wrote:
On Mon, 23 Sep 2013 23:57:38 -0500, Leon wrote:
Tesla is going to have to cut pricing by 2/3 to have a serious alternative
to gasoline vehicles. The bigger less expensive vehicle that will go long
distances will drive the market.

Sure, there's going to be some difficulties, but certainly many fewer
difficulties than Ford had when he started producing his model T.
The main thing is that the ball is rolling. I truly believe it's an
inexorable ball too. Go back a little as a twenty years. Who would
have believed that the electric car would be or *is* now a practical
reality.

Yeah, ten, twenty, twenty five years is a huge amount of time
considering our drive to produce new technology.

I believe the electric car will evolve but I still believe it will take
decades at a minimum before they become an actual benefit to the
environment.. You still have to factor in the impact they have on the
environment during manufacture, the maintaining of their components, and
their eventual disposal/recycling. There should be disclosure statements
with each unit as to what the impact is going to be on the environment much
like the carbon foot print that is determined for each fossil fuel vehicle.


Ford's issue was building a vehicle fast enough to meet with demand.
Demand for the Model T was hundreds of times greater than it is for
electrics or hybrids. Yes demand for the electrics/hybrids are greater
than they were 15 + years ago, but there are more to choose from. The
problem is that they are still as much of an I'm pact on the environment as
ever and still pretty much have down time limitations for recharging when
they can't be used. They will be popular for those that believe that they
are doing the environment a good deed and have relatively small needs for
having a vehicle that will take them to a destination 60 miles away from
home and back. There are countless people that make a treck this far on a
daily basis just to go to work. In particular these commuters live in
heavy population areas, ironically this is where the electrics should be
most popular.. Time will tell how fast this transition will take place if
it actually does take place. IMHO electrics in the foreseeable future will
be more of a novelty to those that can afford..