Being Part of the EV Revolution

salyavin said:

Some good things there. Some people think EVs are a liberal thing but really when you think of wars, sending money to potentially hostile countries and such just so we can drive to work EVs make a lot of sense even if you think all that comes out of a tailpipe is kisses and rainbows. You want America first? Tesla, GM, and Ford are American companies. Nissan even builds in Tennessee so US jobs. Electricity usually is powered by US be it wind, natural gas or coal or sunlight. TCO is a big one people don't compute well he mentioned also good. No oil changes, less brake work, less things like belts less transmission work, spark plugs and other stuff to maintain. Electricity is usually cheaper than gas. People also overblow range concerns as he hinted at. At an NDEW event last week I talked to a woman who drove from Golden to Yellowstone in a 40kw LEAF, I confirmed the route I knew she just takes longer.

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Yup, I tend to fall on the conservative side of center and believe my mission is to appeal to a segment that doesn't buy into all the ideas that drove early EV adoption.

So, my appeal is first and foremost the economics of EVs. I find TCO to be too difficult for most non-accounting types to grasp, so I stay a bit more practical. I start with:

• Price I paid ($31K) net after rebates being $1-2k less than the car it replaced.
• Then $20-50/mo for fuel vs $150 for the Hybrid it replaced, and $350 for the Audi before that for my 130 mile commute.
• Then, $100 in "maintenance" over 3.5 years (one cabin air filter, one set of wiper blades),
• Then go into quiet, fast, fun, convenient (charge in my garage).
• If I mention emissions, it is briefly and a side effect.
• Finally, I point out the car is likely to serve me well for 200-300K miles while most cars are not worth keeping beyond 150K in my experience. So I potentially own one car vs two over a relatively long period.

So, it is actually fiscally conservative to drive electric on several fronts.

Am I ashamed about being conservative and supporting EVs? Heck no. The EV owner base may lean left due to early adopters being tree huggers, but with only 2% EV market share, that means we have to appeal to the 98%, many of whom view the traditional liberal arguments with mild to severe skepticism. Having common ground is one of the most authentic ways to win over converts.

I liken it to a pastor with a history of drug addition, he is able to relate on a level that seems totally inconsistent with doctrine, but is effective in reaching people who would otherwise not find a way to get grounded in something helpful to overcome addiction that is destroying their lives.

There was a guy who was featured in an article a couple years ago explaining how patriotic it is to drive a Tesla. Not to specifically single out Tesla, but his point applies to any US made EV. The main point was the fuel being sourced from locally owned utilities that generate a growing amount of their energy from local production facilities rather than funding Middle East oil Barrons hell-bent on the destruction of western civilization.