I seriously doubt that Ron Fink has ever had an honest discussion with an electric vehicle (EV) owner (“EV mandate will cause more problems than it solves,” May 9). I am an EV owner and would like to respond to his claims with facts.
Ron claims that EVs catch fire spontaneously or after a crash, that the electric grid will be overloaded by EV chargers, and the public will pay for those EV chargers. He says that EVs are not selling because travelers don’t want to scramble to find chargers and wait “two to six hours” while they recharge. Finally, he claims that the move to EVs will harm the economy of our nation!
Top Gear and Motor Trend both state that EVs catch fire less than 1/50 as often as gasoline-powered (ICE—internal combustion engine) cars. Another data point is that insurance companies do not charge more for fire insurance if there is an EV in the garage. While EV fires are harder to put out, they happen so infrequently that EVs are actually safer than ICE cars. In a crash, EVs have fuses that disconnect power. Virtually all sources report that of all car engine types, hybrids are the ones most likely to catch fire.
Ron claims that EVs will overload the electric grid. The slow adoption of EVs gives utility companies time to plan. They know exactly who is using power and when. It has always been their job (not ours) to provide the power we need. A lot of people charge their EVs in their garage using automatically timed chargers that can be set to charge at off-peak times. If a person commutes 40 miles a day to work, charging their car at home will take 10 kilowatt hours and cost them about $3 per day, (rate plan dependent)—and is even cheaper if they have solar panels. And they never have to stop at a gas station. Their car is “full” every morning.
He claims that chargers are hard to find. I live in Arroyo Grande. There are 94 chargers at six locations within 15 miles of my house. Chargers are conveniently located along most freeways, and my car locates them automatically on the navigation screen. I have never had to wait to get a charge, and I would have no qualms about driving my EV to Florida, New York, or Iowa.
It does not take “two to six hours” to charge an EV! After driving for three hours, I can charge mine on the road in about 20 minutes—about the time it takes to stretch my legs, take a short walk to a Starbucks, and go to the bathroom.
The public doesn’t have to pay for chargers. They are privately owned, just like gas stations. The display in an EV tells its owner exactly how much energy it receives at charging stations, providing a double-check on what drivers are paying for.
EVs have virtually no maintenance. My Tesla 3 weighs 20 pounds less than my BMW 335, which will be replaced by another EV soon.
The 2035 California mandate for electric vehicles does not mean that owners will be forced to get rid of their ICE vehicles. Only new cars and light trucks are affected. Large trucks are not included, and you will still be able to buy ICE vehicles in other states and bring them into California.
But many may not want to buy an ICE. EV prices are becoming comparable to ICE cars, even without rebates or incentives, and they are almost certain to become cheaper. The cost to drive an EV is currently around half as much as an ICE car. Technology is improving over time, and charging times are reducing while range is increasing.
EVs are starting to offer “reverse charging” where the EV battery will power your house during outages. Most utilities will even buy—at premium rates—excess vehicle battery power in order to support the grid during peak usage times.
And EVs help the environment. There is a strong market in used EV batteries, and they can be recycled. Considering production, use and disposal, EVs generate much less pollution during their lifetimes than ICE vehicles.
I believe the biggest hindrance to more EV sales is misinformation spread by uninformed individuals and petroleum companies, consortiums of gas station owners and car mechanics. EVs are practical, comfortable, powerful, easier to maintain, and not that expensive to buy. They are certainly less expensive to operate.
Rather than hurt the economy, EVs can make driving cheaper for everyone, and they can help save the environment at the same time. Δ
Charles Linquist wrote to New Times from Arroyo Grande. Chime into the EV conversation by emailing your opinion to letters@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in May 16-26, 2024.
Outstanding commentary, Mr. Linquist. Thanks for debunking the misinformation spread by those who would rather see the planet burn than transition to clean energy transportation.
We don’t want to see the planet burn. We just like the convenience of filling up and going to where we need to go without all the planing and waiting.
His other car is a Mercedes. That says it all. He probably charges his car with his solar panels. Maybe he has a heat pump. Maybe a backuo battery. All expensive for purchases. All too expensive for most of us. Yes there are rebates, but not with a State deficit. Then we get to the charging locations. I’d like to know more about these wxtended trips Mr Linquist embarks upon in his EV. How often and how far are these trips?
Ms. Stegman, the average price for a new car in the U.S. is over $47,000. Most quality EV’s are slightly more than that but some are cheaper so I really don’t believe they are “too expensive for most of us.” The price will most certainly come down as the technology improves and more people are buying.
We are currently in a lull for sales of EV’s but that will change as more charging infrastructure is builtsome of that will be government funded, but most will be private sector as highway stops such as Love’s, Pilot and TA continue to add charging facilities. Some EV’s are already traveling over 300 miles without a charge and that range will certainly improve.
Tesla has a big rig on the road that can travel over 400 miles without a charge. Commercial trucks account for only about 10% of roadway traffic, but spew more than 25% of emissions into the atmosphere. While corporate trucking is fighting it, we are slowly taking filthy gas and diesel powered trucks, buses, etc. off the road.
I admit, this revolution is in its infancy, but it will eventually prevail as we really have no other choice, sort of like the disappearance of horses and blacksmith shops.
The ultimate goal is to be zero-emission by 2050. I’ll be long dead, but maybe you will still be around or your children or grandchildren. UC Berkeley has recently released a study showing that with added EV’s on the road replacing gas powered vehicles in the Bay Area they have recorded a meaningful reduction in greenhouse gas pollution. Just think what will happen when EV’s are the dominant vehicle on the road. We could still avoid the worst effects of climate change.
If we stick to gas and do not transition, the costs will be far higher to the individual (fires, flooding, assorted climate chaos), to insurance companies, which will cease to exist (they have already lost billions and are pulling out of some areas) and to government which will ultimately have to step in and repair damages. Talk about tax hikes.
Most of our electricity is produced from fossil fuels so zero emissions is not possible. Plus plenty of co2 is produced in the mining and manufacturing of the lithium ion batteries. Child labor is used in mining. Groundwater resources can become seriously polluted. Ev vehicles are heavier and i doubt the cost of road repairs is ever figured. Fires may be more frequent in gasoline vehicles but they are easier to put out. California is certainly facing worse and worse electrical shortages.