I too think this isn't a big deal. The market price of copper will force creativity. The Chinese already sell a LOT of CCA. (Copper Clad Aluminum), Horrible stuff!
Tesla has done a lot to reduce copper use. If you've ever looked at a wiring harness on a Model 3 or Y, most of the wires are so thin it's right on the edge of being mechanically risky. They also switched all heavy HV wiring to aluminum. The bulk of the copper is still definitely in the 12v wiring, and this is shared on ICE vehicles. Tesla announced a switch to 48v for LV in future vehicles, This will make the present high-current wiring look almost like the super thin data wiring does now. (4x smaller) I can't speak for what the other OEMs are doing, because I primarily touch Teslas. Here's a picture of some Model 3 wiring, the 2 wires at the bottom carry power, but the others are data: http://ingineerix.com/pic/?tesla-lv-wiring On Fri, May 19, 2023 at 12:32 PM Lee Hart via EV <ev@lists.evdl.org> wrote: > Michael Ross via EV wrote: > > An EV on average requires 5 times as much copper as an ICEV... > > That seems a bit extreme. ICEs are also increasingly loaded with copper, > thanks to the preponderance of creature features and infotainment systems. > > Copper is also highly recyclable, and there are alternatives like aluminum. > > There are always more solutions than problems. We just have to look for > them. > > Lee > > -- > Whatever the problem, be part of the solution. Don’t just sit > around raising questions and pointing out obstacles. -- Tina Fey > -- > Lee Hart, 814 8th Ave N, Sartell MN 56377, www.sunrise-ev.com > > -- > This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. > www.avast.com > _______________________________________________ > Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org > No other addresses in TO and CC fields > HELP: http://www.evdl.org/help/ > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://lists.evdl.org/private.cgi/ev-evdl.org/attachments/20230519/301e7885/attachment.htm> _______________________________________________ Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org No other addresses in TO and CC fields HELP: http://www.evdl.org/help/
