Half the country (mostly Democrats) thinks global warming is a serious threat but only 2% of consumers buy electric vehicles. Pass the popcorn?

that's expensive. I pay 0.035/kwh off peak at home to charge my PHEV.

1000 free miles.

rav4 prime does have a heat pump.

costs $1B returns $3M/yr? Taxpayer ROI 3/1000 / yr = 0.3% / yr ? Am I missing something?

I have a Niro PHEV and like it very much. About 50% of my miles are now EV. Cross country fill-ups take 5min (vs 50min) and $10,000 cheaper. Any bets as to when BEVs reach 50% market share? Now <2%? Wake me up when it reaches 10%.

"If you're going to go PHEV, today's batteries are more than adequate (they were adequate 5 years ago). Getting 2/3 of energy from the grid and 1/3 from a liquid fuel supply should be good enough." I agree with this. Most richer people who buy EVs (to virtue signal) also have a gas SUV. The PHEV configuration combines both functions in one car, at a much lower price point. I just purchased Kia Niro PHEV. My driving is bi-modal, local miles electric and long trips gas.

This car is on my short list (the other being the Hyundai Kona). I was hoping the Niro PHEV would have the e4WD option developed by Hyundai Wia as rumored. Now I have to decide between highest mpg (Niro) and 4WD capability (Kona. I live in snow country).

Tesla used 7 cents/kwh in their ev ($1.26/mi) vs diesel ($1.51/mi) operating costs comparison. Where do they expect truck drivers to be able to purchase electricity on demand for 7 cents/kwh? Certainly not in California! I suspect the ev operating cost advantage disappears if they assume California rates (15-30 cents/kwh).

Looks very promising. I'm holding off buying a new car to see if I can get this engine. Hopefully in a year or two. "The vehicle will debut at the 2018 North American International Auto Show, in Detroit." That's just two months from today! Probably a pickup? 1) "To respond to a growing list of customers, Achates Power has more than 100 employees in two locations: San Diego and metro-Detroit. In addition to continued research and development, the company has engine development programs underway, including: The development of an engine for a light-duty truck demonstration vehicle, which will surpass the United States 2025 Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) targets. The vehicle will debut at the 2018 North American International Auto Show, in Detroit. The Advanced Combat Engine (ACE) project, a $47-million contract led by Cummins Corporate Research and Technology, which is a key component of the Army’s 30-year strategy to modernize tactical and combat vehicles, with potential for future production configurations being used in the Bradley Family of Vehicles (BFoV) and the Next Generation Combat Vehicle (NGCV). A $9-million award from the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to develop an Opposed-Piston, gasoline compression ignition engine, in partnership with Argonne National Laboratory and Delphi Automotive. Development and commercialization of Trident OP engines with Fairbanks Morse for use in large-scale stationary power applications." http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/10/20171027-achates.html 2) According to this presentation, in 2016 Achates had the following programs underway: 5 truck, 3 car, US Army, Fairbanks Morse. Also a DOE funded OPGCI project: “Opposed Piston Gasoline Compression Ignition (OPGCI) $9 Million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's ARPA-E With support from Argonne National Laboratory and Delphi Automotive Develop a three-liter, three-cylinder opposed-piston gasoline compression ignition engine Two clean, efficient and cost effective technologies – OP and GCI – together will make the perfect high-volume engine for markets all around the world. Fuel efficiency gains of more than 50 percent compared to a downsized, turbo-charged direct injection gasoline engine Reduces the overall cost of the powertrain system” https://societyofautomotiveanalysts.wildapricot.org/resources/Documents/Achates%20Power%20SAA%20Outlook_01102016.pdf 3) “Achates is working with Delphi Automotive (which has been avidly pursuing gasoline compression ignition for some time) and Argonne National Laboratory on the ARPA-E-funded project to develop the OPGCI engine. (Earlier post.) ARPA-E is providing initial funding of $9 million to this project over three years; Achates Power, Argonne and Delphi expect to spend a total of $13 million on the program, including cost share. The $9-million award was “one of the largest single ARPA-E awards ever made,” noted Chris Atkinson, the ARPA-E program manager for the Achates project. The goal of the 30-month Achates ARPA-E project is to deliver a three-cylinder, 3.0-liter opposed-piston, gasoline compression ignition engine applicable to large passenger vehicles, pick-up trucks, SUVs and minivans. It could also be the first of a family of OPGCI engines spanning 1.0 to 4.0L displacements, said Redon. The smaller displacement derivative (1.0L) could be extremely interesting as a range extender, while a two-cylinder derivative could serve nicely as a direct drop-in for front-wheel drive applications, delivering around 180 hp and 430 N·m from a swept volume of 1.8 liters.” [FYI 433 nm = 319 ft lb!] http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/01/20170113-achates.html

Looks very promising. I'm holding off buying a new car until I can get this engine. Hopefully in a year or two. "The vehicle will debut at the 2018 North American International Auto Show, in Detroit." That's just two months from today! Probably a pickup? 1) "To respond to a growing list of customers, Achates Power has more than 100 employees in two locations: San Diego and metro-Detroit. In addition to continued research and development, the company has engine development programs underway, including: The development of an engine for a light-duty truck demonstration vehicle, which will surpass the United States 2025 Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) targets. The vehicle will debut at the 2018 North American International Auto Show, in Detroit. The Advanced Combat Engine (ACE) project, a $47-million contract led by Cummins Corporate Research and Technology, which is a key component of the Army’s 30-year strategy to modernize tactical and combat vehicles, with potential for future production configurations being used in the Bradley Family of Vehicles (BFoV) and the Next Generation Combat Vehicle (NGCV). A $9-million award from the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to develop an Opposed-Piston, gasoline compression ignition engine, in partnership with Argonne National Laboratory and Delphi Automotive. Development and commercialization of Trident OP engines with Fairbanks Morse for use in large-scale stationary power applications." http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/10/20171027-achates.html 2) According to this presentation, in 2016 Achates had the following programs underway: 5 truck, 3 car, US Army, Fairbanks Morse. Also a DOE funded OPGCI project: “Opposed Piston Gasoline Compression Ignition (OPGCI) $9 Million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's ARPA-E With support from Argonne National Laboratory and Delphi Automotive Develop a three-liter, three-cylinder opposed-piston gasoline compression ignition engine Two clean, efficient and cost effective technologies – OP and GCI – together will make the perfect high-volume engine for markets all around the world. Fuel efficiency gains of more than 50 percent compared to a downsized, turbo-charged direct injection gasoline engine Reduces the overall cost of the powertrain system” https://societyofautomotiveanalysts.wildapricot.org/resources/Documents/Achates%20Power%20SAA%20Outlook_01102016.pdf “Achates is working with Delphi Automotive (which has been avidly pursuing gasoline compression ignition for some time) and Argonne National Laboratory on the ARPA-E-funded project to develop the OPGCI engine. (Earlier post.) ARPA-E is providing initial funding of $9 million to this project over three years; Achates Power, Argonne and Delphi expect to spend a total of $13 million on the program, including cost share. The $9-million award was “one of the largest single ARPA-E awards ever made,” noted Chris Atkinson, the ARPA-E program manager for the Achates project. The goal of the 30-month Achates ARPA-E project is to deliver a three-cylinder, 3.0-liter opposed-piston, gasoline compression ignition engine applicable to large passenger vehicles, pick-up trucks, SUVs and minivans. It could also be the first of a family of OPGCI engines spanning 1.0 to 4.0L displacements, said Redon. The smaller displacement derivative (1.0L) could be extremely interesting as a range extender, while a two-cylinder derivative could serve nicely as a direct drop-in for front-wheel drive applications, delivering around 180 hp and 430 N·m from a swept volume of 1.8 liters.” [FYI 433 nm = 319 ft lb in a 1.8L] http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/01/20170113-achates.html

My take. New OPGCI engines will extent the life of the ICE for decades to come. HEV/PHEV will achieve large penetration but EV will be very slow to gain acceptance until battery cost and charge time improves significantly.

"The development of an engine for a light-duty truck demonstration vehicle, which will surpass the United States 2025 Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) targets. The vehicle will debut at the 2018 North American International Auto Show, in Detroit." WOW! That's next January. I had been planning to buy a atchisen cycle plug in hybrid (Niro) next Jan. Now I'm going to wait and evaluate if I should wait for a OPGCI based plug in.