In a previous post I wrote about my excitement regarding PHEVs - Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles.
I think I've done a one-eighty on this issue. Actually, a ninety. I've gone in a slightly different directions. A few days ago I was somewhat excited about the PHEV-future. Today I'm even more excited about the PEV-present.
Plug-in Electric Vehicles. This is happening now. In America. These are cars that an American consumer can buy, now, as I type this!
(They're really just EVs, I suppose. The "Plug-in" is a given. It's assumed. For reasons of my own, though, I still like calling them PEVs instead of EVs. That's just me.)
PEVs aren't hybrids, because they don't do gas. They don't have to carry a large internal combustion engine. They're still reasonably heavy - the batteries are pretty massive - but at least they're not carrying an internal combustion engine AND the batteries.
Did I mention this is happening now?
Tesla Motors started delivering its luxury electric sportscar in April. It seats two. It goes 0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds. It has a range of 220 miles. It gets the equivalent of 256 miles per gallon. ("Conversion from electric consumption to gallons of gasoline equivalent is calculated using the Department of Energy equivalence factor documented in the Code of Federal Regulations, Section 10, Part 474.")
Oh, and it costs one hundred thousand dollars.
But it exists! And it's a pretty sweet looking car. It's a proof of concept, and as it leads others will follow.
At least, I hope so. Every other manufacturer of PEVs for the American market - and there are a few of them - has been making some odd-looking cars.
Phoenix Motors is selling electric-only trucks and utility vehicles at around $40,000 each. Their cars look like bulky Priuses. (Pri-i?)
Zenn Motor Company is selling its ZENN (Zero Emissions No Noise) vehicle, and it's actually pretty affordable at $22,000. It's limited to 40 miles per charge, which is perfectly adequate. But who wants 40 miles when you can go over 200?
And it's ugly. I mean, the Phoenix cars are kind of ugly, too, but there's something about the ZENN that really bugs me.
Maybe it's the fact that the ZENN is only a two-seater.
I suppose it's kind of an electric SMART car. But Smart cars revel in their small size. That's the point. The ZENN seems to be masquerading as a larger car.
The same is true of the ZX40S from Miles Electric Vehicles, which retails for just under $20,000. It looks a lot like a typical SUV, but it's really a compact car. Unlike the ZENN it has a range of 60 miles.
Oh, the ZX40S and the ZENN are both limited to a top speed of 25 miles per hour, which is just really not fast enough. Understand, I'm an advocate of slowing down and taking it easy. But that means I'm talking about staying off the highway and limiting my top speed to, say, 45 miles per hour. 25 miles per hour is just not acceptable as a top speed.
That's why these particular cars will fail. That, and did I mention they're ugly?
Failing ugly, why does an electric car have to look so different from a regular car? Aptera Motors, for instance, makes a 3-wheeled vehicle that is oddly reminiscent of a svelte manatee...
As I search the web it seems as if nearly every car company - large or small - has a more typical-looking electric sedan, compact, or SUV "in the works".
I don't care about what's in the development pipeline, though. I want my electric car. And I want it now.
And I want it to be attractive. And I want it to go at least 45 miles per hour. And a range of 200 miles would be nice.
And I don't want to pay one hundred thousand dollars for it.
I guess I still have to wait until next year.
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2 comments:
Here are some other factors to consider regarding electric vehicles.
No. 1: Where will you have it serviced? I wager few to none of these manufacturers have a dealer in your area, and these high-end electronics are pretty specialized stuff.
No. 2: What about when it's dead and gone? Batteries are heinous things, environmentally speaking, and unless you own this car to the end of its life and personally oversee its disposal, they might end up in a landfill, poisoning someone's water.
No. 3: Planned (or not-so-planned) obsolescence. We're still at the very beginning of electric car technology, and it's possible in the next 10 to 20 years they'll be superseded by a new tech that is affordable, offers better performance and reliability, and is more environmentally friendly. You could find yourself in the same position as today's large-SUV owners.
So what's an eco-conscious commuter to do in the meantime? Two words: Clean diesel.
Mercedes, Audi and VW are currently shipping the new generation of clean diesels, the BlueTec engine, which meets emissions standards in all 50 states. Yes, even California and New England, which have the most stringent standards of all.
Diesels have myriad advantages over gasoline engines. They have 10% fewer moving parts, so they're simpler and there's less to break down. They are far more reliable; my 2001 diesel has 210,000 miles, and it's not uncommon to hear of diesels tipping the 300K, 400K or even 500K mark. Diesel fuel requires less refining than gasoline. And diesels produce more torque (which is what really moves cars, not horsepower) than gas engines of the same displacement, while being 30% more efficient.
My '01 VW Golf, by the way, was rated for 42 city/49 highway when new. Now that it's seven years old it still gets 40 city and 42 (or more) highway, routinely -- and I drive like a maniac. I bet that's still better than 90 percent of the non-hybrid cars on the market now. It's also attractive and extremely practical, with its cavernous hatch and wide doors.
So, if you buy a diesel while you're waiting for a more practical and affordable electric car, you'll have an efficient and highly reliable vehicle that's not anemic and underpowered, and which will be around long after all of today's gas cars have given up the ghost.
You make some good points.
1. I'll be waiting to buy an electric until I get a good answer to this question.
2. This is a really good point. There are a lot of follow-up questions to which we need answers.
2a - How long will an electric car last? Longer than a gas-powered car? Longer than a diesel-powered car? Shorter than either one?
2b - How long will the battery last, and how many batteries will an EV owner go through over the life of the vehicle?
2c - What exactly happens to the batteries when they're toast?
I look forward to answers to all of these questions.
3 - If the worst-case scenario is that something a lot better comes along then I will find a way to live with that.
Clean diesel is a wonderful thing, though. This is something that's just become reality in the last couple of years. Most of the diesel now sold in the USA is clean diesel with lower sulfur emissions.
Biodiesel and synthetic diesel also have great potential, both as lower-emission fuels, and as methods of moving towards energy-independence.
The potential of electric cars to take us farther, faster towards energy-independence is great, though. And the emissions from an electric car charged at night by wind power are effectively zero, so I'm still leaning electric.
Right now I have a car I use minimally, as I take the bus to work each day. I've also resolved to begin biking to work as soon as I feasibly can. If I'm able to drive my car relatively little then hopefully it will last me until many of the above questions have been answered.
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