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0 pointsprojectramo7y ago0 comments

I don't know enough about all the parts of the car, but generally speaking, many people have argued that an electric car is much simpler than a mechanical car. (Something to do with the complexity of the engine, gear, drive train etc).

If I recall, one study indicated that maintenance costs on an ev are a fraction of the current costs for that reason.

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Balgair7y ago

I mean, we really haven't had enough EVs (not mixed, like a Prius) on the road for long enough to make that call. It's possible, but 10+ year battery fail rates, water issues, or other unanticipated issues may over-ride simplicity.

For example: On early Priuses, the regenerative braking would be used so much that the 'real' brakes would calcify/glaze over. When an hard stop was needed (emergency, got cut off, etc) then the 'real' brakes would not work as intended. Many of the early Priuses have front-end damage as a result. It took them about 4 years to fix it.

snowwrestler7y ago

An electric drive train has far fewer parts than a typical piston engine in a car. From that perspective, it's simpler.

But Tesla insists on putting in all sorts of clever electric doodads like electronic door handles and side mirrors and power windows that have to pop down 1 cm to open. Watch the youtube clip above, it's hilarious.

Even if a GM or Ford gas car has more parts than a Tesla, GM and Ford have, what, almost 100 years of experience each engineering cars.

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