Why haven't electric cars replaced gas-powered ones?

Question

Is the battery technology not there yet? Is it an oil company conspiracy? Really, what gives?

Answer 1

The technology isn't quite there yet, but it's close. There are some good electric cars out there with some minor issues. For example, the Tesla Roadster is an awesome electric car

http://www.teslamotors.com/index.php

But costs $92,000. The ZAP Xebra is a more affordable $10,000

http://zapworld.com/ZAPWorld.aspx?id=188

But only goes 25 miles per charge and up to 40 mph. Next year ZAP will be coming out with two ZAP-X Crossover models

http://zapworld.com/ZAPWorld.aspx?id=4560

which will be able to go 100 miles per charge and 100 mph for $30,000 and 350 miles/charge and 155 mph for $60,000, respectively. I think this will be the start of an increase in electric vehicle popularity.

By the way, Chad and Darth above are exactly wrong. Electric engines have extremely good acceleration. The Tesla Roadster goes 0 to 60 in 4 seconds. The ZAP-X can do it in 4.8 seconds. The only thing holding up electric vehicle production is battery technology (getting sufficient range and speed), but the technology is almost there, as you can see in the ZAP-X. If GM had kept improving on the EV1 instead of scrapping the whole program, we would have had the technology by now.

Answer 2

It is a combination of all and then some more.
1. The battery technology is not completely there, but we are close.
2. Existing car manufacturers do not want to make the shift quickly as that will mean rebuilding most of their production facility and re-train their staff.
3. Oil companies did their conspiracy part by buying and blocking the patent for NiMH bateries.
4. Even if the battery problem gets solved, it still will take time to create a new product that is reliable enough that most people will like to buy them.
5. The electric grid cannot increase capacity overnight to charge all those electric car.
6. And do not forget, the auto and oil industry employ a lot of people. If we switch to electric tomorrow a lot of people will lose their jobs.

It will happen eventually, but don't hold your breath.

Answer 3

The issue here is that electric cars have to be charged. The charge does not last that long, so the cars only drive for about one hundred and fifty to two hundred miles before needing a charge.

Hybrid cars on the other hand, help increase gas mileage by using the power created by the car to reduce the amount of gas used when the car is idling or going slow.

There is an inventor who has created a battery powered car that accelerates quickly and lasts for about three hundred miles. The problem is that the batteries take up a lot of space and recharging them is still an issue.

Take care,
Troy

Answer 4

They're working on it. As soon as an electric car proves to be cheaper to own, it will take off, in my opinion. In the meantime, an electric bike or scooter would seem to be the most logical thing to ride, if one needed to save gas money, but it was impractical to pedal a regular bicycle. The economics of that beat a gas powered car. To be fair, a gas-powered scooter beats a car, too. This will work right now. A surprising amount of trips are made alone, and with very little gear. With a good rack, there's really no need to drive to the store for less than two bags of groceries.

Answer 5

You got it. Battery technology is not there yet. That is why gasoline cars replace electric cars in about 1910. Electric cars were quite popular back then. Battery technology has hardly advanced at all in the last 100 years while gasoline engine technology has gotten MUCH better. Sure, we have fuel cells and lithium ion batteries and such now, but these are WAY to expensive, and lead acid batteries are just too heavy for mobile applications requiring lots of power.

Answer 6

They should! By the way Electric cars are proven faster than gasoline powered vehicles. The torque alone from the new electric engines have 50X more powerful. It is also an Oil Business profit reality, they don't want new Technology to take money away from their pockets. They want to suck every last drop of crude oil from every square inch of land on this Earth and ruin the environment in the process. They don't care about future consequences! Hydrogen will become the future energy source if Americans lead the world into it.

Answer 7

the reason electric cars have not replaced gas-powered cars is because it would be a huge step for America. Most people wouldn't want to because they don't like change even thought it would be for the best. Also, it will take a long time for all gas-powered cars to be completely replaced by electric cars.

Answer 8

LOL Lost OC boy. I'm a die hard Democrat and I have no desire to buy an electric car. I just don't like them. It is not an oil conspiracy. The reasons stated above such as lack of long range use are the main reasons.

Answer 9

Well lines of electric cars were rolled out by several major manufacturers, but there was almost zero demand so they ended up having to scrap them. A part of it is that the technology is still ineffeciant. The batteries don't last very long, and can cost up to tens of thousands to replace in some models. They're also not well suited for long distance travel. If you're interersted in learning more look up the wikipedia article on "Who Killed the Electric Car"

Answer 10

Electric cars can run just as fast as others. They are great around the city. Not too good for long hauls because as you add distance, you need to recharge more often, or add More batteries (weight).

Electric cars are good for the city because they reduce emissions locally, but they are terrible for overall conservation. They use electric power from the grid which is not as energy efficient as burning the fuel directly. They just move the pollution from the city to the power plant location.

Bottom line is they are great for the electric company and reducing emissions locally. They are not good for global warming.