" to a mere 1.1 kWh per day, while doing nothing.."
- sorry, I am actually a Tesla fan (or would be, given the chance..) - but 1100w (per day) for doing sweet fuck all, presented as progress?
it's stuff like this that makes me say, thanks, call me when you have the finished article.
1.1kWh is equivalent to having a ~40W light bulb on. If you have a couple of circuits powered on, given it is a fully electric car with all kinds of gizmos built into it, this discharge rate is actually quite nominal.
Can it be refueled from empty to full in 2 minutes like a gasoline engine? What is the battery lifespan? How much will they cost to be replaced?
Planning ahead is something thats needed no matter what you drive. No one embarks on a 300 mile roadtrip with the gas gauge blinking red. This one will have the "large LCD display" reminding you to recharge. The battery lifespan is usually in the excess of 100,000 miles, with typical NiMH batteries giving between 130,000-150,000 mile range. At this point, the batteries are expensive, but if you consider the amount of saving in fuel costs, oil changes, all sorts of filters and pumps, etc. over the course of 130k miles - you'd have saved up enough for a battery pack. Another interesting thing is that the cost of fossil based fuels is on the rise, whereas batteries are becoming less expensive over years.
The moral of the story is, if you can afford to spare $50K for starters, you can save quite a bit eventually.
"I say we take off; nuke the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure." - Corporal Hicks, in "Aliens"