I can’t say much more beyond what WonbyOne, or Fatstrat, or A non E said. However, I will say this. Most of the global warming alarmists speak of this fallacy in emotional connotations. I gave some actual facts already. And you failed to respond to the fact that electric cars cause MORE immediate environmental damage than what they solve. Could you imagine 1000lbs of “D” size batteries just littering a junk yard? No, because if anyone did then the bottom would fall out of any battery powered ’solution’, so best ignore it. So yes, I do not support battery powered vehicles or hybrids that use batteries in any part. I don’t want to pay for them, nor do I want to be a hypocrite. What I do support is refining the internal combustion engine for better mileage. I will support hydrogen, if they can come up with a sure-fire way to keep a vehicle from becoming a motorized bomb hurtling down the highway. I will support ethanol and biodiesel when they become more efficient and plentiful. I will even support a battery powered car when those batteries can be shown not to harm the local water table and burn skin on contact. I will NOT support these technologies just so I can feel warm and fuzzy about my own part in this farsical debate. I MIGHT be sueded if the greenies would follow their own advice, like Al Gore, traipsing around the world in his private jet and SUVs. Hippies of the 60’s!!

My point is that it will be a long, long time before it is better, and it will never be “perfected.” Look how far the internal combustion engine has come in the last 100 years, and it is still not “perfected.” This leads me to my belief that the “solution” to oil cinsumption is far, far away.

I think that we need to focus on the BIG picture, not the short term. I agree that alternative fuels need ot be used, but let’s be honest, there is no way it will be “mainstream” in our lifetime. It is not econimically possible. The infrastructure is not there to make it happen overnight, and the likelyhood that Man would embrace a new technology overnight without skepticism is even more far-fetched than electric powered trucks (the real backbone of our country, and Europe for transprting EVERYTHING we buy in stores).

If you want to read about it, try going to “HowStuffWorks.com” There is great information there on all sorts of things, soup to nuts. I have read there most recently on “How Global Warming Works.” My fact from above are from there, but I have also read them in several other Science Journal websites and forums.

I wont bore you with who I am, what I do, or who I know. I send my time reading and learning, and not spouting false claims based on a short-term and near-sighted politically motivated goal.

The comment “glorified golf carts” makes me laugh. A cousin of mine is a highly-successful custom dragbike builder in Georgia. He’s also an engineer at a nuclear power plant. We talk off-and-on about the future of energy, etc. He remarked this summer that someone at his local track has been breaking track records with an electric motorcycle, so much so that they’ve had to develop a new class for him. He is very interested in electric propulsion, for the speeds alone. Anyone seen the Tesla Roadster? Sometimes on this site, it seems as if there is a supreme lack of imagination.

*Disclaimer #2: I’m a mechanic, former biologist & kart-racer, current energy consultant for the government and private sector, and own a farm. I’m only 29 but want to preserve as much as we can for the kiddies. I’d rather not wait for us to screw our only planet just because we didn’t prove we were doing it. How stupid an argument.

Stop believing the hype, and go and read about it. Try researching information FULLY, and not believing some stupid movie. There are tons of websites out there with scientific info, forget the opinions, and READ about it! Global warming is happening, but it is NOT SUV’s that are the problem.

However, there are plenty of scientists out there who DISAGREE with all of the alarmists. Bob Carter is one for starters. Google his name, read his articles. Here’s a Senator’s comments: http://inhofe.senate.gov/floorspeeches.htm

If saving gasoline for the purposes of saving money is the goal, then still don’t buy an electric/battery powered car. How long does a normal alternator last? How long does a normal car battery last? Now think of replacing the car’s electric motor in 5-6 years or the 1000 lbs of batteries in 6 years. Selling before they die? Think about resale value. Buy a Honda Fit or a Jetta TDI. Not to mention, how much does your electricity cost in your neck of the woods? Me, it’s pretty damn expensive. Considering how much it costs to run a refrigerator, I don’t want to know how much it costs to fill up my car’s batteries.

Bepsf – if your kids are constantly go to the hospital, there are bigger problems you need to worry about. And what does Katrina have to do with anything??? Speaking of air quality, what do you think the air quality will be like with a bunch of electric cars? Ever hear of Ozone? Try this: Go plug your toy Tyco race track in with the electric cars and race them around the track for a while. Take a whiff. Or go hang around a train station that powers electric trains, take a whiff. Now imagine a city with a bunch of real electric cars buzzing around, and imagine what it will smell like. Ozone. Again, these battery powered cars create more problems than what they solve environmentally and economically.

WonbyOne – Thanks for being more stable than I was. You are right, if EVERY vehicle in the US were to double the gas mileage, and theoretically use half the gasoline they are using today, the result would be 8% less barrels of oil a day. 8%. This figure is quoted out of a 12 page article in popular science. Try using less plastic if Americans want to make a difference in oil usage, which accounts for roughly 65% of a barrel of oil.

Right…
Scientists have major connections to Big Oil and are paid Fat Bucks for re-election by Exxon/Mobil and Chevron to say that global warming exists – and the rest of the planet who signed the Kyoto Treaty are self-absorbed dolts who drive Hummer’s & don’t give a rat’s a** about their childen’s athsma or grandchildren’s well-being.

When you get tired of taking your kids to the hospital because they can’t breathe and your house gets washed away because of another Katrina – I hope you feel better driving to church in that V8 SUV…

Anyways, you can think of a plug-in hybrid as a tuner-tuned hybrid. At any rate, it would make for an interesting garage shop; Imagine a shop with an Evo, Porsche, and a Prius all on lifts and right next to each other.

They only recoup more motion energy if the battery is bigger. Any other recoup tech can be shared with normal hybrids. If the battery is bigger, the car weighs more, there is less storage space and the balance will be off, so the handling/performance suffers more.

They only run on battery longer if the programming allows them to. The problem with using more battery is that the battery will die faster. Toyota guarantees its current Prius batteries for 150k, I think (as do Ford and Honda), but batteries won’t last that long if you’re allowed to constantly use them down to 10% charge. So, I would expect warranties to start coming in kW-hr format or something weird like that to compensate for the fact that some people might run for 150k while others will burn out their batteries at 50k.

I like the concept of plug-ins, but they still aren’t the end-all solution. Ultimately, we need better urban planning and public transport. In the meantime, I could see a plug-in being a good alternative for someone who commutes inside a city or on shorter stop and go commutes. For many people’s commutes, however, clean diesels will still be a better option.

I applaud GM for introducing the plug-in hybrid (if they bring it to market, I will be really impressed), but there are other technologies (biofuels, clean diesel) that may be better alternatives until battery technologies improves a bit more or fuel cells or some other technology emerges as a better option.

Anyways, here’s Top Gear’s Jeremy Clarkson’s views on the Prius. So you already know its not going to be good. Hehe

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATeoSRWFSkA

Usually, a plug-in hybrid -as I understand it- is a hybrid like the Prius, but it has a plug in addition to a gas intake. It also has the ability to run on purely electricity alone with the gas engine as a back up. It also has the ability to withdraw more of it’s energy from stored electricity than gasoline than a normal hybrid. And finally, they usually recoup more ‘motion energy’ back into electriticy than a normal hybrid.

so basically, it’s just a better hybrid. In fact, if you do a search, there are several companies offering to upgrade your stock prius into a plug-in hybrid.

Ford wowed us with the 60 MPG hybrid diesel REFL3X and yet there’s no word about building it yet. Concepts are great, but it’s better if they’re put into production.

/no