msm859

Not necessarily true. Utility companies give discounts for charging your car at night at off peak rates, when demand is low. Plus many BEV owners also have solar. Finally, depending on your source of electricity, your car can get cleaner with age.

If you want better vehicles go drive a Tesla S P100D - a 4 door sedan that will blow your mind in 0-60 and is basically quicker then everything else. Clean coal does not exist and probably never will. There is no financial incentive to invest in such technology. Natural gas is the primary cause, however, solar and wind power will seal its fate. Man is a primary cause of the current climate change crisis - virtually all of scientist agree. And if they are all wrong it still means a lot of good things. Cleaner air, water and land, energy independence and not sending billions to the Middle East to fund terrorists. If you are wrong the consequence will be catastrophic. As to a financial burden - it is the exact opposite. Solar and renewable energy is one of the fastest growing industries. I put solar panels on my house. The payback is @ 6 years and I am producing @90% of my electric use. I will be adding more to feed my future electric car - probably a hybrid to begin with. Hoping Lincoln is going to come out with the Aviator that they have designed to challenge the Volvo XC90 T8. Even Range Rover is coming up with a hybrid version to get 30 miles all electric range. Sorry to disappoint but the train has already left, electric cars are the future - and they will be here before you know it. If Lincoln is to compete they need to move forward to the future - not try to remake the past.

Drilling holes in a roof really is a non issue. I installed my own solar system - 32 panels - half on a 7/12 pitch and half on a 10/12. All roofs already have holes - vents, skylights etc.

The government banned incandescent bulbs and it was the MOST efficient way to achieve an end. Saves everyone money and energy. Some would argue today that it's cheaper to drive an electric car. If you add up the cost of climate change we should probably be offering larger subsidies. Also, some are forgetting the real costs of driving ICE vehicles should include the costs of all the wars to insure free flow of oil - and the money spent fighting terrorists - who we also fund with oil sales. Perhaps we should add a tax on oil to pay for the real costs. I expect the next 5 years to be very transformative.

"Fad" Reminds of the statement Steve Ballmer made about the original iPhone. My son has a 2012 Chevy Volt. In 5 years he is averaging over 180 mpg (yes I know that it is offset by electricity) has changed the oil twice and air filter once - $70 maintenance in 5 years. zero problems. Ford is behind the curve ball on this. The new Explorer/Aviator should be taking aim at the Volvo XC90. Have an ecoboost 4 cylinder driving the front wheels and 2 100 hp motors driving each rear wheel. They probably need at least a 16kw battery to get an honest 30+ miles pure electric range.

Well they say with age comes wisdom so I will forgive you since you are "relatively young". Anyone who thinks electric cars is a "fad" that will die is to be kind naive. Yes, the ICE is getting better - but that is not enough. In your lifetime you will be seeing cities if not countries banning ICE vehicles. Electric cars are the future whether full or hybrids. Sadly your statement "If they go full electric, I write of the brand off for good" is a troubling and sad statement. What if they come up with a super battery with a 1000 mile range that can be recharged by a super solar panel built into the roof? Unless you depend on oil for your livelihood your statement is.........just pick a word of how your man is being described.

Tesla is coming out with architectural solar roof tiles. Although I have no problem with solar panels on roofs. I have 32 panels - back and side and produce almost all of my electricity needs. In California with prices now, solar is a no brainer from a pure economic standpoint.

Okay got me. However, China is rapidly moving to renewables. And the beauty of BEV is they can get cleaner every year. An ICE vehicle will never get cleaner.

Actually your point was the non sequitur, I was directly responding to your comment.

Natural gas is @50% nuclear just under 10% renewables @25% This does not include personal renewables i.e. solar on individual rooftops etc. which in CA has a substantial growth. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_in_California

Not sure were you live. Less then 6% of electricity in California comes from coal, and by 2025 it will be zero.

Well if someone is truly concerned that they would forget to plug in there car every night, they could go with the cordless option and simply park in their garage and it automatically starts charging. Although plugging in your car becomes second nature and takes a fraction of the time you would otherwise spend at gas stations.

Wrong. My son owns a Chevy Volt - plugs in every night - and at work. Rarely goes to a gas station. Lifetime average is over 150 mpg. Has a deposit on the Tesla model 3. In 5 years he has had 2 oil changes - zero issues. He will never go back to an ICE vehicle.

Ford needs a plug in hybrid Explorer. Put the ecoboost 4 cylinder driving the front wheels and have 2 - 75hp electric motors in the rear each driving a rear wheel for full control. Needs more aluminum and a @15kWh battery to get an honest 30 mile range. Total @450 hp.

Fortunately I live in California and we have CARB - that a number of other states also follow. Let Trump gut the EPA - it may hurt the country in other ways but automotive standards is a little more complicated.

My wish list is for Ford to come out with a new Lincoln Aviator to target the Volvo XC90 - Audi Q7 et al. Aluminum body, ecoboost 4 cylinder with minimum 12kw plug in batter pack. 25 honest all electric miles, 0-60 under 7 seconds. 9 0r 10 speed automatic transmission. Fully automatic parallel parking, automatic braking, next generation advanced cruise control.