Who Killed the Electric Car?

Here we go again. BIG oil, BIG this, BIG that. Every time I hear the word BIG placed before a noun I cringe.

This is sounding too much like a conspiracy trying to hide itself by accusing everyone else of doing exactly what they are doing. This sounds like 'Fahrenheit 911'.

As a consumer, and I think I speak for may others, I have no interest in jumping into a new technology that has a higher cost of operation than what I currently own. Right now, although everyone likes to complain about gas prices, there is no competing technology that comes close for cost and ease of operation. Ohio has only three E85 gas stations and no hydrogen stations that I know of. Nobody makes a vehicle that has a total cost of ownership that is less than the internal combustion engine. Hybrids only save fuel when city driving, not highways. Bio-diesel has no supporting infrastructure. Electric cars require electricity from a grid that is already over-taxed and is expensive on a kilowatt/hour basis.

Getting away from the conspiracy theories, people just don't care! Yes, we grumble about prices, but nobody is mad enough to demand change. There are a number of organizations and individuals that think we should care. The real problem is those people and their organizations need a full-strength prescription of reality pills. Necessity is the mother of invention. When the problem becomes unbearable the solutions will appear and people will buy them. Trying to ram it down everyone's throat in the mean time will just leave a bad taste in the public's mouth.

Well, that is my rant.

I agree. Most companies are trying to put their competitors out of business. This does not make for the cooperative environment necessary for a conspiracy.

The major problem holding the electric car back is battery technology. I keep hearing things like "it gives a 50 mile range, good enough for most commuting purposes". But, what if you want to do more than just commute some day or carry more than one or two passengers or haul some cargo? With your limited range commuter car, you will have no flexibility. For me, I normally drive about 16 miles a day, but every week or two I have to drive to a job site or meet with a customer and then I could drive a couple hundred miles or more. I would have to have another car and anticipate when I could use the commuter car or need the long range car. Having a second car means almost double the insurance cost, double the licensing costs, double the personal property tax, almost double the depreciation costs and I need a place to put it which would probably increase my real estate tax bill. (The above are some of the reasons multiuse SUV's are so popular).

Isn't it Farenheit 451???? by Ray Bradbury Or are you talking about 9-1-1 conspirists? If so I hadn't heard that term used before and I learned something.

Farenheit 9/11 was a movie released in the US about the Bush administration.

And it was full of truth, miss-truth, and outright lies in an effort to make you believe something that was not true.

'Bowling for Columbine' was another one by the same producer. I think that the point was that bowling leads to school slaughter. It was junk science.

While I can't say I always agree with Michael Moore's beliefs or point of view. I do find his perspective refreshing. It's no more of a "junk science" then many of the other comments I've read here. Bottom-line - It's a documentary - It's meant to be entraining propaganda. I take it along with everything with a gain of salt so to speak…

You are so correct. I forgot about that movie. I didn't see it. Thank you for informing me. Chris

OK, Here's MY rant: The only way electric autos make any sense at all is if there's a clean, cheap, source of electrical power available to overcome all the inefficiency in the distribution and charging systems required. Otherwise all you do is relocate the pollution source and accept a net energy loss and additional costs due to system complexity into the bargain. Right now we have better uses for all the hydro-power available. BTW - Same goes for Hydrogen fuel. - Pragmatist "Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored." - Aldous Huxley

re: 'Hybrids only save fuel when city driving, not highways.'

Minor point: Actually, Hybrids can save energy at highway speeds, but in a way that may not be so obvious. A hybrid has a smaller engine than a comparable sized non-hybrid, since the motor/battery help during acceleration. A smaller engine is more efficient at highway speeds, as it is not pumping as much air through the engine and is not fighting as much friction and moving as much mass as a large ICE. This may be offset somewhat by the extra weight of the motor/batteries, but overall, it is a benefit.

I do agree with your 'rant' though. The only thing that I can see that will drive people to conserve or find alternates is permanently high priced oil.

I hope I don't miss the documentary. I have wondered lately about the future of electric cars. Motor technology is very slowly progressing, but still using modified versions of original designs (those of you who think that electronically-commutated motors or some other "new" motor design are new technology, please refrain from making an issue of the last statement). Is there some breakthrough technology lurking in the shadows that will produce a revolutionary new motor design (no pun intended)? And what about battery or fuel cell technology? What is the current battery technology which has the highest product of weight, volume and storage capacity, with a little efficiency factor and production cost thrown in? There's lots of room for research in electric vehicles, and sadly, it takes lots of money to do research in our current situation (again, no pun intended). And lastly, how do we recharge our batteries without requiring use of the electric grid, most of which is powered by coal, gas, or oil-fired generating stations?

being a basic"midnight engineer"(general purpose," independant inventor", for three or four decades!). i am an "off the shelf" type researcher; who has found many answers to the "mileage for electric buggies"(bikes,ATV's,cars,&vans too/even boats!). a ?? for skeptics,do you think a affordable"electric moped bike" that has an alternater keeping the charge on one of two small 12vlt.riding mower type batts, whenever it moves forward, would be a good/popular seller in mainland China. or anywhere else in a fuel crazy world??. couple hundred thousand in "grant funds"; could have my N.Y. to La.,"sail car EPVcommuter bug" crusing around DC. by Sept. 07, or sooner!. Keep da faith guys, and make more of those "Bigg Bucks for R&D available to us "off the shelf answer maschines"!.. Chuck...

note today's news at www.zapworld.com this small public company (stock symbol ZP) is doing what the big guys say can't be done. build an AFFORDABLE electric car. now does anyone now of a real cost effective long range battery?

Who killed the electric car? It killed its self bcause its main disadvantage is the performance range trade off. If you want speed you use you energey store up more quickly. If you want millage you sacrifice speed. Plus you have a constant weight to have to lug around. Unlike liquid fueld cars lorries etc. When your energy store starts to run down you still have all the weight of that store to drag around. Until we can directly generate electricity on the fly as requied from a non poluting source it will never work out. The fuel cell technology has proved to be less use full than expected. Even hybrid vehicles under perform because they have the great diadvantage of having to carry the extra weight of motors batteries as well as an internal combustion engine plus its fuel. It is the basic problem of light weight enery storage, not being available as yet. You get nothing for nothing.

The Stonecutters from the Simpsons. "Who holds back the electric car, who made Steve guttenberg a star"

It is still alive but mainly hybrids.