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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don't know, but it sure seems to, though it isn't why we got one. We also have solar, so that lowers the cost of home charging. I say it seems to because the only costs are purchase price and electricity, which is pennies whereas filling the gas tank is $50-$100 2-3 times per month, and gas doesn't last as long. We rarely need to fully charge the EV, and rarely drop below 40% -- usually its around 70%, and we keep it at the recommended 80% expect for longer trips.

The difference in time (and money) spent on "car stuff" is something we hadn't anticipated making a difference to us, but the EV to hybrid car ownership experience for us is like the difference between a native plant in the right place compared to an exotic, fussy, non-native in a less than ideal spot - so much more work for the hybrid. Once we got used to the EV, the time spent on little things for the hybrid, like getting gas, oil changes, inspections, maintenance issues, became extra annoying simply because we never have to do it for the EV. So now we fuss over who has to deal with the "primitive vehicle," lol. [/quote]

You have solar. That wasn’t free and I’m sure you overpaid.  So in other words you paid for all your electricity years in advance. Need to factor that into the costs of charging your EV.[/quote]

Why are you so sure they over paid?

I’m looking at a solar system now that will be out of pocket about 40k and save me between 300 and 350 on my electric bill per month.  This leads to about a 10% return on my cash investment, double what a savings account is paying right now.

I’m not sure I’ll pull the trigger, but I am keen to understand why solar is, by default, over priced?[/quote]

It's similar to how most people who buy cars think they got a good deal. Most haven't but the salespeople do their jobs well in making you think you got a good deal. Solar panels are no different. IF you install your panels yourself then you have better chance of actually getting a good deal. Most of the profit margin is on the installation. [/quote]

Yes, this is true, solar panels are commodities now. But I suspect most people here are neither licensed nor capable of installing solar panels on their roofs on their own (it involves not just working on the roof but also pretty complicated electrical work, or at least more complicated than, say, swapping a light fixture). So declaring that any solar installation is overpriced unless you DIY it is basically just saying you think solar isn't worth installing.

In D.C., at least, the SREC market makes it likely you'll fully recoup your costs within four or five years, though, and since I hit breakeven, I'm still selling SRECs that come to about 20 to 25 percent per year of my out-of-pocked install costs (thanks to generous federal tax credits). That means I'm now making money on the solar panels -- and that's not counting the significant savings I get each month from generating most of the electricity I use. Maybe we just have a different definition of "overpriced."[/quote]

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