this post was submitted on 04 Oct 2026
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[–] jballs@sh.itjust.works 44 points 1 day ago (6 children)

I can't help but feel if EVs were invented first, convincing people to adopt gas cars would be impossible.

  • "You mean I have to take it somewhere and stand outside every time I need energy?"
  • "Why do I have to put all these fluids in it? And why does it need all these filters, brake pads, and maintenance?"
  • "These things are so slow, why would you ever want to drive one?"
  • "What do you mean I can't turn on the climate control anytime I want? You mean I have to wait for this thing to heat up?!"
[–] socsa@piefed.social 4 points 8 hours ago

Also, that place is disgusting and you have to step over the rotting corpse of 600 soft drinks poured out next to the pump, then touch a handle which is visibly soiled and often sticky, and then you will probably smell like gas for at least the next 20 minutes.

[–] psx_crab@lemmy.zip 9 points 20 hours ago (2 children)

"those fluid is VERY flammable, it's insane people wanted to sit above one"

"it stink when it's running."

[–] stickyprimer@lemmy.world 1 points 6 hours ago

“the wear and tear from containing thousands of internal explosions will inevitably wear parts down over time.”

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 5 points 16 hours ago

"leave it running in a closed garage and it will kill you in minutes with poison gas"

[–] ChaoticGoodHeart@sh.itjust.works 33 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The saddest part is that EVs were invented first, but it was easier to tanker fuel everywhere, rather than building out the electric grid in low-density areas.

[–] Asetru@feddit.org 35 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

Tbf, battery tech was also shit back then.

[–] 8oow3291d@feddit.dk 4 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

Many people fail to appreciate just how much consumer battery technology has improved, in their lifetime.

[–] stickyprimer@lemmy.world 1 points 6 hours ago

Yes. And another thing people don’t appreciate is that gas always had the inherent advantage in that the oxidizing agent is just sitting around wherever you go. You don’t even need to carry all the chemical agents. If gas cars had to carry around their own oxidizer like rockets do, batteries would have surpassed them long ago.

[–] Nollij@sopuli.xyz 22 points 1 day ago

First, just to be pedantic, EVs did exist first. They go all the way back to the early 1800s. But battery technology didn't advance enough to make them a good option until recently, so your point remains.

I fully agree with you that the only thing keeping gasoline going is inertia. There have been parodies applying the same logic to other fields, like the gas-powered phone.

There's a reason why 80%+ of EV owners say they'll never go back, and a good chunk of the remainder are just waiting on the field to mature a bit.

[–] kestrel7_7@lemmy.world 7 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

EVs still use brake pads. lol

Also electric cars, gas, and steam has a bit of a format war in the 1890’s-1920’s or so, and people really did make a lot of these points back then. Unreliable and sometimes unsafe chargers (basically due to people not understanding electrical engineering as well as we do now) were a big part of why gasoline won out

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 6 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago) (1 children)

EV brake pads can last a lot longer on one pedal cars. Henry Ford's wife drove an EV, she hated his gasoline cars because they were loud, stunk, and could not be started by most women.

[–] riquisimo@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago) (1 children)

Chiming in from experience, our EVs brake pads were rusting faster than they were wearing down. We bought used, so maybe the previous climate was humid, but around 80k miles may have been their first change.

[–] suigenerix@lemmy.world 2 points 6 hours ago

Many (most?) EVs now periodically apply friction brakes to reduce corrosion issues. If an EV doesn't have it, you can do it manually.

Ha, I never thought of it that way but yes, that tracks perfectly. The "inconveniences" of EVs aren't worse than gas cars, it's just that the gas car inconveniences are considered "normal" right now.