How Much Electricity Will Electric Cars Use?

[rangerrebew]

How Much Electricity Will Electric Cars Use?
July 27, 2017
tags: Electric Cars

By Paul Homewood
 
 

There have been various attempts to estimate the amount of electricity needed for electric cars.

So let’s get it straight from the horse’s mouth.

Below is the spec for the Nissan Leaf, showing electricity consumption of 150Wh/Km.

https://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com/2017/07/27/how-much-electricity-will-electric-cars-use/

[Free Vulcan]

I doubt even with coal and nuclear we would have the capacity to have an all-electric fleet. Since they are trying to get rid of both, it's a pipe dream.

OTOH, this could be the plan, create scarcity to dole out cars to the favored, just like the old Soviet Union.

[Wingnut]

OTOH, this could be the plan, create scarcity to dole out cars to the favored, just like the old Soviet Union.

Tesla is the New LADA.

[Joe Wooten]

This was known back in the late 1970's when an engineer did a calculation on how many new power plants would be needed to convert all transportation to electric from diesel/gasoline. He estimated we'd need 7,000,000 1200 mw nuke/coal plants to totally convert. That was at lower battery storage densities (lead/acid) and much fewer cars/trucks worldwide.

[thackney]

The total energy spent in US transportation is about double the current amount of electrical energy used.



https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/pdf/flow/total_energy.pdf



https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/pdf/flow/electricity.pdf

[endicom]

The total energy spent in US transportation is about double the current amount of electrical energy used.



https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/pdf/flow/total_energy.pdf



https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/pdf/flow/electricity.pdf

Homewood comes up with a 37% increase in electrical usage for 30 million electric automobiles. I long ago made a WAG of quadrupling electrical usage if all vehicles went electric. What I pulled out of my...thin air...may yet prove correct.

[dfwgator]

Tesla is the New LADA.

Trabants Fur Alles!

[thackney]

Homewood comes up with a 37% increase in electrical usage for 30 million electric automobiles. I long ago made a WAG of quadrupling electrical usage if all vehicles went electric. What I pulled out of my...thin air...may yet prove correct.

37% would only cover about 1/6 of the energy used in transportation today.  Look around on the highway, how many of those vehicles you see equal the size of Nissan Leaf?

Small size commuter sizes only cover a small fraction of actual transportation uses.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

This was known back in the late 1970's when an engineer did a calculation on how many new power plants would be needed to convert all transportation to electric from diesel/gasoline. He estimated we'd need 7,000,000 1200 mw nuke/coal plants to totally convert. That was at lower battery storage densities (lead/acid) and much fewer cars/trucks worldwide.

and that is just the generation.

The grid is not nearly enough to handle the load, and would require a massive, expensive program from what I have read.

[GtHawk]

and that is just the generation.

The grid is not nearly enough to handle the load, and would require a massive, expensive program from what I have read.

Obviously there is only one workable answer, average joes will have to give up their individual transportation and use only mass transit, only the important people in our society, you know politicians, the wealthy and social elite will be allowed to have their own cars, you know socialism for transportation, so that we can achieve nirvana with gaia.

[Joe Wooten]

and that is just the generation.

The grid is not nearly enough to handle the load, and would require a massive, expensive program from what I have read.

Yep. Nightmare scenarios.

[SunkenCiv]

The Tesla Model 3, which could be the largest-selling electric model by the end of 2018, requires about seven times the amount of average electricity use of the average home (34, vs about 5) to fully charge up.

Basically, all this does increase the use of coal or methane in the short and middle term, while shifting the point source of the pollution.

Electric cars are pollution shifters: we will need huge investment in generation capacity
New Study: Electric Vehicle Use Does Not Reduce CO2 Emissions
Scientists design solar cell that captures nearly all energy of solar spectrum
India's Coal Plant Plans Conflict with Climate Commitments

[thackney]

The Tesla Model 3, which could be the largest-selling electric model by the end of 2018, requires about seven times the amount of average electricity use of the average home (34, vs about 5) to fully charge up.

False Claim, see math at post below with supporting links.

Some data to put that in comparison...

Total year's average driving equals about 1/3 average home electrical use.

[SunkenCiv]

False Claim, see math at post below with supporting links.

That's funny, I think I got the figure for that from the SolarCity website.  Oh well.  My April bill is out on the table (I'm not a great housekeeper), and shows 484 KWH (5808 annual; I have central air, but rarely use it).  This is a century old two storey farmhouse with what's left of that injected foam insulation, fuel oil heat with forced air furnace, and I also pump a 200 foot well for my water.

http://www.teslarati.com/tesla-monthly-charge-cost-calculator/

[snip] To understand Telsa driver behavior, Teslanomics tapped into the brilliant team behind the Teslab app which we reviewed in the past. Teslab has real-world efficiency data from their Model S and Model X-owning app users. Per Ben Sullins of Teslanomics, Teslab is “like a fitbit for your Tesla” as it provides insights into how you operate your vehicle.

In this case, the data showed that most drivers use approximately 300 watt-hours per mile as the “normal” efficiency achieved by Tesla drivers. [/snip]

[That's .3 KWH times 300 mile range for 90 KWH, although these are not the Model 3]

[InHeavenThereIsNoBeer]

The Tesla Model 3, which could be the largest-selling electric model by the end of 2018, requires about seven times the amount of average electricity use of the average home (34, vs about 5) to fully charge up.

Or about 20% of what Al Gore's pad uses.

[thackney]

That's funny, I think I got the figure for that from the SolarCity website.  Oh well.  My April bill is out on the table (I'm not a great housekeeper), and shows 484 KWH (5808 annual; I have central air, but rarely use it).  This is a century old two storey farmhouse with what's left of that injected foam insulation, fuel oil heat with forced air furnace, and I also pump a 200 foot well for my water.

http://www.teslarati.com/tesla-monthly-charge-cost-calculator/

[snip] To understand Telsa driver behavior, Teslanomics tapped into the brilliant team behind the Teslab app which we reviewed in the past. Teslab has real-world efficiency data from their Model S and Model X-owning app users. Per Ben Sullins of Teslanomics, Teslab is “like a fitbit for your Tesla” as it provides insights into how you operate your vehicle.

In this case, the data showed that most drivers use approximately 300 watt-hours per mile as the “normal” efficiency achieved by Tesla drivers. [/snip]

[That's .3 KWH times 300 mile range for 90 KWH, although these are not the Model 3]

Using the 0.3 kWh/mile, the average driver would use 4,043 kWh per year for the 13,476 miles.

Average Annual Miles per Driver by Age Group
https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/ohim/onh00/bar8.htm

Still less than your home electricity use for the same time period.  And far less (37%) than the average home electricity use 10,812 kWh.

How much electricity does an American home use?
https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=97&t=3

37% is a long ways from 7 times as much.