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2023-09-14 Home Front: Politix

From the left: EVs' Road-Trip Problem, Or the Incredible Importance of Being Granholm

[NYPOST] Energy Secretary

Jennifer Granholm "knew charging might be a challenge" on her "four-day electric-vehicle road trip this summer," reports NPR’s Camila Domonoske, "but she probably didn’t expect anyone to call the cops." When a Granholm staffer used a regular car to block a fast-charging station in advance of her arrival in a Georgia town, "a family that was boxed out — on a sweltering day, with a baby in the vehicle — was so upset" that it did just that. In fact, the trip also exposed the general scarcity of chargers, especially fast ones, requiring "cumbersome planning" for any long trip. Another issue: Even "having a superfast charger doesn’t do you any good if the dang thing doesn’t work," a surprise that popped up multiple times on the trip.
Back in the thrilling days of yesteryear, when my father was just a tad and the motorcar was newfangled, you could choose among your means of propulsion. You could get a powerful steamer, but you had to wait for the pressure in the boiler to build up, which was inconvenient. It took extra planning to get to work on time and to make it home in time for dinner. Or you could buy an electric. You could plug it into your house and let it charge overnight, but you had a limited range before you had to stop and charge it, again overnight. Going to see Aunt Hattie in Kalamazoo would take a week or longer because of the charging requirements. Or you could take your gasoline-powered runabout, crank it up (often literally) and take your chances without delay on roads that were often just cross-country sets of ruts. There's a reason gas buggies won that contest.

Posted by Fred 2023-09-14 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11129 views ] Top

#1 There's a reason gas buggies won that contest.

WWI airplane engines development.

Posted by Grom the Reflective 2023-09-14 01:00|| 2023-09-14 01:00|| Front Page Top

#2 The haughty attitude that the proles can just wait their turn - and then some - is muted by the fact that the EV road show shows how unsuited EVs are to road trips of any meaningful distance.

Posted by M. Murcek 2023-09-14 03:55|| 2023-09-14 03:55|| Front Page Top

#3 Hey! Don’t make fun of Kalamazoo. If it was good enough for Glenn Miller to write a song a out it ( something about going there for a booty call), and was the home of Checker Motors ( official taxi ab) of the free world, it deserves some respect. The fact that the lovely Mrs. Ret was born and raised there doesn’t bias me one bit. Nosiree!

Posted by USN, Ret. 2023-09-14 07:48|| 2023-09-14 07:48|| Front Page Top

#4 You could make a business out of occupying chargers and reserving them.

Posted by Super Hose 2023-09-14 08:06|| 2023-09-14 08:06|| Front Page Top

#5 Gibson guitar was based in Kalamazoo before moving to Nashville.

Posted by M. Murcek 2023-09-14 08:08|| 2023-09-14 08:08|| Front Page Top

#6 The NY Post article is a snippet of a much longer NPR Business article, which looks like it does a fair job of reporting the four major challenges, and benefits, of going electric.

In my skipping around, I failed to note the problem of where all that electricity is going to be found.

Posted by Bobby 2023-09-14 08:44|| 2023-09-14 08:44|| Front Page Top

#7 Ford CEO says electric vehicles provoking ‘charging anxiety’

Posted by Skidmark 2023-09-14 09:26|| 2023-09-14 09:26|| Front Page Top

#8 where all that electricity is going to be found
Small modular nuclear reactor project in Virginia to enter new phase

Posted by Skidmark 2023-09-14 09:29|| 2023-09-14 09:29|| Front Page Top

#9 As soon as I seen NPR I wouldn't believe a word they said even if they told me I was on fire while running around burning to death.

Posted by Chris 2023-09-14 10:30|| 2023-09-14 10:30|| Front Page Top

#10 My name might not be Gibson, but I was also based there before moving. And now the river actually supports fish .

Posted by USN, Ret. 2023-09-14 13:06|| 2023-09-14 13:06|| Front Page Top

#11 Where all that electricity is going to be found?

Wind and solar are always the answer. But they have been around for at least 40 years now (we had solar--that did not work--in Phoenix in the 80s.) If wind and solar were really viable, they would be taking market share hand over fist by now. The fact that they still don't work after 40 years of legislating and subsidizing tells you all you need to know.

Posted by Tom 2023-09-14 13:45|| 2023-09-14 13:45|| Front Page Top

#12 Granholm has done a good job of making Buttigeig looking competent.

Posted by ed in texas 2023-09-14 13:50|| 2023-09-14 13:50|| Front Page Top

00:22 EMS Artifact
00:16 Skidmark