Electric Cars Exploding from Water Damage after Ian

[T. A. Gardner]

How does one car equate to “cars?” Did you miss the grammar lesson on singular and plural?

With Tesla's the issue is really that the battery pack design is really shitty when it comes to being watertight. It isn't. That's the problem here. The Tesla battery pack is very vulnerable to moisture penetration in high humidity areas and if the vehicle is driven into water that comes up to the battery pack or is subjected to flooding.

 

[T. A. Gardner]

I just read a piece about how electric trucks (and presumably cars) are nearly useless for towing....that's a problem.

This issue is largely one of how DC motors operate. The problem here is something called "Counter-electromotive force," or CEMF or CMF. Sometimes it's called "Back electromotive force," or BMF.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-electromotive_force

What it does, in effect, is increase the inefficiency of the motor and increases current draw. The result is that you end up wasting more power on doing nothing for all intents. I'm not sure there's any way around this issue. If you design the motor with towing a big load in mind, you get rid of the CEMF / BMF issue because the motor is running with the intended load. But it would be inefficient when running without that load. If you make it efficient without the towed load, then it becomes inefficient when a towed load is applied.

 

[Hawkeye10]

With Tesla's the issue is really that the battery pack design is really shitty when it comes to being watertight. It isn't. That's the problem here. The Tesla battery pack is very vulnerable to moisture penetration in high humidity areas and if the vehicle is driven into water that comes up to the battery pack or is subjected to flooding.

It sure looks to me like Tesla's reputation for awesome design was not earned. For instance I have never driven one but at first glance the cockpit set-up seems idiotic and unsafe.

 

[T. A. Gardner]

It sure looks to me like Tesla's reputation for awesome design was not earned. For instance I have never driven one but at first glance the cockpit set-up seems idiotic and unsafe.

 

[Hawkeye10]

This issue is largely one of how DC motors operate. The problem here is something called "Counter-electromotive force," or CEMF or CMF. Sometimes it's called "Back electromotive force," or BMF.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-electromotive_force

What it does, in effect, is increase the inefficiency of the motor and increases current draw. The result is that you end up wasting more power on doing nothing for all intents. I'm not sure there's any way around this issue. If you design the motor with towing a big load in mind, you get rid of the CEMF / BMF issue because the motor is running with the intended load. But it would be inefficient when running without that load. If you make it efficient without the towed load, then it becomes inefficient when a towed load is applied.

Do electrics haul heavy loads in the bed OK?

 

[TOP]

Good God. That expensive fad isn't working out too well.

Isn't that the truth....I doubt if many, if any, survived in the flooded areas...It's a long road ahead for these...

 

[Hawkeye10]

Isn't that the truth....I doubt if many, if any, survived in the flooded areas...It's a long road ahead for these...

And insurance rates for electrics were already high....this certainly will not help.

 

[TOP]

And insurance rates for electrics were already high....this certainly will not help.

I wonder if EVs are even covered for floods?

 

[Hawkeye10]

I wonder if EVs are even covered for floods?

I am not sure, but we have newly discovered a flaw in the technology which leads to catastrophic failure.

EDIT: THis absolutely will effect liability rates.

 

[Life is Golden]

And insurance rates for electrics were already high....this certainly will not help.

Absolutely. Lots of money wasted.

 

[Hawkeye10]

Absolutely. Lots of money wasted.

The leap into an energy transition when we know 100% that the current tech will not work is going to go down as one of the great tragedies in history.

It is insanity.

 

[T. A. Gardner]

Do electrics haul heavy loads in the bed OK?

There's a difference in torque characteristics between the vehicle being loaded and pulling a trailer just as there is when an ICE vehicle does it.

 

[Hawkeye10]

There's a difference in torque characteristics between the vehicle being loaded and pulling a trailer just as there is when an ICE vehicle does it.

Is that a yes, hauling heavy loads in the bed is fine?

 

[T. A. Gardner]

Is that a yes, hauling heavy loads in the bed is fine?

Yes. Diesel-electric vehicles have been in use for decades. These have motors designed specifically for loads, or for towing. Two examples would be large mining dump trucks (load) and diesel-electric locomotives (towing).

Where you have difficulty is when you try to do both. I assume Ford et al., have chosen load over towing assuming that towing won't be done most of the time with their EV trucks.

 

[Hawkeye10]

Yes. Diesel-electric vehicles have been in use for decades. These have motors designed specifically for loads, or for towing. Two examples would be large mining dump trucks (load) and diesel-electric locomotives (towing).

Where you have difficulty is when you try to do both. I assume Ford et al., have chosen load over towing assuming that towing won't be done most of the time with their EV trucks.

And yet when I go out of my oasis I see that contractor pick-ups are often pulling something, and they almost all have hitches.

 

[T. A. Gardner]

And yet when I go out of my oasis I see that contractor pick-ups are often pulling something, and they almost all have hitches.

Doesn't change what I said. Contractors that tow all the time can get a towing package for their vehicle with ICE vehicles. EV trucks don't have that option, at least not yet. If you tow a lot and the load is really heavy, then it's best to get a shock absorbing and / or load distributing hitch for the vehicle as these help with those sorts of loads.

The big issue for ICE vehicles that tow isn't so much the engine, as it is the drivetrain. Towing stresses the drivetrain and transmission in particular.

 

[Joe Capitalist]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1578050503279316992

Gas stations are fire-prone areas, that’s a fact, there is no argument about it!

According to the National Fire Protection Association, every year more than 5000 gas station fires are reported in the US.

These fires cause plenty of damage.

Talking in numbers, on an average, gas station fires cause 48 civilian injuries, 2 civilian deaths, and $20 million in property damage every year.

What types of fires usually occur at gas stations?
The fire breakout patterns at gas stations have continuously varied across the years. There was a time when structure and outside fires were quite common at gas stations. Today, vehicle fires dominate.

 

[Joe Capitalist]

The leap into an energy transition when we know 100% that the current tech will not work is going to go down as one of the great tragedies in history.

It is insanity.

You know what insanity is. Buying a gas car when an EV is cheaper to run, better performance, and cheaper to maintain.
Gas stations are fire-prone areas, that’s a fact, there is no argument about it!

According to the National Fire Protection Association, every year more than 5000 gas station fires are reported in the US.

These fires cause plenty of damage.

Talking in numbers, on an average, gas station fires cause 48 civilian injuries, 2 civilian deaths, and $20 million in property damage every year.

What types of fires usually occur at gas stations?
The fire breakout patterns at gas stations have continuously varied across the years. There was a time when structure and outside fires were quite common at gas stations. Today, vehicle fires dominate.

 

[Life is Golden]

So what? How often do cars and trucks with gasoline or diesel explode? Are you a tree-hugger seeking to ban cars, Lig?

Gas cars never explode from driving through puddles.

 

[Hawkeye10]

You know what insanity is. Buying a gas car when an EV is cheaper to run, better performance, and cheaper to maintain.
Gas stations are fire-prone areas, that’s a fact, there is no argument about it!

According to the National Fire Protection Association, every year more than 5000 gas station fires are reported in the US.

These fires cause plenty of damage.

Talking in numbers, on an average, gas station fires cause 48 civilian injuries, 2 civilian deaths, and $20 million in property damage every year.

What types of fires usually occur at gas stations?
The fire breakout patterns at gas stations have continuously varied across the years. There was a time when structure and outside fires were quite common at gas stations. Today, vehicle fires dominate.

Please do not quote me if you are not going to write anything related to my post, my time is very valuable.