Towing or driving a Cadillac SUV? Here’s a glimpse into there long term plan.

[John and Angela]

I found this to be an interesting read. They are projecting to be electric only within 9 years. They are also giving dealers the option to opt out of an electric future and paying them to do so. I wouldn’t be surprised if they take on a Tesla on line sales model and just dropping the dealership model. Getting dealerships to sell EV’s has been tough for auto makers. Not sure what the answer is. Service and parts departments will have a tough go of it as EV’s become main stream.

Heres the link.

https://electrek.co/2020/11/24/gm-gives-ultimatum-cadillac-dealers-who-dont-want-sell-electric-cars/

[IBTripping]

Auto dealers make their money from their repair shops. Internal combustion engines require much more ongoing maintenance than EVs. So, most dealers push ICE powered vehicle sales. While GMC sees the future as EVs, dealers tend to drag their feet. GMC has given the dealers a clear ultimatum.

[John and Angela]

Auto dealers make their money from their repair shops. Internal combustion engines require much more ongoing maintenance than EVs. So, most dealers push ICE powered vehicle sales. While GMC sees the future as EVs, dealers tend to drag their feet. GMC has given the dealers a clear ultimatum.

Yah. It might be as simple as a slow retooling and retraining of personal and eventual draw down of the staff numbers. But I think the manufacturers and dealers will be at odds for awhile. It’s still hard to find EV’s on car lots and finding a knowledgeable sales person even harder as they just don’t seem to want to sell them.

New trucks from Tesla and Rivian will both be on sale within a year or so. Both using the internet sales model that has proven super successful for Tesla. Ford and GM are both expected to have their trucks out at pretty close to the same time. Are they going to hide them in the back, uncharged, dirty, like they sell their bolts, leafs etc? 

I don’t know. It will be interesting.

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I worked as a computer consultant to the auto industry from 1983 thru about 1995.  There was much the same problem back in the 1980's when cars moved to computer management greater use of electronics. Many dealers were reluctant to invest in new training and equipment for their service areas and both sales & service staff gave customers a lot of just plain bad information. Back then, many dealers only wanted to sell cars and ignored service as much as possible. Part of the solution was to show them that the "back end" (service) could and should be an important part of their revenue stream. Now another generational change is happening and foot-dragging is once again a problem.

[WILDEBILL308]

Interesting read. However you will note it is in a pro electric "magazine". They can talk about going all electric but I don't see the demand. That and without subsidies there wouldn't be any electric cars. Manufacturers like Tesla Have never made a profit.
Bill

[John and Angela]

Interesting read. However you will note it is in a pro electric "magazine". They can talk about going all electric but I don't see the demand. That and without subsidies there wouldn't be any electric cars. Manufacturers like Tesla Have never made a profit.
Bill

I agree with some of your post but would add that demand comes with the test drive.  People like performance whether its practical or not.  Once people drive an electric 1/2 ton they won't want to go back to a clunky stinky high maintenance gasser.  Its like Tesla cars.  None of us really need a 4 door sedan that goes from zero to 60 in four seconds without making a noise...but it is kinda fun.    LOL

JMHO.

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Tesla showed a $104M profit in the 2Q2020

https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/22/21333954/tesla-q2-earnings-profit-model-y-revenue-elon-musk-covid-19

[John and Angela]

Tesla showed a $104M profit in the 2Q2020

https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/22/21333954/tesla-q2-earnings-profit-model-y-revenue-elon-musk-covid-19

Yah.  Actually Tesla has had 5 profitable quarters in a row.  Which is why they were admitted into the S and P 500.  They actually have pretty good margins on all their cars and storage products.  Their problem is they spend a ton on R and D and build out of the Supercharger network all over the world.  This is a good thing in a way as this is their moat.  Buying any other EV means you have to put up with the slower clunky fast chargers.  Not always reliable and nowhere near as easy to pay for.  For the other networks you need either an RFID car, a credit card, or a phone app and then pay manually every time.  With a Supercharger you just plug in the car.  The car sends the network its serial number and you get automatically billed.  Super easy and convenient...and typically much faster...like 5 times as fast in many cases.  The other EV manufacturers will eventually catch up but for the moment Tesla is dominant. 

[steveblonde]

Yah.  Actually Tesla has had 5 profitable quarters in a row.  Which is why they were admitted into the S and P 500.  They actually have pretty good margins on all their cars and storage products.  Their problem is they spend a ton on R and D and build out of the Supercharger network all over the world.  This is a good thing in a way as this is their moat.  Buying any other EV means you have to put up with the slower clunky fast chargers.  Not always reliable and nowhere near as easy to pay for.  For the other networks you need either an RFID car, a credit card, or a phone app and then pay manually every time.  With a Supercharger you just plug in the car.  The car sends the network its serial number and you get automatically billed.  Super easy and convenient...and typically much faster...like 5 times as fast in many cases.  The other EV manufacturers will eventually catch up but for the moment Tesla is dominant.

Sounds like you work for Tesla with all your EV posts - how much do they pay?

[John and Angela]

Sounds like you work for Tesla with all your EV posts - how much do they pay?

Heh heh. No but i have been an EV enthusiast for years. Interesting stuff. We have owned EV’s from three different companies and currently have a Tesla so we are knowledgeable about them from an owner point of view. Retired with time on my hands so it’s a fun diversion. We are also avid RVers so it’s fun to watch the eventual merging of the two.

Cheers.

[Alaskansnowbirds]

My question has always been....If the majority of vehicles become EV, where is all the electricity going to come from?

 A friend of mine is a retired Arizona Public Service (APS) lineman. He lives on a cul-de-sac with 6 homes. He said if everyone on the cul-de-sac drove an EV, the local infrastructure could not handle the load. He doesn't believe the nation's electrical infrastructure can handle the demand if EVs become the majority of the vehicles on the road.

Also with the shutting down of a lot of coal and gas fired power plants there is going to be a shortage of electricity. Wind & solar can't produce enough to meet the demand.

While EVs becoming the majority of the vehicles on the road is a ways down the road it's something to think about how we generate the power to charge them.

[John and Angela]

My question has always been....If the majority of vehicles become EV, where is all the electricity going to come from?

 A friend of mine is a retired Arizona Public Service (APS) lineman. He lives on a cul-de-sac with 6 homes. He said if everyone on the cul-de-sac drove an EV, the local infrastructure could not handle the load. He doesn't believe the nation's electrical infrastructure can handle the demand if EVs become the majority of the vehicles on the road.

Also with the shutting down of a lot of coal and gas fired power plants there is going to be a shortage of electricity. Wind & solar can't produce enough to meet the demand.

While EVs becoming the majority of the vehicles on the road is a ways down the road it's something to think about how we generate the power to charge them.

Yah I’m sure it will take some adjustments. Utilities are projecting that if every personal vehicle on the road was to magically become electric overnight the additional load on the grid would go up about 19 to 22 percent. But it won’t happen overnight. More like 3 or 4 decades. So utilities project 1/2 to 1 percent a year depending on the area.

As far as charging in a neighbourhood. The average 240 volt home charger draws less than a stove 27 - 32 amps. Or 6 to 8 Kw. It wouldn’t be much different than everybody sticking their Christmas turkey in at the same time.

Plus many are on time of use plans. So energy is cheaper after midnight and before 5 AM. The average North American commuter uses about 8 kw per day in their EV. We charged our commuter for years between 2 and 5 AM on a 12 amp 240 circuit. 3 Kw or so. Worked great. Plugged it in when we got home and the timers looked after the rest. Plus in the winter the preheat would come on 5 minutes before I went to work so the windows were always defrosted and it was toasty inside.

Generally speaking utilities are not concerned about it. It will be a slow transition.

[lynnmor]

Great, now who is going to pay for the roads?  https://www.post-gazette.com/news/transportation/2020/11/23/PennDOT-PA-Legislature-borrow-600-million-delay-projects-Transportation-Committee/stories/202011230117

[John and Angela]

Great, now who is going to pay for the roads?  https://www.post-gazette.com/news/transportation/2020/11/23/PennDOT-PA-Legislature-borrow-600-million-delay-projects-Transportation-Committee/stories/202011230117

It’s a valid concern. But many regions, provinces, states of various countries have already solved this with annual registration fees. Some based on mileage, usage etc. It hasn’t been an unsolvable issues in many countries. Change can be good.

[WILDEBILL308]

There is still no big pent up demand for EVs. No crowds begging manufactuers to "just build it". Until they can be made to where they are sold at a competitive price they will not be competitive.
Bill

[John and Angela]

There is still no big pent up demand for EVs. No crowds begging manufactuers to "just build it". Until they can be made to where they are sold at a competitive price they will not be competitive.
Bill

Yah pretty much.  I think a lot of that has to do with the models available.  I think the upcoming crop of half tons will change this somewhat.  More price competitive SUV's and crossovers need to be available.  Not everyone want a high performance 4 door sedan.  Having said that though, demand seems pretty strong for the Volkwagen ID3 ID4 and Tesla model Y.  Sales of those are more production limited than anything else.  And those in turn are limited by batterie production.   Overall in the industry the climb of EV sales is pretty steady though.  Not explosive, but steady.