The Car thread
- Thread starter 6thElement
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FMSV... this could catch on.Maybe we should just start calling them "fragile masculinity support vehicles"?
What Even Is a "Truck" These Days?
Our most diverse Truck of the Year field ever demands we ask the question.www.motortrend.com
It's the same weight as an Audi RS6, those larger German ICE wagons are all well upwards of 4K, 5K is what a couple of them weigh. Yeah, too heavy for autocross, but few people are going to push these to 10/10ths, maybe 8 or rarely 9. Far more people might *think* they push cars that hard, but in reality they do not. The range is a problem though, as more of these are coming online with useful ranges exceeding 300 and a few out past 400 and 500. You can only get this is the range will work for your driving, which is likely to be city-based.
Porsche has a rear mounted rack for it. Not a hitch rack, per se, as there's no hitch.
Rear bicycle carrier for the Taycan Cross Turismo: a weighty idea
The Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo is made for travel and adventures. That’s why Porsche decided not to design a heavy trailer hitch for it. Even so, the sturdiest of bikes and e-bikes can still be easily transported.
If you want to be green, a lighter vehicle needs less energy to move around, or? So even ICE cars are way too heavy because of all this shit that gets put into them. You do not need 1000 electric motors to move everything, I can open the hatch myself, thank you very much. Or are all cars build for handicapped people these days?
Less weight would be better range, no?
LOL, I actually like my bikes, so they travel inside the car.Porsche has a rear mounted rack for it. Not a hitch rack, per se, as there's no hitch.
Rear bicycle carrier for the Taycan Cross Turismo: a weighty idea
The Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo is made for travel and adventures. That’s why Porsche decided not to design a heavy trailer hitch for it. Even so, the sturdiest of bikes and e-bikes can still be easily transported.newsroom.porsche.com
Well, that's two different things.
Lighter weight would require less energy, that's a given.
Efficiency and clean energy is more what we are looking at, no?
Batteries are going to be the primary source of weight and with increased range there will be a weight penalty. IMO, as long as you are within 10-25% of of the ICE vehicle weight, it's fine. It's not like the battery vehicle weighs 2x as much. Almost all cars are more than 3K these days and most are more like 3500-4000 range, with the AWD stuff often being more like 3800-4000. A lot of this is the requirement for crash protection, which without an ICE engine and structure to help absorb, still requires some decent weight for the collapsible stuff that needs to be there.
I think we might see weights start to come down if CFRP and similar type composites can start to be used in mass production for body and chassis. Basically the chopped-up fiber stuff that Lamborghini was making a big deal about a few years back (it is used in other applications, like airplanes for one).
Just the fact that the EVs are comparable in weight is pretty amazing to me, and the weight goes down low, where it should. I agree they ain't light, but again, it's about efficiency, not necessarily total energy. With batteries, you probably are never really going to get to a 2000lb car, again unless some crazy exotic processes are used that will never be practical for mass production (like a pike's peak race car or something).
There's also the config, the CUV/SUV config tends to be the most ergonomic for entry/exit...and visibility, so it's likely most of the vehicles will be this (disappointingly).
But again, I think the main draw is that if you are burning dinos, it's more efficient to burn those at a power-station and beam the electricity (plug in) than it is to have gas-stations everywhere, ICE engine efficiency that starts pushing components to un-sustainable limits, and so on. The EV doesn't care where the power comes from, whether it's wind, gas-turbine, nuclear, or whatever. That's the big draw. People will buy cars and while no, most may not need a self-lifting hatch, a self-driving car seems pretty attractive when I get old and am no longer safe to drive a car.
I think maybe your point is that EVs need to trickle down to more accessible markets. It's coming, we are just seeing the tip of the iceberg. This isn't the greatest example, because it's Porsche, but the point here is think about all the planning, engineering and prep that has gone into what they are doing. This video is pretty amazing IMO and it shows how dedicated and invested the automakers are for EVs. I've heard from a number of contractors (supplying parts) to the US Big 3 that this is not an isolated thing, they are all spooling up for this and it's been years in the making (evident from this video). The market is about to explode.
When the world goes Mad Max then we'll see more Apteras, pure efficiency machines that clearly make sacrifices to achieve that.
I have two points:
1) EVs are still too expensive.
2) We should strip cars (ICE and EV) back down to what they are meant to do: get you from one place to another. With the speed limits here nobody seriously needs more than a 100-150 hp, 4-wheel drive is not needed either. All these things that consume additional energy and could cause complications should get kicked out too: fancy entertainment systems, displays and electric motors everywhere, etc. That would also help with lowering the price.
Basically what I want is a robust car with all the essentials. Call it military spec if you will. For example, VW builds the Transporter in a rugged spec for the German army, dream car of every mountain biker I know. If the inside gets dirty, you nearly can clean it out with a hose. Perfect shuttle vehicle or toy hauler. Their commercially available Multivan is a lifestyle car and way overpriced with all the unnecessary stuff they cram into it.
https://www.volvotrucks.us/trucks/vnr-electric/
I want that. Hopefully in 5-6 years the price will be reasonable enough to pull the trigger.
I want that. Hopefully in 5-6 years the price will be reasonable enough to pull the trigger.
You could with studded tires...which would draw up all sorts of bitching as to their effect on the roads.
But yeah, around here, without a lot of weight on the wheels (like a real heavy truck), you can't even get going in a lot of spots. Your tires just spin. Just as important for accident avoidance as it is getting yourself started from a stop. It's a little comical how my Camaro has the steering and braking with studded tires, but the acceleration is still not great, and I don't mean V8 camaro-great, I mean 100hp vehicle great, as in being able to start at an intersection that is uphill and icy. It still spins wheels real easy (in ice-mode). The other car, with AWD, does much better. The right combo of FWD or weight on the axle (like rear engined) and studded tires is sufficient...but it introduces that cost, to the owners and to the local and state governments, for the giant ruts it chews into the roads every year.
But I will add that for 95% of the places where AWD and 4WD is sold as "needed", this is complete bullshit. It's bullshit because they are not driving on primarily ice surfaces, where this becomes a thing. In those cases, they are simply trying to sell something more expensive that increases the total price and total profits. In those cases, it gets you into more trouble because it will get you going in almost any situation...especially when you'll be able to out-accelerate your handling and braking ability, vs the opposite situation with my camaro which is arguably safer.
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Maybe if they drove it a bit more often, it wouldn't have needed a Toyota Prius worth of parts out into it? I'm guessing they drove it a bunch early on in its life and then it sat...
Remember they said battery packs would never work!
You can’t buy those in Belgium? We have a lot of those here. Most of my friends have the stripped down T4, T5 or Caddy.
I had a couple VW T4s. They are way better off-road than the T5 and T6 which I do a lot of for trail building and shuttling. You can pack those full of bikes and pretty much go anywhere. Great MTB vans!
In Denmark? Yes, you can buy them but you are not allowed to go into the cities anymore because of the strict environmental protection rules. My Caddy will also be outlawed soon, hence why I am looking. Super happy with it otherwise.
Not saying that it is not needed anywhere, but here it is a joke. For work we are getting water and soil samples from all kind of places and so far I am only aware of one sampling site that needs a 4x4 to get to. That includes fire roads and muddy access paths behind the dikes. Usually I take a Caddy and be fine.
FTFY.
My sister has a Grenadier on order, you can hose them out, when they arrive in 2023.............
It is fuelled by dinosaurs but there is supposedly some Hydrogen something in the works.
I am not arguing against the rules, I just had hoped that there would be alternatives in place before they get implemented. Also, why not just put high taxes on fossile fuels? Easiest way to steer their consumption.
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because that would amount to taxing the poor, and the rich would just be able to pollute as before?
Now the poor just have to buy an expensive EV to be able to keep their mobility. Sounds soooo much better to me.
Yeah, I can't wait until more "real world", affordable models are introduced too. We'll get there eventually, but it sucks it took so long.Now the poor just have to buy an expensive EV to be able to keep their mobility. Sounds soooo much better to me.
Not here. And until there is a charging pole next to each street parking spot in dense populated urban areas, not happening there either.Now the poor just have to buy an expensive EV to be able to keep their mobility. Sounds soooo much better to me.
With ya,
Although I like the thought of having and EV truck or jeep it just isn't feasible (not even close) with my driving habits. If I was commuting still possibly...
the amazing thing about habits is they can change! (where there's a will, there's a way?)
I think the worst part is that we are losing the support for the green transition of a part of the population with these no ICE zones in cities. Because here in Denmark cars are taxed so high, people keep driving older cars longer than in other countries. This is especially true for the less well off part of the population. They also did not benefit from all the incentives to buy EVs because they were way out of their price range to begin with. So the rich folks did benefit from these measures and now benefit again because they have no restrictions to their lifestyle, while the poorer folks get a second kick in the butt.
I can see why they oppose the green transition more: they think it is a way to screw them over instead of a necessity to preserve our future. Astonishingly the Danish government is not talking much about the social aspects of their politic agenda, really weird for such a "communist" country.
I run too many backcountry discovery routes and overland trips that are often 1k miles of dirt with very limited gas pumps even. Not to mention the Rock crawling and 4x4 trails I frequent. Just not feasible for me, but I would really dig a true 4linked EV for day runs locally if they had the range/run time.
I think it's called cognitive dissonance.
I do agree much could be done but vs the US the public transportation options are really good and amazing bike infrastructure. Not sure if it should be a right all can afford a car.
Are there really any cities in Denmark with no ice zones? In Copenhagen it’s only talk and really more about limiting cars in general.