Rivian R1T Tows a Sports Car Cross-Country

I know almost nothing about electric vehicles and will only drive one when there is no other choice. That being said, I have seen a Lightning in person and was impressed. Ford sold their stake in Rivian, at a loss, so I'd not hang my hat on their products, at least for the time being. At the current state of battery technology, and charging infrastructure, EV's are impractical for long-distance driving. I have always thought that standardized, easily swapped battery packs are the way to go. However, the current battery packs are too large to be easily swapped-out. I can see a day when you stop at the "Battery Station" and swapping-out the power pack would take less time that filling a 20 gallon gas tank. If that ever comes to fruition, cross-country EV travel would be a breeze.
What would the battery cost be? The first generation of Tesla’s batteries are starting to die. One guy got quoted $25k. So he blew up the car in protest.
 
I know almost nothing about electric vehicles and will only drive one when there is no other choice. That being said, I have seen a Lightning in person and was impressed. Ford sold their stake in Rivian, at a loss, so I'd not hang my hat on their products, at least for the time being. At the current state of battery technology, and charging infrastructure, EV's are impractical for long-distance driving. I have always thought that standardized, easily swapped battery packs are the way to go. However, the current battery packs are too large to be easily swapped-out. I can see a day when you stop at the "Battery Station" and swapping-out the power pack would take less time that filling a 20 gallon gas tank. If that ever comes to fruition, cross-country EV travel would be a breeze.
Tesla offered stations that would swap the battery packs on their earlier model S vehicles. They've stopped doing it because the charging stations improved.

The infrastructure to maintain a battery swap option just isn't going to be viable. You're going to end up with half charged batteries in high population areas and over charged/destroyed batteries is low population areas.

I've said before and I'll stand by it, I don't think battery EVs are the future. I think (and hope) it'll be Hydrogen fuel cell. It's all the benefits of EV with all the benefits of ICE (quick filling). That said, there are still infrastructure issues to address. But fueling hydrogen isn't too different from propane so most existing fueling stations can be converted fairly easily.
 
Tesla offered stations that would swap the battery packs on their earlier model S vehicles. They've stopped doing it because the charging stations improved.

The infrastructure to maintain a battery swap option just isn't going to be viable. You're going to end up with half charged batteries in high population areas and over charged/destroyed batteries is low population areas.

I've said before and I'll stand by it, I don't think battery EVs are the future. I think (and hope) it'll be Hydrogen fuel cell. It's all the benefits of EV with all the benefits of ICE (quick filling). That said, there are still infrastructure issues to address. But fueling hydrogen isn't too different from propane so most existing fueling stations can be converted fairly easily.
Better Place did the battery swap thing in the mid 2000's in Israel and it didn't work. They were ahead of their time with it.

The only issue I'm aware of with hydrogen is freezing pumps.

 
I am envisioning a situation where the batteries are interchangeable so when you buy a vehicle, it has a battery but it doesn't, necessarily spend its entire useful life with just your vehicle. My thinking is in terms of how propone tanks get swapped out.....as a very rudimentary example. If you only use your car to commute, and charge at home, then you may keep the original battery forever. However, if you travel, instead of stopping to charge for +/- 1 hour, you simply pull into a station that swaps your depleted battery for a fully charged unit and your battery gets charged for the next guy/gal/they.
 
Tesla offered stations that would swap the battery packs on their earlier model S vehicles. They've stopped doing it because the charging stations improved.

The infrastructure to maintain a battery swap option just isn't going to be viable. You're going to end up with half charged batteries in high population areas and over charged/destroyed batteries is low population areas.

I've said before and I'll stand by it, I don't think battery EVs are the future. I think (and hope) it'll be Hydrogen fuel cell. It's all the benefits of EV with all the benefits of ICE (quick filling). That said, there are still infrastructure issues to address. But fueling hydrogen isn't too different from propane so most existing fueling stations can be converted fairly easily.
I get your point regarding urban vs rural stations but we have that, today with gas stations. In more urban areas, you might bypass 1 or 2 gas stations, if they are busy, before stopping. Then again, I also agree that battery EV's don't seem viable for the entire population of the US. The infrastructure change-over would be for too dramatic.
 
I am envisioning a situation where the batteries are interchangeable so when you buy a vehicle, it has a battery but it doesn't, necessarily spend its entire useful life with just your vehicle. My thinking is in terms of how propone tanks get swapped out.....as a very rudimentary example. If you only use your car to commute, and charge at home, then you may keep the original battery forever. However, if you travel, instead of stopping to charge for +/- 1 hour, you simply pull into a station that swaps your depleted battery for a fully charged unit and your battery gets charged for the next guy/gal/they.
 
I get your point regarding urban vs rural stations but we have that, today with gas stations. In more urban areas, you might bypass 1 or 2 gas stations, if they are busy, before stopping. Then again, I also agree that battery EV's don't seem viable for the entire population of the US. The infrastructure change-over would be for too dramatic.
This is another good point.

It’s also why I always say “no” when the giant corporation asks me to donate to a charity at check-outs.

Donate your own damn money from your giant corporate profits.

Most climate change from transportation is from a select few sources, and civilian/private vehicles and recreation is certainly part of it but unlikely to be a significant factor.

Case in point: word leaders all taking private jets to get to the most recent climate meeting….

Things like US government fleets (such as the USPS delivery trucks, which are from the 70s and akin to a chainsmoker at a lung cancer support group) switching to EVs, emergency vehicles like fire trucks and ambulances, or even city buses moving to electric, all make way more sense to start with since there are far fewer variables in the routes/ranges.
 
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