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The history of electric cars essay
The History of Electric Cars
The history of electric cars essay
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In the documentary, Who Killed the Electric Car? “suspects” are taken a look at to discover the reason that the promising new electric car in the 1990s disappeared from commercial sales in the United States. Among the reasons for the death of the electric vehicle are consumers, big oil companies, car companies, government, hydrogen fuel cell cars, and technology. In the technological view, the electric car was thought to have problems in the source of its energy and how it would refuel when there were not numerous stations available. One of the main culprits of the technological aspects was the use of batteries. At the inception of the EV1 electric car produced by General Motors, the battery it ran on provided 60 miles to a charge. While this was suitable for daily commute, it was less suitable for long road trips. However, later discoveries and inventions led to batteries that provided 100 miles and even eventually 300 miles to a charge. The source of power and amount of mileage provided was not an issue. The creation of hydrogen cell vehicles also posed a threat to the electrical …show more content…
The role of business in this problem began early on with the monopoly built on oil and factories. Manufacturers phased out electric cars in favor of cheap, readily available gas cars that swayed the public. Early on in the 1990s, business played a positive role in creating the electric car, however, they turned negative when profitability was not high enough. Oil and auto industry kept the electric car from becoming popular in an attempt to gain more money. In the process, politics was influenced to support oil and gas powered cars by removing mandates such as the zero emission mandate in California. Government played a large role, locally and federally, in creating policies that worked against creating commercialized electric
The 1996 documentary Who Killed the Electric Car? explores the factors behind the demise of General Motors’ EV1, the popular and elusive electric car of the early 1990’s. The EVI was popular with the public, and it was clean, fast and efficient. This video sets out to solve what is effectively a murder mystery – the plug was pulled on the EV1 in 2002 after only 1,000 of these cars had been produced by GM, most of which were subsequently destroyed by the company in a secret location in the Arizona desert.
The Automotive, or electric car industry particularly, comprises all those companies and activities involved in the manufacture of electric motor vehicles (EV), including most components, such as engines, bodies and rechargeable batteries or another energy storage device. The industry’s principal products are passenger automobiles. Despite the fact that the first electric cars were produced in 1880s , the advances in internal combustion engines, especially the electric starter, soon diminished the relative advantages of the electric car and became the dominant design in the market. Due to this the EV was almost a forgotten industry staying in the early stage of development, conforming to less than 1% of the automotive stock
Starting in the late 1700's, European engineers began tinkering with motor powered vehicles. Steam, combustion, and electrical motors had all been attempted by the mid 1800's. By the 1900's, it was uncertain which type of engine would power the automobile. At first, the electric car was the most popular, but at the time a battery did not exist that would allow a car to move with much speed or over a long distance. Even though some of the earlier speed records were set by electric cars, they did not stay in production past the first decade of the 20th century. The steam-driven automobile lasted into 1920's. However, the price on steam powered engines, either to build or maintain was incomparable to the gas powered engines. Not only was the price a problem, but the risk of a boiler explosion also kept the steam engine from becoming popular. The combustion engine continually beat out the competition, and the early American automobile pioneers like Ransom E. Olds and Henry Ford built reliable combustion engines, rejecting the ideas of steam or electrical power from the start.
Starting in the late 1700’s, European engineers began messing with motor powered vehicles. By the mid 1800’s, steam, combustion, and electrical motors had all been attempted. By the 1900’s it wasn’t very clear on which type of engine would really power the automobile. At that time, electric cars were the most popular but there were no batteries at that time that would allow a car to move very fast or a long distance. Commercial production in the United States began at the beginning of the 1900’s. In the early 1900’s, the United States had about two thousand firms producing one or more cars.
By the early 1900’s, automobiles had become a common sight on the roads of the United States. Edison tried to create an electric battery that could power an electric car. Due to the abundant availability of gasoline, the electric car did not receive the response that Edison hoped for. However, the car battery was a huge success, and still plays a pivotal role in the automobile industry.
Although most people deem Henry Ford the father of automobiles, most historians agree that the birth of the modern car came about in the 19th century with some previous trial and error designs that led up to what we consider to be automobiles today. Beginning in the late 1700s, European engineers began experimenting with motor powered vehicles. Steam combustion and electric motors had all been attempted by the mid-1800s but had not yet been mastered. Surprisingly, the electric car was the most popular but a battery strong enough to move at more than a few miles per hour had not yet been invented yet. Imagine how different the world would be today if engineers had spent more time on innovating a battery for an electric car rather than creating a brand new engine with emissions which polluted the atmosphere. Automobile pioneers like Ransom E. Olds and Henry Ford c...
2. Liese, Lindsey. Disappearance of the Electric car Unveiled in Documentary. West World. Retrieved Feb. 8 from http://www.niles-hs.k12.il.us/westword/issue4,06-07/world5.pdf
A revolutionary environmental impact to pollution is provided by electric cars which produce zero emissions and provide a replenishable fuel resource. Toxic emissions into our earth’s environment would be reduced immediately as gas powered, pollution emitting vehicles are replaced with non-polluting, battery powered vehicles. Not only will pollution be reduced, but the means that power these vehicles are a renewable resource. Electricity can now be created by environmentally safer means, such as hydro-electric dams, wind farms, and various types of power plants proving a sound resource. With a safer, less polluting, renewabl...
Electric cars have dated as far back as 1880, with the first model being mass produced in the later 1880’s. At early stages of automobiles, there were no clear benefits from either type of engine. In fact, a majority of cars in use at the time were electric. Steam and combustion engines were less developed and not as popular. Before the 1900’s an electric car held the land speed record for motor vehicles. (Bellis, 2014) As roads were built and the range that vehicles would need to travel increased, the need for a longer lasting vehicle rose. This is why at the turn of the century the popularity of gasoline powered engines arose. Electric vehicles were still valued for their short term transportation (within cities) and relatively easy use, but they began to lose prevalence as developments into combustion rose. Production for electric cars peaked in 1912 (Bellis, 2014) and saw a drastic decline since
...t of the electric car for the economic and practical benefits that would reinvigorate the country and make life easier for everyone. Upon revisiting the original question to this essay, the electric car is a worthy solution to our energy crisis and proves to be an economically responsible car. Its long-term cost savings outweighs easily improved flaws. However, in order to better understand the work done by scientists, research must be done specifically on the predecessors to the electric car and determine how those have stood the test of time. This will be done in order to help predict how the electric car will survive in the world. The future may always have a hint of uncertainty, but if scientists, governments, and drivers implement the new car with care, the goal of a smooth transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources can finally be achieved.
Environmental concerns have been raised from time to time because of the dependency on the gasoline-fueled engine as the chief auto powertrain technology. This has resulted in exposing many automobile users to unpredictable prices of fuel. These issues were, however, the reason for the inception of Tesla Motors so as to bring into existence another set of automotive which serves the similar purpose; but uses another form of energy that being electricity to drive them instead of the disadvantageous gasoline-powered engine. This invention was influenced by a number of factors in terms of their planning and performance (Hunger, 2010).
In the 2003 Martin Eberhard, Marc Tarpenning, JB Straubel, Ian Wright, and most notably Elon Musk founded Tesla Motors. The “group of engineers in Silicon Valley wanted to prove that electric cars could be better than gasoline-powered cars” , and their efforts managed to disrupt the entire fabric of the automotive industry. The release of the Tesla Roadster, in 2008, was an innovative quake that introduced an alternative automotive technology for consumers to the widely accepted and well-established gasoline technology in the automotive industry. The Tesla Roadster was not only the first entirely electric sports car, but also “set a new standard for electric mobility” and luxury brand cars.
In this case study I will be discussing advantages and disadvantages of electric cars. Electric cars are cars that are powered by electricity. Electric vehicles are an important part of cutting emissions and reducing global warming. The battery of an electric car stores electrical energy. The electric motor is coupled to the wheels through gears; it converts 59-60% of electrical energy into the wheels. The battery runs the motor which allows the car to move. Electric cars are necessary as they will save money, because electricity is cheaper than gas. Also electric vehicles will help reduce global warming and pollution. However, some people say that electric cars still have environmental costs. The electricity used to recharge EV batteries has to come from somewhere in the world, and now, most electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels. Although electric vehicles are classified as green cars, purists will not appreciate the toxicity of the batteries.
example of the uses of electric cars in everyday life. From the article “Electrical Engineering”,
Most people today fill up their car with different qualities of petrol, because that's what the average car takes. They don't usually consider an alternative for the petrol that they load into their cars. Although petrol is widely used, it is not the only source for a car to get its power from; diesel and electricity are alternatives to the general petrol used by most cars. Although different from each other, diesel and electricity are alternatives to the average gasoline received at a gas station. Diesel is a more concentrated type of fuel that is usually used by big automobiles because they require a lot of power in a little amount of time. Electricity is a method that uses the power of batteries to produce a low horsepower but, nevertheless fast automobile. Electric cars are generally created to be soundless and environment friendly. The purpose of this paper is to classify and educate the reader of the different types of fuel available for an automobile to use: petrol, diesel, and electricity. The general petrol, used by most people, is usually the only type of fuel accepted on the average car in the United States today.