Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by fiftyfifty 1901 days ago
I think several of your categories nailed what the vast majority of car owners are looking for: an transportation appliance. This is where I think EVs will eventually dominate the market, the only thing you will have to worry about is plugging it in. The simplicity of the electric drive train will make them even more reliable (and efficient) than the best gas vehicles today. No more oil changes. No more random fluid leaks on your driveway. No more mornings where you are late for work because your car wouldn't start or you forgot you had to stop and fill up with gas on the way to work.
4 comments

That last point might still be the case. Forget to plug your car in overnight and suddenly you don't have enough mileage to get to work. Not everyone will have access at home to a fast charger so the option will be to slow charge over a 110V extension cord or go wait at a public charger that might be a little out of the way from your commute.

I'm definitely ready for an EV but my car sits in a parking lot at home (for at least a couple more years) rather than a driveway or garage and my work has no chargers. It seems kind a dumb decision right now to purchase an EV only to rely on availability public charging stations. I guess that's kind of what I do now with regards to filling up on gas, I don't own my own gas pump at home. But, I know where to reliably find fuel that I can pay for. Maybe gas stations can start to offer charging stations for a small fee. They would be competing with grocery stores that offer free charging but I'd imagine the free part will go away quickly once there is major demand for a public charger.

> No more mornings where you are late for work because your car wouldn't start

That sounds very optimistic. Don't forget that these new cars are increasingly powered by software!

That seems to equally be the case for both ICE and electric vehicles, so I don't think you're worse off going electric if that's your concern.
Note: There are actually a few important liquids in a Tesla as noted here: https://forums.tesla.com/discussion/62638/so-what-fluids-are...
Sounds like Apple products.