EV cars why are so many ugly SUVs

The scariest thing for me about the electric SUV is the torque and the 0-60 acceleration. The 2004 XC90 I had weighed about 2000kg and went 0-60 in around 12 seconds. The EX90 weighs 2800kg but goes 0-60 in around 6 seconds that is similar acceleration to a mid 2000s Porsche Boxter but over 1000kg heavier!
In my experience and opinion acceleration and torque are more dangerous in the wrong hands(or inexperienced hands)than high top speed as a car can get to very lethal speeds in a short space of time. Sub 7 0-60 cars in the past where not rare but not that common either, as the electric vehicle takes over and the instant torque which an electric motor can supply sub 7 0-60 cars will become more and more common.
 
Druss_The_Legend said:
The scariest thing for me about the electric SUV is the torque and the 0-60 acceleration. The 2004 XC90 I had weighed about 2000kg and went 0-60 in around 12 seconds. The EX90 weighs 2800kg but goes 0-60 in around 6 seconds that is similar acceleration to a mid 2000s Porsche Boxter but over 1000kg heavier!
In my experience and opinion acceleration and torque are more dangerous in the wrong hands(or inexperienced hands)than high top speed as a car can get to very lethal speeds in a short space of time. Sub 7 0-60 cars in the past where not rare but not that common either, as the electric vehicle takes over and the instant torque which an electric motor can supply sub 7 0-60 cars will become more and more common.
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not only is this true, it used to take skill to floor a car without spinning it out, now it just takes a heavy foot and a light brain. On the flip side most electric car drivers are so unanxious about their range they won't waste that on acceleration.
 
Laughing said:
I would suggets that the scariest thing about an ev is its weight. It makes them more dangerous to pedestrians than lighter cars.

The kinetic energy in Druss' example above with the 2 vehicles would be twice as much for the ev at 30 mph.
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No, the scariest thing is having to reverse up to the charging point. That rules EVs out for me :whistle:
 
New cars, of which EVs are, have loads of features to reduce accidents such as automatic braking when it senses hazards, lane assist to stop you drifting into the wrong lane or off the road, stability control to prevent skids, blind spot warnings, adaptive cruise control etc. Cars are also designed now to minimise the impact if a pedestrian is hit by a car because the front of the car is softer (probably the wrong word but you get the gist).

So yes, like for like a heavier car with faster acceleration could cause more accidents and more serious damage when those accidents occur but thankfully there have been a lot of safety features added to reduce the likelihood of those accidents happening and to reduce the impact if they do so the comparison is no longer like for like.
 
Nano said:
New cars, of which EVs are, have loads of features to reduce accidents such as automatic braking when it senses hazards, lane assist to stop you drifting into the wrong lane or off the road, stability control to prevent skids, blind spot warnings, adaptive cruise control etc. Cars are also designed now to minimise the impact if a pedestrian is hit by a car because the front of the car is softer (probably the wrong word but you get the gist).

So yes, like for like a heavier car with faster acceleration could cause more accidents and more serious damage when those accidents occur but thankfully there have been a lot of safety features added to reduce the likelihood of those accidents happening and to reduce the impact if they do so the comparison is no longer like for like.
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There is also the matter of the ev motors being near silent at low speeds another danger to pedestrians
 
Glover_elbow said:
There is also the matter of the ev motors being near silent at low speeds another danger to pedestrians
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New EVs emit a synthetic sound at low speed. Regulations came into force a few years ago.

Even so, the damage done at low speeds is usually minimal compared to higher speed collisions. The solution is to add noise though, not a combustible engine.
 
Nano said:
New EVs emit a synthetic sound at low speed. Regulations came into force a few years ago.

Even so, the damage done at low speeds is usually minimal compared to higher speed collisions. The solution is to add noise though, not a combustible engine.
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Minimal on a pedestrian with all that weight
 
SmallTown said:
You tend to replace dead cells rather than the whole battery
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I think the manufacturers have to make sure the dead cells are easy to replace, sounds obvious but sometimes these things aren’t uppermost in their thoughts.

Im thinking of getting an EV so I will let you know more what i think once I’ve got it.
 
Nano said:
New cars, of which EVs are, have loads of features to reduce accidents such as automatic braking when it senses hazards, lane assist to stop you drifting into the wrong lane or off the road, stability control to prevent skids, blind spot warnings, adaptive cruise control etc. Cars are also designed now to minimise the impact if a pedestrian is hit by a car because the front of the car is softer (probably the wrong word but you get the gist).

So yes, like for like a heavier car with faster acceleration could cause more accidents and more serious damage when those accidents occur but thankfully there have been a lot of safety features added to reduce the likelihood of those accidents happening and to reduce the impact if they do so the comparison is no longer like for like.
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have often wondered why they don't put airbags on the outside of cars.
 
sweet_left_foot said:
have often wondered why they don't put airbags on the outside of cars.
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I know the answer to this one. A customer will pay the additional cost of an airbag to protect their family, but not so keen to protect someone they don't know. That or the airbag is just likely to throw the pedestrian into another moving car or lampost cos they are not strapped in.
 
Laughing said:
I would suggets that the scariest thing about an ev is its weight. It makes them more dangerous to pedestrians than lighter cars.

The kinetic energy in Druss' example above with the 2 vehicles would be twice as much for the ev at 30 mph.
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That would be scary, yes. If people didn't already drive SUV whcih are often heavier. My car now (a Tesla, I don't think I've ever mentioned) is lighter than my last diesel
 
SmallTown said:
That would be scary, yes. If people didn't already drive SUV whcih are often heavier. My car now (a Tesla, I don't think I've ever mentioned) is lighter than my last diesel
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I hope you are not suggesting that ev's are lighter than the equivalent ice vehicle?
 
Laughing said:
I know the answer to this one. A customer will pay the additional cost of an airbag to protect their family, but not so keen to protect someone they don't know. That or the airbag is just likely to throw the pedestrian into another moving car or lampost cos they are not strapped in.
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Not sure that is the answer. An airbag is deployed after impact so it would be no good in a collision with a pedestrian because it would go off after the pedestrian has been hit. They also inflate rapidly so could cause more damage by launching injured pedestrians into more danger. Unless the solution you are after is permanent inflatable bumpers but I assume they would seriously alter the aerodynamics of a car and we'd all be driving around in mobile bouncy castles. Although, thinking about it, bouncy castles are bouncy so you'd have the launching pedestrians flying issue again.

The solution would be to use some sort of shock absorbing foam which unsurprisingly is what car bumpers are made from.
 
Nano said:
Not sure that is the answer. An airbag is deployed after impact so it would be no good in a collision with a pedestrian because it would go off after the pedestrian has been hit. They also inflate rapidly so could cause more damage by launching injured pedestrians into more danger. Unless the solution you are after is permanent inflatable bumpers but I assume they would seriously alter the aerodynamics of a car and we'd all be driving around in mobile bouncy castles. Although, thinking about it, bouncy castles are bouncy so you'd have the launching pedestrians flying issue again.

The solution would be to use some sort of shock absorbing foam which unsurprisingly is what car bumpers are made from.
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I think you may have had a woosh moment nano. My post want meant to be taken seriously. The real reason is the second reason I gave. Airbags would be dangerous if you are not strapped in.

Used to work in the high explosion division of ici and most of their work was air bags, rather boringly.
 
Laughing said:
I know the answer to this one. A customer will pay the additional cost of an airbag to protect their family, but not so keen to protect someone they don't know. That or the airbag is just likely to throw the pedestrian into another moving car or lampost cos they are not strapped in.
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I wasn't thinking about protecting pedestrians :)
 
Laughing said:
I hope you are not suggesting that ev's are lighter than the equivalent ice vehicle?
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I'm not, no. Kudos to you for trying to put words in my head. But no.
I'm stating that SUVs are the problem as they are heavier Regardless of powertrain. I'm also stating my last diesel was heavier than my current EV.

"They are heavy" is classic anti EV FUD isn't it? Because it can easily be over stated and then you get ridiculous stories about car parks collapsing, tyre dust and the wholly inaccurate worn brakes stuff. It's a great thing. And I can see why big oil and the anti ev clan keep banging that drum. But it's a modern car problem, not an EV problem.
 
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