A "gallon" of electricity costs $5

[gorcorps]

https://electrek.co/2017/02/28/tesla-model-3-solar-roof-panasonic/

Yup.

I wish they had done his sooner. And like, on many cars there is this huge unused space between the dash and the windshield...

I mean, cars have been pulling all stops for relatively miniscule increases in efficiency, stuff like not packing a spare tire, riding on LRR tires, and such. A solar power array on the roof increasing efficiency by 10% is fairly substantial. And most cars spend hours just sitting in the parking lot...

The problem with things like this, is that you need active circuitry to charge things. That circuitry never fully shuts off, which means that unless you happen to be getting regularly sunny days you may actually be draining MORE energy merely by having such a system active than you're gaining from the solar panels. If you park in a garage or under anything that blocks the sun, you most certainly will drain more energy if it's something that's just passively on in the background.

This could be mitigated by being able to switch this function off if you knew you were in a garage, but having something like this isn't the "no brainer" you're presenting it as.

 

[desura]

The problem with things like this, is that you need active circuitry to charge things. That circuitry never fully shuts off, which means that unless you happen to be getting regularly sunny days you may actually be draining MORE energy merely by having such a system active than you're gaining from the solar panels. If you park in a garage or under anything that blocks the sun, you most certainly will drain more energy if it's something that's just passively on in the background.

This could be mitigated by being able to switch this function off if you knew you were in a garage, but having something like this isn't the "no brainer" you're presenting it as.

Wouldnt it be relatively simple to include an ambient light sensor and some very low power circuitry to detect when to turn on and off? It could poll every five minutes or so.

 

[gorcorps]

Wouldnt it be relatively simple to include an ambient light sensor and some very low power circuitry to detect when to turn on and off? It could poll every five minutes or so.

Just think it through... right now you're comparing this system to something that doesn't even exist. So regardless of how low power you make it, the power requirements will still be greater than they are now (because right now those requirements are zero). What is going to control the timer that polls every 5 minutes? It certainly isn't going to run off of magic, whatever is keeping that timer alive needs to get power from somewhere. An ambient light sensor only works if something is keeping track of that ambient signal, which requires power.

I'm sure in the right conditions you will get a net gain, but there are simply going to be times when you're worse off with such a sophisticated system vs. not having solar at all if you can't turn it off manually.

 

[WackyDan]

All it would take would be if every Starbucks or whatever had an electric charging station. It makes plenty of business sense for restaurants to offer free electric charging for customers.

I don't think it will be market manipulation so much as simple market pricing due to demand destruction which could cause problems for electric car adaptation.

I did the math and assuming current gas prices, 15 cent kwh electricity, and 15k miles, compared to my current hybrid which gets 40mpg, an electric at 100mpge saves roughly $500 a year.

And no oil changes... Or other maintenance an ICE would have possibly had.

 

[agent00f]

33.7 kWh is the energy equivalent to 1 gallon of gasoline. If taking into account conversion losses, at 15 cents per kWh a gallon equivalent is $5.

Most electric cars get between 100mpge and 120 mpge, but by this measure on the extremes, a Prius might actually be cheaper per mile to operate than a Tesla.

The title is misleading because practical thermodynamics substantially limit the efficiency of the otto cycle. The hidden cost of EVs isn't in the fuel but battery wear.

 

[foghorn67]

Seems to me it would make more sense to have "charging cafes" than gas stations, if people need to waste 30-45 minutes. Maybe a food court, tables and chairs, some TVs.

This plus most gas stations only slice out a corner of a block with limited pumps. They are meant for fast ingress and egress. Charging stations would have to set their place up for the maximum amount of static parking like a restaurant, coffee shop, etc.