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Hybrid cars in ski area

bobbutts

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Prius gets great MPG if you take minutes to go from 0-30 at every single light from what I can gather.
I propose, you got an efficient car, use full throttle more.
 

Glenn

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Ah! That explains it.

How are the stopping distance of those "low rolling resistance tire"? In the rain?

(Being a mtn biker, I'm particularly aware of how tires affects "performance", aka speed, braking, cornering. I have "quiver" of tires the way many of you have quiver of skis)

I'm sure they're a bit different, but I can't say how much for certain. Tirerack.com probably has some good info there.

Low rolling resistance tires tend to be on: any car with a hybrid drive-train and any car that has an "eco" badge or uses the word "environment" in their advertising.
 

abc

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Prius gets great MPG if you take minutes to go from 0-30 at every single light from what I can gather.
I propose, you got an efficient car, use full throttle more.
Well, since everything being equal, a hybrid car even at full throttle will use less fuel to go from 0-30 than a regular car.

The question is more on what compromise the lighter hybrid with "low rolling resistant tire" is. I think that's what the OP was trying to get at too. If the cause of poor winter performance of hybrid is ONLY due to tires, can you put snow tires on a it to have your cake and eat it too?
 

pcampbell

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Wow I get like 20-22mpg in my Outback. However... it's a 750 ft climb back from just about anywhere, all severe service and "city" driving.

How are the roads there? Suspension takes a beating here and reasonably priced parts seems to be something that is nice to have.
 

BenedictGomez

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If the cause of poor winter performance of hybrid is ONLY due to tires, can you put snow tires on a it to have your cake and eat it too?

It's not, it's mainly attributable to gas usage. Hybrid cars "sticker MPG" are conducted under optimal conditions, and that includes temperature. And the effect causes a larger drop in MPG for hybrid cars than it does for regular cars.

The other thing to consider is the gas itself. The winter blend of gas is less energetic than the regular blend, so you get whacked there a bit too.
 

x10003q

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Diesel is a great choice for highway miles, but they are also better than gas for local driving also (same vehicle). There is a premium when you purchase a diesel, but you get that back when you sell a diesel. The range on a diesel might allow you to drive to the ski area and back without having to fill up with expensive north country diesel. The VW TDI diesels are known for being able to exceed the EPA highway numbers without using hypermiling techniques.

Diesel engines also last longer than gas engines so depending on how long you run cars this might be a factor.
 

ALLSKIING

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It's not, it's mainly attributable to gas usage. Hybrid cars "sticker MPG" are conducted under optimal conditions, and that includes temperature. And the effect causes a larger drop in MPG for hybrid cars than it does for regular cars.

The other thing to consider is the gas itself. The winter blend of gas is less energetic than the regular blend, so you get whacked there a bit too.

Many prius drivers block a portion of the grill and achieve almost the same gas mileage as they did in the summer..although I dont bother with that.
 

ceo

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I've long thought that charging stations at ski areas were a great idea. Actually, that applies to any destination one might drive some distance to and leave the car parked for a while, that's within one-way electric car range but not round-trip.
 

x10003q

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I've long thought that charging stations at ski areas were a great idea. Actually, that applies to any destination one might drive some distance to and leave the car parked for a while, that's within one-way electric car range but not round-trip.

There are lots of logistical problems with refueling electrics. The main one is getting to the ski area. The Tesla with the big battery has a range of around 200 miles with the heat on and below freezing temps. It takes 30 minutes to get 170 miles of range at a Tesla Supercharger Station. I am about 250 miles from Killington. If there is no supercharger station at my 200 mile range limit, I better hope there is one within the 200 miles of Killington so I can recharge. If there is only one 170 miles from Killington, I have to use it even though I have only traveled 80 miles from my home. This adds as much as a 1/2hour to the trip.

At the ski area, where are the charging stations located? Do you get to park in the Killington lot plugged in all day? If your car recharges in an hour are you going to have come off the mountain and move it? What about overnight guests? Do they plug in at their townhouse/condo/lodge or do they plug in at the ski area? How do you get around if you can only recharge at the ski area?

The current battery range and refueling system does not work for me. Maybe it gets figured out in the future.
 

abc

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At the ski area, where are the charging stations located? Do you get to park in the Killington lot plugged in all day? If your car recharges in an hour are you going to have come off the mountain and move it? What about overnight guests? Do they plug in at their townhouse/condo/lodge or do they plug in at the ski area? How do you get around if you can only recharge at the ski area?

The current battery range and refueling system does not work for me. Maybe it gets figured out in the future.
I believe they can be charged from household electric outlets. But it might take all night. The supercharge station are the fast chargers so you can charge up quickly and go.

So You should be able to plug in at the townhouse/condo/lodge. Now, if this electric car business gets popular, condo/lodging MAY put a meter on those plug-ins and charge for it? I don't know
 

Rowsdower

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The battery electric model isn't really feasible. It just moves energy demands into electricity generation, and the current technology isn't capable of filling the current usage patterns of gasoline automobiles. Outside of a very very niche market it doesn't make any sense. Tesla only sold about 6,500 cars last quarter. That's tiny, and even they admit they'll reach the demand ceiling around 7,500-10,000 sales/quarter, and that's including sales overseas.

I know people like Musk like to paint the reason we're not all driving electric cars as some sort of conspiracy by big auto manufacturers to protect their business, but there's a much simpler explanation: there's no feasibility or profitability in mainstreaming electric cars.
 

DoublePlanker

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The battery electric model isn't really feasible. It just moves energy demands into electricity generation, and the current technology isn't capable of filling the current usage patterns of gasoline automobiles. Outside of a very very niche market it doesn't make any sense. Tesla only sold about 6,500 cars last quarter. That's tiny, and even they admit they'll reach the demand ceiling around 7,500-10,000 sales/quarter, and that's including sales overseas.

I know people like Musk like to paint the reason we're not all driving electric cars as some sort of conspiracy by big auto manufacturers to protect their business, but there's a much simpler explanation: there's no feasibility or profitability in mainstreaming electric cars.

THIS IS STUPID. Why is Tesla on fire?

Electricity is better than foreign oil which results in wars and caring about places in the Middle East. Electricity costs currently result in equivalent of 99 mpg. Old plants are going offline. Demand will rise. Clearly, energy plants need to be constructed in the future.

I would much rather have a local industry to this country producing electricity than foreign supplies.
 

BenedictGomez

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THIS IS STUPID. Why is Tesla on fire?

It's a problem with the batteries.



deutsche-bank-on-tesla-fire-this-had-to-happen-at-some-point.jpg
 
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