Original Article by Steven Titch
[Note: This is an edited version of Steven Titch’s[note]Steven Titch is a technology policy analyst based in Texas, and he is a policy adviser with the Heartland Institute..[/note] Feb 14th, 2019 article with the same title on https://morningconsult.com/opinions/cold-weather-reveals-electric-cars-still-toys-wealthy/ Edits were made by Dr. David Tofsted[note]David Tofsted was born near Philadelphia. His father was from the mid-west and his mother’s family lived near Philadelphia since revolutionary times. He graduated from Penn State with a physics degree and came to New Mexico in 1980 as a Signal Corps officer with the US Army, working at White Sands Missile Range. Dave’s career spanned numerous research projects related to the understanding how the operations and performance of Army electro-optical sensors are affected by the atmosphere, including the effects of dust, fog, clouds, and the distorting effects of optical turbulence (heat boil) on imagery. Along the way, Dave studied electrical engineering at New Mexico State while continuing to work at White Sands, obtaining both Masters and Ph.D. degrees. Dave retired from White Sands in 2017 with 36 years service.[/note] to better relate the article to New Mexico.]
You can add plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) to the list of items that last
week’s low temperatures left in the cold.
Amid hype that these expensive, battery-operated cars are the vanguard of a fossil fuel-free age, their cold-weather shortcomings reinforce their image as a subsidized toy for the rich.
As temperatures plummeted into the -20s and -30s across the Midwest, Tesla owners discovered their car’s travel range had sharply decreased. And its interior would not warm up. Some owners weren’t even able to open the car door because its electric entry mechanism froze up.
These owners had spent between $80,000 and $140,000 for a vehicle that Continue reading “Cold Weather Reveals Electric Cars Are Still Toys for the Wealthy”