Automotive Forums  Where Car Enthusiasts Go to Discuss Cars Online

1. They are more efficient than combustion engines, they always provide maximum torque, and don't require a transmission.
2. They can accelerate faster than ANY car that runs on gas (look up videos of electric cars smoking Ferraris!).
3. Oil is only getting more expensive, and the price of oil will outpace the speed that we can make cars more oil efficient. Electric cars are the only long-term cheap method of transportation.
4. Electric cars have been running on U.S. roads and highways for over a decade without problem (check out the Rav4-EV)
5. Hydrogen isn’t safe. For hydrogen cars, you take electricity and convert it into hydrogen, and then convert it back into electricity, why not just store the electricity in a battery?
6. 100% Electric cars are lighter than hybrids (no combustion engine, no transmission), they also have a lower center of gravity and better handling.
7. Electric cars cost more than 25% less to maintain (less parts)
8. In 2008, U.S. spent $600 billion on oil, over 2/3 of which was imported and accounted for 30-59% of u.s. trade deficit. Electric cars could pump money back into the country and revitalize the economy. As we became less dependent on oil, we could stop purchasing it from unfriendly governments which threaten us, and we would have to spend less military power protecting our oil infrastructure, meaning we would be a richer and safer country.
9. Although jobs will be lost if we start moving towards electric cars, jobs will also be created. A new study released estimates the net change in jobs would be 13,000 - 250,000 new jobs created.
10. There are too many more reasons to fit in a list of ten. The price of healthcare would go down, cities would be quieter, the electric grid is already at a capacity to handle charging electric cars, electric cars are fun...


If electric cars are great, why aren't they more popular? Car companies can't access the best battery packs for electric cars (high powered NiMH batteries) because Chevron owns the patents for them and refuses to license them. Before Chevron owned the patent, GM and Toyota both had 100% electric cars that worked great. We need to demand the government force Chevron to license these batteries. There are plenty of places to learn more about electric cars on the internet, and elsewhere. I recommend the movie "Who killed the electric car?" and the book "Two cents per mile" by Nevres Cefo. If nothing else, remember that electric cars could be more than luxury vehicles- that they could change the way we think about transportation.  

I have no doubt that we as a nation can benefit from the electric car, in highly dense traffic area's alone would be a great benefit.  Trouble is just over the horizon, hard to see yet it is there, first plugging up to the grid draws more power and higher consumption, therefore greater use of oil used to generate the power.  now if an enterprising group came up with a wind mill generator that could be installed in the corner of your lot you would have a great sales tool.
The second is price tag, I have heard it said 40,000 per unit, and a range of 100 miles, this is a very costly item for such short range, it needs to be 250 to 300 miles, even then I have to fire up my Ben's for longer trips.  the time is now but we must think about this as a work car to travel to and from those jobs, yet we have not addressed the need of those who have work vehicles needed to go from job to job like repair men for appliances, though you are in tune you have had many years to address this issue,sincerely Fordruner    

Plugging in cars isn't a problem- they could charge over night when less electricity is being used, and the same amount of energy is still being generated. And anyways, although more electricity consumption does have adverse environmental affects, they are far less than that of gasoline-powered cars. Also, it does not equate a greater use of oil, because less than 2% of electricity in the U.S. is generated using oil.

I agree with your concern about price tags- It's because automotive companies don't care, and aren't manufacturing electric cars in bulk. That's why as consumers we need to pressure the auto companies by refusing to buy non-electric cars, and as citizens we need to pressure the government into steering the auto industry towards electric vehicles.  

I would like to hear your views on the environmental hazard of disposing of these batteries after they have served there purpose!  

I would like to hear your views on the environmental hazard of disposing of these batteries after they have served their purpose!  

Ummmmmmmmmmm the materials can be reused at a much higher efficiency over that of oil, gasoline, transmission fluid, and you shouldn’t forget less moving parts. Our current knowledge of electric engines and battery technology is only in its beginning stages to. Lets not forget where internal combustion engines started at. This whole environmental hazard talk is a mute point. Oil and gasoline spilled in water or a little shock to the fishes??? lol... but really think of how silly the env hazard of these batteries is silly compared to internal combustion engines and what it takes to run them and keep them in operation them at the cost to our env....  

Electric vehicles and the batteries use a huge amount of resources to make, hence making them expensive. Using basic economics theory, cost of manufacturing is a very good gauge of how effective and efficient a product is.

Paul  

I have no idea of the cost to manufacture those batteries but as anything built in this country, or I should say driven in this country we will wreck them.  what happens to the cells? how safe are they? getting the answer for those types of questions are important to me. I do believe we need to get more involved with forcing the companies to build at least ten percent of the new cars in electric. I don't know how to go about the problem of making the cars effective or the battery lighter or less costly, but I am sure that those companies do have more answers than they let us know.
 The biggest challenge is for us to be willing to use the product, and them to make good product, Perhaps a grass root campaign aim at our congressmen would help. just a few thoughts.  

False Fasle False

The huge cost is due to the same reasons new game systems cost so much when they are first released and with any other product... Also the demand for such products naturally limits the emphases on getting what is needed to lower production cost down.

When car companies really start to turn to electric cars the demand for batteries will push the production of them into a more stable mass production phase. Sorry can’t remember the correct term for it; however, either way the cost right now is due to it being new technology and limited/sustained supply need.

Who knows wither electric cars will turn out like plasma televisions and be phased out and fuel cell cars be like LCD televisions and be the new form of transportation. This alone is good enough reason for any company to not put forth the assets in starting a mass production of the batteries.

Until the future is certain on the next technology to be used for transportation no company is going to take that risk without some sort of government backing. When the new era of transportation is set in stone and the batteries become mass produced you will see prices drop.  

Well, I live in area that can hit 40 degrees below zero (ambient, not wind chill) in January.  I don't know of any batteries that would be able to handle heating the interior of a car plus propelling the car for any usable distance at those temperatures.  

Which is another reason no one is jumping intot he hot seat in taking that risk in mass production of these batteries. I'm on fuel cell's side.  

For electric cars to be essential they will have to go into the 1,000s of miles per charge before people will buy them.  Pay over $40k to go only 100-200 miles per charge.  How long before the batteries need replacing, how much?  How much to pay for disposal or recycling?  You are limited to range by the current batteries and where you can actually go.  It is a good start but I won't buy one.  I can buy a car for $20k and go anywhere and have $20k for gas.  I think you have to look at the whole picture.  Until you start seeing alot longer charge times, like being able to go up and down the coast on one charge or the availability of a super long life battery I don't see this happening.  Of course the government may impose strict taxes, fees, etc. to make us use these expensive useless short term vehicles.  And what if you have a power outage?  You have to wait a few days before you go to work because you have no power to recharge your car?  Your boss will love that.  I can see people evacuating hurricane areas in their 200 mile electric running out of charge before they can get out out of the path of the storm because their car wasn't fully charged or it wouldn't go far enough.  That would be a disaster.    

I am on the fuel cell's side also...at least for now.  

Great forum post.

My father is a mechanic, as am I, and we are both trained in electrical and electronics theory as well.  As a regular part of his job he builds, maintains and repairs electric vehicles and we have built a few prototype electric cars using our own experience as well as following some different ideas found online.

the bottom line for us, is we live in Canada as as of yet we can not legally drive electric vehicles.  I have attempted on multiple occasions to get insurance coverage for a full Chevy S10 electric conversion to no avail.  LSV, or low speed vehicles governed to less than 40km / 25mph are all that are allowed here.  That and apparently I could insure a Seguey if I wanted...

And dont get all USA high and mighty on me either =).  Many places in Europe are so much more progressive than North America if you want to buy an electric car the government will pay for most, almost all of it for you!

My brother has been hounding Tesla Motors for years about bringing the tesla roadster into Canada.  He recently gave up and bought the gas equivellant Lotus Elise because he got tired of waiting.  Now it looks like Tesla has announced that the roadster will be available in Canada, but I still can not find an insurance company willing to insure me for a real electric car.

Just thought that some of you may find this information interesting.

S  
Author of the largest used car buying guide on the internet http://www.usedcarbuying.ca