Quote:
Originally Posted by cjwb1984
I really think that in order for the I3 to succeed, the important factor of range must be solve. Infrastructures in big cities in the US like New York, Chicago, maybe LA (not sure), are not ready and that's going to take time to develop if they do decide to build it.
I understand the electric version is limited to 100 miles but if there is a range extender it's crucial that target for it is 200+ miles whle giving great fuel economy.
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That's a big problem for all EVs. It's one of the reasons I think Tesla is going to be a market leader. They're building
"Supercharger" stations all over California that can provide 150 miles from 30 minutes of charging. That's still nothing compared to a petrol powered car, but it's a huge improvement over other EVs that have to return home, or take several hours on standard outlets (assuming you can find one). I kind of wish that other manufacturers would step to the plate and come up with a similar solution, but I'm not holding my breath.
IMO, Li-ion powered EVs are a temporary solution. In order for EVs to become truly mainstream, there must be a breakthrough in battery technology, not unlike what the transistor did for electronics. The challenge is that the physics of chemical storage are pretty mature. No one is expecting any big breakthroughs. I guess that will make it all that much more exciting when it happens
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