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Transportation

Anti-Tesla Pickup Truck Drivers Take Over a Supercharger Station -- Again (electrek.co) 719

An anonymous reader quotes Electrek: In what is quickly becoming a problem for some Tesla drivers, pickup truck drivers have again taken over a Supercharger station and yelled profanities in what appears to be an act of protest against Tesla. Earlier this month, we reported on a strange situation at Tesla's Hickory Supercharger in North Carolina where three large pickup trucks blocked access to the station and reportedly chanted "F*** Tesla"....

Now it looks like it's becoming a trend since another Reddit user spotted pickup truck drivers taking over another Tesla Supercharger. They reportedly were also yelling profanities to Tesla owners coming to charge at the Supercharger station.

Electrek also cites one Tesla owner's reports of being "coal rolled" -- intentionally targetted with extra black exhaust fumes from specially-modified engines.
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Anti-Tesla Pickup Truck Drivers Take Over a Supercharger Station -- Again

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  • Classic (Score:3, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 05, 2019 @09:38PM (#57911308)

    No better way to convince people they're wrong/dumb than being an asshole to them. These truckers should run for office

    • Re: Classic (Score:5, Insightful)

      by javaman235 ( 461502 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @09:43PM (#57911324)

      Truckers drive trucks, including Teslaâ(TM)s. These rednecks are in coal/oil, which pumps money in piss poor towns. They have picked a losing fight.

      • Re: Classic (Score:3, Interesting)

        by Anonymous Coward

        This is a fake-out. The original reddit post used a cropped photo that deliberately didn't show several vacant recharging stations. That reddit post has since been picked up by various news and blog sites, which has been used as further verification from yet more news sites.

  • by tempest69 ( 572798 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @09:49PM (#57911338) Journal
    Really-- call a tow company in there, block them in, and hook up towing gear, and charge them a stiff fee.

    If it isn't a tow away zone then somebody screwed up.

    • by haruchai ( 17472 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:12PM (#57911476)

      Really-- call a tow company in there, block them in, and hook up towing gear, and charge them a stiff fee.

      If it isn't a tow away zone then somebody screwed up.

      They don't need a tow truck. Teslas have a lot of low-end torque and a Model S or X could easily drag those pickups out of the parking spots.

      • by MrKaos ( 858439 )

        They don't need a tow truck. Teslas have a lot of low-end torque and a Model S or X could easily drag those pickups out of the parking spots.

        Now that would be embarrassing.

      • by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:51PM (#57911678)

        Really-- call a tow company in there, block them in, and hook up towing gear, and charge them a stiff fee.

        If it isn't a tow away zone then somebody screwed up.

        They don't need a tow truck. Teslas have a lot of low-end torque and a Model S or X could easily drag those pickups out of the parking spots.

        Forget a damn pick-up truck, a Tesla Model X P100D can, and has towed an actual Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. That's a 130 tonne aircraft being pulled 300 meters [youtube.com].

        See one of these many, many articles [google.com]. Or this one [businessinsider.com.au].

        For a Model X, a pick up truck isn't going to be a problem.

      • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

        They'd lose [wikipedia.org] - 1000+ lb-ft of torque for the Duramax engine.
        • No, see my other comment. They can tow the truck with the wheels completely locked up.

          It isn't about power, it's about friction on the wheels. If the two vehicles have roughly the same friction coefficient, the Tesla wins because it is heavier. It also has higher starting torque, but that doesn't actually matter because the truck's wheels will be free-spinning while it is dragged forward.

      • by dryeo ( 100693 )

        Need traction as well as torque.

        • Need traction as well as torque.

          Teslas are heavy (all those batteries) and many have 4WD.

          • Most big diesel personal trucks are heavier - and usually 4WD (with lots of dually configurations) as well.
  • by bob4u2c ( 73467 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @09:50PM (#57911352)
    Take our your cell phone, take pictures of the trucks (and license plates if you can). Then call the police and report that trucks are blocking a public entrance. When the cops finally show up, show them the pictures and file a report.

    How hard is that?

    Or I guess you could just pull out your guns and have a showdown. Seriously are people this stupid?
  • Gee what a surprise (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward

    Redneck trump supporters being total dickheads. Not surprised by this at all.

  • Hehe (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Alwin Henseler ( 640539 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:02PM (#57911416)

    First they ignore Tesla
    Then they laugh at Tesla
    Then they fight Tesla <--
    Then Tesla wins

  • by ClarkMills ( 515300 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:03PM (#57911426)

    I suspect that it's a ploy to dissuade buying electric by presenting a "Electric car owners will be bullied" sentiment. I have no doubt it's orchestrated as I am sure the drivers or the utes have better things to do really.

    The inevitable EV revolution is being attacked on many fronts.

  • by 93 Escort Wagon ( 326346 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:03PM (#57911430)

    What exactly do the truck drivers think they’re accomplishing? And what do they think they’re protesting?

    I realize these guys are likely not the brightest bulbs in the box... but seriously, they must have at least a vaguely-defined reason they are choosing to do this.

    • by rsilvergun ( 571051 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:15PM (#57911492)
      but they're probably angry at technocrat elites. If they're blue collar types odds are good they listen to right wing media which is often on the warpath against silicon valley and the like. Plus if they're blue collar then odds are good they're not doing so hot economically since blue collar types got hammered in the last recession and never really recovered.

      Still, I could be totally wrong. Like the author if TFA I'd love to just ask them why.
      • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) on Sunday January 06, 2019 @07:07AM (#57912764) Homepage Journal

        A lot of them just seem to enjoy upsetting "liberals", in the broadest possible sense.

        They feel that "liberals" had to good under Obama, with a lot of changes in their favour like marriage equality and other rights, and a general recognition by society that some behaviour was no longer acceptable. Now they feel things are swinging back the other way and are emboldened to to this kind of stuff.

      • You might try checking out the pricing of pickup trucks.

        I had a quick look over at ford.com today. And unless you're settling for the most bare-bones Ranger (Which is already ridonklously overpriced at $25K.); you're spending quite a pretty penny. With the F-series, which the googles tell me is the best-selling pickup of the lot of them; a middle-of-the-pack setup will put you well into the pricing of a nicely equipped BMW 2, 3, or 4-series, mid-range Infinitis or Lexuses (Lexuii???), or a very nice 370Z.

      • by mcvos ( 645701 )

        if they're blue collar then odds are good they're not doing so hot economically since blue collar types got hammered in the last recession and never really recovered.

        It's a wild guess, but they might even be voting for the party that keeps hammering blue collar types.

    • by mysidia ( 191772 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:28PM (#57911574)

      My feeling is many of the people that own and drive personal pickup trucks all the time; even when they're not actually hauling anything are self-centered arrogant SOBs who compare p***s links with each other; couldn't care less about being green, and often either don't think the rules apply to them -- or challenge the rules frequently through open defiance, Such as parking as to straddle two parking spaces, ignoring the lines, double parking locking people in, pulling in parallel to perpendicular parking, or pulling in perpendicular to parallel parking, etc.

      Many Supercharger stations are in sectioned off area of a larger parking lot ---
      the pickup drivers' ego is probably irked that someone else is special, other than them. Tesla drivers get dedicated Tesla-only "parking" areas in a crowded space, and that alone drives them batshit insane.

      • by DNS-and-BIND ( 461968 ) on Sunday January 06, 2019 @12:51AM (#57912106) Homepage
        Treating them as bizarre space aliens instead of fellow Americans who should have their needs cared for just like everyone else is the problem. You're dividing us into US and THEM. Vladimir Putin would be proud. He has to pay people to incite rhetoric like this; you're doing it for free.
    • by rtb61 ( 674572 )

      They are protesting the size of their brains. They feel short changed, unfairly discriminated against, victims of tiny brain syndrome, being born a dumb loser, being human genetics bitch, fucked in the head, from conception to death, unfairly victimised by everyone in society smarter than them.

      Is it fair and reasonable for those born genetically, well, stupid, to be so victimised by society, at the very bottom of the pay scale, doesn't not matter, colour, creed or religion, born to a shitty minimum wage wi

    • by Locutus ( 9039 ) on Sunday January 06, 2019 @12:19AM (#57911986)
      Most likely it is because they keep hearing EV's are the future, that gasoline and diesel fuel is wrong and you know, the whole 'global warming is fake' thing. Probably listen to guys like Rush and Alex who'll say anything so they've probably heard there'd be people coming to take their truck away from them like the Gun Police they constantly talk about coming to collect their guns. So all of This gets focused on those who are proving EVs are viable.
    • What exactly do the truck drivers think they’re accomplishing? And what do they think they’re protesting?

      Just guessing here. Accomplishing: irritating Tesla owners, making it less convenient to own a Tesla. Protesting: subsidies to Tesla, people who don't like fossil fuels, environmentalism in general.

    • "...if you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd. And you push back on them. And you tell them they’re not welcome anymore, anywhere.” - Maxine Waters

      "at a gasoline station"...hmmm? Maybe it isn't a good idea to incite that kind of activity.

  • by iggymanz ( 596061 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:08PM (#57911448)

    We have quite a few of those recharging station at the malls and railroad stations around here, 16 within 2 miles of me..... never seen them blocked by anything or anyone, ever.

    • Yes, if you personally have not experienced it, it can not possibly happen.

    • by Tugrik ( 158279 )

      I've not seen any group efforts to block superchargers but this week I did see a single incident. I pulled into a supercharger station in Sandy, OR and plugged in to get a top off. I was the only Tesla there using them at the time. At the end of the row, however, was a huge diesel van; one of those 'earthroamer' types that was jacked up on high suspension with big tires, parked sideways across three of the spots.

      A few minutes later the driver got back to his vehicle. He saw me sitting in my model 3, flipp

  • Nice... (Score:4, Informative)

    by skam240 ( 789197 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:10PM (#57911468)

    Nice, have these idiots vehicles legally towed and let them enjoy their ridiculous impound fees that most communities have. Maybe they'll direct their far right rage towards the bullshit government attitude towards the privatization of impound lots. Your car was towed on a Friday? Good luck low income person being able to afford getting your car out of impound on Monday.

  • by WaffleMonster ( 969671 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @10:14PM (#57911484)

    https://www.businessinsider.co... [businessinsider.com]

  • Big truck drivers must not have much to do. I wonder how long they waited for somebody to actually wanna use those chargers? Must have been a sale on Copenhagen and Budwieser.

    In TFA, Tesla driver reports “took them 10 minutes or so and one of them did that ‘I’m going to hit you’ maneuver after circling the parking lot.”

    WTF is a ‘I’m going to hit you’ maneuver?

  • by jd ( 1658 ) <(moc.oohay) (ta) (kapimi)> on Saturday January 05, 2019 @11:03PM (#57911732) Homepage Journal

    Someone is going to die.

    Whether it's a pregnant woman being driven to hospital in a Tesla dying of complications, a kid getting hit by something thrown, raised tempers turning ugly, someone failing to stop in time for the parked cars...

    And the truckers will deny it has anything to do with them. Legally, they'd probably be right. Blood on innocent hands.

    The Tesla drivers will deny any blame, too, if it's a case of raised tempers. Stand your ground is a legal defence.

    It wouldn't matter if they had to stack the bodies in a double 40' trailer. Nobody's guilty here, your honor.

    Who the hell gives a shit what you think of such and such a political ideology that nobody here can define anyway. Who the hell cares what you think of Tesla or truckers?

    Is the absolute certainty of accidental death of someone who has nothimg to do with either side a desired outcome? This isn't whatiffery, this is guaranteed if these incidents keep happening.

    At what point is it more important to find and apply a fix than to whine about the bug?

    My guess is never. The days when getting things done mattered are long over.

    Now get off my lawn!

  • Hillbillies and yahoos know no better. This just reveals that they have seen the writing in the wall, and that they are shitting in their pants.
  • by kenh ( 9056 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @11:15PM (#57911778) Homepage Journal

    In what is quickly becoming a problem for some Tesla drivers

    It's happened TWICE - that's the same number of times Hillary lost her bid for President...

    Let's not over-react.

  • by Btrot69 ( 1479283 ) on Saturday January 05, 2019 @11:52PM (#57911886)

    I'm a suburbanite and I've been driving a hybrid Camry since 2007 and I like it.
    But I don't think that insulting these truck owners (or vice versa) is going to help anybody.

    I think that electric vehicles pose a very real threat to the jobs and the future of many rural Americans, who feel that their work depends on trucks, cars, vehicle repair, oil, oil equipment, coal, scrap yards, etc, etc.

    That is especially the case today, when Tesla has been publicizing the success of their SELF-DRIVING electric SEMI-trucks. Tesla says that in a convoy, they are more energy efficient than trains. They even have a standing order for HUNDREDS of these new trucks from Walmart, rural America's love/hate store/employer.

    For years, the only way that a rural American could escape and see the world was to either drive a truck or work on the railroad.
    Its a fundamental part of American culture, and it doesn't escape these people that Tesla's development poses a tangible threat to that way of life.

    There are political and economic solutions that could provide jobs AND save the environment, but its not going to happen by spewing all this filth.

    • by neiras ( 723124 ) on Sunday January 06, 2019 @12:15AM (#57911972)

      I don't think that insulting these truck owners (or vice versa) is going to help anybody.

      Fuck these fragile snowflakes who are so afraid of change that they'll go park their trucks in front of another guy's filling station. That's small ball. You don't see Tesla owners blockading filling stations.

      They don't get to be assholes and expect that anyone will listen to them. The American Yahoo is something to be derided and mocked. I've met them - if you aren't like them, you're their plaything or their enemy. They'll screw you mercilessly if they have an angle, and they'll laugh to their buddies about it later.

      For years, the only way that a rural American could escape and see the world was to either drive a truck or work on the railroad. Its a fundamental part of American culture, and it doesn't escape these people that Tesla's development poses a tangible threat to that way of life.

      Railways will continue to exist. Trucks will continue to exist. The rednecks will still be able to hoot and holler and do doughnuts in walmart parking lots at midnight. Soon they'll be able to stagger out of their shitty bars and have their trucks drive them home without the usual DUI along the way. You don't need to be doing the driving to see the country.

      I think that electric vehicles pose a very real threat to the jobs and the future of many rural Americans, who feel that their work depends on trucks, cars, vehicle repair, oil, oil equipment, coal, scrap yards, etc, etc.

      The fact is, moving goods around and monkey-wrenching are not going to be fallback jobs for Joe Schmoe anymore. They only ever paid reasonably well because they're shit jobs that no one with half a brain wants. Those jobs will go away, because it's cheaper and more pleasant to deal with a self-driving vehicle than it is to deal with Joe Schmoe. Time for Joe to do something with his life.

  • by k2r ( 255754 ) on Sunday January 06, 2019 @06:54AM (#57912732)

    home of the stupid bullies.

    Trump as a President fits perfectly.

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