I had AI design some futuristic RV's

[RV_Lee]

Pretty wild

[RV_Lee]

[Dieselboy]

Those are cool. I'm just waiting for a high end conversion company to make a Tesla Semi Super C. Probably not all that far off to be honest.

[Country Road]

Someone’s been working overtime. I love it.

[YC1]

Just need an oversized 3D printer now.

[AllegroD]

Very nice!

[RV_Lee]

I told it to design me a class-c for year 2035...







And a Newmar baystar I told to make "more futuristic"...wow

[153stars]

Middle one second group , I've seen similar shape and front windows / minus the side bling ,on British or other the pond TV show . I thought it was a really cool "caravan" then.

[greybeard2]

Originally Posted by Dieselboy

Those are cool. I'm just waiting for a high end conversion company to make a Tesla Semi Super C. Probably not all that far off to be honest.

Actually, your fantasy appears to be just that -- a pure fantasy, and very far away. The reason why this is true is simple: energy density.

Diesel fuel contains a lot of energy, and Class 8 trucks have large fuel tanks. By contrast, electrical battery banks contain much less energy, and storing sufficient quantities of electrical power to move a large truck requires a lot of weight and space.

What this means is that, given current battery technology, to store and then use enough energy in a practical manner to move an electric-powered "semi-truck" (class 8 size) or a conversion thereof down the highway would require a battery bank with such huge physical size and outrageous weight, the vehicle would be quite useless and impractical.

For example, having a battery bank weighing 17,000 pounds (10 X the weight of batteries in a Tesla model Y, which would be a minimal requirement) would sufficiently lower the available useful/towing capacity of the electrically-powered Class 8 tractor (or a conversion thereof) to make it unacceptably impractical.

For example, if my Super-C motorhome (Class 8 conversion w empty weight of 38,000# and GVWR of 54,000#) weighed an additional 17,000 pounds (battery weight), then I could barely fill my freshwater tank and put kitchen items into the cabinets without exceeding the GVWR of my chassis. That is impractical!

(Oh, yes, and I would have to add another axle w duals to carry the extra weight. So scratch the above thought -- because that extra weight would mean that I couldn't put any water at all in the tank or any dishes in the cabinets. I could use my motorhome "dry" and empty only.....)

I can fill up with 200 gallons of diesel in about 20 minutes at a truck stop. How long would it take to re-charge the huge, required battery bank for 4 days of travel....?

Like I said -- impractical.

Travel Free!

[radar]

Originally Posted by greybeard2

Actually, your fantasy appears to be just that -- a pure fantasy, and very far away. The reason why this is true is simple: energy density.

Diesel fuel contains a lot of energy, and Class 8 trucks have large fuel tanks. By contrast, electrical battery banks contain much less energy, and storing sufficient quantities of electrical power to move a large truck requires a lot of weight and space.

What this means is that, given current battery technology, to store and then use enough energy in a practical manner to move an electric-powered "semi-truck" (class 8 size) or a conversion thereof down the highway would require a battery bank with such huge physical size and outrageous weight, the vehicle would be quite useless and impractical.

For example, having a battery bank weighing 17,000 pounds (10 X the weight of batteries in a Tesla model Y, which would be a minimal requirement) would sufficiently lower the available useful/towing capacity of the electrically-powered Class 8 tractor (or a conversion thereof) to make it unacceptably impractical.

For example, if my Super-C motorhome (Class 8 conversion w empty weight of 38,000# and GVWR of 54,000#) weighed an additional 17,000 pounds (battery weight), then I could barely fill my freshwater tank and put kitchen items into the cabinets without exceeding the GVWR of my chassis. That is impractical!

(Oh, yes, and I would have to add another axle w duals to carry the extra weight. So scratch the above thought -- because that extra weight would mean that I couldn't put any water at all in the tank or any dishes in the cabinets. I could use my motorhome "dry" and empty only.....)

I can fill up with 200 gallons of diesel in about 20 minutes at a truck stop. How long would it take to re-charge the huge, required battery bank for 4 days of travel....?

Like I said -- impractical.

Travel Free!

Hmmm. The battery pack in the semi weighs no where near that. The weight penalty is about 8000 pounds compared to a diesel semi. Tesla semi customers seem pretty happy with them.

Tesla semi charge time is 30 to 45 minutes on their depot megachargers. According to pepsi officials it hasn’t been a problem.

I think a super C based on a Tesla semi would be kinda cool. However widespread megacharger infrastructure is a ways out. It will be interesting to see which large travel centre truck stop adds megachargers first.

We already see class 5 to 8 electric trucks pretty regularly here. Unfortunately they don’t fit well into existing charge sites and sometimes stick out into traffic. My guess is the local depot doesn’t have enough DCFC yet as it’s not uncommon to see them at the local FLO chargers on their lunch break. They are based out of a different town up the valley so they must use them in some kind of valley delivery capacity. Not sure. Cool looking truck though.

[Yellville]

The last days of old technology are always better than the first days of new technology. Current electric cars are already better than ICE cars in every possible way and significantly faster. The same will eventually happen with RV’s. A lot of very smart people are betting billions on it.

[greybeard2]

Originally Posted by radar

Hmmm. The battery pack in the semi weighs no where near that. The weight penalty is about 8000 pounds compared to a diesel semi. Tesla semi customers seem pretty happy with them.

Tesla semi charge time is 30 to 45 minutes on their depot megachargers. According to pepsi officials it hasn’t been a problem..........

For me, practicality is key!

Tesla's lighter-weight truck battery bank with a weight penalty of only 8,000# has to come with an unacceptably-short range before recharge. Motorhome range requirements are not the same as those of a short-haul or local delivery truck. Pepsi has their own network of company-access-only charging stations, to which their trucks return daily. Good for them. How many RV'ers do?

And speaking of recharging, there are virtually no public-access charging stations available outside certain high-density urban areas, where an RV'er is unlikely to plan to stay near (or at least, unlikely to want to spend several hours there solely for re-charging). How many megachargers are available near Yellowstone NP, or the Grand Canyon? Maybe there will be some in 5-10 years, but not now.

Again, E-powered motorhomes appear to me to be impractical at present. Yes, a possible future development. But for now, I say, "No, Thank you!"

Travel Free!

[radar]

Originally Posted by greybeard2

For me, practicality is key!

Tesla's lighter-weight truck battery bank with a weight penalty of only 8,000# has to come with an unacceptably-short range before recharge. Motorhome range requirements are not the same as those of a short-haul or local delivery truck. Pepsi has their own network of company-access-only charging stations, to which their trucks return daily. Good for them. How many RV'ers do?

And speaking of recharging, there are virtually no public-access charging stations available outside certain high-density urban areas, where an RV'er is unlikely to plan to stay near (or at least, unlikely to want to spend several hours there solely for re-charging). How many megachargers are available near Yellowstone NP, or the Grand Canyon? Maybe there will be some in 5-10 years, but not now.

Again, E-powered motorhomes appear to me to be impractical at present. Yes, a possible future development. But for now, I say, "No, Thank you!"

Travel Free!

Agreed. Totally doable once the infrastructure is in place. But until then nope.

The range is fine for most motorhomers though. 500 miles for the semi pulling 80,000 pounds. Probably better than that with just a super C.

But yep. It won’t make sense until the infrastructure is in place. EV RVing is doable now with small trailers behind SUV’s or electric half tons but motorhomes, even smaller ones are a few years out yet.

[RV_Lee]

The battery weight in an EV semi has already been debunked. You have to remember to weigh the huge diesel engine, transmission, exhaust, full fuel tanks etc of a current truck. It aint' light. Also, dont quote me, but I believe the electric motor used in the tesla semi is the same motor from the model 3.