Daily Archives: March 27, 2017

Electric cars are set to arrive far more speedily than anticipated

Economy, Electric Cars, Opinion, Sales

Carmakers face short-term pain and long term gain

Electric cars ready for free test drives in Milton Keynes (Image: T. Larkum)
Electric cars ready for free test drives in Milton Keynes (Image: T. Larkum)

THE high-pitched whirr of an electric car may not stir the soul like the bellow and growl of an internal combustion engine (ICE). But to compensate, electric motors give even the humblest cars explosive acceleration. Electric cars are similarly set for rapid forward thrust.

Improving technology and tightening regulations on emissions from ICEs is about to propel electric vehicles (EVs) from a niche to the mainstream. After more than a century of reliance on fossil fuels, however, the route from petrol power to volts will be a tough one for carmakers to navigate.

The change of gear is recent. One car in a hundred sold today is powered by electricity. The proportion of EVs on the world’s roads is still well below 1%. Most forecasters had reckoned that by 2025 that would rise to around 4%. Those estimates are undergoing a big overhaul as carmakers announce huge expansions in their production of EVs.

Morgan Stanley, a bank, now says that by 2025 EV sales will hit 7m a year and make up 7% of vehicles on the road. Exane BNP Paribas, another bank, reckons that it could be more like 11%. But as carmakers plan for ever more battery power, even these figures could quickly seem too low.

Ford’s boss is bolder still. In January Mark Fields announced that the

“era of the electric vehicle is dawning”

and he reckons that the number of models of EVs will exceed pure ICE-powered cars within 15 years. Ford has promised 13 new electrified cars in the next five years. Others are making bigger commitments. Volkswagen, the world’s biggest carmaker, said last year that it would begin a product blitz in 2020 and launch 30 new battery-powered models by 2025, when EVs will account for up to a quarter of its sales. Daimler, a German rival, also recently set an ambitious target of up to a fifth of sales by the same date.

Read more: The Economist

The Pros and Cons of Electric Cars

Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment

Even though the total number of electric cars has been on a steady rise for more than half a decade (and up 38% in the USA in 2016), many organizations and individual consumers still aren’t aware of how electric vehicles compare to traditional gas-guzzlers.

Pros of Electric Cars

They’re Cheaper to Run

Performing basic calculations, the average electric vehicle can save a driver who drives 15,000 miles in a year about $850 annually on fuel. Keep in mind that these estimates have been made without taking any special charging systems into consideration. For EV owners and fleets participating in a smart charging program, the savings can be much higher.

You Can Charge at Home or at Work

One overlooked advantage of electric vehicles is the ability to charge them at home or at a parking lot. People who live in family houses can simply plug in their vehicles after they return home from work, and leave the next morning with batteries fully charged. Fleet vehicles can be charged using smart EV charging systems that offer maximum cost savings, thanks to advanced energy management tools.

There’s No Engine Noise

Noise pollution is detrimental to human health, and the engines of gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles are among its most significant sources. According to a study published by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS),

“Tens of millions of Americans suffer from a range of adverse health outcomes due to noise exposure, including heart disease and hearing loss.”

The same study claims that

“nearly 100 million people in the United States (about 50% of the population) had annual exposures to traffic noise that were high enough to be harmful to health.”

They’re Quick

Most recent speed records have been achieved by electric vehicles. For example, the Tesla Model S P100D hit 60mph in 2.28 seconds, making it the first production car to reach 60mph in under 2.3 seconds. That’s because electric vehicles offer superior power-to-weight-ratios compared to traditional cars.

They’re Environmentally Friendly

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) don’t produce any tailpipe emissions, which are known to be a serious threat to human and environmental health. In comparison, the average gasoline car produces over 350 grams of CO2 per mile.

Cons of Electric Cars

Some Have Limited Range

At the moment, the biggest perceived negative of battery electric cars is their limited range, which leads to what is known as range anxiety. To give an example, the 2016 Nissan Leaf can travel up to 107 miles on a single charge. The thought of only being able to drive 100 miles on a charge worries a lot of potential customers, who think that the somewhat limited range of electric vehicles isn’t enough to meet their needs.

A Higher Initial Cost

Electric vehicles usually cost more upfront than their gasoline- or diesel-powered counterparts, but they are expected to be cheaper than conventional vehicles by 2022, even if the conventional cars improve their fuel efficiency by 3.5% a year.

Fewer Options to Choose From

New electric vehicles are being introduced on a weekly basis, but it will take years before customers will be able to choose from the same range of models as they can now when it comes to cars with internal combustion engines. After all, the first automobile, Benz Patent Motor Car, started its engine for the first time on New Year’s Eve 1879.

Read more: Fleetcarma