Quote:
Originally Posted by DoubleK
Which variable(s) are you optimizing by right sizing the battery? It's one thing for a hobbyist to convert a Jaguar to an EV and a very different thing to mass produce EVs to make a profit.
These cars will undoubtedly be people's daily drivers, reliability and range are the priority, the guy with the Jaguar is probably more ok with his car dying on the side of the road.
Allowing lay people to select battery size doesn't seem like a good idea IMHO.
Re: swappable batteries, I think it's niche at best and at worst, a problem looking for a solution. You could swap out a full gas tank for an empty one, but why do that?
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It would be differentiation for a manufacturer - letting them compete on price and consumer confidence in long-term viability of product. It would also hedge them against battery material supply constraints (they could potentially sell 2 vehicles using the same materials as another company selling 1).
TBH I have no idea how much of an issue that will actually be, but present trajectory has most EVs carrying around 3-4x more lithium+cobalt+etc than is actually necessary (not to mention the inefficiency of transporting all that weight).
On the swappable side, despite this immense focus on range, it isn't really solving the [overblown but valid] concerns about distance travel. The obvious short-mid term answer is a PHEV if you do a lot of highway travel (and aren't willing to deal with some charging inconveniences). I don't think swapping would be a panacea, just another option to optimize.
My main point is that we seem to be finding the worst of both worlds:
1. heavy+material intensive cars that are massive overkill for 95% of the time...
2. but they still aren't really effective for the other 5%