National Plug In Day

2011 Nissan Leaf photographed at the 2011 Washington Auto Show[D.C.] Auto Show]]. Category:Nissan Leaf Category:Red hatchbacks Category:2011 Washington Auto Show (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So I got up fairly early this morning because I wanted to run a few errands in the morning and wanted to have everything done so that I could take the missus to Red Robin for lunch and still be home in time for the Redskins game.  I was watching the local news while having my oatmeal and coffee.  One of the stories they were covering was that today is National Plug In Day, an event on the National Mall to promote the wonder that is electric cars.  It gives me a good reason to write this post that I have been intending to write for a couple weeks now.

I am not sure why I decided to do this, but a few weeks ago I decided to check out he Nissan Leaf all electric car.  I knew it would be something that was completely out of my price range, and I was correct with it $36k sticker price.  Hell, I don't think I can afford the $12k Nissan Versa at this point in time.  However, if price was taken completely out of the picture, I wanted to look at the practicality of owning an electric car in my day to day lifestyle.  I checked info on the Nissan website along with some car review sites.

First off, the Leaf is a completely electric vehicle, unlike the Chevy Volt which has a gas powered engine as a back up if the battery goes dead.  When fully charged, the Leaf is rated to get about 73 miles on a single charge.  The actual mileage can vary based on conditions such as cargo, passengers, and conditions.  My daily commute to and from work is about 63 miles, which depending on how much variance is in that 73 mile range would leave me with little wiggle room to do anywhere else, which would kill my part time pizza delivery gig on the weekends. I could also forget driving out to see my son at school as it is 60 miles one way.  I could visit but not expect to get back home.

English: Electric charging unit for the Nissan Leaf exhibited at the 2010 Washington Auto Show (D.C.) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Then there is the issue of actually charging the car each day.  One review that I read said that it could take up to 20 hours to fully charge the batter if you did not have a quick charging station installed, which would be an additional investment that you would have to make.  At this time, there is a scarcity of charging stations where you could stop on your drive to recharge you battery whereas there is a gas station on just about every corner.  Even if there were the infrastructure of charging stations, even the quick charge stations take an hour or so to charge the battery.  Quite a difference from the few minutes it takes to fill the gas tank.  Who has the time for that?

I am not adverse to the idea of an electric car.  They are being touted as the future.  They very well may be.  For me, however, they just do not seem to be a practical choice.  Unless one lives, works, and travels within a very small area, you would need to have a gasoline powered car to use for longer hauls or while the electric is being charged.  Maybe one day, the technology will improve to the point where they will not be limited to such a small range of travel.

Related articles

• CBO: Even with subsidies, electric cars are still uncompetitive (dailycaller.com)
• Green Blog: The Etiquette of Electric Car Ownership (green.blogs.nytimes.com)
• PLUG-IN CARS: Event to show them off (pe.com)
• National Plug-In Day To Promote Electric Cars: This Sunday! (greencarreports.com)

The Electric Car

Image via WikipediaI tend to be a big picture kind of guy. My thought processes often involve "if-then" scenarios. I like to think through the possible results or reactions to decisions or events. On performance reviews I have been told that I think in systemic terms.

Let's take for example the electric car. Proponents of the electric car tout it as a zero carbon dioxide emissions vehicle that will lessen our reliance on oil. That much is true, but I like to think of the whole and not the part.

The current President is a big advocate of electric cars.  He frequently espouses the potential benefits of the electric car, especially when he talks about the price of gasoline.  However, this is the same person who famously stated that under his plan electricity prices would necessarily skyrocket.  How would you like to recharge everyday under that scenario?

The other thing that I like to think about is concept of unintended consequences.  The idea behind the electric car is that they have zero emissions for carbon dioxide. The thing about electric cars is that you have to recharge them regularly.  The majority of electricity in this country still comes from coal, and the Department of Energy expects that it will for the foreseeable future.  So, while driving an electric car would reduce CO2 emissions while driving, there would be an increase from increased use of electricity.

I am currently reading a book by Larry Bell called the Climate of Corruption that takes a look at the politics of climate change.  One of the things that he addresses in the book is the actual potential of some of the potential "renewable" energy sources out there.  Most hold precious little potential for being able to provide us with the majority of our electrical needs.  Bell makes the case for increased use of nuclear power for electricity.

I am not averse to the idea of an electric car.  I believe that eventually the technology of electric cars will get to the point where you will be able to travel as far on a single charge as on a tank of gas.  It just strikes me as ironic that the very benefit of the reduced emissions of the electric car are countered by the increased emissions of the electric power plant.

Related articles

• Major slump in electric car sales (autonetinsurance.co.uk)
• Electric cars: zero emissions and zero charm (telegraph.co.uk)
• 'Too few' electric car charge points (bbc.co.uk)