Tag: ElectricVehicle

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“Sometimes, even the wisest of man or machine can make an error.”- Optimus Prime

Many states are taking steps to get ahead of autonomous commercial vehicles that will eventually be part of everyday life. Kentucky, too, is debating a house bill that will set limitations and guidelines for this emerging technology driven by AI .

While one can debate the pros and cons of AI and the long-term effects on the human race, we agree that there is a need for guidelines and tempered expectations. The truth is, from my perspective, that AI is a beneficial tool, but in the hands of most people, becomes a shortcut to an outcome and will eventually be used for unscrupulous purposes.

Humans are inherently lazy and I am no exception. I have to force myself to do the work to to become better each day. I believe it is a God-given desire inside of me, but I still have to fight the natural urge toward inaction. Also, I don’t believe most people are evil, there are bad people who will prey on others without remorse and AI will make that more prevalent.

That being said, there are wonderful opportunities for AI to improve our lives yet destroy our lives… maybe simultaneously. Creativity is the birthright of humanity and it will be so easy for us to give it away to AI in such a way that it is lost to antiquity. At that point, the human “being” is lost. Without purpose, Man cannot exist. In the words of Viktor Frankl, “When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” This is where we must learn to live, because the machine has risen.

We Can’t Ignore the Danger. We Must Conquer It. -Optimus Prime

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Carmathema

a·nath·e·ma /əˈnaTHəmə/ noun Something or someone that one vehemently dislikes.

car·math·e·ma /car MATH amuh/ noun The reluctance of people to do basic math regarding EV ownership (which is anathema to me).

Kentucky now has an EV tax in place supposedly to offset waning revenue from the 26 cent per gallon gasoline tax.  A spokesman for EvolveKY, an EV advocacy group headquartered in Louisville, said that he was not surprised and that “it needed to come. We need to pay our fair share.”  The fee is $120 and will be paid when the car is registered every year (another tax).  There is also a 3 cent per kWh tax on public charging to be collected by the station owner and paid to the state monthly.

Make no mistake, any EV owner in Kentucky knew this was an eventuality, but this prompted me to question what exactly is a “fair share”?  Turns out that if you do a little math, a flat tax on an EV is comparing apples to oranges with regards to the traditional  “use more, pay more” model of the standard gas tax.  

A fundamental difference is that the gas tax is “hidden” in the price of a gallon of gasoline.  The EV tax smacks you in the face when you renew your tags.  

Would traditional drivers change their driving habits if they had to pay their taxes in one lump sum  the way EV drivers are now being  asked  required to?

After examination, I think the way we assess these taxes is inherently flawed, but in reality it all comes down to choice.  A Suburban driver is taxed more than a Subaru driver based on fuel efficiency alone, but what you drive is a choice.  Toyota Tundra owners know driving a truck is more expensive than driving a Camry. It’s a choice they make based on what they value. I believe it’s worth $120 a year to drive an EV, but that’s my choice.  

In my opinion, there is room for improvement for the entire system, but try to find a lawmaker that wants to do the math. The bottom line is that taxes are inevitable, but calling it “fair” is a bit of a stretch.  

Let us know what you think?

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Pay Me No Mind… I’m Just Over Here Chillin’

We are back. Welcome to 2024. We recorded this episode on January 22 in the middle of a polar vortex. As you can see, it took me (Ben) a while to get it posted. I do apologize and hope to do better. Every day is an adventure, huh?

In mid-January, our part of the world experienced heavy snow (more than usual anyway) followed by bitter cold. This was true for most of the eastern part of the U.S. and we were greeted by several news stories where Tesla drivers were having trouble charging. Either the car wouldn’t charge or it took extraordinarily long.

To say the least, the tone for most of these was “See? EVs SUCK!”

We try to educate, mostly ourselves, but sometimes it bleeds over to you, our loyal listeners. So, let’s discuss what’s going on and what we can do about it.

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At 6 Years Old, My BMW is Still A Head Turner…

This episode is just a wrap up of EVolveKY’s EV education event hosted in conjunction with the Laurel County Kiwanis Club. There was a bevy of EVs from A to Z (Nissan Ariya to many other Zero emission vehicles.)

Ben and Brent discuss their impressions and take aways from the event.

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Tweet Others As You Would Like to be Tweeted

Today, we are discussing Elon Musk. The guy is a freaky genius and looks at the world differently than most. His contribution to the EV world is his legacy (that, and PayPal… SpaceX… etc.), however his controversial take over of Twitter may tarnish the way history will forever look at him.

Like him or hate him, we wouldn’t be as far along as we are if not for Elon. Now, he’s offering his patents like open source code for all who wish to participate in advancing EVs, but will the other manufacturers get on board or will ego stand in the way of progress?

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What If The World Was Made of Legos?

A startup called Ample is working with Fisker to create battery exchange stations for EVs that would rival traditional gas stations in speed and convenience. They can be constructed quickly and may be a better use of taxpayer dollars going toward infrastructure were it not for one thing: A lack of standardization in the EV world.

The automotive industry has standardized many things in the name of safety and service. Many things, like spark plugs, are interchangeable between manufacturers, most supplied by third-party manufacturers supplying the industry. Many things are still proprietary. Why not make batteries interchangeable and boost EV adoption through something easily replaceable?

Battery exchange isn’t necessarily a new idea, but now Ample is working on proof of concept. We think this could be a great way to remove barriers of entry and many concerns people have about EVs. What do you think?

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TESCO Shrugged Part 1

A grocery chain in the United Kingdom, Tesco, is pulling thousands of FREE public chargers from several of its locations because of the rising cost of energy. The plan is to eliminate 2,147 FREE ports which is a 38% reduction of the FREE charging available at 600 locations in the UK. That is a 5% drop in the OVERALL public infrastructure in Great Britain.

It sounds to us like Tesco is WalMart with a British accent and we know WalMart hosts several ElectrifyAmerica locations… but they are by no means FREE. Should they be?

Seriously, if WalMart is dedicated to the environment, should we expect free charging? Subsidized charging? How about Volkswagen? IKEA, North America? The US Government?

In America, we have a 1 TRILLION dollar infrastructure spending bill in place with $7.5 BILLION set for public charging. The question is, who is paying for this and who SHOULD be paying for this?

You know we are just guys talking, but let us set aside the mandates and the climate for a moment and discuss the role corporate America should play, the government should play , and each of us will play as EV adoption increases. Enjoy part one of our discussion.

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Have You Experienced Buyers Remorse?

Have you ever bought something that didn’t really live up to the hype? I know I have.

There is a YouTube channel called Jetters Garage and our attention was directed to a video entitled “Ford Watched My Viral Lightning Video – Amazing What They Said” which was a follow up to a video entitled “Why I regret buying a Ford Lightning! (EV Electric Truck)“. Jet is not new to EVs, having owned a Tesla Model S for seven years in San Diego, California.

That is a click-bait title if ever I’ve seen one, and I admittedly fall for click-bait often, but I was intrigued and started with the first video. Jet outlines the pros and cons of his new 2023 F-150 Lightning in the video and reveals his experience on a recent road trip. (At the time of this post, the video is 2 months old with 571K views.) His observations are interesting, yet not unexpected, regarding a newly introduced car model. These videos are must-see if you’re considering purchasing an F-150 Lightning.

This brings us to our discussion of his videos and his experience in general. Brent and Ben discuss some of their perceptions of living in southeastern Kentucky (SeKY) versus SoCal. We talk ownership, charging in public, and electric rates, including time of use (TOU) and why it makes sense there and not here.

Does Jet’s experience differ greatly from someone in small-town America? Listen to our opinion and feel free to weigh in with your own.

PS: Link to third video.

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Rappahannock Part 4: The Zack Morris Phone

As we wrap up (finally) our discussion of the Rappahannock Electric Cooperative’s presentation of the future of EV adoption in northern Virginia, we start looking at how we think EV adoption would look in small-town Kentucky. Rappahannock developed three scenarios where, on the high end, 30% of all cars in their territory were electric by 2030. On the low end, 5% and the middle ground was 10%. Based on several factors, Brent and Ben have differing opinions, but then Ben plays the ever popular “Zack Morris phone” card.

On the TV series Saved By The Bell, Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) used a Motorola DynaTAC, which was the first commercially available mobile phone circa 1984. This “brick” was literally 10-inches long not counting its rubber antenna, weighed 2.5 lbs., and cost $4000. Back then, you would have been crazy to have suggested in 30 years that almost everyone in the world would have a mobile phone in their pocket. The idea was inconceivable.

Are we on the precipice of such a change with EVs? It’s difficult to imagine 3 out of every 10 cars on the road being electric, much less 7 or 8 out of 10. There are forces at work to push 100% adoption, but will we ever get there? Just as the iPhone revolutionized the industry, what will make EVs as common as cell phones?

Also, RECs calculations on the cost to drive an EV support our own (R)EVD conclusions, but we could have told you we were right… we just don’t like to brag.

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Rappahannock Part 3: We’re All Going To Die

Okay, admittedly that title is a little over the top. The point, as we resume our discussion of presentation by Rappahannock Electric Cooperative*, is that everything has a life-span and much of our existing infrastructure is too old or too weak to support the growing demand of energy in America.

The solution is to revitalize and strengthen, harden, if you will, the grid to meet the growing need, but that, of course, takes money and resources. The question becomes, “Who is going to pay for it?” The real answer is you, me and all the other peoples of this land. Whether it’s via government through taxes or via utilities through increased energy rates, I guarantee we are going to pay for it.

That being said, we look at scenarios that Rappahannock put forth and the cost associated with each.

We also find out that Ben, sometimes… but rarely, gets confused and the senility kicks in. The real question is, “what point should we be concerned?”

*Rappahannock Electric Cooperative lies in the northern and eastern part of Virginia serving 170,000+ members. Being a cooperative of that size, REC is influential in the co-op world because of not only their size, but by their proximity to industry organizations like the NRECA and policy makers like the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the US Department of Energy. This has allowed them to become a proving ground for many programs, leading the way in innovation and understanding for other cooperatives, and shaping the approach to challenges in the industry. As such, REC releases many reports, studies, and presentations showing their results both independently and jointly with other organizations.

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