NYT Opinion why Performance Battery Plus is not necessary

[Windpower]

in my many years of owning EVs, a leaf, 3 teslas, the taycan and an Ipace I believe that the sweet spot for range is 250-300 miles

I both agree with the article (the fact is that most cars are driven less than 30 miles per day) and the quote from Kort (I’m fine with 250 miles of range at 100%).
That’s the beauty of EVs: a manufacturer can offer consumers choices in range, with extra range being a cost which is proportional to the battery cost. If someone needs the range, they’ll pay for it.
The big issue with having excess range (range you only need once or twice a year) is environmental: you might be able to pay for the extra range but is digging up more of the planets limited supply of cobalt and lithium for your long range car good for the planet?
For example, even though I can afford it, does it make sense for me to buy another EV for my household with 300 miles of range when the car is a commuter car driven 20 miles a day? Personally, I don’t think so. My wife is looking at the Mini EV as her next car because she really doesn’t drive that much and the Mini has enough range where she can charge once a week.
The issue is when car companies get on the “range train”: my range is longer than your range. Manufacturers start to compete for who has the longest range, just for marketing reasons.
I don’t think this is good.

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[rich_r]

I both agree with the article (the fact is that most cars are driven less than 30 miles per day) and the quote from Kort (I’m fine with 250 miles of range at 100%).
That’s the beauty of EVs: a manufacturer can offer consumers choices in range, with extra range being a cost which is proportional to the battery cost. If someone needs the range, they’ll pay for it.
The big issue with having excess range (range you only need once or twice a year) is environmental: you might be able to pay for the extra range but is digging up more of the planets limited supply of cobalt and lithium for your long range car good for the planet?
For example, even though I can afford it, does it make sense for me to buy another EV for my household with 300 miles of range when the car is a commuter car driven 20 miles a day? Personally, I don’t think so. My wife is looking at the Mini EV as her next car because she really doesn’t drive that much and the Mini has enough range where she can charge once a week.
The issue is when car companies get on the “range train”: my range is longer than your range. Manufacturers start to compete for who has the longest range, just for marketing reasons.
I don’t think this is good.

Agree. It's disappointing that the the media (even outlets that should know better) tend to harp about the range of any EV with less than 300 miles as if its some sort of failure.