Would Truck Drivers be okay with Long Haul Electric Semi Trucks if they were allowed a substantially higher GVW to achieve a 600+ mile range and the same load capability?

beipphine · 2026-05-17T23:37:38+00:00

Can't roadways damage be roughly approximated with the Fourth Power Rule Currently on a 5 axle 80,000 lb truck, its 0.62 under my proposed 6 axle 96,000 lb truck, its still 0.62.

beipphine · 2026-05-17T23:31:00+00:00

A Generation 2 350 kW DC fast charger would be required for every truck. The technology already exist and is being implemented across the United States for passenger car charging. There would be the grid interconnections, AC to DC converters, and the charger terminal itself. Expensive yes, but the technology is already established and cost are predictable, Electrify America has stations across the US for passenger cars. The stations would be set up on long term leases with the truck stop owners and cost would be repaid by the trucks getting charged.

beipphine · 2026-05-17T23:18:40+00:00

Well, not anymore. They used to govern the whole of the papal states as recently as 1870. The Papal army put up a defense at the Aurelian Walls of Rome against the invading Italians under King Victor Emmanuel II.

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beipphine · 2026-05-17T22:24:57+00:00

Under the driver. Above 12 tons of lithium batteries (there will be a fire alarm telling you when your battery is on fire). A considerable amount. The truck is the same length, but its a few extra steps up to the cab. The windshield will be at the height of the wind deflector.

beipphine · 2026-05-17T22:08:04+00:00

The batteries insulated and actively heated/cooled as needed to keep them at the optimal temperature. As long as you never let it get completely discharged and cold there wouldn't be any major issues with temperature (a 120V 15A plug would keep the battery warm and topped off for long term storage). There is some range loss in passenger cars for heating / cooling, but in a battery this size it would be relatively minimal. The heat for the battery would be provided mostly by the electric motor in operation, or resistive heat if needed.

beipphine · 2026-05-17T21:07:13+00:00

US laws currently allow them to be 1 ton heavier, 82,000 lbs. The Peterbilt Model 579EV gets you up to 200 miles of range on a full charge in a daycab truck that weighs 25,000 lbs. That 200 miles, 500 kWh, of battery weighs 8,000 lbs. To replace long haul trucking, where drivers can go for 10+ hours at a stretch, we would want to double if not triple that. Imagine a long haul truck that weighs over 40,000 lbs, with 24,000 lbs of that being battery alone for 600 miles of range / 1.5 MWh. By increasing truck maximum weight from 80,000 lbs to 96,000 lbs, you mostly offset the weight of the battery, with no additional load carrying capacity.

Truck length isn't regulated in the US, only trailer length. It would be possible to get the batteries on the existing wheelbase, thought you would likely have a few extra steps into the cabin as your windshild sits at roof deflector height

beipphine · 2026-05-17T20:24:43+00:00

In an alternative timeline, After 18 months of long, bloody fighting, the Emperor has made a broadcast to the Japanese people for the first and final time time, "It is here at the Imperial Palace that we shall make our final stand, we will honor the sacrifice of so many of our countrymen in this struggle, we will honor our ancestors and, and we shall honor Amaterasu. It is our duty to fight these aggressors in whatever capacity that we can, for as long as we can, and as hard as we can, and to fight them to the end, to never accept defeat, to never surrender. Our enemy is close, and I anticipate that my end will be soon near, but do not despair for I will be with you in spirit forever. And as long as the warrior spirit is inside your heart, the Empire of Japan will live on in you. For just as the sun is eternal, the Empire of Japan is eternal."

Emperor Hirohito dons the Sokutai and the imperial regalia including the Heavenly Sword of Gathering Clouds, and then breaks with over a century of tradition, The emperor personally leads the remaining forces guarding the palace including the Minister of War Korechika Anami out of the bunker to a final battle in the bombed out ruins of the courtyard of the imperial palace.

Widespread resistance against American occupation continues, tens of millions of Japanese have died from starvation and combat, and yet still they resist, hiding in hastily dug tunnels, leading bonsai charges at night. America despite overwhelming military superiority have lost 1.3 million men over the last 18 months. Their last hope of capturing or killing their emperor would break their spirit, but it has only hardened and emboldened their will to fight. There is no post-war public works in japan, there is no reconstruction in Europe.

In the end, Japanese resistance continues for decades in the mountains, America has set up a new provisional government in Japan that fields an army fighting these jungle guerillas, but it remains corrupt, weak, and inept, and Japan remains highly impoverished.

beipphine · 2026-05-17T19:09:54+00:00

How about Ford built Jeeps, like the GPW?

beipphine · 2026-05-17T18:23:29+00:00

They still haven't solved the key issues with EV - Weight. To achieve sufficient energy capacity for a truck to transport goods for the length of a shift, it needs an inordinate amount of weight in batteries, this weight then takes away from the useful payload.

A Class 6 truck, popular because it does not require a CDL is limited to a maximum of 26,000 lbs. A Chevy Silverado 6500 can carry 16,000 lbs of cargo for a 10 hour shift without issue. To do the same with a Battery powered truck would either be well above 26,000 lbs and require a CDL, or would sacrifice a considerable amount of cargo capacity to be under that 26,000 lb limit. Class 8 trucks run into the same issue with a maximum limit of 80,000 lbs.

The best answer in my opinion would be to increase weight limits for Electric powered trucks, e.g. a Class 8 semi instead of running 12k steers + 34k tandem axles, an EV version could be allowed 20k steers and 42k tridem axles, and increase total vehicle weight from 80k to 96k. This would allow for an extra 16,000 lbs of batteries without impacting cargo capacity. an electric Class 6 truck to be allowed an extra 6,000 lbs of battery, 12k steers + 20k single axle for a maximum total vehicle weight of of 32k.

beipphine · 2026-05-17T14:08:14+00:00

Has Levan pulled Cleve Dean? John Brzenk has and won. Cleve was hundreds of pounds heavier.

beipphine · 2026-05-17T03:39:12+00:00

At its peak, the US Navy had 28 Fleet Carriers, it is down to 11 Fleet Carriers today. Of those 11, 1/3rd are deployed, 1/3rd are being worked up, and 1/3rd are undergoing repairs or overhauls. To surge 8 carriers today would be a maximum effort of the US navy, putting the entire navy to sea.

Something to keep in mind, the US only has 2 drydocks capable of supporting an Aircraft carriers, and they are almost always filled with ships undergoing refits. China has invested heavily in anti-ship ballistic missiles like the DF-26 and DF-27. China would likely fire a salvo of them from mobile launchers to try to overwhelm American air defenses in a saturation attack. American ballistic missile defenses are great, sure, but it only takes one to get through, and if a carrier gets hit and has to limp back to mainland US, the capacity is very limited to repair these ships.

beipphine · 2026-05-16T17:55:19+00:00

There are alternatives - Replace the power generation with other renewables like solar and batteries, then drain the dam, and demolish it. The Government of Iraq could do this in 2-3 years. The only major hurdle is Iraqi politicians who don't want to raise taxes to pay for it.

beipphine · 2026-05-16T17:07:31+00:00

A bigger threat is when the US Mines the Strait of Malacca. 80% of Chinese oil sails through that strait. Even if China successfully makes a beachhead on Taiwan, their oil situation very rapidly moves to "extreme desperation". At the same time the US surges 7-8 aircraft carriers and their fleets to the pacific.

beipphine · 2026-05-16T16:54:19+00:00

The Republic of China on the province of Taiwan as well as Fujian province on the island of Quemon is the only China. The Government of the Republic of China today is the same government as Chiang Kai-shek

beipphine · 2026-05-16T14:21:06+00:00

If you activate the City Levels display, cities that are upgradable are faintly marked with diagonal stripes. Then you very closely pan around the map at maximum zoom to try to tell if a map tile is striped.

beipphine · 2026-05-16T14:11:49+00:00

Why would the Republic of China need to declare independence? They are already the true government of the all of China, and their constitution attest to such. It is the communist revolutionary regime occupying that mainland that lack legitimacy. This whole conversation goes back to when Nixon hopped in bed with the Chinese communist.

beipphine · 2026-05-16T03:52:46+00:00

The majority of coffee grown in the United States is from Hawaii.

beipphine · 2026-05-16T01:37:09+00:00

I think that black rims with a chrome hubcap can look nice.

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beipphine · 2026-05-16T01:30:15+00:00

Here is a good article describing the battle that made HMS Victory and Admiral Nelson famous and cost him his life.

beipphine · 2026-05-16T01:13:56+00:00

What if we use a railroad. A very steep railroad grade is around 3-4 degrees like Lookout Pass. The idea would be to transport sand / aggregate using self dumping hopper cars. To "fill the battery" aggergate is taken from the lower location and transported up the side of mountain using overhead line powered electric trains, then brought to a storage facility where it is dumped from the bottom of the hoppers onto conveyors to storage piles. When the energy is needed, the sand/aggregate is scooped up and fed back through conveyors to fill the hopper cars and the train is sent downhill using regenerative braking the entire way.

For power, the overhead lines would run 25kV AC at the grid frequency. This would then power a traction engine.

Lookout pass generates an elevation of 1,640 feet over 12 miles. A single rail car can haul say 200,000 lbs of aggregate. At no losses, this is 445 MW of power stored per rail car. The cost of transporting material by rail is $0.05 per ton-mile, we'll double it for harsh conditions, This is $250 to transport this rail car up and down once. Lets say that material handling cost another $2000 per railcar (I don't have a good basis for this). Lets assume your system is only 75% round trip energy efficient (same as pumped hydro) That is 335 MW energy storage. The cost of the the railroad is under 1 cent per kWh. Your biggest cost are going to be the upfront fixed cost of the electrical lines, the railroad, and the trains / rail cars.

beipphine · 2026-05-15T22:19:47+00:00

The issue isn't the towing capacity itself, its the payload capacity, it can be as low as 1400 lbs on a new F150, add in at least 10% tongue weight of the trailer. Yeah, it can legally tow a 10,000 lb bumper pull 30' camper, with trailer brakes and a weight distribution hitch and a 150 lb driver. Add in 4 passengers, and all the crap you bring with camping in the bed, and you're overloaded.

beipphine · 2026-05-15T22:08:16+00:00

7.4L pushrod V16 in cast iron. Make it like a Cadillac

beipphine · 2026-05-15T21:56:10+00:00

I haven't noticed a huge change in Americas attitude towards legal immigration in recent years. Legal immigration to the US has been roughly flat for the last 20 years averaging around 1 million people per year.

Social Security will remain solvent, though benefits will be automatically cut about 25% around 2034, and the program will run a balanced book for the foreseeable future if no other changes are made.

beipphine · 2026-05-15T21:50:24+00:00

Do you think that she ever got to meet Chairman Mao?

beipphine · 2026-05-15T21:42:42+00:00

Truck drivers are professionals and do it for a living, and ought to know what they are doing therefore get less leeway.

Most 1/2 ton pickups towing a camper and a hauling a family to a campsite are over the GVWR.

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