[Fot] Electric cars
Randall
tr3driver at ca.rr.com
Mon Apr 1 12:07:15 MDT 2013
---- RACER BUD <budscars at comcast.net> wrote:
> What happens to The electric cars when the batteries are no good
> anymore..?..and what does it cost to replace tham..or..what becomes of the
> car?
They're kind of expensive to replace; buddy of mine said the battery for his 1st gen Prius was $7k but he convinced Toyota to cover half (which I suspect means the wholesale price is closer to $3.5k). (Yes, I realize a Prius has a relatively small battery, it's just a data point).
When the car isn't worth the price of a new or rebuilt battery, it gets scrapped just like any other car that isn't worth repairing.
At the moment, AFAIK the nearest Li-ion battery recycling facility is in Canada. Toxco was supposed to open a new plant in Ohio last year, but it doesn't seem to have happened yet. At the moment, lithium is so cheap that it doesn't pay to recycle it; but likely that will change if electric cars gain more acceptance.
Personally, I don't see full electric as ever replacing internal combustion. There is certainly a niche market for them, short distance commuting and so on. But the advantages aren't nearly as great as some folks like to claim. They aren't anywhere close to "zero pollution"; its just that most of the pollution comes out somewhere else. NFI, YMMV, etc.
Randall
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