Looky, Looky What Wyoming Wants To Do

[DonTom]

Up in Canada it’s the gas station chargers. Petrocan, chevron and shell are all putting in a ton of chargers, but like you say if a charger goes off line it is off for months.

Here, many CCS chargers at Chevron and Shell gas stations, but mostly in areas where they are NOT needed much. Out in the middle of nowhere, nothing at those gas stations. Wall*Mart did the same. Put the CCS chargers near many others. No place to get CCS charge in SusanVille, CA but they do have a Wal*Mart there. The many Wal*Marts in the Sacramento area have CCS charging, as do many other places in such areas.

No problem in Susanville to charge a Tesla, of course. Just not anything else.

In a way, perhaps I shouldn't complain. There is a working CCS charger almost every exit between Reno and Auburn. But that is what I mean my them crowding them together instead of spreading them out. And often the ones farther out, if you can find one, has been out of service for more than a year.

-Don- Turlock, CA

 

[Mountain high]

The big problem is nobody fixes them when they break. Fallon, NV, Hawthorne, NV, EB I-80 Dooner Rest Stop, CA and several others have been broken for more than a year. That is the CCS charging.

-Don- Turlock, CA

There's some Tesla chargers at the ski resort near our home. There's aren't any other chargers around for some 30 mountainous miles. The charges are for resort customers, only though which restricts their usage. This might be a problem for somebody who isn't a ski resort customer. I carry their Season Ski Pass.

Powderhorn Resort - Tesla Destination | Mesa, CO | EV Station

Looking for an EV charging station? Charge your electric car at Powderhorn Resort - Tesla Destination. Get directions on the ChargeHub Map.

chargehub.com

 

[TheBar]

For commercial business chargers are just advertising. Chargers are loss leaders and there is no incentive to fix them. That will change when everyplace starts charging for charging. Like 50 years ago there will be "gas wars" until they all ban together for higher prices. Most likely it will end up like Kroger gas discounts for buying groceries or like Amazon Prime where you pay a yearly amount for charging.

 

[Mountain high]

Alaska has been going round with the Feds on the wolf issue for ages. Those who live remote have to compete with the wolves for caribou and moose. Rumor has it that since they can't legally thin the packs with rifles, some resort to running them to death with their snowmobiles.

There's a lot of big money from environmentalists (such as certain movie producers and actors) that's pouring into these issues like wolves, EV's, and water over here on the Western Slope.

I watched recently on Tucker Carlson about a guy who legally shot a mountain lion in Colorado at nearly 10,000 feet elevation. The environmentalists are going after him with everything in the book. It costs big bucks to fight it in court. We have a mountain lion which comes onto our home's property often. Can't shoot it, but it's concerning.

We keep our gates closed, but unlocked for emergencies. So Ute Water trespasses by opening the gates onto our property every Spring to check to see if we're stealing water without any advance notification. It's like their right to do so. My wife and I are both concerned about our home's well being challenged in court. We don't have water rights and mineral rights to the land other than the well. Love to lock the gates.

 

[DonTom]

There's some Tesla chargers at the ski resort near our home.

Tesla destination charge stations shouldn't even be called "chargers" as all they are is an AC supply of 240 VAC. The charger is inside the vehicle. These Tesla destination charge stations are very common in motels and other such places where they are only available to customers. However, in and around Reno, you can find them to use for free at many places. And they can be converted to J-1772 with a Tesla Tap. Below, I am charging my Energica motorcycle for free at a Tesla Destination station using a Tesla Tap. All the motorcycles shown here are mine charging that way (click on photo to see more).

-Don- Turlock, CA

 

[Viajeros]

There's some Tesla chargers at the ski resort near our home. There's aren't any other chargers around for some 30 mountainous miles. The charges are for resort customers, only though which restricts their usage. This might be a problem for somebody who isn't a ski resort customer. I carry their Season Ski Pass.

Powderhorn Resort - Tesla Destination | Mesa, CO | EV Station

Looking for an EV charging station? Charge your electric car at Powderhorn Resort - Tesla Destination. Get directions on the ChargeHub Map.

chargehub.com

Good morning. Those are not chargers but rather charge stations. The difference is that those are inexpensive installations that provide AC to the cars built in charger. An actual charger is a separate DC fast charger that charges the batteries directly without using the cars built in charger.

Those charge stations are common at hotels, golf courses, restaurants, shopping malls. They typically provide between 6 and 11 kw and are meant for situations where you will usually be somewhere for a few hours. They are more of a loss leader. They are also essentially what people have at home. Real chargers are usually 250 kw and are more of a 15 to 20 minute affair.

Hope that helps.

 

[Left Here]

Since the "electricity" to charge these EVs is not "free", I expect many, if not all, of those places which have those "fast chargers" to soon be charging for people to recharge their vehicles at them. Once companies realize it's costing them hundreds or thousands of dollars for people to "mooch" off those "fast chargers", they will try to recoup their money by charging people to use them. You'll probably have to swipe your credit card to charge, then. I would expect that to happen soon.

 

[Viajeros]

Since the "electricity" to charge these EVs is not "free", I expect many, if not all, of those places which have those "fast chargers" to soon be charging for people to recharge their vehicles at them. Once companies realize it's costing them hundreds or thousands of dollars for people to "mooch" off those "fast chargers", they will try to recoup their money by charging people to use them. You'll probably have to swipe your credit card to charge, then. I would expect that to happen soon.

I think it may be a regional thing. We have DC fast charged all over Canada and part of the US and have never charged for free. The only exception is when a new station is put in and they usually have a test period of 30 days to make sure it’s all working. I have seen this at both Chevron and FLO stations. Other than that it’s pay as you go.

On edit I have seen a couple transport Canada sites that are considered “safety sites” where there was no cell service so no way to pay for the charge. But these are very slow sites that people don’t generally use unless it’s an emergency. (Usually in winter). Usually in isolated mountain zones etc. We have stopped at them to test them and report serviceability on plugshare but actually haven’t really charged at them. Too slow. Good in a pinch though.

We tested this one between cache creek and hope.

 

[DonTom]

Fast DC chargers even here at the Denny's Restaurant in Tehachapi, CA. They also have a J-1772 here. Same yesterday when I got propane at the Chevron gas station, they had several. And I am not even looking for them.

-Don- Tehachapi, CA

 

[TheBar]

So the latest news I had not seen is a study by AEG which reveals charging an EV at home costs more than the gasoline for an ICE vehicle. I had been led to believe driving an EV is almost free.

 

[Viajeros]

So the latest news I had not seen is a study by AEG which reveals charging an EV at home costs more than the gasoline for an ICE vehicle. I had been led to believe driving an EV is almost free.

Suppose it matters where you are. Price of gas and electric etc. It’s a little over 6 times cheaper to drive electric here rather than gas. That’s not including not having to pay for oil changes, air filters etc. Like anything else…it depends.

 

[Mountain high]

Suppose it matters where you are. Price of gas and electric etc. It’s a little over 6 times cheaper to drive electric here rather than gas. That’s not including not having to pay for oil changes, air filters etc. Like anything else…it depends.

Gasoline here is $5.099 for regular unleaded. That's down from $5.999. It's the only gasoline available with one pump, with one grade of 85 octane Conoco regular. No other choice for another 26 miles round trip to an Exxon. Nothing cheap until your out of the mountains. Can't tell whether electric is cheaper, but then our truck is too tall and won't fit under the 7 feet tall garage door for charging. Doubt that I would keep a home charger outdoors.

 

[Viajeros]

Gasoline here is $5.099 for regular unleaded. That's down from $5.999. It's the only gasoline available with one pump, with one grade of 85 octane Conoco regular. No other choice for another 26 miles round trip to an Exxon. Nothing cheap until your out of the mountains. Can't tell whether electric is cheaper, but then our truck is too tall and won't fit under the 7 feet tall garage door for charging. Doubt that I would keep a home charger outdoors.

I think gas maybe came down here a bit too but not sure. I think it’s around 1.60 a litre….ish.

A kWh is about 11 cents. I haven’t done the calculation lately but its probably comparable.

We have a charge station in the driveway (kind of sheltered by the porch though). . It gets all the weather. It is an outdoor unit though. They are not all outdoor units. We charge inside when we can but with a single car garage (townhouse) if I have a project in the garage then its parked outside, so its handy to have two charge stations.

 

[Mountain high]

Everything here outside is in the weather. Snows often. Snowing now again. I have a pole barn that our Power Wagon can fit in.

 

[Viajeros]

Everything here outside is in the weather. Snows often. Snowing now again. I have a pole barn that our Power Wagon can fit in.

View attachment 161407

Looks cosy though. We used to have a cedar house in cold lake.

We are a little off the snow belt so we seldom get accumulations of more than 30 or 40 centimetres although last year it was a little more. We get a few nasty cold snaps per year (maybe minus 30 at worst) but not too far north of us they are in a snow belt and they get whacked. Unfortunately it’s on the route to a frequent destination. Ugh.

Minus 8 right now. Minus 15 tonight.

 

[Mountain high]

Looks cosy though. We used to have a cedar house in cold lake.

We are a little off the snow belt so we seldom get accumulations of more than 30 or 40 centimetres although last year it was a little more. We get a few nasty cold snaps per year (maybe minus 30 at worst) but not too far north of us they are in a snow belt and they get whacked. Unfortunately it’s on the route to a frequent destination. Ugh.

Minus 8 right now. Minus 15 tonight.

We're in the snowbelt. On February 3rd I'm going to get the shorts out of storage. It's going to be a 34F high! Snow has been on the ground since October so getting up to the highway has been difficult without a 4x4 due to thick packed snow/ice. Our Honda with snow tires came close to getting stuck this morning. Driving our 4x4 trucks isn't always cheap due to it's around 40 miles to town so we tried due to it's later in winter. Been reading about EV's, but determined that with our cold and mountainous climate it would make it challenging living here.

 

[Viajeros]

We're in the snowbelt. On February 3rd I'm going to get the shorts out of storage. It's going to be a 34F high! Snow has been on the ground since October so getting up to the highway has been difficult without a 4x4 due to thick packed snow/ice. Our Honda with snow tires came close to getting stuck this morning. Driving our 4x4 trucks isn't always cheap due to it's around 40 miles to town so we tried due to it's later in winter. Been reading about EV's, but determined that with our cold and mountainous climate it would make it challenging living here.

View attachment 161408

The sunny days are nice in winter. Kind of makes it all worth while. We used to have an RV lot in SoCal for winters. Kinda missed the seasons and sold it a couple years ago. The grey days suck but overall enjoying the winter again.

Yah, an EV is not right for everyone. There is something to be said for a big ass 4 X 4 in winter. We do fine without it here but in the snow belt ground clearance is golden.

 

[Mountain high]

There is something to be said for a big ass 4 X 4 in winter.

Yes, our 2016 4x4 came with a factory 2 inch lift, OEM 12,000 pound winch, and front and rear lockers with 33's. It can fit 37's, but with the 35's on it now I can still run chains on those. A 7,000 pound truck.

The F150 Lightning curb weight is around 6,500 pounds. Wait until the F250 Lightning comes out. It's going to weigh more than our family's 9,000 pound Ram 2500 4x4 Cummins crew cab. We get mud and that's where these heavy weighted trucks sink.

There’s Just One Problem With Ford’s Electric F-150

Joe Biden says the pickup truck is fast. It's heavy, too.

slate.com

"That the trucks will be so heavy, however, is an unfortunate side effect. It will wear down roads, eat into air-pollution improvements, and harm whoever is unfortunate enough to get in the way."

 

[Viajeros]

Yes, our 2016 4x4 came with a factory 2 inch lift, OEM 12,000 pound winch, and front and rear lockers with 33's. It can fit 37's, but with the 35's on it now I can still run chains on those. A 7,000 pound truck.

The F150 Lightning curb weight is around 6,500 pounds. Wait until the F250 Lightning comes out. It's going to weigh more than our family's 9,000 pound Ram 2500 4x4 Cummins crew cab. We get mud and that's where these heavy weighted trucks sink.

There’s Just One Problem With Ford’s Electric F-150

Joe Biden says the pickup truck is fast. It's heavy, too.

slate.com

"That the trucks will be so heavy, however, is an unfortunate side effect. It will wear down roads, eat into air-pollution improvements, and harm whoever is unfortunate enough to get in the way."

Yes, our 2016 4x4 came with a factory 2 inch lift, OEM 12,000 pound winch, and front and rear lockers with 33's. It can fit 37's, but with the 35's on it now I can still run chains on those. A 7,000 pound truck.

The F150 Lightning curb weight is around 6,500 pounds. Wait until the F250 Lightning comes out. It's going to weigh more than our family's 9,000 pound Ram 2500 4x4 Cummins crew cab. We get mud and that's where these heavy weighted trucks sink.

There’s Just One Problem With Ford’s Electric F-150

Joe Biden says the pickup truck is fast. It's heavy, too.

slate.com

"That the trucks will be so heavy, however, is an unfortunate side effect. It will wear down roads, eat into air-pollution improvements, and harm whoever is unfortunate enough to get in the way."

Yah I think the 3/4 and 1 ton electrics are a decade or more away. I don’t think anyone is even developing them yet although I haven’t been following that.

1/2 tons are a little different. They’ll probably find a good market as EV’s. Time will tell.

 

[DonTom]

I had been led to believe driving an EV is almost free.

If I could NOT charge at home, all my charging for everyday use would be for free. Free to me, of course as somebody pays somewhere, such as the countless casinos which have free charging in their parking lots. Same with City Halls in that area, including tourist traps such as Virgina City. Reno DMV also has free charging. It's almost everywhere these days.

That's all slow AC charging, but there are even some free DC fast chargers, such as the one I use at the Donner Summit Rest Stop when I take and electric motorcycle from Reno to Auburn.

-Don- Salton Sea SRA.