Should I buy an Electric Car

Should I buy an Electric Car?

Contributed by Marilyn Bennett

They say the prices are coming down. They say I will be helping to save the planet. They even say they will let me keep my gas stove if I get with the program.

But all kidding aside, I have been doing some research on electric cars as I do like the idea of a very quiet ride. Also, not having to get my hands dirty putting gas in my car would be nice. When I was younger the gas station attendant took care of filling my car with gas, checking my oil and the tire pressure. Now that I am no longer young I have to do everything myself It is enough to make me feel sorry for myself, but I would never do that.  I am definitely not one to complain, even when there is so much to complain about.

As you can see from my above remarks, I am definitely a good candidate for purchasing an electric car. I considered the fact that I do not make a lot of long distance trips and so should be able to charge up my vehicle at home most of the time. As depending upon outside charging stations seems to be somewhat problematic. To that point I went on the internet and found there was one charging station in Palmer, three in Wasilla, one in Fairbanks and twelve in Anchorage.

Continuing my research, I was somewhat amazed when I read about our Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm's debacle of a trip. She departed in a caravan of electric vehicles on a four-day “People Powered EV Summer Road Trip” in June. The journey was to “draw attention to the billions of dollars the White House is pouring into green energy and clean cars." Her trip hit several hilarious bumps along the way. The trip was to take her to South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia. The biggest problem happened at Grovetown, a suburb of Augusta, Georgia.

Her advance team realized there weren’t going to be enough plugs to go around. An Energy Department staffer decided to park her gas guzzler in front of one of the chargers to save it for Jennifer. It was a hot day and a family with a baby in the car were irritated at being blocked out by a gas- powered vehicle. Apparently this family did not care that the spot was being saved for a very important government official, as they called the police.

It turned out that there was little the police could do as it’s not illegal for a non-electric car to claim a charging spot in Georgia. Something we had better check on in Alaska as we might need an ordinances against the practice. What if Jennifer decides to come here with her little caravan? It seems unlikely, but why take a chance. There are apparently multiple apps to find charging stations. A 30-minute pit stop would be best to charge next to a restaurant instead of one located at a car dealership. For those not in Palmer our one charger in town is located at a restaurant by the name of Turkey Red.

Back to my decision. After checking out the fire danger, I discovered that charging at home, especially overnight, past the full battery capacity could cause overheating leading to a fire. Lithium-ion battery fires burn hotter and can last much longer than gas fires. They can take tens of thousands of gallons of water to extinguish. The National Fire Protection Association notes one EV fire in Texas required more than 30,000 gallons of water after a crash. Fire departments aren't always equipped with trucks and other gear to deal with that and neither am I.

Then, the last problem is the cost of replacing a battery when the original battery is at end of life. I hear it is around $20,000.00 which makes the used vehicle market problematic as the batteries are only warranted for 7 to 10 years. Buyers in the second-hand market are not stupid and may not want to pay much for an EV that's out of warranty and whose battery has lost nearly a third of its storage capacity.

Still I hated to give up on electric vehicles so I have decided to get myself an electric golf cart for zipping around town and use my gas guzzler for the longer trips. I could, of course, re-evaluate if our Energy Secretary manages a problem free trip across Alaska. Good luck to the rest of you electric car people. See you at the recharging station. Hope I still get to keep my gas stove.