Off Topic » Electric pickup news

Attached is an article from my newspaper today which discusses Chevy's new electric pickup that you might find interesting.

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The town where my daughter lives, Fairfax, CA, (population 7,500) is going all-in (at least to start) with electric vehicle power according to the town's newsletter that she just sent me. In addition to installing a free L2 electric charging station near city hall, they recently authorized the Town Manager to move forward with upgrading the town's ability to charge more electric vehicles as well as to purchase one 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning CREW CAB 4X4 LIGHTNING PRO EV. Nothing but the best when it is being funded by the taxpayers.

It seems to me Chevy is some what behind on the EV racetrack as compared to others....time will tell

FWIW Magna a Canadian based MAJOR tier 2 supplier to the auto/truck industry has a "std" EV front and rear power axle with "std" battery pack that they are willing to supply (with mods to any one) (why Apple looked at them).
PS They build the Fisker under contract.

Zitat von Vtbob im Beitrag #3

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It seems to me Chevy is some what behind on the EV racetrack as compared to others....time will tell

FWIW Magna a Canadian based MAJOR tier 2 supplier to the auto/truck industry has a "std" EV front and rear power axle with "std" battery pack that they are willing to supply (with mods to any one) (why Apple looked at them).
PS They build the Fisker under contract.

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #2

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The town where my daughter lives, Fairfax, CA, (population 7,500) is going all-in (at least to start) with electric vehicle power according to the town's newsletter that she just sent me. In addition to installing a free L2 electric charging station near city hall, they recently authorized the Town Manager to move forward with upgrading the town's ability to charge more electric vehicles as well as to purchase one 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning CREW CAB 4X4 LIGHTNING PRO EV. Nothing but the best when it is being funded by the taxpayers.

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #5

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #2

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The town where my daughter lives, Fairfax, CA, (population 7,500) is going all-in (at least to start) with electric vehicle power according to the town's newsletter that she just sent me. In addition to installing a free L2 electric charging station near city hall, they recently authorized the Town Manager to move forward with upgrading the town's ability to charge more electric vehicles as well as to purchase one 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning CREW CAB 4X4 LIGHTNING PRO EV. Nothing but the best when it is being funded by the taxpayers.

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Free Level 2 chargers sound like a giveaway, but the real problem is how to charge for 65-cents per hr of electrical service. The Level 2 charger and install are likely covered by your state's legal settlement with VW for the diesel emission fraud case. It's easiest to place a traditional parking meter (about $600 per unit) at the charging site stall and charge 65-cents more than the other spaces. But, that means the first 1000-hrs of charging will only pay for the parking meter.

Are electric vehicles a good match for a municipality? In my little town, our highest annual mileage vehicles are the police cars which accumulate ~40-miles per day. They could easily be replaced by a BEV. If they accumulated more miles per day, the hybrid Ford Interceptor would have been a good candidate.

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #6

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #5

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #2

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The town where my daughter lives, Fairfax, CA, (population 7,500) is going all-in (at least to start) with electric vehicle power according to the town's newsletter that she just sent me. In addition to installing a free L2 electric charging station near city hall, they recently authorized the Town Manager to move forward with upgrading the town's ability to charge more electric vehicles as well as to purchase one 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning CREW CAB 4X4 LIGHTNING PRO EV. Nothing but the best when it is being funded by the taxpayers.

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Free Level 2 chargers sound like a giveaway, but the real problem is how to charge for 65-cents per hr of electrical service. The Level 2 charger and install are likely covered by your state's legal settlement with VW for the diesel emission fraud case. It's easiest to place a traditional parking meter (about $600 per unit) at the charging site stall and charge 65-cents more than the other spaces. But, that means the first 1000-hrs of charging will only pay for the parking meter.

Are electric vehicles a good match for a municipality? In my little town, our highest annual mileage vehicles are the police cars which accumulate ~40-miles per day. They could easily be replaced by a BEV. If they accumulated more miles per day, the hybrid Ford Interceptor would have been a good candidate.

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The town of Fairfax is pretty small and electric vehicles would likely work well in most cases, if they can get past the initial cost (government grants help a lot) especially as they are currently using mid-size cop cars instead of the big SUVs used by other police agencies in the state. You are probably right about who paid for the charging station. It is located under in a redwood tree grove near city hall. I don't believe that the town has any parking meters anywhere. They likely depend mostly on tourist visits and high real estate taxes to fund their municipal services. The local grocery store, which has prices about three times that of Safeway, does have two commercial L2 charging stations in their parking lot, which have been there for a few years. They are the only charging stations that I have seen in the town so far.

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Zitat von Vtbob im Beitrag #3

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It seems to me Chevy is some what behind on the EV racetrack as compared to others....time will tell

FWIW Magna a Canadian based MAJOR tier 2 supplier to the auto/truck industry has a "std" EV front and rear power axle with "std" battery pack that they are willing to supply (with mods to any one) (why Apple looked at them).
PS They build the Fisker under contract.

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Zitat von Paul911 im Beitrag #8

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Zitat von Vtbob im Beitrag #3

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It seems to me Chevy is some what behind on the EV racetrack as compared to others....time will tell

FWIW Magna a Canadian based MAJOR tier 2 supplier to the auto/truck industry has a "std" EV front and rear power axle with "std" battery pack that they are willing to supply (with mods to any one) (why Apple looked at them).
PS They build the Fisker under contract.

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Magna is actually based in Austria, though I'm sure they have a big presence in Canada. They make the G wagon (actually originally their product) for Mercedes and Supra for Toyota. They're a full on auto manufacturer that nobody really knows.

As far as EVs, I'm not sure about the Silverado EV, but the Hummer weighs 9000lbs. It would be excluded from some bridges in New England. I also found it interesting that the base F150 EV is only $42k.

I'm going to have to buy a new car sometime this year. I've thought about an EV but Tesla is the only one with a good charging network. At the same time, Tesla long term quality doesn't inspire confidence and I really dislike the touchscreen for everything.

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #10

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Zitat von Paul911 im Beitrag #8

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Zitat von Vtbob im Beitrag #3

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It seems to me Chevy is some what behind on the EV racetrack as compared to others....time will tell

FWIW Magna a Canadian based MAJOR tier 2 supplier to the auto/truck industry has a "std" EV front and rear power axle with "std" battery pack that they are willing to supply (with mods to any one) (why Apple looked at them).
PS They build the Fisker under contract.

---

Magna is actually based in Austria, though I'm sure they have a big presence in Canada. They make the G wagon (actually originally their product) for Mercedes and Supra for Toyota. They're a full on auto manufacturer that nobody really knows.

As far as EVs, I'm not sure about the Silverado EV, but the Hummer weighs 9000lbs. It would be excluded from some bridges in New England. I also found it interesting that the base F150 EV is only $42k.

I'm going to have to buy a new car sometime this year. I've thought about an EV but Tesla is the only one with a good charging network. At the same time, Tesla long term quality doesn't inspire confidence and I really dislike the touchscreen for everything.

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Sorry, VTBob is the one with the correct answer. Magna is a company based in Canada with numerous subsidiaries in Europe

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Zitat von Paul911 im Beitrag #11

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #10

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Zitat von Paul911 im Beitrag #8

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Zitat von Vtbob im Beitrag #3

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It seems to me Chevy is some what behind on the EV racetrack as compared to others....time will tell

FWIW Magna a Canadian based MAJOR tier 2 supplier to the auto/truck industry has a "std" EV front and rear power axle with "std" battery pack that they are willing to supply (with mods to any one) (why Apple looked at them).
PS They build the Fisker under contract.

---

Magna is actually based in Austria, though I'm sure they have a big presence in Canada. They make the G wagon (actually originally their product) for Mercedes and Supra for Toyota. They're a full on auto manufacturer that nobody really knows.

As far as EVs, I'm not sure about the Silverado EV, but the Hummer weighs 9000lbs. It would be excluded from some bridges in New England. I also found it interesting that the base F150 EV is only $42k.

I'm going to have to buy a new car sometime this year. I've thought about an EV but Tesla is the only one with a good charging network. At the same time, Tesla long term quality doesn't inspire confidence and I really dislike the touchscreen for everything.

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Sorry, VTBob is the one with the correct answer. Magna is a company based in Canada with numerous subsidiaries in Europe

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I stand corrected. I was thinking Steyr was the original company, but it looks like Magna bought them. Sorry about that.

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #7

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #6

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #5

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #2

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The town where my daughter lives, Fairfax, CA, (population 7,500) is going all-in (at least to start) with electric vehicle power according to the town's newsletter that she just sent me. In addition to installing a free L2 electric charging station near city hall, they recently authorized the Town Manager to move forward with upgrading the town's ability to charge more electric vehicles as well as to purchase one 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning CREW CAB 4X4 LIGHTNING PRO EV. Nothing but the best when it is being funded by the taxpayers.

---

Free Level 2 chargers sound like a giveaway, but the real problem is how to charge for 65-cents per hr of electrical service. The Level 2 charger and install are likely covered by your state's legal settlement with VW for the diesel emission fraud case. It's easiest to place a traditional parking meter (about $600 per unit) at the charging site stall and charge 65-cents more than the other spaces. But, that means the first 1000-hrs of charging will only pay for the parking meter.

Are electric vehicles a good match for a municipality? In my little town, our highest annual mileage vehicles are the police cars which accumulate ~40-miles per day. They could easily be replaced by a BEV. If they accumulated more miles per day, the hybrid Ford Interceptor would have been a good candidate.

---

The town of Fairfax is pretty small and electric vehicles would likely work well in most cases, if they can get past the initial cost (government grants help a lot) especially as they are currently using mid-size cop cars instead of the big SUVs used by other police agencies in the state. You are probably right about who paid for the charging station. It is located under in a redwood tree grove near city hall. I don't believe that the town has any parking meters anywhere. They likely depend mostly on tourist visits and high real estate taxes to fund their municipal services. The local grocery store, which has prices about three times that of Safeway, does have two commercial L2 charging stations in their parking lot, which have been there for a few years. They are the only charging stations that I have seen in the town so far.

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At 7kW (220V, 32A), Level 2 is only giving you 21 to 28-miles of range (depending on car) for an hour's worth of charge. Would I use it, if I was at a restaurant nearby? Probably. Would I plan my life around it? Heck no.

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #13

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #7

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #6

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #5

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #2

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The town where my daughter lives, Fairfax, CA, (population 7,500) is going all-in (at least to start) with electric vehicle power according to the town's newsletter that she just sent me. In addition to installing a free L2 electric charging station near city hall, they recently authorized the Town Manager to move forward with upgrading the town's ability to charge more electric vehicles as well as to purchase one 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning CREW CAB 4X4 LIGHTNING PRO EV. Nothing but the best when it is being funded by the taxpayers.

---

Free Level 2 chargers sound like a giveaway, but the real problem is how to charge for 65-cents per hr of electrical service. The Level 2 charger and install are likely covered by your state's legal settlement with VW for the diesel emission fraud case. It's easiest to place a traditional parking meter (about $600 per unit) at the charging site stall and charge 65-cents more than the other spaces. But, that means the first 1000-hrs of charging will only pay for the parking meter.

Are electric vehicles a good match for a municipality? In my little town, our highest annual mileage vehicles are the police cars which accumulate ~40-miles per day. They could easily be replaced by a BEV. If they accumulated more miles per day, the hybrid Ford Interceptor would have been a good candidate.

---

The town of Fairfax is pretty small and electric vehicles would likely work well in most cases, if they can get past the initial cost (government grants help a lot) especially as they are currently using mid-size cop cars instead of the big SUVs used by other police agencies in the state. You are probably right about who paid for the charging station. It is located under in a redwood tree grove near city hall. I don't believe that the town has any parking meters anywhere. They likely depend mostly on tourist visits and high real estate taxes to fund their municipal services. The local grocery store, which has prices about three times that of Safeway, does have two commercial L2 charging stations in their parking lot, which have been there for a few years. They are the only charging stations that I have seen in the town so far.

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At 7kW (220V, 32A), Level 2 is only giving you 21 to 28-miles of range (depending on car) for an hour's worth of charge. Would I use it, if I was at a restaurant nearby? Probably. Would I plan my life around it? Heck no.

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L2 charging outlets are cheap to build and since most of the public (and perhaps government officials too) don't know L2 from L1 or L3, they get credit for building another charging station with whatever grant money is available. It is all about the numbers. Around here charging stations are usually required by city planning commissions when a new store is approved for construction. So the developer builds whatever is cheap to meet that feel-good requirement. A Sprouts grocery store about 10 miles from me had four L2 stations in their parking lot, which kept getting hogged by ICE SUVs and pickup trucks. After a few years they just removed them and converted the parking spaces to call-in delivery services where you call in your food order and when you arrive someone comes out of the store and dumps it into your trunk for you. After that you can drive to the nearby McDonald's to pick up a meal in the drive-through lane. No need to get out of your car to see if your legs still work.

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Zitat von Bikepirate im Beitrag #14

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #13

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #7

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #6

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #5

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Zitat von Richard230 im Beitrag #2

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The town where my daughter lives, Fairfax, CA, (population 7,500) is going all-in (at least to start) with electric vehicle power according to the town's newsletter that she just sent me. In addition to installing a free L2 electric charging station near city hall, they recently authorized the Town Manager to move forward with upgrading the town's ability to charge more electric vehicles as well as to purchase one 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning CREW CAB 4X4 LIGHTNING PRO EV. Nothing but the best when it is being funded by the taxpayers.

---

Free Level 2 chargers sound like a giveaway, but the real problem is how to charge for 65-cents per hr of electrical service. The Level 2 charger and install are likely covered by your state's legal settlement with VW for the diesel emission fraud case. It's easiest to place a traditional parking meter (about $600 per unit) at the charging site stall and charge 65-cents more than the other spaces. But, that means the first 1000-hrs of charging will only pay for the parking meter.

Are electric vehicles a good match for a municipality? In my little town, our highest annual mileage vehicles are the police cars which accumulate ~40-miles per day. They could easily be replaced by a BEV. If they accumulated more miles per day, the hybrid Ford Interceptor would have been a good candidate.

---

The town of Fairfax is pretty small and electric vehicles would likely work well in most cases, if they can get past the initial cost (government grants help a lot) especially as they are currently using mid-size cop cars instead of the big SUVs used by other police agencies in the state. You are probably right about who paid for the charging station. It is located under in a redwood tree grove near city hall. I don't believe that the town has any parking meters anywhere. They likely depend mostly on tourist visits and high real estate taxes to fund their municipal services. The local grocery store, which has prices about three times that of Safeway, does have two commercial L2 charging stations in their parking lot, which have been there for a few years. They are the only charging stations that I have seen in the town so far.

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At 7kW (220V, 32A), Level 2 is only giving you 21 to 28-miles of range (depending on car) for an hour's worth of charge. Would I use it, if I was at a restaurant nearby? Probably. Would I plan my life around it? Heck no.

---

L2 charging outlets are cheap to build and since most of the public (and perhaps government officials too) don't know L2 from L1 or L3, they get credit for building another charging station with whatever grant money is available. It is all about the numbers. Around here charging stations are usually required by city planning commissions when a new store is approved for construction. So the developer builds whatever is cheap to meet that feel-good requirement. A Sprouts grocery store about 10 miles from me had four L2 stations in their parking lot, which kept getting hogged by ICE SUVs and pickup trucks. After a few years they just removed them and converted the parking spaces to call-in delivery services where you call in your food order and when you arrive someone comes out of the store and dumps it into your trunk for you. After that you can drive to the nearby McDonald's to pick up a meal in the drive-through lane. No need to get out of your car to see if your legs still work.

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Do I denote you being a tad cynical there Richard?

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