Why don't people create electric automobiles?
By friendship
@friendship (2084)
Canada
March 7, 2008 9:21pm CST
With current gasoline in the highest record, I just don't understand why manufacturers don't begin creating electric automobiles? It will not only create green environment but also decrease our dependency of gasoline. In my opinion, gasoline is going to be depleted sooner or later. We need to begin finding another alternative energy which is clean and green.
Most equipment are currently run by electrical components. Gasoline stations can be turned into the centers of recharging electric automobiles. What do you think? Are you interested in buying an electric automobile? Do you think it is difficult to begin launching electric automobiles?
6 people like this
22 responses
@AD11RGUY (1265)
• United States
8 Mar 08
There are some serious hurdles to overcome before we can all go electric. First is the consumer demand. Electric cars have very short ranges per charge and can only manage these ranges at city speed limits. And they can't tow anything, carry heavy loads or lots of people and maintain their respective distance range. So consumers aren't lining up to buy them. Then there's the infra-structure - converting petroleum stations into petroleum/electric re-charging stations. Who's going to pay for the conversions? And how long before they recoup their investment? Then there's the problem of the manufacturing waste. Lead, nickel and other heavy metals are used to make batteries. These waste products have to be carefully handled and disposed of. And where? The batteries themselves are another problem because of the caustic materials as well as the acid that is contained in them. Once they are recharged for the last time, they have to be replaced. Now the old ones have to be carefully recycled and what can't be recycled has to be disposed of. Where do we want to dispose acid and caustic waste? And then the increase in demand for electricity will have the power providers looking to make more power by cheapest means. More coal will be burned since it is so cheap, more natural gas will be used, and whatever other cheap sources of fuel there are will be consumed to meet the additional demand. Of course there is more to it. These are just some of the bigger problems with going electric. When there is a plan that can satisfy all or at least most of the more pressing issues with electric cars, they will become more desirable. Til then, it's more cost effective and for now, more environmentally sound to stay with petroleum based fuels.
2 people like this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
8 Mar 08
The main problem is that the gas companies do not make money - seriously. In 2009 an hydrogen car is coming out, no clue how much that will really cost. I know there are at least test cars that are electric. The thing is, if you live in an area where electricity comes from natural gas, coal, ect it may just drive the cost of your electric bill even higher to charge your car over night.
2 people like this
@friendship (2084)
• Canada
8 Mar 08
Yeah, I know what you're talking about. But we have to find other alternatives soon. I'm thinking of using composed garbage (recycle garbage) as an energy source (LOL). It is definitely creating clean environment.
1 person likes this
@Aussies2007 (5336)
• Australia
8 Mar 08
It is not difficult to build an electric automobile. You just throw an electric motor into it.
1) We have not been able yet to invent a battery big enough to store enough energy to power an automobile.
2) We are restricted by the size of the battery that we can put in an automobile... both by the space it would take... and by the weight of a large battery... which would slow down the car and require even more energy to push it along... which defeat the purpose of having a large battery.
3) We cannot just drive into a station to recharge our battery... as it takes hours to do so.
4) The pollution generated by the burning of coal in power stations to produce the energy required to recharge our batteries... would be just as big as the pollution generated from burning gasoline in our cars.
Please note that the French TGV (fast train) works with an electric motor... which propel it at 300 km/h... but it does not use a battery. It has a power line above the track.
@Aussies2007 (5336)
• Australia
8 Mar 08
If we had an alternative... we would be using it.
None of them are practical... because they only produce small amount of energy at great cost.
Right now... the world has made a turn around... and decided to go nuclear again... as it is the cleanest way to produce electricity in large quantity.
But it will still take decades before we see the end of coal power stations. The fact that there is still plenty of coal in the ground does not help.
The day we have the UFO technology... we will have our own UFOs and we will be looking for another planet. But not in our lifetime.
1 person likes this
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
8 Mar 08
Just a few points
Electric cars are not green. They get electricity from power plants that pollute the environment.
We have other alternatives. biofuel from corn oil, natural gas, and hydrogen.
Biofuel is increasingly common but it has driven up the cost of food since corn production is no longer for food alone. Biofuel costs about the same amount as gasoline right now and it doesn't even have all the taxes we pay with gasoline.
Natural gas is available and there is a Honda Civic that runs on it. However, some are now saying it's worse for the environment than gasoline.
Hydrogen is just dangerous as a fuel. It has been used but it can be very explosive. Contrary to the movies, gasoline almost never explodes. It is very flammable, but not explosive.
As for electric cars. They just aren't that good. They are very slow and can not reach high speeds. Even hybrid cars accelerate slowly compared to regular gasoline cars. Electric cars can not run for very long before needing a recharge. The batteries contain dangerous metals and need to be disposed of and recycled carefully. Recharging batteries also tends to be a slow process. It is not a 5 minute recharge like when you fill your car with gas.
In time I'm sure a good alternative will come about. The auto industry continues to experiment with new alternative fuels. They just haven't found one that is superior to gasoline yet. Previously there was no motivation to replace gasoline, but now there are many tax incentives and grants to develop new fuel options. It's just a matter of time.
1 person likes this
@friendship (2084)
• Canada
8 Mar 08
I don't think corn oil, natural gas, hydrogen are a good one. We need to find alternative energy sources which are safe and cheap. How many corns do we need to plant in order to fulfill the whole world consumption? In other part of the world, we're still not being able to produce enough food. How can we use corns as alternative energy source? Besides, corns need some time to grow and corns also need conducive weather in order to grow properly.
1 person likes this
@barehugs (8973)
• Canada
8 Mar 08
Its already been done and was a complete failure. The cars worked too well. They never needed any repairs and the dealers went broke. The cars lasted way too long and the automotive companies lost money. The cars didn't burn oil or gas, and the oil companies lost money. So they rounded up all the electric cars and took them out into the desert and junked them all.
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
8 Mar 08
That sounds like the bottom Line of the "Who killed the Electric Car" Documentary-(I'd recommend watching it if you are interested in EV's ..)The GM EV-1 Electric car was created during the 90's as a result of California enabling Zero Emission Car Legislation.The cars were only available on Lease to hand picked customers,among them Mel Gibson and Tom Hanks,due to the huge R+D costs of these new vehicles and the purpose built recharging stations they needed.They were fast,they had good range..nobody interviewed had a bad thing to say about them.A mechanic who serviced them showed a selection of the parts these cars DIDN'T need..Oil filters,Mufflers,carburettors,gaskets,spark plugs,-ie,all the oily engine bits...He said they hardly needed maintenance,and the mechanics didn't get oily when they did..
The car industry and dealers sued the California Legislature to drop the Zero Emission bill.With Government support behind the Plaintiff's case,California dropped the Zero Emission Bill,and GM then dropped the EV-1 Program,recalling the Cars despite the leaseholders who wanted to keep them,even offering some Millions of Dollars (unsuccessfully) as a last resort to prevent them being crushed..As they'd only leased the cars,they had no say when the recall was enforced,and those cars that didn't go to museums(with the technology removed) were taken away and crushed.
1 person likes this
@idaantipolo (472)
• Philippines
8 Mar 08
I think there already vehicles like that. I know here in the Philippines we already have some public transport with electricity as a source of energy for the vehicles. We also have biogas here that is much cheaper than gasoline and petroleum. But still, most of the vehicles here use gasoline. Maybe in time...but I hope that the car manufacturers would start adopting this in their product line, so that consumers will get the opportunity to choose which one would work for them better.
@pumpkinjam (8758)
• United Kingdom
8 Mar 08
There are electric verhicles. I have seen them around. The ones we have here are called SartCars. I don't know quite how they work but I think a big reason for them not to be popular is because they are only made in a 2-seat variety and because they run on electricity, they can not go as far as a petrol car. So if you were doing a long journey, it wouldn't be suitable. I don't think they are allowed on motorways either because they are too slow.
1 person likes this
@ESKARENA1 (18261)
•
14 Mar 08
the whole oil market would collaps and the middle east would no longer be of interest to George Bush
blessed be
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
14 Mar 08
Actually it wouldn't. We'd start exporting more oil instead of importing it. That would fix the trade deficit we are currently dealing with. The middle east isn't nearly as critical to our oil supply as the media tells you. Less than 11% of the oil in this country is imported from the middle east. 50% of the oil we use is from right here in this country.
@raijin (10345)
• Philippines
8 Mar 08
We have a few of them electrically-powered automobiles here, they are on the test run. A certain place here has been promoting it, as they offer a free ride from one point to the other.
I believe that this is also been circulating in Japan, as that's where I first saw if featured.
@revdauphinee (5703)
• United States
8 Mar 08
because the big oil companies pay them not to!
1 person likes this
@Ridgerunner (118)
• United States
8 Mar 08
The laws of entropy are immutable. While your electric car may not pollute as does a gasoline engine...the electricity to charge it has to come from somewhere...usually a nuclear, or gas, or coal-fired generating station, occasionally from a hydroelectric plant. Nothing is 100 percent efficient, so for every Watt of output in your electric car, it takes about 1.3 watts to charge it. There is no free lunch.
People who have bought electric cars will be shocked when they have to replace the batteries in them...like cell phones, the batteries eventually need replacement. a full rack of lithium ion, or nickel metal hydride batteries for a small car will cost you aboutr $6000.00
1 person likes this
@steffyhoney (706)
• United States
9 Mar 08
I have often thought of this. The only problem is how much electricity would it take to charge a car? I doubt you could just stop at a "gas" station and charge it. I have a power wheels for my daughter and it takes 14 hours for that to charge completely. I was hoping there was a better way to make a vehicle without gas but I seriously dont think electric would be the way to go.
@greenspider (31)
• United States
9 Mar 08
Your post is #18 in this discussion. Did you read post #16 by greenspider? The new technology that will be made available to everyone later this year will allow cars to be driven without the cost of any kind of fuel and the exhaust will be breathable air rich in oxygen. I can not tell you more at this point in time, but I will notify all interested persons just as soon as possible and give all the necessary details. Just e-mail me at: greenspider43@yahoo.com with the subject GO GREEN! I will use your address only to send requested information.
My demonstration car is a 1984 Nissan 300ZX. It has no gas tank or even a place to fill it with gas. It has no water tank, which would be necessary if I were electrolysing water to make hydrogen, which I am not. It has no muffler and in fact no exhaust system is needed. Nothing like this new technology has ever been offered to the public before but it will be offered later this year. This is a new company with a new technology that must be guarded until the right time. It is the greatest thing to happen to the automobile since Henry Ford pushed the button to start the production line. Keep informed!
@greenspider (31)
• United States
9 Mar 08
Electric cars have been around for a hundred years. Big oil companies put a stop to the further development of the electric cars because they wanted to profit from the large consumer use of oil. The approximate same thing has happened to the more modern attempt to put electric cars on the road. There is one modern electric car being made here in the U.S. in California by: http://teslamotors.com.
The Tesla Roadster is state-of-the-art and costs about $100K US. It is a really sharp car, if you can afford it.
But there is even more in store for the future of the Tesla cars. The GENIE will be available later this year from: http://magneticpowerinc.com. This is an electric generator that uses magnetic energy to produce useable electricity. If you had a Tesla Roadster and put an on board GENIE to charge the batteries you would never have to worry about buying either gasoline or electricity. You could even use the GENIE to make electricity to sell back to the power companies.
Of course, the main problem with this advanced technology is the cost of the products. If you have difficulty paying $5 for a gallon of gas then how the H can you even seriously consider paying for the high technology?There is an answer to the problem for all the people who really need relief from the high cost of fuel, be it gas or electricity. And that answer does not come from the use of methanol, used vegetable oil, hybrids, hydrogen, water (electrolysed to hydrogen), electric cars or anything else currently on the market. However, late this summer, or at least late this year, there will be technology available that will allow every driver to stop buying any kind of fuel and convert his vehicle to a true
"green machine" whose exhaust is rich in pure oxygen.
I am forbidden to disclose any further information on this new technology at this time. However, if you are interested and wish to be informed as soon as possible, you may send an e-mail to me and ask to be put on my list of interested persons: greenspider43@yahoo.com. I will use this list for nothing other that letting you know the details when they become available. You will not be able to purchase this new technology but you will be able to lease it for $50 per month (no matter how much you drive) after paying a $500
initial fee (free installation). GO GREEN!
@friendship (2084)
• Canada
10 Mar 08
greenspider,
Thanks for your info. It's cool about teslamotors. Hopefully, electric cars are going to be more affordable to most people. But why does teslamotors only produce a 2-seat car? Is there any reason for that? It looks like a sport car.
Do you reside in Mexico? Will technology that you're talking about be produced in Mexico? I'm sure that it will be launched in certain regions at first? If yes, where is it? Are you saying that the technology can convert every gasoline cars to a true "green machine"? Have the technology been tested regarding its speed, performance, power, etc?
I'll send an email to you. I'm curious about this technology.
1 person likes this
@greenspider (31)
• United States
12 Mar 08
Hi friendship-
Thank you for your interest and comments. I am a bit surprised that more people are not commenting. Perhaps they are just following our discussion with a "wait and see" attitude. Scams abound and as far as this new technology is concerned, well, there are many sceptics.
Scepticism is a healthy approach to anything we don't fully understand. That is why I would like to help diminish the scepticism by offering information that will help others accept reality.
You asked about what kind of vehicles will be able to use the new technology. The answer is: Any ICE (Internal Combustion Engine). At first it will be available for late model cars and small trucks, both gas and Diesel. As soon as possible it will be made available for installation in all vehicles. It can also be used for many applications other than vehicles.
Back in 1963 there was a program on television called "The Twilight Zone which was hosted by Rod Serling. On one episode there was a story about a man who had a "pill" that turned water into a fuel that would operate a car engine. The man offered this pill to the world and then disappeared. I will never forget that story. It was fiction, of course, but the writer obviously wanted the TV audience to consider using water for fuel. It made sense to me, and before long I learned to electrolize water and use the hydrogen to fuel a car.
I had a problem that still exists today: It takes more energy to produce the hydrogen than can be obtained by burning it. The answer is obvious to me and simple, really, when you understand nature sufficiently. Burning, or OXIDATION, is a chemical process that takes oxygen and combines it with other elements to release energy. The problem here is that waste products are produced which pollute our environment and effectively poison us. We need an energy source which does not come from burning or oxidizing anything, in fact, it should RELEASE oxygen and help clean up our environment.
Burning something to produce electricity or hydrogen is obviously not the answer. Burning ANYTHING, be it either ethanol, Diesel fuel, used vegetable oil, etc., is also not the answer. However, few people will accept any new technology either because they don't understand it, or have personal rweason to want to suppress it, or because it is "too good to be true and must be a scam."
I think at this point you should watch these videos and learn some things that you may not have known before:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbakN7SLdbk&feature=related
Lindsey Williams here fully explains things in detail that few people are aware of.
Here you will learn about how difficult it has always been to introduce new technology to the world. Common sense would dictate that naysayers should put aside their prejudices and not condemn any new technology until it can be proven or disproven. Check this video out at:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=PTBSp1QvCuw&feature=related
@greenspider (31)
• United States
12 Mar 08
I don't know why the URL's that I gave above didn't copy.
I will try to send them again. Maybe you can put the pieces together and get the whole URL.
www.youtube .com/watch?v=NbakN7SLdbk&feature=related/
www.youtube .com/watch?v=PTBSp1QvCuw&feature=related/
@bradhart (659)
• United States
18 Mar 08
we don't do it for the same reasons we don't do a lot of things like use public transportation, we don't want them as a public and the auto manufacturers go out of their way to keep us from wanting them, why because they are heavily invested in the oil industry.
The main reason auto makers say don't use ethanol is has been the same for 30 years, it will eat the rubber in the gaskets, which is partially true, but the question has been why won't they work on gaskets that don't corrode? They don't want to do anything that hurts their profits.
I don't like big bad conspiracy theories for the most part, but the more and more I look into the auto industry I keep saying if the shoe fits...
@jewelenterprises (1996)
• Australia
19 Mar 08
I agree entirely Brad
There are too many organisations with a vested interest in profits from petroleum products, transport manufactures, governments and of course the oil companies themselves, even mechanics... only when the fossil fuel shortage becomes critical can we expect to see these other technologies being developed further... once they've bled dry the profit from petroleum they will be forced to look for alternatives... meanwhile, people and the environment suffer for their greed.
@limcyjain (3516)
• India
6 Sep 08
I understand that this discussion was started seven months ago but still would like to tell you that what you had foreseen is now a fact in india. Two companies here are already selling ebikes and they are generating good numbers. Infact just recently one of the manufacturer has inaugrated india's first recharging station for vehicles just like a petrol pump where vehichles would be recharged at a very nominal price. The basic idea is to promote more and more use of electic bikes and is well taken.
@coolcarsinc (242)
•
17 Mar 08
I think that the oil companeys have a grip on the goverment to stop more eletric cars being built.So only oil cars. What do you think?
@oscarbartoni (2581)
• United States
8 Mar 08
It really sounds great to have electric cars and you might think that it is green but where does the electricity come from? It comes from coal and other fuels that are not green but can actually be dirtier than gas driven cars in the long run. The people of the world need to manufacture more renewable energy such as solar, wind and water powered electric plants. Of course we need to make sure that these plants (solar, wind and water) do not conflict with nature too much. These electric cars need to have solar panels so that they can recharge the batteries during day light (or at least help to recharge them. Perhaps someone can come up with a car that will run on distilled (or very pure) water and will give off water vapor as an exhaust. The oil companies will not like this and will try to stop it because it will take the profits away from them. That will mean no more golden parachutes for the CEO of these big companies .
@kilani123 (864)
• United Arab Emirates
14 Mar 08
well my freind
the idea of electric car isnt really practical the reason is it will slow up the world the electric car cant jump 30 km per hour barrier plus from where do u think we get the charging electricity to charge it we use electric generators generators that we run on fuel to generate electric power so we are not saving the planet here
@sumit31 (126)
• India
14 Mar 08
see this report you will answer of your all questions..
http://www.cem.msu.edu/~cem181h/projects/97/fuelsub/EVs.html
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
8 Jun 11
We have been creating & building & driving electric cars for well over 100 years!
It's believed the first one in the USA in modern times was made by William Morrison in 1891. It had a four horsepower engine & could carry 6-12 passengers. Top speed was about 20 mph. The batteries needed to be recharged every 50 miles. It has been said the car was actually completed in 1887 and was driven in a Des Moines parade in 1888. If that's true, the Morrison was first built 124 years ago, and it was built in America, where today they are almost no electric cars on the roads.
A bulky enclosed cabin four passenger sedan that was made about the turn of the century, the Riker featured electric side lamps, wooden-spoked wheels, and a voice tube so passengers could communicate with the driver. Cabin windows could be raised and lowered. 48 battery cells were on board, with an electric engine near each rear wheel. The driver’s seat was about 6-7 feet in the air.
Andrew Riker, the founder of Riker Electric Vehicles, made the Torpedo in 1901 to be the fastest car on the road. On Coney Island November 16, 1901 a Torpedo was driven one mile in 63 seconds, about 57 mph.
Electric Studebakers were made starting in 1902. They made the bus & bodies for electric taxis. They also made cars which were available in a variety of styles. My Grandpa owned one of these when they came out here!
The 1906 Krieger was made in Paris, and it is presumed to have been owned by US Senator George P. Wetmore of Rhode Island. The Krieger actually had regenerative braking which could be used to recharge the batteries while coasting downhill. It had a tiller/steering wheel in the very front, and hubcaps.
A Babcock electric vehicle set a mind-blowing record for its’ time. In October of 1906 the New York Times reported one driven by F.A. Babcock Jr. traveled 100 miles on a single charge. It averaged about 14-18 mph for the journey between Jersey City and Philadelphia. Only stock batteries were used. The previous record was 40 miles.
The 1909 Bailey electrics were known for durability. One was driven through four New England states in the same run as an endurance test. A Bailey was also driven up part of Mt. Washington in New Hampshire. The peak is over 6,000 feet. There were many more electrics on the road during the period. They were quieter and emitted less pollution directly than their gasoline counterparts.
Today, the world's top performing sports car is full-electric & is made by Tesla Motors in the US. The electric car is nothing new. People will not buy them en-masse due to their many shortcomings being undesirable to people's personal convenience & expense.
