Huh, poor little Hybrid PCX opened up a big can of worms
While I agree with many of the points I'd add a few things, as I believe I see a few things from a different prospective. I have to say here that I'm quite biased, as we're currently building 2MWp capacity Photovoltaic power plant with two friends of mine, and I'm anyway working in the IoT industry so one can say I'm definitely pro new technology.
Mel46 wrote: Imagine a tornado taking down power lines. What do you do? You can't just jump in your electric vehicle and drive to some place that has power, and then just plug it in. ("Excuse me sir. Can I plug into your house power. My car is running low.")
Imagine a different situation. A tornado strikes, and you have your partially charged electic car. Let's assume it is down to 25% and also assume that it equals in battery capacity with the smallest Tesla, which is 70kWh. Also take into account, that you might have a transformation loss of 10% when creating 110v AC from the battery's several hundred Volts DC. This would still give 15.75kWh capacity before it runs dry. With our average monthly electricity usage of 250kWh (which includes wshing machine, hair dryers, aircon, two fridges and a freezer, routers, computers, a home server running 24h etc) still gives two full days of autonomy. In case It would look like a longer term stuff, using only the important devices (fridges, lights and the circulation pump for heating and fan coils) would last for over a week.
Mel46 wrote: To add to that, I read recently that most of the power plants in the United States still use coal. How is an electric vehicle a good alternative if it uses electricity from a coal burning power plant?
All of those problems need to be addressed before electric vehicles will become a real viable alternative.
Fact is, that even the best internal combustion engines are very inefficient somewhere between 25-50 at only a thin range of their operation parameters, and they tend to spend a fraction of their total use at those ranges. While a co-generating powerplant can operate at up to 80% efficiency all the time, plus due to its stable operation parameters exhausts can be better cleaned. Indeed, there are electricity network, and battery storage losses also, but generating energy is still more efficient in a power plant than is a family car. Not to mention that hydrocarbon logistics (including fuel) have it's environmental cost too.
True, that electric mobility is not yet at the stage to entirely replace our hundred and so years of internal combustion based transportation. But it might not have to entirely change it either. Car sharing is a great way to substitute for suburban and urban traffic. In the family we have no diesels, but have electric, hybrid and dual fuel (petrol and liquified natural gas) and all have their own place. Why not use electric transportation charged by even coal fired electricity in the city, where IC engines are very inefficient, and keep enough cleaner liquid fossil fuels for longer trips?
And using the full potential of electric mobility needs a different grid operation also. As for the earlier example that huge amount of electric storage capacity is not only a sink waiting to be charged. It is also a great potential to use renewables and off peak energy generation a whole lot better, given their capacity is available for the grid or for the home (microgrid) when not on the road.