But when I started to look closer there seemed to be all sorts of things going against electric cars. Like…there are lots of great looking sports cars… but they’re so unbelievably expensive for what they give – and you’ll have to queue up! OR… you could get another one that’s PLUG UGLY – but hopefully you’ll feel better knowing your saving the environment! OR… oh wait! Here’s a car that can give you everything you need… do you want one? Sorry, they’re not out for another 12 years when we get around to making it!AND… this one is REALLY CHEAP… but it won’t do anything fancy like.. GO UP A HILL and you’ll usually need to recharge it about 10 times a day! So where are the facts in all this science fiction and promises? Well this is some of the “Truth” I found out about electric powered cars after all my research. What really is an Electric Car? There are a few different types of Electric cars:

- Neighbourhood Electric Vehicles

(NEVs) or Low Speed Electric Vehicles (LSVs) are electric cars with a relatively small range (about 40 miles) and a limited speed (legally 25mph in the USA). These kind of cars would be used in towns or cities where you wouldn’t be travelling far like in London where cars like the Reva G-wiz has flourished. Or it is used in resorts and neighbourhoods where they usually look like a done up golf cart like the GEM e-series electric cars. There are electric cars like the Tesla Roadster or the Tango electric car which are designed to be able to keep up with a normal petrol/diesel car. These cars can go on motorways and can usually travel fairly long distances (100-200 miles). There are also plug-in hybrids out there which aren’t fully electric but come close enough. They can be charged from a plug as well as by the engine and can travel solely on electricity until their (usually small) battery range runs out.

- What promises do Electric Cars make?Well first of all – a greener, petrol-free tomorrow! They can be run on clean electricity (not from a coal fired plant) and can run emission free if you want. Sounds pretty good to me!

So what promises can’t they make at the moment? Unfortunately there is quite a few right now:

- Cheap and reliable batteries
- A goodinfrastructure of recharging spots and a quick recharge time.
- Lots of different makes of cars available now.
- Lots of good value cars that could travel long distances (they can mostly still only get 50-100 miles range).
- That the company making or selling them won’t disappear at any time as they’re mostly distributed by smaller companies.
- A competitive price – they’re always much more costly than normal cars. The good thing though is that all these things are constantly improving and there is set to be big changes in the coming few years.

- So how do they work? Well the all-electric cars both work in a similar way. The petrol/diesel tank is replaced by lots of batteries which provide the electric “fuel”. There are three types of batteries lead-acid, nimh and li-ion, with li-ion batteries storing the most energy in the least amount of space.

A regulator then makes sure the energy coming from the batteries is nice and steady. The engine is then replaced by a motor which is usually put as close as possible to the wheels, and in some cases in the wheels themselves. There are a few types of motors available but I won’t go into that right now. A potentiometer then measures how much you’re pressing down on the accelerator and tells the motor. This happens smoothly and gives a huge amount of torque instantly. Most electric cars have unbelievable acceleration!

- How are Electric Cars designed? Well there are a few things that come first in all electric car designs. Air Resistance and weight are two huge issues. Because the batteries add so much weight to the car it needs to be designed as light as possible, which is why a lot of the cars are so small. The batteries also are usually put at the bottom of the car to keep the weight low and stop it from toppling. All that weight at the bottom means even if the biggest SUV side swipes you, you’re not going anywhere! Lower air resistance also helps with the range as the car won’t have to use energy trying to fight the air.

- How about the future of electric cars? The future is looking pretty good for the electric car. Most major manufacturers have an electric car planned for around 2010 or 2011 which shows how mainstream it’s becoming and there are even some great cars on the way from some of the smaller companies.Future technology also looks bright as there are plenty of breakthroughs coming regularly nowadays.

- Are there Solar Electric Cars out there?There certainly are! They are a long way from becoming mainstream though as they don’t come cheap and range and speed are an issue but they are on their way. There are plenty of big races all over the world for solar electric cars that attract a lot of attention from colleges and big companies and all that attention can only be good for their development. There are even options of putting solar panels on many electric cars to help with charging too so the technology is definitely creeping in.

Well I think that’s enough for now on Electric Powered Cars but if you want to know more on any of the topics I talked about there is a lot more detail on everything on my website all-electric vehicles which is all about my search for the perfect electric transport.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Evan_Collins

As gas prices continue to rise throughout the nation, rumors of oil conspired wars loom in the Middle East, and the lingering threat of human-induced harmful global warming becomes a reality; it is clear that an alternative form of energy must be implemented soon to replace the nation’s addiction to oil. While oil is used for many different forms of energy, vehicles used for transportation are responsible for a large portion of the oil consumption in the United States. Therefore, the need to convert our gas-guzzling autos to run off of alternative forms of energy is the first step to wining our nation off of oil usage.

Over the past decade, there have been several attempts to produce alternative forms of energy which can be converted to power by our every day drivers. These attempts have encompassed everything from solar to alcohol powered vehicles; however, due to lack of technology most of these non-greenhouse emitting vehicles have remained as nothing more than a dream. However, electric vehicles proves to be the exception as it has already been mass produced in 1996 by one of the Nations leading auto manufactures.

The first initial push that drove automobile producers to create an electric car came from the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The CARB mandated that 2% of the cars sold in California by 1998 must be considered “Zero Emission Vehicles”(ZEVs). After the 1998 dead line, new requirements were made by the CARB, mandating that by 2003, 10% of all automobiles sold in California must be ZEVs (Motavalli, 1997).

General Motors was one of the first companies to meet the CARB’s new mandates for the first zero emission vehicle. They did this with the release of the first electric vehicle known as the EV1 (Electric Vehicle 1). Conversely, soon after General Motors started, they abandoned the popular project joining the Federal Government in successfully suing the State of California to remove the CARB zero emissions requirements.

Hence, despite the large need, want and availability of the mass production of electric vehicles—they are still not being produced due to the overwhelming influence of oil driven industries and the Federal Government’s lack of intervention.

The Need

Global warming has been the center of environmental debate since 1896 when Swedish chemist, Svante Arrhenius, hypnotized that the build up of carbon dioxide, produced by burning fossil fuels, such as coal, would increase the temperature on the planet (Clemmitt, 2006). Since the establishment of Arrhenisus’ theory on global warming over 100 years ago, scientific advancements, and new technologies have re-enforced his theory. However, the most convincing evidence of global warming is the actual changes that are occurring throughout the globe.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the global temperature has increased by one degree Fahrenheit (Clemmitt, 2006). While one degree may not seem worthy of alarm, a change in one degree can cause a devastating domino effect that can lead to the demise of the entire planet. For example, the one-degree increase in the global temperature has caused many of the worlds glaciers to begin to melt. Glacier melting is currently affecting Montana’s Glacier National Park, where nearly 120 glaciers have melted since 1910. As glaciers, such as those in Montana’s Glacier National Park, melt they cause the sea levels throughout the world to rise in both temperature and depth. Although the negative effects of melting glaciers and rising sea levels may not seem detrimental, the increase temperatures from global warming are responsible for “… providing added fuel to growing storms and hurricanes, making them more intense” (Lener, 2006). The overwhelming deadly aftermath of Hurricane Katrina has been directly attributed to global warming. Rising global temperatures are also being blamed for the European heat wave of 2003 that was responsible for killing 25,000 people (Clemmitt 2006). The list of increasing powerful and frequent natural disasters continues to grow as the globe continues to heat up.

The director of Climate and Global Dynamics Division at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, James Hurrell, told the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee recently that, “The climate is changing, and the rate of change as projected exceeds anything seen in nature in the past 10,000 years” (Clemmitt, 2006). With the deadly effects of global warming already unfolding throughout the world, the solution must be implemented immediately.

Currently, green house gasses are the highest they have been in 75,000 years. In addition, human emitted carbon dioxide is at the highest levels it has ever been in the history of man (Clemmitt, 2006). Hence, it is hard to ignore the theory, of human induced-global warming, when green house gas concentrations are parallel to the large amount of human produced carbon dioxide. It is also hard to ignore a panel of nearly 25,000 scientists gathered together in 2001 to form the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The team of scientist reported “That most of the observed warming of the last 50 years is attributable to human activities” (Cooper 2001). They furthered their argument by predicting that the Earth’s overall temperature could climb up to eleven degrees Fahrenheit, under the worst-case conditions, if the amount of green house gases continue to rise (Cooper 2001). If this takes place scientists have projected that “such a rise could inundate many low-lying islands and eventually threaten such areas as the New York City borough of Manhattan and Miami Beach” (Griffin, 1992). The green house gases responsible for current and future disasters are made-up of water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and ozone. The increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are the direct result of the burning of fossil fuels and the source of most of the danger.

As show in Figure 1, nearly 1/3 of the increased levels of carbon dioxide can be contributed to transportation ( Cooper 2001).

Figure 1

Carbon dioxide is one of the byproducts that are produced by the burning of gasoline within the combustible engine found in all cars and trucks on the road today.

In other words, one of the solutions to preventing further global warming is to either stop transportation all together or implement an alternative form of energy, which does not produce carbon dioxide, to power our vehicles. Obviously, the economy and the human way of life would cease to exist if we stopped transportation altogether. However, the obvious decision to use an alternative form of fuel to save the earth is rejected by major oil companies and other related industries to keep Americans addicted to oil in order not to loose their $300 billion dollar a year industry (Motavalli, 1997).

The Kyoto Protocol

Recently, measures have been taken to curb the production of carbon dioxide, not only on a state level with the “Zero-Emissions Law” passed by the California State Legislature, but these efforts are also seen on a global level as well. In 1997, more than 150 countries met in Kyoto Japan to sign the Kyoto Protocol. The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty that required signing countries to reduce green house gasses to 5% below 1990 levels by 2005 through the implementation of taxes and laws. The United States, responsible for emitting the largest amount of green house gases, vowed to cut their share by 7% under the Clinton administration. As the deadline for the Protocol was set for February of 2005, the United States, under the Bush Administration, has since changed their stance stating that there is a lack of scientific evidence to support global warming (Cooper, 2001). Bush was also quoted by saying it [the Kyoto Protocol] shackled the U.S. economy(Cooper, 2005). In addition to the Bush administrations lack of support to the Kyoto Protocol, the U.S. Senate and the House of representatives are also opposed to the treaty (Clemmitt, 2006). One can only speculate that the rejection of the Kyoto Protocol and California’s zero emissions laws are just two examples of a larger picture: the oil and auto industries massive influence on the United States Government.

The Oil Industries Influence in the Government

The WSPA (Western States Petroleum Association) is made up a coalition of oil companies that are located in the western United States including: Mobile, Shell, Chevron and Arco. The WSPA is also one of the top five lobbyist employers in California. Therefore, much of the lobbying done in California is influenced from the major oil companies. Two of the major activist seen in California State’s legislature is know as CAUCA (Californians Against Utility Company Abuse) and CHAT (Californians Against Hidden Taxes). Both of these lobbyists are funded in part by the WSPA (Motavalli, 1997). The executive director of the “Grass Roots” lobby CHAT, Linda Mangels, even said, “I believe most, if not all of our funding comes from WSPA –that’s no secret,” (Motavalli, 1997). With such a powerful influence in the state legislature the WSPA has declined how much money it has invested in the campaign against the electric car mandates such as the Zero Emissions Mandate by the CARB and the CETC. (California Electric Transportation Coalition).

In addition to the massive influence of the WSPA, the coming fourth electric vehicle has also been hit hard by the AAMA (American Automobile Manufactures Association). The AAMA has done its own lobbying campaign against the electric vehicle. In six months, the auto industry spent around $500,000 to campaign against the electric car mandates (Motavalli, 1997). While that number may not seem that impressive, it represents nearly four times the amount of money the California Electric Transportation Coalition has available each year.

In a recent study named the Pollution Politics, done between the years 1991-1995, revealed that nearly $34 million dollars in public policy was spent by oil companies and automakers to influence public opinion against the electric car mandates. Of the $34 million spent, $29 million went towards lobbying and $3.97 million went towards donations to legislative candidates (Motavalli, 1997). The majority of the public relations campaigns done by both the auto and oil companies were aimed at the increase of taxes that it would take to promote the electric car. The public, however, was not informed of the larger amount of money they are currently spending to continue the use of gas-powered vehicles. As the numbers and facts are examined it is clear that the oil industry has used its power and influence, both monetarily and legally, to keep the electric car from being produced.

The Want

As gas prices rise and rumors of oil conspired wars are consistently looming in the Middle East, it comes as no surprise that the general public would prefer an electric powered vehicle over a gas powered vehicle. While a mass produced electric vehicle is not currently available on the market, the electric and gas hybrid is. The hybrid car takes electric technology and combines it with the traditional gas powered engine. The result is a low emissions vehicle that has a high mile per gallon rating, as the car relies on both electric and gas power.

In a resent study done by J.D. Power and Associates, 57% of the consumers in the U.S. who expected to purchase a new vehicle by 2009 are considering a hybrid vehicle (King Flounders, 2007). This attraction to hybrid vehicles offers the most realistic glimpse into the future of the motor vehicle industry. Hence, it seems only logical that if the hybrid vehicle is attracting consumers because of the electric qualities, that a completely electric vehicle would gain an even greater demand.

This demand for an electric car was recently experienced by General Motor Company with the release of the first production electric vehicle, the EV1. The first EV1 concept car was revealed in the Los Angles Auto Show, in 1990. General Motor executives were surprised by the large demand for the concept to become a reality. The demands were not only from the public but also from the California State Legislature as they continued to enforce the Zero-Emissions Law that required General Motors to produce the vehicle. The EV1 was released by General Motors to the general public in the fall of 1996. As the public discovered that the completely electric car was about to hit the market, it became obvious that the demand for the EV1 was still strong.

Even with the limited availability, there was a large waiting list to purchase the new electric cars. Perhaps the large demand for the EV1 spawned from its ability to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in nine seconds, the standard air bags, anti-lock breaks, cruise control, traction control, electric locks, keyless entry and ignition, liquid free batteries, aluminum frame, or the 90 mile highway range of the batteries (Cook 1996). The car had such a high demand that the Saturn dealerships, where the car was offered for lease, had to screen the potential owners and then select only the most qualified applicants from the list (Cook 1996). Those that qualified were only allowed to lease the EV1 with no option of purchase. Of course the EV1 had its share of critics; however, due to the popular demand, it was apparent that General Motors had taken a step in the right direction.

At the end of the leasing option in 2003, many of the satisfied owners offered to buy the EV1. Instead of taking the buyers offers General Motors had all the EV1 returned, taken to a junk yard in Arizona and crushed (More, 2006). This bizarre decision to suddenly crush the vehicles raised the eyebrows of many EV1 enthusiasts. The decision to crush the EV1 came the same month the State of California lifted the Zero-Emissions mandate to accept lower forms of carbon producing vehicles (Silberg, 2006).

The Means

After the recall of the EV1, General Motors stated that the production costs for the all electric vehicles were too high and the technology did not allow for their production. While this excuse may have been effective over ten years ago, it has become more apparent that the technology is currently available and affordable. The technology to build an electric car has become so affordable that as Bill More, an author of the Mother Earth News, points out, “Anyone who has the time, talent and the resources can convert a conventional automobile to electric drive” (More, 2006). Of course most Americans do not have the ability to convert their daily driver into an electric vehicle, but it does show that the technology is currently available.

Often times many critics of the electric car debate that the car would need re-charging too often in order to allow the user to travel the distances needed throughout the day. Amazingly enough, one of the breakthroughs technologies of the EV1 was the ability to reuse kinetic energy displaced when breaking. This recycled energy could charge the battery up to 30%. Of course advanced breaking methods do not replace the need for recharging the batteries, but there are ways of incorporating charging batteries into our everyday life as seen in Europe.

Electric cars are one of the fastest growing forms of transportation in London; the number of electric cars jumping from 49 to 1,278 in two years. To make up for this increased form of electric transportation London has provided re-charge bays next to most parking meters (Britain: Charging around the city; Electric cars, 2007). It is only a matter of time before all of England is equipped to handle the electric car.

While the mass produced electric car is not currently on the market, smaller simpler electric vehicles are. The electric
scooter [http://www.mycityscooters.com] and electric bike are two forms of electric vehicles that are mass produced and can be bought at the local toy shop or even over the Internet. The electric scooter can be bought in two forms; the classic Vespa style, which appears resemble a motorcycle; or the children style electric scooter that represents a push style scooter. Both types of electric scooters are extremely popular amongst college students and inner-city commuters alike. The electric scooter is powered by batteries that can be re-charged using a conventional AC adaptor. Jerome Byrd, a web publisher, who lives in Philadelphia, has driven to work and throughout Philadelphia on his electric scooter and has gone nearly a total of 30,000 miles (Moore, 2007).

Even more popular is the electric
bike [http://www.mycityscooters.com]. Just like the electric scooter, the electric bike is powered by batteries and can come in two forms: the human assisted (comes with pedals) or the completely electric bike (does not need pedals). While there are many different forms of e-bikes they are all measured in watts and amps. The more watts and amps that you purchase the more powerful the electric bike (and scooter) are. These bikes can reach up to 24 mph and travel up to 15 miles on a single charge. Although, the electric scooter and electric bike are by no means an alternative to a car, their ability to be mass produced commercially is paving the way.

Conclusion

Each year, as the temperature rises and more human lives are lost to the intensified natural disasters due to global warming, we are reminded of the need for a solution to combat global warming. The solution comes in the form of a pollution free electric vehicle. While the mighty oil companies and their minions, the U.S. government and auto manufacturers, have done all they can to stop alternative forms of energy from emerging, the overwhelming need, the undeniable want and the available technologies cannot stop the electric car from once again quietly gliding down a street near you some day soon.

References

Britain: Charging around the city; Electric cars. (2007, June). The Economist, 383(8531), 38. Retrieved August 3, 2007, from Research Library database. (Document ID: 1280674301).

Clemmitt, M. (2006, January 27). Climate change. CQ Researcher, 16, 73-96. Retrieved August 3, 2007, from CQ Researcher Online, http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2006012700.

Cook, W. (1996, September 30). Look, mom, no gas. U.S. News & World Report, 121(13), 52. Retrieved July 31, 2007, from Academic Search Premier database.

Cooper, M. (2001, January 26). Global warming treaty. CQ Researcher, 41-64. Retrieved July 31, 2007, from CQ Researcher Online, http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2001012600. Graphic

Cooper, M. (2005, February 25). Alternative fuels. CQ Researcher, 15, 173-196. Retrieved August 7, 2007, from CQ Researcher Online, http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2005022500.

Griffin, R. D. (1992, February 7). Threatened coastlines. CQ Researcher, 2, 97-120. Retrieved August 7, 2007, from CQ Researcher Online, http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre1992020700.

“Global Warming: The Culprit? Evidence mounts that human activity is helping fuel these monster hurricanes”. (2006). In Brenda Lerner & K. Lerner (Eds.), Environmental Issues: Essential Primary Sources, (139-142). Detroit: Gale. Retrieved August 07, 2007, from Gale Virtual Reference Library via Thomson Gale:
< king j flounders a april tomorrow techs career world retrieved july from academic search premier database moore b drive an ev and never buy gas again mother earth news august research library id:>

Moore, B. (2007, April). Ride Green with Electric Bikes and Scooters. Mother Earth News, Retrieved August 7, 2007, from Academic Search Premier database.

Motavalli, J. (1997, March). The ties that blind. E Magazine: The Environmental Magazine, 8(2), 36. Retrieved August 4, 2007, from Academic Search Premier database.

Silberg, J. (2006, July). Who Killed the Electric Car?: Plinyminor’s New Model for Production and Post. Videography, 31(07), 16. Retrieved August 7, 2007, from Research Library database. (Document ID: 1094860951).

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