Making “Investments” in EVs

Guest Post by Eric Peters

The verbiage is interesting. As the country relies ever more on force to coerce, it resorts to soft language to hide what is going on.

For example, this news story about what the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers – which is the lobby for the car industry – is up to. The Alliance published an open letter to nine governors of states it wants to emulate California’s policy of coercively – legislatively – force-feeding electric cars down the throats of a largely uninterested and unwilling buying public.

It’s not put that way in the letter, of course. Nor the news articles about it – the journalists who write them having learned to parrot the oleaginous verbiage of coercion, whether consciously or not.

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The open letter – and the news stories – talk about “encouraging the governors to follow California’s lead” and the need to “commit resources” and make “investments” in electric cars – because of course the free market isn’t interested in committing its resources or making such investments. So what is actually meant by the verbiage is that the car industry – speaking as one through its lobbying arm – wants to see laws and regulations like those in force in California imposed by force (how else are laws ad regulations imposed?)  in other states.

The reasoning is perfectly understandable.

California is the only electric car “market” – and it is only a “market” because California has artificially created one, via the force and coercion of the California General Assembly and regulatory apparat, including the infamous California Air Resources Board. They have issued various fatwas mandating that electric cars be manufactured and “sold” – even if at a loss. The car companies have thus been forced to commit lots of their resources toward the making of electric cars (or the buying of offsetting “credits” from that electric car carny, Elon Musk) even if they can’t make any money making them.

Understandably, they would like a return on their “investment” – by force, if necessary. And it is necessary.Without force, there is no market for electric cars.

The car companies should have stood up to the thuggery and argued – publicly, loudly – that they can’t make money on electric cars and so would prefer not to “invest” in them – and then force you to make up for that “investment.”

Instead, they have become like the man who, having been mugged, decides to wait in the alley for the next man to come along – in order to mug him in turn and so recoup what he has lost.

Ergo, the car companies want the “market” (at gunpoint) for electric cars expanded beyond just California – hoping that perhaps more fatwas and “investments” will “jump start” this perpetually (and likely eternally) fizzling make-work project – and put the money back in their pockets, regardless of whose pockets have to be picked to make that happen.

Some of these states have already “joined hands” with the car industry to waste more coerced resources – the money obtained, as always, by force from the taxpayers of those states – to erect such atrocities as “high-speed charging stations” (which aren’t anything of the sort; best case is 30-45 minutes per car, to recover about 80 percent charge; but I suppose that is “high speed” relative to the 6-12 hours it takes to recharge at home). New York has “committed” $4.2 million (of other people’s money) toward this quixotic . .. charge.

No one ever asks why state government don’t need to “invest” in gas stations. They appear organically – without coercion.

Hmmmm. . .

One also wonders how these charging stations – and the electric cars themselves – will do when it gets cold outside, as it sometimes does in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts, which are among the Nine being importuned by the Alliance. It is one thing to sip a latte outside a Starbucks in San Diego, a comfortable 75 degrees and sunny outside. How about Albany in January?

Most people who invest their money in a car – or anything else involving a significant sum of money – tend to ask such questions and when the answers do not appeal, tend to spend their money on some other thing.

Hence the need to “encourage” a different kind of “investment.” Including – in addition to the “high-speed” charging stations – “more fleet purchases” by state governments of electric cars, for the bureaucrats and apparatchiks to putter around in – except of course, electric cars don’t putter.

They merely cost.

Not the apparatchiks, of course. They will merely drive them. We will pay for them to drive them. The electric cars – and the salaries of the apparatchiks, too.

Such a deal!

The open letter closes by urging “action now” to “help reach the ZEV target” of 80 different models of electric cars on the market by 2021. This is an ambitious “goal” given that as of this year – which is less than three years shy of 2021 – ZEVs constitute just over 1 percent of all new cars on the market.

The real market.

That would be the one which does not require fatwas to “stimulate” “investment.” No “encouragement” necessary. People freely buy the other 98.9 percent.

One might be tempted to ask why.

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Martin brundlefly
Martin brundlefly

Most popular vehicle in my neck of ny is the ram 1500, followed by the ram 2500. Any of those clowns envision an electric vehicle with a plow on the front? Mere 4wd? Heater? I have a block heater, and a heating blanket for my battery. The thought of it up here is absurd.

Max1001
Max1001

Why yes, but the bureaucrats in your capitol city are smugly convinced that they know more than you about your situation.

A very, very simple electric vehicle, like one of the models made circa 1910-1930 would be nifty for people in inner cities who make short runs and never drive more than 50 miles per day. Recharge the battery while you sleep at night. For anybody else, it’s a pipe dream.

The problem is that decisions are being made by people with no technical knowledge; people who have not been trained in alalytical reasoning; people with the wrong kinds of degrees-no science, no engineering.

Elon Musk took over Tesla after it was a going concern. He was not one of the original founders. They had actually built cars before Elon showed. I am convinced that Elon has no understanding of the technical concepts involved in any of the ventures he is pushing. He has seen too many science fiction movies.

If the government or some other sugar daddy will give you enough money, you can buy any going concern, keep it running for awhile with someone else’s money, finally run it into the ground, walk away with billions, and blame the failure on someone else.

James
James

This more then ever has me looking at some old rabbit diesel pickups in good shape,cool for baby loads and get 50 mpg and if one wants to avoid more taxes can buy “farm diesel” in our neck of the woods,just diesel without tax dye basically,usually about 50 cents a gallon cheaper.

I do to a degree like the cars with regenerative braking that charges battery but also runs on gas,hybrid but so much electronics ect. do not want to deal with the electric nighmares am sure ones will have as get older,plus the expensive battery for said rig.I will keep my eyes open if the tech improves with solar paint to charge/actual vehicles for example folks point out for plowing/hauling,not against solar or other alts,just not going to have it rammed down me throat.

I will also enjoy the mid 70’s 4×4 van lifted ect.!

Max1001
Max1001

Look on BigIron.com online auction. They currently have a 1978 Dodge D250 dually dump truck, with 4WD, 440 engine, and 4-spd transmission. They also have a 1992 Dodge D250 pickup with the 12-valve Cummins diesel engine. Both look good, but photos can mislead the unwary.

Westcoastdeplorable
Westcoastdeplorable

I drive a 2012 Prius Plug-in and researched the model extensively prior to buying it. Seems lots of them are being used as taxi’s around the world and apparently they’ll clock 300k w/o anything major. Replacement batteries are about $600 at non-dealer specialists.
With the plug-in you can drive the 1st 10 or so miles just on the battery. If you don’t goose it or run the heater, the ICE won’t even fire. And if you work the regen on longer trips, I’ve gotten as high as 65 mpg. The regen also makes the brake pads last longer.

James
James

West,thanks for a user review,am a bit surprised the battery runs so cheaply,thought was a lot more.

Martin brundlefly
Martin brundlefly

I want to see a nice quiet electric harley. Dean has been leavin for work an hour before i get up, and that damn bike is loud.

Said by the right liberal, that could become a thing. Could you imagine? How many of those could you sell. Any?

TampaRed
TampaRed

how many of you saw that tesla is having a large layoff,approximately 3500 employees?
i saw it on breitbart–

Anonymous
Anonymous

FWIW, Tesla’s now laying off something like 9000 workers.

I think that’s probably to help fill all those Tesla Model 3 pre-orders Musk and his devotee’s have been bragging about, the ones that are just waiting for delivery to rocket its profits (and stock value) to the moon.

Contrarian
Contrarian

I bought a 2013 Nissan Leaf last year for under $8000. It goes 90 miles on a full charge. There has, so far, been zero maintenance other than a pair of wiper blades & checking the air in the tires. It did great this winter (I live north of 48) & handled snowy conditions really well. For local commuting (>95% of our driving) it has been the best car I have ever owned. It is comfortable, quiet, easy & fun to drive. Great car.

I get the frustration with tax dollars going into subsidizing building electrical vehicles, I really do. What I don’t understand is the lack of outrage over the billions of tax dollars that go into subsidizing the oil & gas industry. Oh yeah… and the lives wasted in endless wars necessary to keep it flowing.

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