Is being done in China mainly and it is in the first stages because the cars need a certain design for it. Europe is next.
I hear you. And whatever the source of energy it has to come from somewhere, so a heavier car is less efficient all things being equal. But then again, most of SUV buyers never get off the pavement though.
Agree. This is the battery swapping stations project is kind of interesting. They say it takes 140 seconds to enter the station, swap batteries and go. It is in the preliminary stages. I put the video at the onset of this threat. It´s pretty objective, the guy talks about the pros and cons.
Definitely a very real concern. For example, last July we went touring the Fjord Country of Norway by car. Because of the price of gas over there (it´s a big difference from here) we checked the EV rentals which they have plenty over there. But in the remote areas of Norway the charging stations are scarce and also in July it can get cold and you need to put the heat on, which depletes the batteries much faster. So EV was not an option. We ended up getting a hybrid Volvo. I and not a big fan of Volvos but I have to say it was a pretty good car and pretty gas efficient too...
yes, that is why these battery swapping prototypes sound interesting. Allow the batteries to charge normally, possibly extending the usable life.
I make a fairly frequent round trip of about 350 miles. I do not want to cut it close. Stopping to fill gas takes like 3 minutes while I go in and use the bathroom. There are very few charging stations on the route so not only will I have to stop for however long it takes to charge, but I may have to wait in line even longer to even plug in. If I knew I could charge and get back on the road in a relatively similar time to how fast I can do it filling up a gas tank, I wouldn't care. Until that can happen, I do. When I'm on my way back, I just want to get home and not worry about waiting on a charge somewhere. First world problem, but yeah.
Think about the amount of cars that go through a Costco station, with one employee working... then think of what would be required to take that volume swapping batteries. 6 seconds later that idea no longer looks interesting.
yes, very cool indeed, lol. At the end of the day, if all these things are gong to drive themselves, what fun they will be? We may as well just get the App for it.I'm holding out for the nuclear powered Bronco. But, the wind powered Broncos look interesting.
Not really. These prototypes work without any employees, and they are supposed to do the job in 140 secs. They have other issues though: the cars have to be designed for that purpose. Look at the video in the start of the thread. The guy that posted it is pretty good, tells you the pros and cons. It is not a given, but it does look interesting. And any new innovation has to have its own set of naysayers anyway, otherwise it would be adopted technology and not a prototype.
nuclear power (mini) generators are in the works, its comingI'm holding out for the nuclear powered Bronco. But, the wind powered Broncos look interesting.
I made it half way through the video, at no point did I see an actual battery swap, I did see AI generated displays of the swap. Did they ever actualy show it, if the last 5 minutes, or just more cartoonish videos?
Lol, here is another fake video:
