Comment on Why Toyota Is Intentionally "Falling Behind" On EVs | Morning Brew (10:10)
drdabbles@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Toyota makes hybrids, they outsell all other hybrid manufacturers, and middle-america “doesn’t want” electric vehicles while also demonstrating they don’t know about electric vehicles. Same story over the past decade, not too much has changed except the number of BEV on the road in total.
Toyota is a conservative (not the political kind) company, so it’s not that big a surprise.
aleph@lemm.ee 4 weeks ago
On top of that, there’s the fact that Toyota have been investing heavily in hydrogen fuel cell technology for years, instead of BEVs. They gambled on the wrong horse, and have been slow to adapt as a result.
drdabbles@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Sure, but all of these companies have had Hydrogen programs. GM had hydrogen cars back in 2009 on the road. BMW’s hydrogen program is still going strong. Toyota was just smart enough to capture the incentive money while they could pretend it wasn’t a boondoggle. 😆
SupraMario@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
You do realize that basically all the large manufacturers are still working on hydrogen tech. It’s going to replace gas ICE vehicles, not EVs. EVs have their place in cities and short transport but they’re not efficient enough to work for large machinery or long hauls. There will be a mixture just as we have EVs and ICE gas vehicles now.
partial_accumen@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
If your argument against EV for long haul and large machinery is “inefficiency” then I’m not sure how you’re arriving that Hydrogen is efficient. Gaseous hydrogen is very low density, way WAY lower than petroleum. I’ll agree that battery technology today isn’t the best fit for long haul either. However battery technology keeps getting better. Today’s prices are for battery are getting cheaper, lifetime of battery is increasing, and charging times are decreasing.
Hydrogen storage/density has essentially been stagnant for decades. Where is the massive increase needed to support Hydrogen in long haul? Where is the nationwide refueling infrastructure needed for long haul? Hydrogen refueling stations are fewer today in the USA then even just a year ago.
Num10ck@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
and hydrogen needs to be stored in the vehicle at 70 psi.
aleph@lemm.ee 4 weeks ago
That certainly is news to me. After all these years and the almost total lack of hydrogen infrastructure in the US, I had assumed that it was considered a dead end.
That said, it does makes sense; I hadn’t considered that hydrogen tech was more in competition with ICEs than with EVs.
ilhamagh@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Does ICE means internal combustion engine?