2018 Nissan Leaf
As co-owner of two electric vehicles (EVs), a 2018 Nissan Leaf and a 2018 Tesla Model 3, I find I prefer not to drive a gasoline powered car ever again. It’s not just the quiet ride, faster acceleration (much more fun to drive) and lower maintenance cost. It’s also the fact that I never have to stop to get gas. I have always hated going to the gas station. Sure, with an EV you still have to charge the batteries, but you can do that by plugging it in at home overnight (which makes home solar energy even more attractive) or stopping at charging stations, which are popping up more and more frequently near shopping, restaurants, movie theaters and more. The argument has come up, that it takes more time to plug in and charge a car than it does to stop at a gas station, but I see lines forming in Costco gas stations in order to save a few cents causing a wait of 30 minutes or more. In almost the same amount of time, you can charge an EV while doing something you needed to do anyway and it is way less expensive than gasoline.
THINKPROGRESS.ORG’s Joe Romm recently wrote an excellent article explaining how gasoline powered cars may soon be as obsolete as flip phones, and no one will want them. Electric cars may already be making gas cars as obsolete as ‘flip phones’, experts say
There are people who still love their flip phones and refuse to take that step forward. Before you decide that the smelly, noisy, high-maintenance, gasoline powered combustion engine vehicle is the only one you’ll ever drive, test drive an EV. After you purchase that EV, go ahead and put solar on your home to power both your home and your vehicle. Or better yet, you can put solar on your home now and be ready for that EV once it arrives! You can always put classic license plates on that 1968 Camaro convertible and cover it in the garage, only driving it on special occasions. Then, just maybe you’ll consider trading in your flip phone for a smart phone. Or maybe not. My pink Motorola Razr flip phone is in its original box on the top shelf in my closet, because it too is a classic.
