I would like to point out that it wasn't until recently that EV charging stations opened up in my town. I checked last year and there were none nearby. Now there's a couple. The infrastructure isn't there yet for middle America.
this post was submitted on 19 Mar 2026
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I can't justify a new car because I barely drive mine, but I still need it for a few edge cases, but I hate it because I bought it new just before some big features like back-up cameras became popular, but selling it would be a fool’s move because it’s in great shape since I take such good care of it and never drive it but it’s so old they would only offer a pittance.
Eternally torn between selling everything and becoming a hermit who lives in the woods and ramping up my consumerist whore game to get the best new thing.
Being happy with what you have is the zen state here.
My last car was an EV. I loved how it drove, I loved charging at home and never having to stop at the gas station, and I told everyone around me, "If you can afford it, you have an ethical obligation to buy a hybrid or an EV." Since Trump 2.0 I've been concerned about some form of collapse that would make me flee my home - natural disaster, violent military occupation, etc. I started to wonder, "What's stopping Elon from limiting access to all these superchargers?" Public chargers are much slower than gas, and they're easily vandalized. The whole thing just seems like a liability at this point. At least in a Mad Max scenario I could barter for a can of guzzoline.
I hate that I'm even considering any of this.
Just shoot someone and take their car running on gas, problem solved ez pz.
But seriously if you're in a situation where our power grid has collapsed I don't think the gas pumps are gonna work either. Besides you could still create a mobile charging solution using solar, I don't think it'd be fast or anything but it might even be more viable than trying to get gasoline in a real shit hits the fan world.
I want an EV. I also unfortunately drive longer distances than most people on average and also let my car sit for days with no access to a charge. Some EV systems use 1-2% battery per day for BMS, conditioning and telemetry, and that would make it difficult to use an EV in my case and only charge to the 80% mark to ensure battery longevity.
Nobody really makes a car that can do that for an affordable price. Yeah, I guess I’m probably a special use case, but nonetheless the cost and range limitations are prohibitive.
Well Nazi musk didn't help.
People who did want electric didn't want a Tesla.
And other options were less easy to find
But there are still good alternatives.
Like the Rivian
And the Olinia (still being developed in Mexico and inexpensive).
Probably others.
But Rivian seemed pretty popular
Anyone worried about the price of gas is not buying a $150,000 Rivian.
If you can charge at home, a used car with 50-100 miles of range is plenty. Much more affordable than buying new, too.
less easy to find
Me, looking at every Nissan dealership nationwide for the last 15 years: ...
Nissan makes electric cars?
I didn't know this. They sure don't advertise it very well.
Wasn't the Nissan Leaf the most popular EV pre-Tesla? Or am I just plain wrong...
They sold 650,000 of them.
It was reasonably priced and started with the 2011 model year (I had one!). The Roadster was the only Tesla available at that time, and the Model S was released for the 2012 model year, but the base model cost 2x+ the cost of the top-trim Leaf.
It was popular because it wasn't trying to impress anyone, and had the price tag to back it up.
The first gen ones had a weak range and batteries failed because they lacked temperature control.
Gen 2+ are fine and really cheap used with 60,000 miles.
The Leaf was the first mass-produced affordable EV in the states
The Leaf was the first mass-produced affordable EV in the states
Well, technically the GM EV1 probably holds that title, but I agree with you in spirit.
Not mass produced, not available for most of the country, lease only and every car was crushed.
The EV1 was supposed to have demonstrated that EVs were not viable.
Ehh the EV1 wasn't really mass-produced, it was also lease-only so GM could crush them for that sweet sweet oil bribe money.
Fuck you, GM.
Can't afford an EV. Can't afford gas. Guess I don't go into the office.
Small bikes like the Honda Wave get 160 mpg and cost like 1200 new, bigger ones like cb750 hornet get 50 mpg and go for 9k new.
Ah yes, a small bike so I can add medical bills to my already dwindling budget. Great advice.
Small refers to the displacement, its not a minibike. You wouldn't take it on a highway, but it'll carry you around town, and can hold a suprising amount of luggage if you're creative/balanced.
You wouldn't take it on a highway
Heh, it's not a bad idea, but sadly it wouldn't be practical for most in the US. Living here, you'd be hard-pressed to find many people who don't need to use a highway to get to work. Maybe in small towns and big cities? At my own job, I can't think of a single coworker that lives in the same town as we work, and almost every person needs to take a major highway to get there. Theoretically we could take back roads, but it would take so much more time vs the highway that leads right into town. Commutes of a half hour or more are common.
I'm aware, that's why I included a highway-capable motorbike too.
The 125 will do 60 after 14 seconds of redlining it, and it's so de-tuned you can literally do that every day for years and the engine will be fine, but going 60 on a bike only works with speed limit 65 and wouldn't be comfortable for more than half and hour with everyone flying by doing 75+.
A Honda Winner X 155 gets 122 mpg and can do 85ish, and is kinda the minimum I'd be comfortable on an American highway, and not like long road trips.
What is this?! A bike for small dogs?! Blue Steel Face
That was el tigre.
All bikes are bikes for small dogs.
spoiler
I've been wanting an EV since the day I got my license at 27ish. Up to then I had been cycling everywhere, and didn't really need long distance or cargo capacity beyond what I could carry in a pack and saddlebags.
Ideally I wouldn't need a car, and public transit would provide the majority of non-bike travel, but that's not the country I live in. We'd rather elect officials that dump money into fossil fuels.
Currently I need a small form electric truck with at least 2ft of ground clearance and preferably no giant nose on the front that small children can hide behind, with at least 100mi of travel on one charge and the ability to go 300mi in one day with full size charging stations.
Of course like many people, my biggest hurdle isn't finding one that I like, it's finding one that is even remotely affordable. And assuring me the used market of shitty half-dead cars that will require many thousands more in mechanic costs due to the simple fact that if something breaks on it, I can't fix it as simply as a gasoline engine vehicle.
That’s the fun part about electric cars. The batteries are warrantied for 10 years and the data and real life examples show they go much longer than that.
Only repairs are coolant, brakes, and tires. Don’t hit/damage any of the sensors/electronics… they’re the expensive part of an EV. Self driving is amazing though.
The used market is a great place to get a EV AT 3-50% off.
rivian or Tesla is the only one with a truck bed though. I dunno where you’d find 2 feet of clearance in any vehicle without modification.
My mache can pull a trailer pretty easily at the weights you’re describing.
Currently I need a small form electric truck with at least 2ft of ground clearance and preferably no giant nose on the front that small children can hide behind, with at least 100mi of travel on one charge and the ability to go 300mi in one day with full size charging stations.
You want to go back in time and get the Chevy S-10 Electric from the late 90s.
Hell yeah. I've actually used the S10 as an example of the max size I want a truck to be. Stretch the cab forward to the unnecessary engine bay and make it a crew cab with no nose.
At this point I'd take a modern truck if it was offered, but I'd be looking to trade for something smaller immediately. Modern trucks are just too grossly oversized, and I, as an adult, often can barely see over the hood of modern trucks. And tons of trucks around here have lift kits installed, making them even less safe for pedestrians
Sounds like you might be interested in this: https://www.slate.auto/en
I don't know much about the company. I just know they're working on releasing an electric SUV/truck (it could be either depending on what you want) and it's supposedly going to be priced around $25k. They might be full of shit for all I know but that's the marketing buzz at least.
Put Slate on the long list of US EV vaporware and grifts.
Id manage your expectations here. A lot of ex Amazon executives are in decision making roles. @SARGE@startrek.website
I heard about them a few weeks back, messed around on their site building a couple different trucks, from the one I would actually buy, to the one I'd get if I had all the money and time to go out to the middle of nowhere for a week long camping trip.
It's neat!
And solar
When they moan like this at $5/gal, what will Americans do once it reaches serious numbers?
gas is almost $4.00/gal here in Wisconsin, so.. cool.
That's because here in the Midwest we get a lot of our oil for gasoline from Canada. But demand is going to continue to spike and it will not stay that way.
2/3 of Americans still won’t buy an EV. They love overpaying for overpriced, oversized gas guzzlers. This has all happened before and will probably happen again. This is the country that elects people who want to tear down windmills and solar panels so they can “drill baby drill”.
3/4 of Americans can't even afford an EV.
The same people who buy Suburbans and Escalades could buy Rivians or a Kia EV9 instead. They're similar sizes and price ranges. People are just dumb
The R1S is a whole foot shorter than the short wheelbase Escalade/Suburban. And the EV9 is even shorter. They are not similar sizes.