Diesel Prices Are Going Up Really Fast

[Rich W.]

Better yet I am wondering about the charging facilities and where. Will they replace the fuel islands at a Flying J as an example? Time is of essence so the charge rate will have be efficient. Likewise, do the charging business economics work that a national truck stop chain can substitute electricity for gasoline and still make the same or more revenue? That’s going to be an expensive conversion or not? It’s going to be interesting to watch.

Charging would probably be done at regional distribution centers and fleet yards. These are day cab trucks for short hauls so for that they could just make their run, plug in and go home. Maybe thats why they didn't design them with a lot of range.

 

[FL-JOE]

I just know that farmers use a ton of diesel, so they obviously will be trying to get more for their crops due to their costs going up. Our food and 90% of the other products we use are transported by diesel along the way so they are again going up.

While the prices of oil is setting new records and driving inflation up, recently the stocks for Rivian and Ford have taken a hit. No one knows what the future will bring but I'm guessing it will look more like "Leave It To Beaver" rather than "Star Wars".

 

[Dona40]

Better yet I am wondering about the charging facilities and where. Will they replace the fuel islands at a Flying J as an example? Time is of essence so the charge rate will have be efficient. Likewise, do the charging business economics work that a national truck stop chain can substitute electricity for gasoline and still make the same or more revenue? That’s going to be an expensive conversion or not? It’s going to be interesting to watch.

Truck stops will need to install a small nuclear power plant to feed the trucks. Yeah, not going to happen.

 

[sanda]

Range is nothing to brag about but other than long haul, its already here. And one thing trucks can do is haul a load so theres no reason they can’t double or triple the battery size.

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But batteries are heavy thereby reducing the load carrying capacity. How much weight in batteries would an 18 wheeler need to run coast to coast with 80,000 lbs. of gross weight? How much weight in batteries would a 2500 pickup with a 10,000 lb. trailer need to drive 400 miles without recharge?

 

[GypsyR]

The main hangup on batteries is that manufacturers are so hung up on bespoke batteries. They design a battery and build a car around it. They need to build them like flashlights. Dead batteries? Swap in some fresh and back to work. In Thailand someone has already started this with electric scooter/mopeds.
Same thing could be done with cars and trucks. On cars, flat batteries in the floor or something. Pull up, open the rocker panels, push batteries in on side which pushes them out the other. Pay for the difference between the state of charge of you trade-in versus the 100% ones you just got. Bigger vehicle, more battery packs.

One barrier is the changing technology though. No one wants to be stuck with a big investment in one only to have it upstaged by something better that requires a whole different setup. Like if someone does do hot-swap battery packs, all of a sudden the entirety of Tesla goes right under the bus.

 

[Voyageurs]

The main hangup on batteries is that manufacturers are so hung up on bespoke batteries. They design a battery and build a car around it. They need to build them like flashlights. Dead batteries? Swap in some fresh and back to work. In Thailand someone has already started this with electric scooter/mopeds.
Same thing could be done with cars and trucks. On cars, flat batteries in the floor or something. Pull up, open the rocker panels, push batteries in on side which pushes them out the other. Pay for the difference between the state of charge of you trade-in versus the 100% ones you just got. Bigger vehicle, more battery packs.

One barrier is the changing technology though. No one wants to be stuck with a big investment in one only to have it upstaged by something better that requires a whole different setup. Like if someone does do hot-swap battery packs, all of a sudden the entirety of Tesla goes right under the bus.

Tesla actually has tried it and actually had a swap out station on i5 to test market response. But people just don’t mind the 15 or 20 minute supercharge time. Pull in, hook up, walk over and get a coffee, pee, get a snack. By the time that is done the car is ready to go and you hit the road. Rinse and repeat three hours later. For most it’s not a big deal.

 

[marc2912]

Tesla actually has tried it and actually had a swap out station on i5 to test market response. But people just don’t mind the 15 or 20 minute supercharge time. Pull in, hook up, walk over and get a coffee, pee, get a snack. By the time that is done the car is ready to go and you got the road. Rinse and repeat three hours later. For most it’s not a big deal.

Very much this. Drove my 3 at the time from NY to the outer banks and my friend went down in his jeep a few years back. We did pretty much the same time. While fueling up is faster, the time it takes to grab food, have a smoke, take a leek makes it the same. We left at the same time and pretty much arrived within 15 mins of one another.

 

[Dona40]

But batteries are heavy thereby reducing the load carrying capacity. How much weight in batteries would an 18 wheeler need to run coast to coast with 80,000 lbs. of gross weight? How much weight in batteries would a 2500 pickup with a 10,000 lb. trailer need to drive 400 miles without recharge?

Not to mention the payload space taken. Pretty much like the rocket fuel equation. I.E. carry 1 lb. of weight to a given distance, you need 10 lbs. fuel. Add another pound payload and you square the fuel (110 lbs.) Adding fuel increases payload and so on. I don't claim to be a rocket scientist but that's pretty much the jist.

 

[GypsyR]

For most it’s not a big deal.

OK. I don't want to spend 20-40 minutes of my day loitering around any kind of filling station. Maybe that's just me. But I suspect give things a few years to where electric cars are no longer novel and "special" and I will have company.

 

[Fish]

Very much this. Drove my 3 at the time from NY to the outer banks and my friend went down in his jeep a few years back. We did pretty much the same time. While fueling up is faster, the time it takes to grab food, have a smoke, take a leek makes it the same. We left at the same time and pretty much arrived within 15 mins of one another.

I'm not big on electric vehicles, at my age I'll probably never own one.

I don't know if charging time is a factor though. I've sat in truck stops in line for longer than 15 minutes waiting to fuel up.