BMW suicide note

Discussion in 'General' started by bwilson4web, Jan 18, 2020.

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  1. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web Well-Known Member Subscriber

    Source: https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-rival-bmw-30-yrs-of-ice-no-ev-demand-us/

    BMW’s head of Research and Development Klaus Froehlich does not have any plans to push his company into the quickly growing electric vehicle sector. In a recent interview, the BMW exec stated that he believes the various markets of the world simply do not have a real need for electric cars.
    . . .
    Froehlich’s most interesting comment was his belief that the United States simply does not have a real need for electric vehicles because of an incomplete charging infrastructure. He also claimed that while EVs are good for the east and west coast, the rest of the US will continue adopting the internal combustion engine.

    “Most of the U.S. does not need BEVs. We could offer high-performance plug-in hybrids in the M space, providing a lot of fun to the driver as well as [environmental] credits for us. We see BEVs mainly in the west coast and parts of the east coast, while the rest of the U.S. will continue with conventional gasoline engines,” he said.
    . . .

    I'm OK with this because I already have my BMW i3-REx.

    Bob Wilson
     
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  3. davidtm

    davidtm Active Member

    I can see that this statement is generally accurate, but only for the relatively short-term. Thus, the implied corporate suicidality in the longer term. Of course, one of their options is to define the more limited high-performance ICE segment for themselves.

    Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk
     
  4. interestedinEV

    interestedinEV Well-Known Member

    Honda, Toyota, BMW are all saying similar things. They see, based on their market research, a push to EVs is driven mainly by incentives and people more focused on environment. And that, it still not an view across the country. That is as @davidtm says, a static 2019 view of the market and consumer sentiment. They may also anticipate or factor in that the current administration is not supportive of the incentives and will do away with it soon. That they will also get rid of CARB standards. In which case large scale adoption of EVs will pushed further in the future.

    What they are missing is the rapid changes in battery technology which may make the need or lack of a charging infrastructure less of an impediment. For example I live in the Phoenix area and if I were to want to go to LA (about 400 miles), even with the Tesla S extended range I may need a charging stop. If I can get a reasonably priced car that has range of 500 miles, then I get LA, spend 30-45 minutes having a coffee while car is being fully charged and I am back in Phoenix without having to charge again. Once this technology breakthrough happens, the need for ICEs and large scale charging infrastructure are greatly diminished.

    So BMW and others are factoring this breakthrough will not happen and the current administration will get their way with removing incentives and CARB standards. They may be right in their assessment, but only time will tell. The downside for BMW and others is that if their calculations are wrong, they may be looking at extinction.
     
  5. 101101

    101101 Well-Known Member

    That is all utter nonsense. Tesla doesn't need incentives, charging infrastructure isn't an impediment, CARB isn't going anywhere, I doubt Trump will make it through impeachment ( the case even before the targeting of the US Ambassador by admin came out, witness are now pouring through and will testify in the senate or worse in the court of public opinion) Trump is OJ'd and surely won't be re-elected and if he is even on a popular vote if there is a dem senate and house (seeming very likely looking at what is going in Florida and Wisconsin with reversals of gerrymandering and dis-disfranchisement) they will remove him even if it costs them both houses. More than that, like Black Rock, he's suddenly changed his tune on climate change he doesn't deny it anymore and GOP is finding they have to have a climate plan beyond idiot hydrogen and idiot clean coal (blue planet has a good form of carbon capture for cement- the kind of carbon capture proposed by Gates is stupid!) There is no threshold on range that has to be crossed that is pure delusion. We're there, threshold crossed. EVs by Tesla are radically better cars that are radically more convenient and public has learned this. Little talking point scams like Ionity are predictably fizziling out. Million happy Tesla owners and 30 million followers (future or current Tesla customers) have crossed a threshold overpowering the FUDster bs base.

    Here is what needs to be focused on. In the US with one model the Model 3 Tesla outsold every other maker in the small and mid-sized premium segment by multiples. With that one model Tesla sole more units in the US than BMW sold cars and they were in BMW's price ranges. Now normally I have the utmost respect for Zach Shahan's reporting but he seems to be missing that BMW didn't not make up the difference with its X3 sales- totally obvious just by looking around. No, more likely BMW has simply been lying. Just like last year when it told that story and then its financial results were the worst in a decade and the CEO was removed. Now they are doing it again same lie even worse result this year watch! Daimler has the worst sales in 25 years. This is because electrics are real and they beat every car maker in their most ego driven profitable segments right now on sales, at least if they come from Tesla. This is not an accident this level of thrashing is called: domination. Herb Diess gets it, much respect to him for understanding. Kramer gets it now, Monro clearly gets it he just can't demoralize his client base, but if they listen to what he is really saying they would get it too.

    Lets also focus on who Tesla has been beating since its beginning: Mercedes Benz, Lexus, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Acura, Infinity, Jaguar, Lincoln, Cadillac. Tesla has the highest good will on the planet, the best brand loyalty and best recognition and it doesn't even advertise. And what is it generally selling? Its selling EVs. Its like that Barbara Corcoran said: this guy is a winner! Its adversaries are a bunch of lying cheating villainous cry wolfer victims whose glory days are over and obsolescence is obvious. Tesla is the obvious choice on product superiority and the products its replacing if purchased instead make people feel guilty and stupid.
     
  6. verv

    verv New Member

    Hey, I also drive an i3 Rex, and I'm in Iowa, so there is definitely some interest in the Midwest. There's obviously some major pains involved with driving an EV in an Iowa winter; the severely reduced range, and charger freezing, come immediately to mind. I don't see transitioning to electric vehicles optional though, so instead of seeing these problems as a reason to give up, I'm looking at them as challenges that we need to overcome. At the moment it's negative 3 degrees and my charger port is just a solid block of ice, but instead of just switching to an ICE vehicle I'm going to mod a fishtank heater into the charger port. As far as the range, I was thinking about how gas engines generate heat as a byproduct, which is why it takes minimal additional energy to heat a vehicle, while obviously EVs are generally heated electrically. But we've still got excess heat from the batteries that could probably be used the same way. I haven't done the research to see if it's viable, but it's a thought.

    Overall it feels like EVs aren't good for cold temperatures because they weren't designed for cold, and manufacturers are deciding that people don't want them in the Midwest because they weren't designed for it. It's sort of circular logic. I predict that we'll soon see a company that specializes in exactly this. Either EVs designed for cold, or modifications for that purpose.
     
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  8. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web Well-Known Member Subscriber

    When our Model 3 charger port froze, it was not only around the edges but also the hinge mechanism. The J1772 adapter also froze in the socket. I used an ordinary deicer spray and in our moderate temperatures, no problem.

    Let me suggest looking at some sort of anti-icing, hood, that would keep freezing rain, sleet, and snow from accumulating. Perhaps an incandescent light that could be plugged into an extension cord. It would not take much power if started early enough.
    You might want to research the "Super Bottle" in the Tesla Model 3.
    Pre-conditioning is especially important so grid power warms the cabin and battery. With a Rex, there is more heat potentially available but no plumbing to get it where it could do some good.

    Bob Wilson
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2020

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