balthazar

Alternative Propulsion :

^ 1 : A- 2 : B 3 : B 4 : B- 5 : AAA+++

If the average MPG in '76 was 12.1 and the average in 2010 was 17.5... that's an increase of 45%. For people who groove on percentages, that's unquestionably a huge increase. Now... an overall average is not an apples-to-apples comparison. So what is? '76 Corvette, based on 90 fill-ups on 6 different cars, returned a combined average of 9.9 MPG (~fuelly.com). In 2021 the Corvette is rated at 19 combined, with a bump in displacement from 350 to 376 CI, and a bump in HP from 180 to 490. The Corvette is possibly the most 'pure' case study for automotive evolution, as it's general size, mission, engine & curb weight are almost identical between those 2 distant years. BTW, that 9.9 > 19 is an increase in efficiency of 92%.

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Sylvania; inventor of the fluorescent tube light (and the fixtures) - first shown at the '39 World's Fair. 2nd largest radio tube manufacturer, 3rd largest light bulb manufacturer. Emporium, Pennsylvania. Now a label belonging to a Chinese consortium.

Wow! Welcome to the Matrix, David!

And BEVs are still motors that run off of storage batteries than get recharged. I thought we were going deeper than the core tenant of the 2 motive powers. 1912 electric truck with hub motors :

toyoters in general are junk. They used to be very good, then Corporate dropped the ball. 4-runner is probably the best of them. Of course; it's 11 years old currently; last 10 years has had 1 engine, 1 transmission, 1 wheelbase. If an OEM can't get that right after a decade...

... and a C8 Corvette engine has certainly evolved from a 1920 Model T with 20 HP. I've stated it before; I'm not against BEVs even tho one would not work for me and I'm not interested in the price tier they come at. They're not perfect (neither are ICVs), but they're 'real' cars now (vs, -say- a mid-70's CitiCar... or a Chinese Kandi)... but they're also not price-competitive 99% of the time. THAT'S the prime hurdle to displacing the established product : being affordable. Otherwise, wouldn't Rolls sell in the millions of units (NOT saying that price disparity is what's going on here). Look, the hype on BEVs is relentless and almost always disjointed from reality. Tesla's stock price is a stellar example of that. In order to be remotely analytical and objective, we have to strip away that hype and focus on the facts. 'Buy one now because maybe in the future it'll be cheaper than a ICV that's not propped up with Gov't money and an indeterminate amount of gas not purchased' isn't being honest. It's not how consumers shop. The best litmus test of BEVs is mainstream offerings against existing ICVs. The electric Silverado / F-150, for example. Despite my belief that truck buyers are going to be LESS interested in an EV pickup, if they come in within 10% of the price of a IC variant.... we'll truly see the market demand for BEVs. The hurdle to THAT scenario is; can OEMs make a profit on a BEV priced that close to the same ICV? Tesla isn't making a profit per vehicle yet...

^ black car a diesel? That’s because it’s cheaper to just hinge it.

That’s a perfect example of an identical scenario. If IC tech “hasn’t changed in 100 years”, neither has a battery vehicle. But my point was NOT that prices have increased for either, but specifically that numerous sources (and David) keep telling us battery costs are coming DOWN... but that has yet to transfer to the buyer, and BEVs are hugely more expensive than an IC equivalent.

^ The '11 Jeep Liberty Sport here has that, but frankly it's almost never used. The un-framed glass kinda makes me nervous slinging items thru. Still, it might be handy when moving long items. But I'd prefer a retractable glass in a hatch.

I've made the point repeatedly here; EV prices have not moved 1 iota toward being in line with IC counterparts. One can say 'it's coming', but there's no evidence of that at all. "Priced the same" is, to date, an empty prediction. Kona EV is $17,000 more than the gas variant. Offer to pay people $17,000 to get their oil changed twice/yr. and I think you'll find a LOT of takers. Most people will drive out of their way to save .10 cents/gal on a 10-gal tank. And we saw the higher EV maintenance in the police car study. But I predict that the take rate for truck consumers is going to be disappointingly low; lower than for sedans and CUVs.

I certainly would love to see some figures on that. Hard to believe an iron block, solid cam 270HP version (LM7) was more expensive to build than an all aluminum, phased cam, drive-by-wired, cylinder-deactivating 355HP variant.

All junk.

This guy has a very interesting channel; interviews a lot of... let's say the downtrodden. This video tho, is both sad and fascinating. I sometimes get drawn to these stories- the extremes of the Human Experience. I'm a pretty good internet detective, so not only was I quickly able to pinpoint their home via the background in the video, but I found that there were 15 children. Betty the talker, Ray & Lorraine are 3, & the guy in the green shirt reading the paper is another brother. But this isn't inbreeding- I think it's genetics/birth defects (I did their family tree back 3 generations).

There are about 38 plug-in or battery-electrics on the U.S. market currently. It's not a secret how many people buy them. The market demand for THOSE models is well documented now, and frequently the 'Next New Thing' sells at higher numbers than in subsequent years. So... MAYBE the buyer pool for the models currently out is already close to it's maximum level.

If GM issues a press release that a 5.3L V8 now cost them $299 to build in it’s entirety, would anyone assume that a Silverado 5.3L would drop -say- $5000 in price? I know I wouldn’t. OEM battery costs are immaterial to consumers because - like IC vehicles - prices don’t go down.

Where’s the news flashes that IC components are getting steadily cheaper & cheaper so they will one day will be price competitive with EVs?

Bradford-White is supposed to be the best tank water heater brand for quality.

There's some sort of homeowner study entity that has done studies- the average life expectancy of just about any major home appliance is only 12-14 years. I've been in my house 28 years. Did water heater #2 at 14 years (it started leaking), did water heater #3 last year- it would randomly only provide lukewarm water. Mine's in the basement, which is unfinished... tho the sump pit is in the opposite corner from the heater. Yes; you can certainly do a pre-emptive. I remember when my grandfather replaced his water heater- I am going to say it was around 2010. That unit was a '57, but it had a copper tank. The industry realized they were lasting too long and engineered limited lifespan glass tanks. I have his '58 GE Combination refrigerator - still works great tho I only use it Thanksgiving week. Old appliances lasted forever- their lifespans are shorter now than any other time.

Cadillac paced Indy in ‘73; I can’t think of a reason they had wagons built for Indy for ‘69.

^ With the matching vinyl roof, that's so hot.

About 5 years ago I did work in a big (5800 SF) modern house, and the entire first floor had wide, white trim, pickled oak flooring and medium gray walls. It was an epiphany for me. Suddenly, the practice of painting every room a different color seemed hugely illogical. Were I re-doing a new-to-me house, I would definitely paint all common areas the same color.

Leaf was $29,995 in 2019, is $31,600 in 2021 ($1605 HIGHER). Bolt was $36,620 in 2019, is $36,500 in 2021 ($120 lower). Model 3 was $35,000 in 2019, is $37,990 in 2021 ($2990 HIGHER). OEM costs are immaterial if they never get passed on to the consumer. Reducing prices is not in the OEM playbook. We're in an era where charging extra for PAINT is commonplace & SOP.