. Tesla Super Charges will be solar with battery storage. People in the north have solar panels and old tesla powerwall. Heating, cooling and selling extra power back to the electric company. All year long!
I posted this up about two years ago, LOL! This guy Gets IT, LOL!!
I. LOVE. IT.
Virginia offers a "Friends of Coal" revenue sharing license plate and a lot of us at the powerplant had them. Never got into a confrontation but I got beaucoup dirty looks! And I just smiled...
Last edited by rocketraider; May 16th, 2021 at 08:25 PM.
Kinda off the subject of electric vehicle, but related to alternative energy cars
Years ago, I drove a POS S-15 that had a serious oil consumption issue. It ran great, until it oil fouled the number 6 plug. I cut a access hole in the inner wheelhouse to make plug access simple.
I had a buddy that owned a vinyl graphic business. As a joke, I had him make a large lime green decal that I proudly displayed on my rear bumper. It said” I drive a hybrid, it burns gas AND oil!”
For some reason, the tree huggers failed to appreciate the humor.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning EV 20,000 orders in the first day.
I think a run for the money for Tesla Cybertruck. Ford has it over GM. Ford CEO Jim Farley is the real deal. A car - vehicle guy. And Ford first CEO who knows what torque means!
GM is run by accounts.
. https://www.hagerty.com/media/news/r...5bb8775ac791f7
I am not a tree hugger! Or a socialist! I am a realist! EV are coming fast and the energy infrastructure to support them. And only a small part it, will be oil and gas. It will take a few years, to up the range. But its coming. So, some of you can go hide your heads in the sand. And not believe.
Last edited by HighwayStar 442; May 20th, 2021 at 08:31 AM.
March 23rd, 2021, 08:20 AM
