Where have all the electric cars gone?

Question

They used to be all over the place. Now, only hybrids are left.

Answer 1

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Good question, and kudos to Richard above who cribbed part of one of my other answers on this site (you can tell by the asterisks, that's one of my style points. Take a look at some of my other answers.) So I'll just elaborate on Richard's (my) answer.
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Here's the link to the site with about a thousand EV owners and their cars (the link is broken in Richard's post):
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http://www.austinev.org/evalbum/
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Thanks to new battery research, there are lots of new EVs in development, mostly in Asia. Here's a partial list:
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From China: The Happy Messenger - only costs $10000, goes 150 miles per charge:
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/12/chinese_ev_comp.html

Also from China: the BYD car, designed to be affordable, with a 250-mile range:
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=106930

The GEO EV, from Korea. It goes 155 miles on a three hour charge:
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/200505/18/200505182238171109900090609062.html

Also from Korea. The ENERGINE Electric-Pneumatic hybrid.
It runs on air and electricity. No gasoline:
http://www.energine.com/e_main.php

From Japan. The Subaru R1E. Charges to 90% in 5 minutes, costs under $18000:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8995780

Also from Japan. The Mitsubishi Colt EV. It can charge in 20 minutes, and is priced under $20k.
http://aftermarket.autoblog.com/2006/10/12/mitsubishi-looks-ahead-with-an-electric-i/

A chinese EV slated for import to the USA next year. It gets 200 miles/charge, and costs $28,500.
http://www.milesautomotive.com/products_xs200.html

The Tesla sports car:
http://www.teslamotors.com
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And if you don't want to wait - and if you don't mind not having the very latest technology, there are many small entrepreneurs doing electric car conversions right now, that you can buy for as little as $5000. Details are on this page:
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http://squidoo.com/cheap-electric-car
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Even better technology is in the works. Supercapacitors, for instance will enable charging in as little as 5 minutes. That technology may be ready as soon as next year.
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Also, don't believe what you read about polluting EVs. It's not true. Electric vehicles are many times more efficient than gas cars. That means they make far less pollution per mile even when power plants burn dirty fuel (and don't forget that gasoline refineries spew pollution. Refineries use lots of electricity too!) Plus the EV is the only car that refuels by wire (the electric grid is 95% efficient.) Other cars must have fuel shipped by inefficient and polluting trucks.
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Used Li-Ion batteries are also not considered an environmental hazard by the EPA. Compare that to used motor oil and coolant from conventional gas autos, which are far more serious hazards.
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Richard, I know I'm poking fun at you, but go ahead and copy my stuff. The important thing is to get the word out. (I rated you a thumbs-up.)
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Answer 2

Ok, I admit an electric car wouldn't do if it was your only car. But most families have at least 2 cars anyway. I don't know why one of them couldn't be an electric. If it only goes 50 miles on a charge, so what? If it's 20 miles or less to work one way then you would go about your business all day and plug it in at night just like you do your cell phone. No gas, no pollution, no noise and almost no maintenance. What could possibly be impractical about that? The electric car could probably handle 75-85% of the normal driving most people do.
Though they are not dead yet ... take a look at this site, you'll see pictures of the hundreds and hundreds of electric car owners and their cars:
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http://www.austinev.org/evalbum/...
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The technology used in General Motors' EV1 lives on in the Tesla electric sports car:
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http://www.teslamotors.com
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And the affordable, everyday EV is right around the corner. Here's an affordable, imported electric car that gets 200 miles per charge, and does 80 mph:
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http://www.milesautomotive.com/products_...

Answer 3

you have are the sufferer of a propaganda marketing campaign. There are no longer any automobiles which you may have sufficient money or force that bypass a hundred and fifty miles ("mpg?") and value at domicile. the clarification that there are not is comparable to that's often been because Edison labored on the challenge: the batteries are not stable sufficient, and there are no longer any coming near breakthroughs in spite of the ensures of the inventory promoters. storage battery technologies has progressed very slowly over the years. quite a few fantastically-touted electric automobiles are nonetheless powered via lead-acid batteries, a technologies that dates from the 1880's yet which proceed to be the main suitable techniques for many purposes. The batteries utilized in hybrid automobiles carry a definite guarantee because of the fact their alternative value is someplace around 5 thousand money or so and their relatively working existence is unknown. There are some different issues. One is that electric power isn't loose, and neither are the highways. the electrical powered power on which electric automobiles could run is produced via electric power flora, which interior the U. S. are notably coal-fired propositions. To power a fleet of recent electric automobiles could require a substantial enhance in electric power plant production. the electrical powered power it relatively is used to cost present day electric automobiles, at the same time with they are, is kin power, the expenses for which do no longer incorporate highway taxes. we could would desire to repair that, too. it relatively is nicely worth noting that electric automobiles, and the propaganda that surrounds them, is very virtually solely from a heat, dry, flat section: southern California. My answer? Mass transit via way of trackless trollies that shuttle huge-unfold paved roads. The technologies is truthfully-accepted, the roadways exist, and that they are plenty greater power-useful than any fleet of guy or woman electric automobiles must be.

Answer 4

I'm not sure about "All over the place," but yes, GM pulled the plug on theirs, the EV1. There are at least two companies about to sell electric cars in CA now. Tesla Motors and WrightSpeed inc. Both decided to forget the "eco-friendly family car," goal and make ridiculously fast two-seat roadsters with good 250mi+ range. Both will be priced as exotic sports cars (~$100,000) until they can sell enough of them to make a cheaper model. They are fast.

Answer 5

At this time a solely powered electric car just isn't practical for a main mode of transportation due to the short life of the batteries. The 'hy-brid' keeps the batteries at the proper charged level so you won't be stranded by a low or dead battery.

Answer 6

Great question. Check out this documentary: "Who Killed the Electric Car?" -it's awesome!

Answer 7

Where they belong in the dump.
To create that electricity they are burning coal. Which creates more pollution. So as you use more electricity they burn more coal, hence polluting more. But dont worry its not you who is polluting the world it is someone else. Hypocritical greenies.