[dukey]

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/33 ... ation.html

says it all

can you imagine the resale value of electric cars?
You would have to ask how old the batteries were and how far does it still go on 1 charge lol.

[mattb]

Electric cars are the future, embrace it.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/05/04/technol ... /index.htm

[dub_scratch]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('aflurry', '
')
Has anyone seen a full EROEI analysis on the electric car vs the ICE? If you factor in the losses from all of the energy state conversions, i expect you lose alot of useful energy along the way. (gas combustion > heat > mechanical > electricity > step up > transmission > step down > induction charging > battery storage > mechanical) Each of these steps is a lossy process. That in itself suggests that electricity just isn't the right energy source for this application.

[PolestaR]

Well if solar and wind electric generation could scale maybe you could sell $2000-$5000 worth of that equipment along with the electric car. Then while you are at work you could be charging another battery at home.

Kind of crazy, though it could work for a significant proportion of the market. However I can't see solar panels scaling to that kind of level, wind power might. Both rely on things which might not be available at each house.

[grabby]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mjdlight', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jaws', 'W')ho killed the electric car? What do you think would have happened if 20 million commuters in California were to start plugging their cars into the state's patchwork electricity grid every night?

[PolestaR]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('grabby', 'O')h, i just thought of something, if we sent rocket ships to the sun to get all that hydrogen, its pretty hot, it would catch fire when it hit the atmosphere, and burn up! so I guess we cant do it then.
shucks.

[Geko45]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mjdlight', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jaws', 'W')ho killed the electric car? What do you think would have happened if 20 million commuters in California were to start plugging their cars into the state's patchwork electricity grid every night?

[Zardoz]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pstarr', '.')..Such specs would've actually allowed us to maintain this stupid suburban infrastructure, granted at a slightly more modest pace...

[Dan998]

http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/708/708800p1.html
Who Killed the Electric Car?
5/15/06

In 1996 a number of EV-1 electric cars began appearing on California's highways. The General Motors-produced vehicle was fast, ran quietly, produced no polluting exhaust and it ran without gasoline and then, suddenly, it was gone.

The documentary, Who Killed the Electric Car?, from producer Dean Devlin and filmmaker Chris Paine, chronicles the life and mysterious death of the groundbreaking vehicle, examining its cultural and economic ripple effects and how they reverberated through the halls of government and big business. Filmmakers make the case that the death of the EV-1 was, in fact, a murder. They claim to show that production of the revolutionary car was halted due to pressure from industries that would be harmed by the proliferation of electric car technology.

Who Killed the Electric Car?, a 2006 selection at the Tribeca and Sundance film festivals, interviews and investigates automakers, legislators, engineers, consumers and car enthusiasts from Los Angeles to Detroit, to work through motives and alibis, and to solve the complex mystery.

Who Killed the Electric Car?, from Sony Pictures Classics, opens in New York and L.A. on June 28 and will further expand this summer. It's been rated PG for "brief mild language."

[Revi]

Why couldn't a solar electric hybrid work? Coat a light car with solar panels. Park it in a solar garage (with grid backup). Whenever the sun shines on the car and on the garage, you're making energy. Store that in the car's batteries or on the grid. What's the problem?

We just made a solar-electric car that goes 25 mph and can carry two people and groceries. It runs fine. Charges itself. If we can build this in a high school (with an engineer as a mentor) Why don't these things exist? It has 240 watts of solar panels which can charge the batteries around 15 amps in full sun. Figure 10 amps most of the time. The motor runs at 24 volts and draws up to 200 amps on the hills, but more normally around 40 amps. At that rate you can charge for 4 hours and drive for one hour.

This thing works. Electric vehicles are very possible. We just built one. John Howe is working on a convertible MG that is going to be the envy of everyone at the Commonground Fair. Solar panels on the top and completely road legal. Really fun! Charges itself. Can also be used as a generator if his lights go out.

I used to think that there was no way out of this dark peak oil room we have put our selves in. Then I found the door, and stepped out into the sunshine.

[formandfile]

Oh yeah, EV's will definitely save us....except they will be the sort of EV's on rails built by siemens, breda, hitachi and bombardier....GM hopped out of the potential to provide for this market long ago.

[Zardoz]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Revi', 'W')hy couldn't a solar electric hybrid work?...This thing works. Electric vehicles are very possible. We just built one...

[Revi]

I don't have any pics that are web-ready, but we've got a spot on local TV about it. It's been really fun working on the solar car. I have some pics on iphoto, but they won't post on here. Maybe too big? They are j-pegs. Anyway it's been a great project!

[Ibon]

Electricity will be an important alternative to maintain a mobile society. Europe today has trains and trams that run on the electric grid fueled by nuclear, hydro and conventional FF's. This could be expanded here in the US as well. Plug in small electric cars with a 50 mile plus rage already exist. A plug in version of the Prius with larger batteries and a larger electical motor would be an innovation Toyota could introduce in North America today. They already sell one in Europe. Electricity will not solve the peak oil problem for transportation but it will certainly evolve as an important contributor. This will drive the resurgence of nuclear energy whether you agree with it or not. I think you will see the introduction of more small low range electric cars for urban and suburban use being introduced in the market or planned soon, especially as fuel prices go up.

[FairMaiden]

Why is that we all agree politicians are slime and only do whats in the best interest of their contributors? Yet...when a specific story about that behaviour comes to light, its a conspiracy theory. The gas and oil industry makes money from gas and oil and so its not a huge leap to think they've had a hand in keeping us on that track.

I built an electric car in '90 as a HS science project. If a person like me can do it, then the rocket scientists of the world can build electric cars that work. They just haven't been paid to do that. If the EV-1s were out in '96 - where would we be 10 yrs later if we persisted? The first gas cars had to be HAND CRANKED...this looks like a very decent first and second try at it!

[kam30en]

How about electric cars with two battery packs, one that is charged at home during the day by solar panels, and the other that is used in the car during the day. This way, you can just switch your batteries the following day. They could sell the car/extra battery/solar panels as a package. And since electric cars last much longer than gas cars, and solar panels last a VERY long time, the only thing that would really need to be changed would be the batteries every few years, and they could be recycled. The only thing people would dislike would be switching the heavy batteries daily, but at least it'd be a daily workout. If they had started doing this decades ago, we could've enjoyed the drive in utopia well into the future.

[dukey]

'How about electric cars with two battery packs'

do you realise how expensive these batteries are ?

[PolestaR]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('kam30en', 'H')ow about electric cars with two battery packs, one that is charged at home during the day by solar panels, and the other that is used in the car during the day. This way, you can just switch your batteries the following day. They could sell the car/extra battery/solar panels as a package. And since electric cars last much longer than gas cars, and solar panels last a VERY long time, the only thing that would really need to be changed would be the batteries every few years, and they could be recycled. The only thing people would dislike would be switching the heavy batteries daily, but at least it'd be a daily workout. If they had started doing this decades ago, we could've enjoyed the drive in utopia well into the future.

[malcomatic_51]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jimmyz', '[')url=http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony/whokilledtheelectriccar]Who killed the electric car[/url]