pnichols wrote:
road-runner wrote:
Intuitively, I think the overall best compromise is a plug-in hybrid with a small internal combustion engine. When the electricity is available it could be run totally on electric for short trips. For a long and/or cold climate trip the IC engine would be the primary power source, with the electric motor(s) giving the wimpy IC engine an assist for acceleration and hill climbing. The IC engine would have to be large enough to push the vehicle at highway speeds on level ground, with some reserve to charge the battery at least a little bit.
Your observation on a best overall compromise is spot-on!
I've thought along the same line for years. This would provide a good-enough best of both worlds solution if, and until, a final ultmate solution is made viable for all drivers and the environment.
Didn't VW some time back have a hybrid electric/diesel-IC powered vehicle in the works for someplace -> I don't remember if it was comtemplated for their U.S. market or their Rest of World market.
I was really interested when I read about this ... but have read nothing about it since. I would rather have had it be an electric/gas-IC hybrid combination, though.
I think you will see a few versions of this type of vehicle over the next three years. They would be a good solution for those in more extreme environments and in situations where the distances to be traveled are longer. For those requiring a truck, workhorse actually has a fairly promising hybrid in form of a half ton. If we lived where we used to live I would be interested in something like that. But for our urbanite needs there are a few good full up electrics that should work when it comes time to replace the leaf in a couple or three years. I think there will be a lot more choices in two years than there is now. The model Y Tesla might be interesting for us although probably on the higher end of what we want to pay...if not out of reach. I think BMW will have their version of the model Y out about the same time as the model Y comes out...maybe 2 to 3 years ish. Who knows.
