Time is running out (California folk)

Aaron_W said:
Except for the lawn mower all of my power yard tools are electric. If the lawn mower dies, I'll probably go electric there too, but since it is a Honda and only 10 years old, I imagine it will still be going in 2045. I have a fairly small lawn so battery wed wacker and (eventually) lawn mower is fine.

I do have some gas chainsaws, but they are a hold over from when we lived in the mountains and burned 3-5 cords of wood each winter. They are a nuisance to use for most of my current yard needs. I get the Stihl out, once or twice every couple of years.
For limbing the trees or the occasional large tree branch coming down, my 12" cordless Ryobi does fine. No making up small batches of 2 stroke mix, 50% of which ends up sitting around until it goes bad.




This is my biggest gripe with the push to all electric. It is just not thought out, it is the typical "we have to do something, and this is something".

Electric cars as small light commuters are great, but I've read several articles now that shows how the push to make large cars with ranges comparing to IC cars is missing the point.

The battery in a Tesla ranges from 1000-1700 lbs. The new electric Ford F150 has a battery weighing 1800lbs, that is half the weight of my Subaru Forester. Compare that to a Nissan Leaf, whose battery weighs in at 650lbs, and the current generation has a range of 150-200 miles.

This has impacts on cost where development of small practical electric commuters is being sidelined for more profitable luxury EVs. Crash safety, big heavy vehicles are more dangerous to other cars on the road. The simply not very efficient. All that weight requires additional power to operate, costs more and results in additional wear on both the car and the roads. There is also the additional hazard of lithium being a flammable metal, and very difficult to control. People thought VW Beetles were bad in a fire.

Of course part of this is the same logic that has people commuting solo in large SUVs.


Again a comparison between an IC and an EV. A Tesla Model 3 (the smallest Tesla, and not a particularly big car) weighs 4000lbs. A Hybrid Toyota Corolla is about the same size but only weighs 1900lbs. In an accident the Model 3 is like getting hit by a pickup truck, not a small car.


This all in on battery power is sidelining research on other potential clean technology. Hybrids are now well developed, significantly cleaner than pure IC cars, but they are no longer good enough since they still burn something.


This ban on small engines is similar. Sure battery tools work for many, but there are places where small gas or diesel engines just can't be replace yet. I'm still waiting to see how they intend to replace IC generators with electric since you typically need them where you have no electricity...
Click to expand...
Lets bring back small trucks with efficient ice's or hybrids. But, no can't do that... just one of my gripes.

 
2 4WD Toyota Tacomas , 2 S-10s , 1 Mazda and 1 Mitsubishi over the years . Settled on a F250 diesel which I can't afford to drive nowadays . The Mazda got close to 40 mpg . The S-10s got 30 mpg . The Toyotas got 22 MPG . The Mitsubishi got ???? The F-250 gets 10 mpg on a good day . A used S-10 now cost more than I paid for my two brand new and the Toyotas are way out of reach now . :(
 
Firstram said:
I’ve seen this video before, it just reinforces what a scam the corrupt EPA is. So many rules made by educated idiots bases on theory instead of reality, no common sense!
Click to expand...
it's not corrupt, it was intended to be a good rule.. but the manufacturers got around it by using it to their advantage. But the EPA being bureaucrats will not correct it. The problem with the way they act is that they are afraid to change anything ..
It's the same with the telephone companies.. if someone does nothing to correct a situation no problem.. but if they do something and it goes wrong, they get written up. When I worked in Telecom I kept saying fix it.. and they refused. I was told how the system works. And while I don't agree with letting it go, I would fix it, I can see how STUPID bureaucracies are created. I'm the type that doesn't give a Sh*t about the rules, I'll fix it and deal with it. If they don't like it they can F themselves.. of course they'll fire me. But if they do, I wouldn't want to be there anyway. But that's not how most think... Most everyone worries about their jobs, including most here.
 
Firstram said:
I’ve seen this video before, it just reinforces what a scam the corrupt EPA is. So many rules made by educated idiots bases on theory instead of reality, no common sense!
Click to expand...
My default position is always, follow the money when looking at an agenda. Not too long ago (late 1800's?) some of the "smartest and brightest" among us agreed that there is nothing new in the realm of physics to be discovered. There are many examples, flat earth, earth center of the solar system, faster than speed of sound flight, 4 minute mile, DC power transmission is the only safe way to go (killing an elephant to prove it), and etc.

The nature of "the science" is that it is never settled which is what I think people need to keep in mind when they hear people in "power" speak in absolutes, saying the science on a given issue or theory is settled and is 100% correct and you will comply or we'll all die.
 
woodchucker said:
it's not corrupt, it was intended to be a good rule.. but the manufacturers got around it by using it to their advantage. But the EPA being bureaucrats will not correct it. The problem with the way they act is that they are afraid to change anything ..
It's the same with the telephone companies.. if someone does nothing to correct a situation no problem.. but if they do something and it goes wrong, they get written up. When I worked in Telecom I kept saying fix it.. and they refused. I was told how the system works. And while I don't agree with letting it go, I would fix it, I can see how STUPID bureaucracies are created. I'm the type that doesn't give a Sh*t about the rules, I'll fix it and deal with it. If they don't like it they can F themselves.. of course they'll fire me. But if they do, I wouldn't want to be there anyway. But that's not how most think... Most everyone worries about their jobs, including most here.
Click to expand...
Too much paperwork and possible loss of funding to make corrections that make sense I guess. It is a strange world in which we live.
 
mmcmdl said:
2 4WD Toyota Tacomas , 2 S-10s , 1 Mazda and 1 Mitsubishi over the years . Settled on a F250 diesel which I can't afford to drive nowadays . The Mazda got close to 40 mpg . The S-10s got 30 mpg . The Toyotas got 22 MPG . The Mitsubishi got ???? The F-250 gets 10 mpg on a good day . A used S-10 now cost more than I paid for my two brand new and the Toyotas are way out of reach now . :(
Click to expand...
Maybe there is something to the conspiracy theory that the hidden "they or them" that secretly rule us all want to make vehicle ownership obsolete and corral us serfs into 15 minute cities and ... and ...

Conspiracy theories are fun but as Freud said "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar." :)

I hope they bring back the small fuel efficient pickups.
 
woodchucker said:
it's not corrupt, it was intended to be a good rule.. but the manufacturers got around it by using it to their advantage. But the EPA being bureaucrats will not correct it. The problem with the way they act is that they are afraid to change anything ..
Click to expand...

Intent? I don't need no stinkin' "intent".
I need people who can think past what they want. I need people who will ask, "And then what?". The corporations got around the rule. DUH!! OF COURSE THEY DID!! That was an obvious step to take. You get no points for good intentions if you are too corrupt to see past your nose.
Which brings us back to the OP. California bans gas lawn mowers. Will this mean people will stop buying lawn mowers. OF COURSE NOT!! People will go across state lines.
Do you know what WILL make people stop buying gas mowers? Electric mowers that can hold out for the entire job of mowing *their* lawn. For a homeowner, an electric is a no brainer over a gas mower if there is enough battery.
Silly bureaucrats need to back up and let the market work.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top