Is IT Me

[Kindlinmaker]

Tesla is introducing their foray into pick-ups tonight in LA. We all know it will take years to perfect and build great work trucks but frankly I can't wait. The cost of buying and maintaining a good truck these days is crazy and fuel costs are painful. Anybody that doesn't think EVs aren't going to revolutionize the transportation industry has their head in the sand. Look at the dozens of major industries the current tech revolution have already buried and the major companies that have collapsed. Our kids are going to live in a very different world than we experienced. 

[Southside]

There is another side to this story, and it's as old as time, basically he who giveth can taketh away.  What I mean by that is juice flows into and out of batteries.  

Here in Virginia, Dominion Power is flexing their muscle and getting into the EV School Bus world.  Great you say - less emissions, makes sense they are all commuter type of vehicles, etc.  A diesel bus is about $75K today, the new EV busses are projected at $200K+, but Dominion being so kind is going to buy all of the batteries and charging stations for the busses to help save the school districts money, with a big old hook.  The busses will be tethered to the chargers when not in use, and when Dominion needs juice for the grid, say peak times, they will draw juice out of the bus batteries.  No biggie - it's only an 8 hour recharge rate.  Now around here many years the AC can start to get turned on by May, and come September it's never turned off, of course how many houses use heat pumps in the winter?  So peak times come with hot and cold days, guess the kiddies will be walking to school a bit more in the future.  Ah - the solution is simple, just unplug the bus so they can't drain it - think that hasn't been thought of with a simple line of code just like Tesla has giving owners extended mileage during Musk declared emergencies?

No thanks - next hurricane if someone wants the diesel out of my pickup they will need some way to get here, a tube, a can, luck, and a whole lot of guts, to get it out of the tank, not just a keyboard.  

[Ianab]

Tesla is introducing their foray into pick-ups tonight in LA

https://www.thedrive.com/news/31157/this-is-the-official-tesla-pickup-truck

Looks like it's right out of Blade Runner. 

Tesla have most of the bugs worked out of their battery and powertrains, so I wouldn't expect problems there. Now if it actually sells? Dunno, but being "bullet proof" (Stainless steel body is structural) and able to run a quarter mile in under 11 seconds..  That's going to get someone's attention. 

[Ed_K]

 Hope the batt's work better than the glass :D ;D.

[Southside]

Yup, just don't take it to a little league game, or the golf course, or a hail storm, or have a road rock hit it.  Kinda have to wonder what other claims were not pre tested. 

[Ljohnsaw]

I like the specs on the tri-motor but...  Its just so ugly!  Regular rims/hubcaps would help.

[Don P]

Dear Elon, pickup truck, you know, ladder racks, lumber and sheets of plywood :D

[chevytaHOE5674]

The big hurdle that EV's need to overcome is recharge time and range. A gas/diesel rig has the ability to basically travel unlimited miles with nothing more that quick stops (fuel, oil changes, etc). 

For instance I traveled 400 miles one way picked up equipment parts and returned 400 miles home (never shut the diesel truck off ) with only 2 fuel/ food stops. Took use 14.5 hours round trip IIRC

A Tesla has something like a 300 mile range and 12hr charge time. So my trip would have taken the 14.5 hours driving plus 24 hours charging time. Lol

[nativewolf]

The tesla superchargers will add 200 miles in 20+mins, but depends on how new the charger/car is.  About every 3 hours you stop for bathroom and a snack.  Might add an hour or more onto that 12 hour drive but I can't sit still for 12 hours anyway so that's not my concern.  The model S plaid coming out this spring would do that 400 in one pop, the new roadster will do over 600 miles in one pop (and at 1.x to 60-basically the fastest production vehicle in the world) both those will be out in 2020.  Batteries are improving at 5-10% a year and that means in something like 10 years the cars will have doubled range at the same cost point.  You might see electric cars going over 1000 miles in one charge.  

I was disappointed in the new truck appearance, other than exterior looks it has amazing specs, stainless steel, good ground clearance, and 500 mile range for $50k and tows 14k lbs.  That's right at f250 specs and it will do 0-60 in sub 3sec time..fun 8).  Looks too whacky though...if I was a millionaire I'd still get one.

[thecfarm]

Can batteries be changed in that? I use to run a electric forklift. Pull up to the changing station,yes changing,roll out one battery on one side,roll in the other on the other side. This was a good size battery,seem like 3 feet long 3 feet high,a foot wide? But this was 30 years ago too.

[Ljohnsaw]

and 500 mile range for $50k and tows 14k lbs

No, the tri-motor model is $69k with no options.

[Ianab]

Can batteries be changed in that? I use to run a electric forklift. Pull up to the changing station,yes changing,roll out one battery on one side,roll in the other on the other side. This was a good size battery,seem like 3 feet long 3 feet high,a foot wide? But this was 30 years ago too.

Not easily / quickly. 
I suspect the logistics of having charged batteries available to swap in enough locations to make it worthwhile make it impractical. 
Setting up a supercharger station is simpler and basically build and leave it running, and it can always be recharged from a standard car charge station, or even if domestic supply (if you have 12 hours) 
One potential market is the tradesman type that needs a "work ute" that his business can buy or run, but it drives like a sports car in the weekend. Holden (GM Australia) sold thousands of HSV Commodore Utes in Aus and NZ before they stopped the Aussie production. Basically a Chevrolet G8 with only 2 seats, a deck on the back, and a Corvette engine. Tax dept frowns on on claiming a Corvette as a "work vehicle", but a Ute can carry tools, so that passes muster.  

[Old Greenhorn]

Dear Elon, pickup truck, you know, ladder racks, lumber and sheets of plywood :D

And an 8' bed with stake pockets. Just sayin'

[Roxie]

That looks like a perfect pickup for those guys that use organic hand cream.

[Ed_K]

 Looks like I'll never get one as Rita won't let me buy anything that cost more than our house  :( :D.

[samandothers]

It is exciting times with electrics.  It will be interesting what occurs in the truck market.  I too feel they need to be a truck that can haul, pull and be used for a work environment.  I like some of the information I have seen about the Rivian truck and SUV.   I have not seen then throw steel balls at it though.  It will be pricey, I have seen $69k.  

Amazon’s Rivian Deal: Is the Musk-Bezos Rivalry in Play? - Market Realist

It appears Bezos has pre-ordered some of the Rivians and they have investing from him and Ford.  Nothing like some good competition.

[Southside]

I see Musk is claiming over 200,000 people have pre-ordered his trucks now. Trucks that won't be produced or in some cases delivered for two years, vehicles nobody has seen, sat in, test drove, etc., oh and the order deposit is $100 and refundable..... yea.... I got some ocean front property in Nevada that I am selling too...

In what can only be true irony this past summer I was on my way home from a long day of sawing on a portable job and my wife was passing through the same area so we stopped into a Sheetz store to grab a bite to eat.  While sitting at the outdoor picnic tables a "Tesla service vehicle" pulled up, ahem... It was a Ford van, complete with a gas engine.  I really should have gotten a picture of that but I was beat and just didn't feel like walking over to it.  

[Brucer]

World's first all electric commercial plane set for takeoff.

Test flight will be on Dec. 11. It'll take a couple of years to get the plane certified for commercial flights.

[RPF2509]

In the long run (10 years) electric will win out.  There are so many more advantages to electric motors over IC.  Power distribution and storage problems will iron out as demand increases. Centralized power distribution is vulnerable and out of date.  Electrons come every sunny day and don't have to be imported or shipped.  Electron storage is getting cheap. It is really the solution for independence.  I travel I-5 every day and see load after load of Teslas rolling down the highway.  If I worked for the big 3 I'd be concerned about my job.  Between automation and the shift to electrics, its going to be a tough decade coming if you are not willing to change.  For sure my next personal car will be electric. Tesla's truck is geared towards where a lot of truck sales are these days - family movers not work trucks.  Once the platform is proven, racks and full size sheets of plywood will be an easy modification.  As for big equipment, diesel powering electric motors (locomotives, log handlers) has been around a long time so the experience is there, batteries just need to be scaled up and that's coming quick.  In many ways, electric motors are superior to IC for heavy work.  Swapping battery packs may not work in the short run on a small specially designed car but as electric vehicles become more popular, I could easily see standardization taking hold and it becoming commonplace.  I think it would work well for starters on heavy trucks/ equipment that have room for a blocky battery pack.  The future is electric and I'm encouraging my son to learn as much as he can about it.