"I went back to ICE because there's no viable alternative to Tesla."

Audi E-Tron, BMWi3, Chevy Bolt, Ford Mach-e, Hyundai Ionoiq Electric, Hyundai Kona Electric, Jaguar I-Pace, Kandi K27, Kia Niro Electric, Lucid Air, MiniCooper SE, Nissan Leaf, Polestar 2, Porsche Taycan, Rivian R1T, Rivian R1S, Volvo XC40 and VW ID4. These are all on the market to buy new in Murrka. There are also some discontinued models available used. And I've probably missed a few of the current options. I don't know whether the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and the Kia EV 6 are on sale in Murrka, for example.

 There are over 100 models of new EV currently for sale in Europe. So why are most of them not on sale here in Murrka? That's a damn good question, if you ask me! And if you ask why so many more EV's are sold in Europe and in China than in Murrka, that's one of the obvious answers. And if people say that Murrkins don't buy small cars, I reply that we're not ABLE to buy cars which aren't offered for SALE here. (And I resist the urge to hit. I haven't punched anyone since 1978 and I'm proud of that.) Last time I checked, over half the top 10 bestselling EV's in Europe are not available in the US.

 

The only reason I'm talking more about EV's in Europe than in China is I know less about EV's in China. And about EV's in the rest of the world.

 

(And all of this is not counting large trucks, delivery vans, buses and so forth. There are a lot of those.)

 

Anyway, all of this is in response to a post I saw recently in social media from a person who had troubles with a Tesla (yes, shocking, I know, but he was less than fully satisfied), and went back to ICE, because "there is no viable alternative to Tesla."

 

Electric Crossovers and Trucks are Coming to the US, But Smaller, Bestselling EV's Aren't Being Brought Here

If you keep up with the news about EV's, you will perceive a lot of of excitement in the US right now about electric SUV's, crossovers, trucks and big sedans. The Mustang Mach-E, which despite its name is not a Mustang, but a crossover, has been selling very well. The Hyundai Ioniq 5, another crossover, is coming soon, as are big fast sedans from Lucid, Polestar and Audi, and trucks from Rivian and Tesla and Bollinger, as well as newer versions of great big huge EV's which have already been on sale in the US for a while. And a report from some alleged geniuses says that VW "could" eventually compete with Tesla in the EV market. The VW id.4, a crossover, will go on sale in the US very soon, if it hasn't already.

In Europe, the best-selling EV right now is the VW id.3, a hatchback a bit smaller then the id.4, which hit the market last year. 2nd place: the Renault Zoe, which has been around for years and sold a huge number of units, over 250,000 and counting fast, 4th all-time among EV's after the Tesla Model 3, the Nissan Leaf and the Tesla Model S.. 

Neither the id.3 nor the Zoe is on sale in the US. 

And European reviewers are very excited about many other smallish EV's, such as the Honda E, which also are not for sale in in the US. The best-selling EV in China is the Wuling HongGuang Mini EV -- not on sale in the US.

"They" say that we Americans love SUV's, crossovers and trucks. But it's sort of hard for us to make the case that we would often prefer smaller cars when it's literally impossible for us to buy them.

 

Jeepers, why were almost 4 times as many EV's sold in Europe last year as in the US? It's a complete and stupefying mystery! The number sold in China was almost identical to Europe. Europe just barely won.

 

I'm old enough to remember the 1960's and 70's, when the US market was full of muscle cars, station wagons and huge sluggish sedans. Not very exciting machines, but the manufacturers made huge profits per vehicle. What's going on right now in the US EV market feels very familiar, unfortunately. Except that in this case it's doubly stupid, of course, because EV's are supposedly about efficiency.

The Cute EV of the Month Award goes to the Citroen Ami. This time it wasn't even close.

 

This French 2-seater is technically not even  a car, at least not according to French laws. 14-year-olds can legally drive it. The exterior is entirely made of plastic. The Ami doesn't have any of the sound insulation found in conventional automobiles, so you hear the very small electrical motor whizzing away as you drive. It doesn't seem to be able to top 30mph, except maybe downhill. Don't quote me on the downhill over-30mph, I'm not entirely sure about it. So far it's only available in France. Despite the total lack of anything even remotely resembling frills, British reviewers are going, please please please, Citroen, bring it to the UK, and Citroen is saying, Okay, maybe, we'll see, which makes the British reviewers hop around with glee.

What about in the US? Haha. Ahhhh, haaaa-hahahaaaa, haahaa, haha!  

No, as far as I know, there are no immediate plans to bring the Citroen Ami to the US.

I've got a great idea for a commercial for the Citroen Ami. "Ami" is French for "friend." In the commercial, someone is walking along the sidewalk, while an Ami rolls along silently in the street just behind him. There's no-one behind the steering wheel. He turns around and the Ami stops. He starts walking again and the Ami starts rolling along behind him again. He turns around again and looks at the Ami for a longer period of time. Then the Ami says, in a voice like ET: "Friend."

EV's (That's Short for "Electric Vehicles")

Lately, all of a sudden, I've been paying a lot more attention to the cars around me. Specifically, I've been looking for EV's, electrical vehicles. For years, I'd already been spotting Toyota Priuses, which are gasoline, electric hybrids, because of their distinctive body shape. But besides the Priuses, there are more hybrids and pure EV's around me than I had thought.

This afternoon I saw a Tesla Model 3 in a parking lot nearby. I've been looking at so many Teslas online lately that this one looked familiar from a long way away, and I came up for a close look, and sure enough. It surprised me that I was right, because none of the Teslas -- to my way of thinking -- is nearly as distinctive-looking as, say, a Prius. Many Tesla fans would denounce me for this opinion, because to them, Teslas are distinctive-looking and very uniquely beautiful. And who am I to try to minimize their joy in beauty. Lately, I've seen either several Tesla Model S's, or the same Model S several times. The Model S is a rather expensive model which Tesla first started selling in 2012. The Model 3

is a less expensive model which went on sale in 2017, and which will surely soon surpass all of the other Tesla models, going back to 2008, in number of units sold, if it hasn't already. (As of the end of 2018, combined sales of all other Tesla models added up to almost 400,000 units.) One of the Model S's zoomed past me very quickly on the right, accomplishing being ahead of me instead on behind me when the road narrowed down to single-lane single-file. I was startled, and yelled out the window, "Was that really necessary?!" Yes, I still sometimes yell at other drivers. But I'm trying to stop once and for all. I don't road rage as much as I used to.

Since I've been looking at the rear fender of every single car I walk past lately, I've been seeing the green badge on the back of many Fords which says "EcoBoost." I've been having a hard time finding concrete information about EcoBoost, information such as: is there actually anything ecological about EcoBoost, or is the name just a cynical ploy on Ford's part to make buyers think they're being green?

I saw a BMW i8, a very high-end, very sporty hybrid, and spoke to its owner, but soon got the impression that many strangers talked to him about his car and he was tired of it, so I left him alone.

A Tesla driver might be more green, in his personal transportation carbon footprint, than an ICE (internal-combustion engine) driver. If the Tesla driver gets his electricity from solar or wind, then there's no maybe about it. A Nissan Leaf driver might have a smaller carbon footprint than the Tesla driver. Someone who has no car and takes the bus might be greener still, especially if the local buses are green. There are other factors besides whether you drive a car and what kind of car you drive, such as how many miles per year you drive. And airline travel is very dirty, ship travel too, although some ships are much cleaner than others. Many ships are hybrids now. So are many trains. And of course, many trains have been all-electric for a very, very long time. And transportation is only a fraction of the current total hydrocarbon usage. So, I'm just saying: if you drive a Prius or a Tesla: Thank you. But don't forget that there are also many other things you can do, or not do, to help us all survive our own activity.