[Fot] Electric cars

[Randall]

---- RACER BUD <budscars at comcast.net> wrote: 
> What happens to The electric cars when the batteries are  no good
> anymore..?..and what does it cost to replace tham..or..what becomes of the
> car?

They're kind of expensive to replace; buddy of mine said the battery for his 1st gen Prius was $7k but he convinced Toyota to cover half (which I suspect means the wholesale price is closer to $3.5k).  (Yes, I realize a Prius has a relatively small battery, it's just a data point).

When the car isn't worth the price of a new or rebuilt battery, it gets scrapped just like any other car that isn't worth repairing.

At the moment, AFAIK the nearest Li-ion battery recycling facility is in Canada.  Toxco was supposed to open a new plant in Ohio last year, but it doesn't seem to have happened yet.  At the moment, lithium is so cheap that it doesn't pay to recycle it; but likely that will change if electric cars gain more acceptance.

Personally, I don't see full electric as ever replacing internal combustion.  There is certainly a niche market for them, short distance commuting and so on.  But the advantages aren't nearly as great as some folks like to claim.  They aren't anywhere close to "zero pollution"; its just that most of the pollution comes out somewhere else.  NFI, YMMV, etc.

Randall