The American Spectator

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(Page 6 of 14)

p>Race may matter somewhat. But it pales in comparison to the realization that one's hero has feet of clay. br> -- Arnold Ahlert br> Boca Raton, Florida /p> p> DON'T GET ME STARTED br> Re: Eric Peters's Plug-in -- And Pay Up : /p>

Mr. Peters's article about the cost of "Plug-In" cars is informative and we need this kind of analysis to counteract some of the hype. To go further:

A 20 HP electric motor, at 85% efficiency (a generous number) would consume 17.6 KW hours of electricity to go 40 miles in 1 hour, assuming average urban driving conditions. To recharge the battery, assuming a battery charger efficiency of 85% (also generous) would require 20.7 KW hours. Since the average household electrical outlet would be limited to about 1.8KW, it would take 11.5 hours to re-charge the battery for a 40 mile trip.

The cost of electricity varies greatly, depending on where you live from 6 cents per KW hour in Tennessee to nearly 17 cents in Hawaii. Assuming California (12 cents) it would cost $2.48 to re-charge for a 40 mile trip. That's $0.0621 per mile.

A Prius gets about 50 miles per gallon and at $4.00 for gasoline, that's $0.08 per mile. So the savings of the Plug-In would be $0.0175 per mile. Assuming 12,000 miles per year, the total annual savings would be $214.40. So if the price difference between a Plug-In and a Prius is $15,000, it would take roughly 70 years to amortize the cost difference.

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