From a very young age I learned the incredible potential of electric motors when activated. I also worked for GM’s Charge Port Delco Division in Torrance, CA, even having had the opportunity to work with a couple of the engineers who were doing R&D on electric motor development. I don’t know how I qualified to be in the same office with both these engineers, but it was an outstanding opportunity. One of the engineers was the son of Robinson helicopter founder, and obviously capable in his capacity there. The other, in my humble opinion, was equally qualified.
Enough of what may appear as self-aggrandizement.
What I noted from the tour was the explanation of how batteries are manufactured. I still hold to the definition of their use in electric vehicles as Rube Goldberg designs. Putting thousands of small cells in a case to provide the energy to power an electric vehicle 100’s of miles shows a lack of imagination. Unless better and simpler ways of producing EV batteries takes place petroleum based energy will remain the dominant source in providing EV’s with energy.
This has unfortunate political ramifications as all “westerners” are experiencing when they go to fill their tanks, then proceed to buy whatever at a store only to find that prices have risen dramatically. Of course the cost of electricity, for those who have EV’s, has also risen dramatically. So you say, install solar on the house. The solar company goes bankrupt and you’re looking for a contractor to fix your solar panel and/or repair a leaky roof. This whole technology requires a LOT more forethought to be widely successful. Unfortunately I don’t see this happening currently at Rivian, or any other EV manufacturer.