Quote:
Originally Posted by SeeGeeWhy
There is zero reason an automated car also needs to be an electric vehicle.
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I'm surprised to see you post this.
Wireless charging technology is the most efficient method of maintaining the fuel capacity for a fleet of autonomous vehicles. The idea of running ICE fleets of autonomous vehicles negates many of the efficiencies found in the reduction of components necessary to move the drive train of a vehicle that electric vehicles provide.
The storage of mass amounts of fuel, and incorporating automated refueling of volatile combustible material is a further efficiency hindrance for the proposal of ICE engines making up a component of an autonomous fleet.
There will obviously be different maintenance needs and costs to maintain a fleet of autonomous electric vehicles, but there is significant cost reductions of fleet maintenance by removing components of the ICE drive train.
Even the fuel distribution method is significantly more efficient (and thus less costly) unless you envision a future with gasoline pipelines to various refilling hubs.
These are just economies of scale arguments. When you incorporate the environmental regulation component it is difficult for me to come up with a way for ICE engines to compete on the market further down the line.