i'm on day 8... i've been fine so far. haven't needed to change the battery once. have you guys been exclusively using the ATV at night and leaving the lights on when you get off? i'm playing on hard mode and i haven't had much time to explore in the first week but that's because i haven't been making much time to explore. the coffee machine in the upstairs hallway costs 10 points and is an absolute boon. it lets me handle the higher signal demand! i've been using the ATV every day to visit 4 dishes for my floppy duties, as well as keeping up with transformers. i've also had spare money for things like a new sleeping bag, the ATV radio, and cleaning the whole middle floor of my base of all the trash! i definitely think it would make sense if there was a way we could charge the car battery without having to replace it though. maybe we could craft or buy a mount that will let us plug it into an outlet?
edit: i definitely think that just like velma mode, having an "advanced" mode with more complex mechanics like ATV battery, new coordinates system, and these other mechanics that people seem to find too troublesome could benefit the game so people can curate their experience more to how they like to experience the game, and what kind of itch it scratches for them.
There is definitely a lot of potential for this in the new “Game rules” system that saves have, as it currently allows you to toggle various things that some people might not like, such as the decay of things like transformers and the radio tower. They could definitely add more options to it for toggling more mechanics, like ATV battery drain.