Tesla cars

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Mr Ron
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Tesla cars

Post by Mr Ron »

I think Tesla will fail at everything he does. I consider Elon Musk as a "jack-of-all-trades and master of none". If he would concentrate all his efforts on just one thing like cars instead of trying to reinvent the world, he might just be competitive with GM, Ford and Chrysler. It's almost like the Apollo moon landing when critics said it was staged and didn't actually happen. Maybe the Tesla car doesn't actually exist. I don't live in a big city, but I have yet to see a Tesla car anywhere.
Mr.Ron from South Mississippi
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GlennW
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by GlennW »

Mr Ron wrote: Fri Jun 29, 2018 3:04 pm If he would concentrate all his efforts on just one thing like cars instead of trying to reinvent the world, he might just be competitive with GM, Ford and Chrysler.
Actually, GM, Ford, and Chrysler are the ones that can't compete with Tesla!
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
John Hasler
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by John Hasler »

GlennW wrote: Fri Jun 29, 2018 6:06 pm
Mr Ron wrote: Fri Jun 29, 2018 3:04 pm If he would concentrate all his efforts on just one thing like cars instead of trying to reinvent the world, he might just be competitive with GM, Ford and Chrysler.
Actually, GM, Ford, and Chrysler are the ones that can't compete with Tesla!
I think that is far from settled. On the other hand, it looks more and more as if no one can compete with SpaceX.
SteveM
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by SteveM »

We see Teslas all the time around here. You can't spit without hitting a Tesla, a Prius or a Volt.

It's a rich man's toy and there are more rich men (and women) in Fairfield County than just about anywhere outside of the DC suburbs.

If you have one, you STILL need to have another car if you ever drive further than the range of the car (which I do quite often).

Someone did an interesting analysis which looked at how much carbon it cost to make the car, which is more than a regular car, then they looked at how much carbon it used, based on the average fuel used to generate electricity in the US. Over the life of the car, it had a smaller carbon footprint, but not very much, and when you valued that reduction in carbon footprint by looking at what carbon credits sell for, you were spending a lot of money to get little back.

Electric cars may have their uses (my dad's commute was 1 mile), but as a replacement for the petroleum fleet, not likely.

We are still a long way off from battery technology that can cheaply compete with gasoline in terms of power vs weight, range, refueling times, etc...

Steve
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warmstrong1955
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by warmstrong1955 »

I think I will pass for the time being.....let 'em debug the critters first. There are some engineering problems. Severe ones.

Whoopsie....another Tesla bursts into flame.....
tesla-model-s-fire-625x625.jpg
Besides, an electric car where I live....we don't have AC current bushes or tumbleweeds to plug 'em into, and we are a lot of miles from anywhere.

;)
Bill
Today's solutions are tomorrow's problems.
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NP317
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by NP317 »

I suspect that car fire statistics show that gas fueled cars burn far more often that battery powered cars.
And yes, SpaceX appears to be our leading space launch company, bar none.
More power to 'm.
~RN
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Harold_V
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by Harold_V »

NP317 wrote: Fri Jun 29, 2018 10:44 pm SpaceX appears to be our leading space launch company, bar none.
More power to 'm.
~RN
I agree. When properly funded, projects the like of which he (Musk) has undertaken are almost always better than when in the hands of government.

H
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
earlgo
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by earlgo »

In the Cleveland area there are a lot of Tesla and Prius cars on the roads; not so many Volts, that I have seen.

You folks in the upper west probably have more 'eco-friendly' cars than the rest of us will ever see. My son who lives in Redmond, WA has 2 Nissan Leafs and think they are just great. I did ding him because he charges them with a 110V non-GFI garage receptacle and a 50ft 16ga extension cord. He claims it is too expensive to put a 220V line to the garage. I don't think he will pay any mind until the garage starts to smoke.

I read a similar article to the one SteveM referenced, and it too said the 'emission-free' cars have an overall bigger carbon footprint.

Guess I'll still hang onto my Rausch & Lang.
Rausch&Lang electric.jpg
Hah. I wish. This from the Crawford Auto Museum.
--earlgo
Before you do anything, you must do something else first. - Washington's principle.
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NP317
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by NP317 »

Earlgo:
That car looks like a Detroit Electric! The curved glass and coach body, and beveled "lanterns" in front of the cab define it as such.

The Western Antique Aeronautic and Automobile Museum (WAAAM) here in Hood River, Oregon, has the same car undergoing restoration now.
They also have the last built Detroit Electric. It was assembled from parts after the Detroit Electric Car Co. ceased operations in the 1930s.
Now owned by local Bob Oldfather, his team in Phoenix, AZ, fully restored it to original glory. It is fully drivable using either the original lead-acid batteries in the nose, or the new lithium batteries in the trunk! A Smithsoniun-quality restoration.

WAAAM is a museum worth visiting, with over 110 restored and flyable(!) pre-WW2 airplanes, and an equally large collection of historic road vehicles. It includes the world's largest collection of US Mail biplanes, Stearman biplanes (including the only surviving prototype Model 70), the largest collection of Waco biplanes (all flyable and certified to do so), and many sole-survivor airplanes.

They also have a growing steam collection, which is why I've been busy there. I just delivered the rebuilt crank shaft for their 10-ton 1910 Aultman Tayler steam traction engine. Weighing 350 lbs, we had the main 6-foot-long shaft replaced with new 4140 steel, and need to reassemble the Beast. We're also rebuilding the steam motor for their 1901 Locomobile, and keeping a 1917 Stanley Touring car operating for monthly rides for visitors. And last month they ask for - and got - my new 90-ton Mikado (1/8th scale) on display for their big Steam Weekend. I have fun there...

http://www.waaamuseum.org

'Like the way I brought this thread back to steam?...
~RN
Traction Engine1 small.jpg
earlgo
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by earlgo »

If it is a Detroit Electric then the restorers at the Crawford Auto Museum put on the wrong running board.
R&L running board.jpg
How about this eco-friendly car?
WWII White Halftrack.jpg
:roll:
--earlgo
Before you do anything, you must do something else first. - Washington's principle.
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NP317
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by NP317 »

"If it is a Detroit Electric then the restorers at the Crawford Auto Museum put on the wrong running board"

Or there was a name change for the Company that built them. Happened frequently.
And I am not knowledgeable about the Detroit Company history.

...

I just did some research to learn that Rausch & Lang became a carriage-body-only manufacturer in the 1920s. They sold bodies to many car companies.
The history of the Detroit Electric car company does not state that they purchased carriage bodies from Rausch & Lang, but who knows.
At the minimum, car manufacturer's were copying each other's designs, much as they still do today.
~RN
Russ Hanscom
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Re: Tesla cars

Post by Russ Hanscom »

Most interesting, My grandfather was a consulting electrical engineer in the early 1900s and he drove an electric car- did lots of battery experiments on battery materials and optimum charging cycles. I have a whole pile of his patents around here somewhere including a few international ones.
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