Quoted from unclerudy:

Wayne State University. I got my degree in December.

Quoted from Pinless:

Rivian’s are really cool. Tons of power and tech.
However, they are not readily available yet. He either placed his order a long time ago or is an employee of Rivian.
Once they get manufacturing going, I think they’re going to be huge. They are building vehicles that have a lot of utility.

Quoted from bob_e:

I'm in Michigan and I have seen Rivians,Hummers,Mach-E, F-150E and the Chevy truck too on the road here never ever seen a Cybertruck,
OH wait there is one now...nope just a Delorian

Quoted from bob_e:

I'm in Michigan and I have seen Rivians,Hummers,Mach-E, F-150E and the Chevy truck too on the road here never ever seen a Cybertruck,
OH wait theres one now...nope just a Delorian

Quoted from Pinless:

That’s unfortunate you’re down on EV’s after dedicating so much time learning about them in school.
An internship at Lucid, Rivian or Tesla may have shown you what’s really happening behind the scenes. I bet it would have changed your perspective.
They’re putting out cars with 400-500+ mile range. They’re running 9-10 second quarter miles.
Rivian put out quickest truck ever produced with fully adjustable suspension and TANK TURNS!
If that doesn’t excite an engineer, I don’t know what would.

Quoted from Pinless:

Rivian’s are really cool. Tons of power and tech.
However, they are not readily available yet. He either placed his order a long time ago or is an employee of Rivian.
Once they get manufacturing going, I think they’re going to be huge. They are building vehicles that have a lot of utility.

Quoted from unclerudy:

I've worked in the auto industry for the past 20 years. I interviewed at Rivian, and wasn't impressed. I also do a very niche work in the auto industry, ISO 26262. I've worked at multiple OEMs, numerous Tier I suppliers, and know how everything works. Energy density needs to increase 10 fold before electric vehicles will become commonplace and widespread.

Quoted from Pinless:

How do you come up with the need of a 10 fold increase in energy density?
They’re producing cars with as much, or more, range than ICE sedans now.

Quoted from Pinless:

(Millions of)People actually use them every day. A Porsche Taycan recently drove cross country 2,800 miles and spent less than 2.5 hours charging.
When did you go to school? There have been large leaps in energy density, and they will continue to get better.

Quoted from unclerudy:

The issue is that you cannot charge an electric vehicle to full charge quickly from empty without affecting the life of the battery. I can fill my ICE in less than 5 minutes. Until something like that works for the EV, people will not want to have them. Vehicles are supposed to last 10 plus years, and with only 5% of vehicles sold each year are full electric, the replacement rate not going to convert to all electric any time soon unless ICE are completely outlawed. At least 10 years to start, maybe more like 20.

Quoted from insight75:

But people do have them. 99% of my driving is short commutes to work or the store. Keeping charge overnight to 80-90% means I hardly ever have to charge elsewhere unless I'm going on a long trip. This will work for most people. It's only those very seldom times you go on a long trip. I get that it won't work for everyone. But it works for most. And there are a LOT of people currently driving them. Also.....there are plenty of 2012 Tesla's still on the road with the original battery.

Quoted from unclerudy:

Your use case might work, but for the average person near where I live might drive 45 plus minutes for work, and we have very few charging stations anywhere. I say the real target is to be able to have a full sized truck, that can carry a boat from the Detroit area to the Mackinac Bridge without needing to stop, and have the ability charge pretty much anywhere.

Quoted from Pinless:

95+% of EV charging takes place at home.
I get that it takes you 5 minutes to fill up.
But I spend 5 seconds filling up 95% of the time. Just pull in the garage, plug in, and wake up to a full battery. You don’t need to charge the battery 100%, 80% is plenty.
I also spend 0 minutes on performing maintenance.
You could easily commute 45 minutes and never worry about range or gas stations.

Quoted from Pinless:

They don’t build work trucks so it shouldn’t be that much of a surprise that they use trucks or vans from another manufacturer.
All of their SSD vans are Ford Transits.

Quoted from unclerudy:

The issue is that you cannot charge an electric vehicle to full charge quickly from empty without affecting the life of the battery. I can fill my ICE in less than 5 minutes. Until something like that works for the EV, people will not want to have them. Vehicles are supposed to last 10 plus years, and with only 5% of vehicles sold each year are full electric, the replacement rate not going to convert to all electric any time soon unless ICE are completely outlawed. At least 10 years to start, maybe more like 20.

Quoted from coolwhs:

Gas or Diesel trucks will become a niche product in 10 years or less for one simple reason: fuel cost.
No business owners with half a brain would buy a gas or diesel truck if they don't have to.
(Tesla stats are estimated)
Tesla Cybertruck 250 KWH battery pack at 12 cents per KWH = $30 to charge for 400 Miles of range $30 / 400 = 7.5 cents per mile
F250/RAM 2500/Silverado 12 MPG combined at $3 a gallon gas = $3 / 12 = 25 cents per mile
Not to mention all the problems with gas/diesel emissions and the BS for the fuel mileage.
Electric trucks also won't need much of any maintenance.
Modern day vehicles use a lot of parts that are basically too complicated to repair.
I feel bad for anyone buying a hybrid truck right now; 10 or 15 years from now spare parts will be unobtainable aside from junkyards.
Even tier 2 and 3 suppliers are looking at whether to close or not:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/mergermarket/2021/05/27/are-we-there-yet-automotive-suppliers-taking-different-routes-to-all-electric-future/amp/

Quoted from woody76:

You are out of your damn mind. If you think diesel tractors, box trucks, and delivery vans will be niche in 10 years you have for sure lost it. Prices had been in decent shape until 1 year ago.

Quoted from coolwhs:

Farming tractors no, the cost to replace them will be too high initially.
All the shipping and freight companies are run by accountants who will look at the cost per mile and demand that everything be electric or they'll be run out of business by those who do.
It's what's going to happen IF the companies can make enough batteries.

Quoted from BMore-Pinball:

What's a 30 min charge time every 300 miles do to cost per mile?
We are not even close to having number of chargers needed for the trucking industry to go electric
I don't even know if there are any chargers available that are accessible by large trucks

Quoted from BMore-Pinball:

What's a 30 min charge time every 300 miles do to cost per mile?
We are not even close to having number of chargers needed for the trucking industry to go electric
I don't even know if there are any chargers available that are accessible by large trucks

Quoted from coolwhs:

Copying from my post a couple posts above:
Gas or Diesel trucks will become a niche product in 10 years or less for one simple reason: fuel cost.
No business owners with half a brain would buy a gas or diesel truck if they don't have to.
(Tesla stats are estimated)
Tesla Cybertruck 250 KWH battery pack at 12 cents per KWH = $30 to charge for 400 Miles of range $30 / 400 = 7.5 cents per mile
F250/RAM 2500/Silverado 12 MPG combined at $3 a gallon gas = $3 / 12 = 25 cents per mile
Not to mention all the problems with gas/diesel emissions and the BS for the fuel mileage.
Electric trucks also won't need much of any maintenance.
Modern day vehicles use a lot of parts that are basically too complicated to repair.
I feel bad for anyone buying a hybrid truck right now; 10 or 15 years from now spare parts will be unobtainable aside from junkyards.
Even tier 2 and 3 suppliers are looking at whether to close or not:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/mergermarket/2021/05/27/are-we-there-yet-automotive-suppliers-taking-different-routes-to-all-electric-future/amp/

Quoted from BMore-Pinball:

I agree that it's in the cards for the future, just not in the 10 year or less time frame
If we get an administration change in the future and again become a net exporter of oil - prices could drop back to levels of a few years ago

Quoted from coolwhs:

That's only the fuel savings though.
That's not including anything considered "normal" like the occasional big ticket repair/refurbishment of the engine or transmission which can be tens of thousands for a semi.
Aside from some coolant swaps there's nothing to do on an electric vehicle.

Quoted from Darscot:

What kind of Masters Degree is Electric Vehicle Engineering, what faculty is your bachelors?

Quoted from coolwhs:

Copying from my post a couple posts above:
Gas or Diesel trucks will become a niche product in 10 years or less for one simple reason: fuel cost.
No business owners with half a brain would buy a gas or diesel truck if they don't have to.
(Tesla stats are estimated)
Tesla Cybertruck 250 KWH battery pack at 12 cents per KWH = $30 to charge for 400 Miles of range $30 / 400 = 7.5 cents per mile
F250/RAM 2500/Silverado 12 MPG combined at $3 a gallon gas = $3 / 12 = 25 cents per mile
Not to mention all the problems with gas/diesel emissions and the BS for the fuel mileage.
Electric trucks also won't need much of any maintenance.
Modern day vehicles use a lot of parts that are basically too complicated to repair.
I feel bad for anyone buying a hybrid truck right now; 10 or 15 years from now spare parts will be unobtainable aside from junkyards.
Even tier 2 and 3 suppliers are looking at whether to close or not:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/mergermarket/2021/05/27/are-we-there-yet-automotive-suppliers-taking-different-routes-to-all-electric-future/amp/

Quoted from jawjaw:

10 years? Are you crazy? How often does the average person buy a brand new car? Most people cannot even afford a brand new car let alone an expensive luxury type of vehicle which is what most ev cars fall into. Commercial businesses are not going to just convert entire fleets of vehicles just like that. There is a reason why Tesla had that Ford F150 for a work truck that someone posted up above. Commercial businesses need reliable vehicles and any down time charging results in loss of revenue. Diesel trucks are popular because of the hauling power and longevity. They pretty much run forever. Then you get into infrastructure changes and cost to do so. You also have people that flat out do not want an ev vehicle. Ridiculous to think that all that is going to change in just a few years.

Quoted from Pinless:

I think by niche, he may mean that EV’s will exceed all ICE capabilities.
HP, torque, range, maintenance, cost etc.. EV will eventually check all the boxes and there’s only going to be a small group choosing ICE.
Right now they’re not the best choice for hauling your large boat or trailer. However, in 10 years the energy density and efficiency will be higher.
It’s crazy to think the first EV trucks out of the gate all have 800+ HP and 300’ish mile range. Where will they be in 10 years?

Quoted from unclerudy:

That's right now. Electricity prices will go up with demand, and the price per mile will be the same. And until the infrastructure is there to provide all that electricity, to replace all the energy oil provides right now, electric vehicles can't replace oil based. Maybe long term, but not any time soon.

Quoted from unclerudy:

That's right now. Electricity prices will go up with demand, and the price per mile will be the same. And until the infrastructure is there to provide all that electricity, to replace all the energy oil provides right now, electric vehicles can't replace oil based. Maybe long term, but not any time soon.

Quoted from insight75:

Am I supposed to do something? LOL I haven't done any maintenance beyond tires and wiper blades since I've owned mine.

Quoted from Pinless:

I have to ask. Why did you get a masters in ELectric Drive Vehicle engineering?
It sounds like you’re totally anti-EV.

Quoted from frosken:

I concur...
I've had my 3 for 4 years now...in the snow/cold of Canada...
I had to pay/buy:
- Winter Tires (one set)
- Summer Tires (one set...factory tires ain't worth sh*t)
- Rims (2 sets - winter and summer; broke 2 original rims on a pothole the size of Rhode Island...)
- Cabin Air filters ($50-ish CAD...and had a Tesla video showing how to install them)
- Brake cleaning/adjustment (before the pads fall apart...gotta love regen!)
- Car inspection (before base warranty expired).
That's it!
Maybe I should look into changing my wiper blades though...
Hydro cost for charging at home...pre-covid, when I was driving 40 miles (each way) to work: $75CAD / month
Gas costs with my ICE (not a gas guzzler either): $200CAD/month.
The only part that sucks is a pinball machine doesn't fit. I hope that my Cybertruck reservation/purchase will fix that issue
Regrets of going with an EV: ZERO!!!!!!!
Can't wait for more/all car companies offering EV's with at least 300mi. range ... IMHO: more product = more competition = more affordable

Quoted from insight75:

Agreed. I would like to know how he got one.

Quoted from bob_e:

He works for them

Quoted from unclerudy:

I'm not anti EV. I started when I was working at Ford in the electrified powertrain department, and learning more about EV made me pessimistic about them. Long term I think there will be a switch to EV, but not any time soon, and not until there is a massive overhaul in the countries energy infrastructure. Just the amount of cobalt that needs to mined to make all the batteries can't be done at worldwide rates.
I actually think fuel cells are the real vehicle of the future.

Quoted from Pinless:

LFP batteries have no cobalt and can be charged to 100% repeatedly.
Why not be part of the process making improvements and finding solutions?

Quoted from unclerudy:

I do a super niche engineering field working on vehicles. ISO 26262 compliance, also called functional safety engineering. I make safer components for vehicles.

Quoted from frosken:

I concur...
I've had my 3 for 4 years now...in the snow/cold of Canada...
I had to pay/buy:
- Winter Tires (one set)
- Summer Tires (one set...factory tires ain't worth sh*t)
- Rims (2 sets - winter and summer; broke 2 original rims on a pothole the size of Rhode Island...)
- Cabin Air filters ($50-ish CAD...and had a Tesla video showing how to install them)
- Brake cleaning/adjustment (before the pads fall apart...gotta love regen!)
- Car inspection (before base warranty expired).
That's it!
Maybe I should look into changing my wiper blades though...
Hydro cost for charging at home...pre-covid, when I was driving 40 miles (each way) to work: $75CAD / month
Gas costs with my ICE (not a gas guzzler either): $200CAD/month.
The only part that sucks is a pinball machine doesn't fit. I hope that my Cybertruck reservation/purchase will fix that issue
Regrets of going with an EV: ZERO!!!!!!!
Can't wait for more/all car companies offering EV's with at least 300mi. range ... IMHO: more product = more competition = more affordable

Quoted from Pinless:

Sounds cool, if work ever brings you to the Austin area, beer and pinball is on me.

Quoted from unclerudy:

Thank you! If you are ever willing to stop at jester king and pick up some atrial rubicite and send it to me, I will definitely pay for it and the cost of shipping. Otherwise I would offer you the same thing if you come to Detroit.

Quoted from insight75:

I'm a little disappointed that other companies aren't jumping in to the supercharger game. I haven't heard the latest to be honest so maybe there is more coming that I don't know about yet. But the Tesla supercharger network is pretty amazing. I hope all have the same type of capability eventually.

Quoted from Pinless:

Tesla has started opening it up to other manufacturers in 4 European countries.
The supercharger network is huge. IMO it’s part of what sets Tesla 10 years ahead of everyone else.

Quoted from insight75:

I agree. As long as there are enough of them, I don't care what type of car uses them. I waited on a line 1 time for a charger and that was not fun.

Quoted from unclerudy:

Long term I think there will be a switch to EV, but not any time soon, and not until there is a massive overhaul in the countries energy infrastructure.