I could see a standardized swappable pack, maybe in the 40 pound range? And a spot in the frunk which could handle some number of them? 4, 5, 6? If it was a universal standard, you could buy/exchange them like propane cylinders, or they could stay in place and provide supplemental power. They wouldn’t even have to be full-current enabled…. They could moderate-charge the main battery, providing a constant supply while it provided the acceleration surge. One could set them up to only charge on-grid, not worrying about the cost of tying into regen. It’s basically like electrical gas cans. And very doable. In fact, in this arrangement they could be upgraded to newer tech in the future, just by adjusting interface parameters rather than gutting an entire vehicle. Would that add enough capacity to be valuable??
if I was taking a trip now into uncertain territory with an EV, at a minimum I’d carry my eu2000i with me. Fast? No. able to limp somewhere after 2 hours? Yes. And, I don’t own an EV - don’t yet fit my use case, but I’d love to have one. For now, however, it’d have to be a 3rd car for office commutes only. My 50 year old home… will be a nightmare to bring charging to the garage/driveway.
a fellow made a solar powered EV bicycle years ago and rode it coast to coast. The bike held him, the drive motor, and luggage packs. The trailer behind him held 4 full size panels, a few lead acid batteries, and the power management. It was a very long trailer. He made it across country just fine, albeit better on sunny days. PV would hold cruise, batteries wede needed for hills and cloudy stints. It was entirely too much weight to effectively pedal.