GM is pulling back on EVs

[K4fxd]

Why not skip the battery pack and have the engine run the generator?

You know like a train engine.

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[sk47]

Hello; Yes a hybrid combination of an ICE & an electric motor drive train. Saw an article recently where a pure EV owner had rigged a gasoline powered generator into the back of his EV. He apparently ran the generator to charge the battery of the pure EV on a trip.

Hello; I guess it could be called a plug in hybrid of sorts.

Why not skip the battery pack and have the engine run the generator?

You know like a train engine.

Hello; Good question. Big locomotives are diesel -electric. Pretty sure they do not carry a rechargeable battery pack tho. On downhill grade the electric motors switch to generators pushing out electric power. This helps with slowing down the train as generating electricity takes energy. Saves the friction brakes from wear or overheating. All that generated electricity is shunted to a large bank of what are essentially resistance heater cores. The resistance in the cores changes the electric energy to heat energy which dissipates into the air.
I can see how locomotives can become hybrids fairly simply. Add a rail car full of Li-ion batteries to the locomotive and shunt the electricity to the battery packs. Not clear if such would be cost effective.
However perhaps a better answer would be in a pickup skipping the battery pack would become a sort of Rube Goldberg (sp) sort of machine. Meaning unnecessarily complex when simply driving the wheels with the ICE directly avoids the complex systems and extra weight.

Also, would not be an "EV" by definition. My initial guess for making this odd setup is perhaps some valuable state or federal financial subsidy can be applied to help make it affordable for the company to make. Afraid I do not see the charm of this idea just yet.

 

[K4fxd]

Afraid I do not see the charm of this idea just yet.

Yea it was a tongue in cheek response by me. I do think this would work for raod tractors. Have a diesel engine turning a generator and a battery pack. I think some company will try it.

 

[K4fxd]

https://www.thestreet.com/electric-...y-tesla-adoption-curve?puc=yahoo&cm_ven=YAHOO

"From where we stood six months ago, it's going to be a challenging time for everyone involved in the EV market right now," he said.

 

[jtmat]

Putting all the pieces in place, like they have for the last couple of decades. Not sure why so many seem to think this push is "new".

With big new EV motor investment, GM aims to cut reliance on China​

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General Motors has entered into a partnership with a small Wisconsin start-up, Niron Magnetics, to develop electric motor magnets that can be made without rare elements that are mostly sourced from China today.​

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Besides geopolitical concerns surrounding importing minerals from China, a nation with which the US currently has a tense relationship, using more common and accessible elements will also significantly reduce environmental impacts of mining and processing, according to Niron chief executive Jonathan Rowntree. The technology could also make EV motors less expensive, he said, but declined to say by what percentage.​

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GM’s investment is part of a strategy to build a domestic supply base for electric vehicles, Daniels said. GM has said it intends to sell only electric passenger vehicles in the US by 2035 and that commitment has not changed, she said.​

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/big-ev-motor-investment-gm-130114000.html

 

[K4fxd]

Niron Magnetics, currently a 60-person company headquartered in Minnesota, claims to have patented methods to make high-performance magnets using only iron and nitrogen, both readily accessible elements that will not require importation.

So another maybe someday.

 

[Bulldog9]

Interesting article. So much for range and towing capacity. All of this is being "figured out" much quicker than people thought.

Ram’s new 1500 EV truck has ‘unlimited’ range, thanks to built-in gas generator​

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Stellantis is making a new electric-propelled Ram truck with a large EV battery pack linked to a gasoline engine that can extend range for long trips without frequent charging stops. The automaker’s new pickup, the 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger, claims to go up to 690 miles on a full tank and charge.​

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Acceleration is pegged at 4.4s which is plenty fast for a massive truck with 14,000 pounds of towing capacity and 2,625 lbs payload. At a fast Level 3 charger, the battery will be able to take 50 miles of range in just 10 minutes​

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There’s a 3.6-liter V6 engine in the bay that fires up when the battery gets low, which powers a 130kW onboard generator that keeps the Ramcharger’s electric motors rolling. (The engine does not directly drive the powertrain.) On gas, the truck is only capable of 174 horsepower — but with a charged battery, Stellantis says it’s capable of 663 peak output.​

https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/7/...harger-ev-pickup-truck-gas-generator-announce

So the new EV Ram is basically a Chevy Volt or BMW i3. The range Extender concept is a good one, but I think the GM project failed in that they didn't invest enough engineering into developing a highly efficient and small motor to power the generator. Also GM, as is often the case is way ahead in technology and concept but quits too early and doesn't develop the technology. They basically repurposed an off the shelf 4CYL to power the onboard generator. They should have developed or sourced a 2 or 3 cyl 1-2 liter motor for the purpose. I had a couple buddies with a Volt, and almost leased an i3 for the wife, but it just wasn't practical.

Fun fact, when I was a kid, and always building projects, I made an electric go cart that had an electric motor, powered by 3 auto batteries, and a lawnmower engine that ran a belt drive to an alternator to recharge the electric batteries. It was a total hooptie, but a fun project. Paid to have access to a junk yard, and uncles with unlimited tools and welding expertise. My cousin and I were always making strange things.

 

[jtmat]

So the new EV Ram is basically a Chevy Volt or BMW i3.

If that is what you guys/gals want to see. I'm looking at the total package, with a focus on range.

I see a usable full-size truck with 700 mile range (much shorter when towing I'd guess and 145 miles electric only), 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, 14,000 towing, Level 2 hands-free driver-assist system, and fast charging.

Something I don't think exists today.

This will check a box for a lot of people I know - IF they can afford it.

 

[sk47]

If that is what you guys/gals want to see.

I see a usable full-size truck with 700 mile range (much shorter when towing I'd guess and 145 only electric), 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, 14,000 towing, Level 2 hands-free driver-assist system, and fast charging.

Something I don't think exists today.

This will check a box for a lot of people I know - IF they can afford it.

Hello; Well yes some of us see a variation of hybrid. The key to this view is the ICE engine. Without the ICE no 700 mile range. Never been any doubt electric motors can pull heavy weights, refer to train locomotives.
The examples of the Chevy Volt & BMW i3 is because they are known examples of a hybrid which does not use the ICE to drive the wheels.
Afraid I have not studied the specs of this truck so do not know if it is a plug-in hybrid. Such would make it a decent choice for some. Say an outfit which has a lot of short distance use for a truck with 14,000 pounds of towing and also somewhat rarely might have to make a long run.

As with the other EV and hybrid vehicles I wonder if half or so of the overall cost will be paid by the general taxpayer. This recently understood phenomena is, to me, the single biggest strike against the entire EV push. We all generally knew hybrids and EV's were backed up using other people's money. It was a shock to learn such happens at a rate of $50,000 per vehicle. Best i can recall you EV champions have ignored that bit of news so far. Surprise me and address this issue.

EDIT- perhaps the bold comment should read If the buyer and taxpayers can afford it. This since something near half the cost will be borne by others. many of those others who will never have such a truck.

 

[jtmat]

Best i can recall you EV champions have ignored that bit of news so far. Surprise me and address this issue.

Goodbye; you (and some others) are too eaten up with politics to have a decent conversation. I toy around with you when I feel like it but that is all I have for you. Your "us against them" BS is funny because I know where it comes from.

But you can't be taken seriously. Plus, we have already discussed money several pages back. Go read those. My thoughts have not changed.

 

[Bulldog9]

If that is what you guys/gals want to see. I'm looking at the total package, with a focus on range.

I see a usable full-size truck with 700 mile range (much shorter when towing I'd guess and 145 miles electric only), 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, 14,000 towing, Level 2 hands-free driver-assist system, and fast charging.

Something I don't think exists today.

This will check a box for a lot of people I know - IF they can afford it.

That wasn't intended as a dig, just a point of reference. GM and BMW abandoned the idea, I hope Ram can take it to the next level, and continue to develop and refine the system. The system is a sort of Hybrid, but with the distinction of being 100% electric driven, with batteries and an onboard generator AKA range extender. I think it is a brilliant approach.

 

[sk47]

I toy around with you when I feel like it but that is all I have for you.

Hello; Come on give us an opinion about the estimated $50,000 of subsidies and other taxpayer monies added on to the near $50,000 the EV buyer is paying per EV.

 

[jtmat]

That wasn't intended as a dig, just a point of reference. GM and BMW abandoned the idea, I hope Ram can take it to the next level, and continue to develop and refine the system.

I didn't take it as such. I'm mostly focused on range. I give the nutjobs a hard time about tankers blowing up and such but it is in jest. They eat it up though... I don't understand.

I was more shocked at your decent reply since we don't see that often on this forum. Posters normally want to go around in circles talking about a topic we can't discuss but has already been discussed earlier in the thread.

People don't agree or they are concerned about something different. Shocker!

I enjoyed reading the go-kart story. Thank you for sharing.

 

[jtmat]

Hello; Come on give us an opinion about the estimated $50,000 of subsidies and other taxpayer monies added on to the near $50,000 the EV buyer is paying per EV.

Who provided the estimate? Provide a link to the direct study/report, not some second-hand website.

 

[tripleyellowmustang]

Goodbye; you (and some others) are too eaten up with politics to have a decent conversation. I toy around with you when I feel like it but that is all I have for you. Your "us against them" BS is funny because I know where it comes from.

But you can't be taken seriously. Plus, we have already discussed money several pages back. Go read those. My thoughts have not changed.

You fancy yourself as a “pot stirrer”, but you are a known buffoon who is too dimwitted to “toy“ with anyone. You cite an article about a hybrid vehicle, when the actual argument/controversy in this thread is concerning BEV’s. Do you know the difference? Go be a dufus elsewhere, ’ya dufus’.

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