Automotive Engineering - September 2022 - 4

EDITORIAL
EDITORIAL
Bill Visnic
Editorial Director
Bill.Visnic@sae.org
The long-range EV blues
Time waits for no one, and neither do
ferry boats. I'm writing this month's
column from an island 30 miles out into
northern Lake Michigan, and to get my
family vehicle here for our annual vacation
requires reserving a space on the
lake ferry six months in advance. It ain't
cheap and missing the boat is not an
option. So, our 290-mile (466-km) trek
from home to the ferry terminal, with
jam-packed minivan, is a single-shot
dash at 75 mph. One 5-minute restroom
break is the only stop we make.
Having ample range from a single tank
of fuel is requisite for my primary-use
vehicles, just as it is for the guy who was
parking his Volkswagen
Passat TDI Wagon at the ferry
landing when I pulled in.
His rig was outfitted for
campin' and fishin', with a
rooftop cargo pod and a single-axle
trailer carrying a
small utility boat and a kayak.
Seeing the TDI badge on
the back of his VW, I remarked: " There
are still quite a few diesel Volkswagens
in use. What made you keep yours rather
than turn it in to VW for cash during
the Dieselgate mess? "
He gave me an " are you crazy? " look.
Despite the recent diesel-fuel price
spike, the TDI gets great mileage, can
easily pull the fully laden boat trailer at
highway speed and is super-reliable, he
replied. " It's got 240 thousand miles on
it and just keeps chugging along. And
our Tesla Model 3 can't do this trip.
We'd have to stop to charge even without
the weight of our trailer and gear.
Electric cars aren't yet multi-mode devices, "
he asserted.
Now there's an atypical Tesla owner, I
thought, as we finished parking. A
Model 3, a VW TDI, and an unabashed
diesel fan! Of course, EV advertised
range is wildly variable depending on
load, ambient temperature and driving
conditions. High-speed hauling and
towing are an EV compromise that will
challenge development teams for the
4 September 2022
Lindsay Brooke
Editor-in-Chief
Lindsay.Brooke@sae.org
High-speed
hauling
and towing
are an EV
compromise.
foreseeable future. Engineer Dave
VanderWerp, a veteran editor at Car
and Driver, in August published a comprehensive
towing test of the three
electric pickup trucks currently on the
market. The comparison revealed characteristics
that will put off many rangefocused
truck buyers.
The new F-150 Lightning, Rivian R1T,
and Hummer all have abundant horsepower,
torque, and curb weight to pull
3-ton trailers with confidence. As towing
platforms they're excellent - except
when it's time to hitch up and go. " You
won't want to be going far, as a full battery
will take you a mere 100 miles in
the Lightning, 110 miles in
the R1T, and 140 miles in the
Hummer, " VanderWerp reported,
with the Hummer's
immense battery helping
the 9640-lb (4372-kg) truck
to eke out a few more miles
when it's trailering.
" Even if you're accepting
of the lengthy recharging stops - which
will be even longer due to the need to
charge the battery further than when
traveling unladen - most highway-adjacent
charging doesn't allow pull-through
access, " VanderWerp wrote. And disconnecting
a trailer - especially those with
a weight-distributing hitch - every couple
of hours " is a major hassle. "
When EV drivers do find a charge
station, the costs per kWh tend to be
significantly higher - around $0.43 per
kWh at Electrify America, for example
- compared to my residence ($0.17/
kWh) in suburban Detroit.
And more troubling news: About
20% of U.S. public charging stations fail
to work when EV drivers need them,
according to a new report by J.D.
Power and EV data firm PlugShare.
Merely deploying chargers won't be
enough to convince skeptical roadtripping
motorists to try an EV. At least
not until the last good, pre-owned diesel
is finally gone.
Lindsay Brooke, Editor-in-Chief
Ryan Gehm
Associate Editor
Ryan.Gehm@sae.org
Matthew Wolfe
Assistant Editor
matthew.wolfe@saemediagroup.com
Amanda Hosey
Editor, Custom Content
amanda.hosey@saemediagroup.com
Contributors
Kami Buchholz
Detroit Editor
John Kendall
Europe Editor
Bradley Berman
U.S. West Coast Editor
Sebastian Blanco, Don Sherman,
Paul Weissler
DESIGN
Lois Erlacher
Creative Director
Ray Carlson
Associate Art Director
SALES &
MARKETING
Joe Pramberger
Publisher
joe.pramberger@saemediagroup.com
Kaitlyn Sommer
Marketing Director
kaitlyn.sommer@saemediagroup.com
Martha Tress
Recruitment Sales Manager
+1.724.772.7155
Martha.Tress@sae.org
REGIONAL SALES
North America
New England/Eastern Canada:
ME, VT, NH, MA, RI, QC
Brian Hines
+1.647.296.5014
brian.hines@saemediagroup.com
CT:
Stan Greenfield
+1.203.938.2418
greenco@optonline.net
Mid-Atlantic/Southeast/TX:
TX, OK, LA, AR, MS, AL, TN, FL, SC,
NC, GA, DC, WV, VA
Ray Tompkins
+1.281.313.1004
ray.tompkins@saemediagroup.com
NY, NJ, OH:
Ryan Beckman
+1.973.409.4687
ryan.beckman@saemediagroup.com
SUBSCRIPTIONS
+1.866.354.1125
AUE@OMEDA.COM
International
Europe:
Sven Anacker
+49.202.373294.11
sa@intermediapro.de
Sabine Schoett
+49.202.373294.13
ss@intermediapro.de
China:
Alan Ao
+86.21.6140.8920
alan.ao@sae.org
Japan:
Shigenori Nagatomo
+81.3.3661.6138
Nagatomo-pbi@gol.com
South Korea:
Eun-Tae Kim
+82-2-564-3971/2
ksae1@ksae.org
Integrated Media
Consultants
Daniel Barrett
+1.973.409.4762
daniel.barrett@saemediagroup.com
Patrick Harvey
+1.973.409.4686
patrick.harvey@saemediagroup.com
Todd Holtz
+1.973.545.2566
todd.holtz@saemediagroup.com
Rick Rosenberg
+1.973.545.2565
rick.rosenberg@saemediagroup.com
Jason Setti
+1.973.874.0271
jason.setti@saemediagroup.com
PA/DE:
Desiree Stygar
+1.908.300.2539
desiree.stygar@saemediagroup.com
Midwest/Great Lakes:
IN, MI, WI, IA, IL, MN
Chris Kennedy
+1.847.498.4520, x3008
chris@didierandbroderick.com
Midwest/Central Canada:
KS, KY, MO, NE, ND, SD, ON, MB
Bob Casey
+1.847.223.5225
bobc@caseyreps.com
CA, WA, OR, AZ, NM,
Rocky Mountain States:
Tim Powers
+1.908.892.2838
timothy.powers@saemediagroup.com
AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING
Automotive Engineering - September 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive Engineering - September 2022
