Why don't we just have electric cars already?

Question

Ok we have the technology, just that Business Tycoons would loose their "money" so, why doesn't the Government Enforce electric cars and recycle all the cars we have now?

I really would not mind not seeing a society with just all electric cars

Answer 1

While they are charging, they are STILL using ENERGY!  So far it's a waste of money.  We need a better idea.  I like the idea or recycling the cars, but whatever we come up with to replace our current engines will probably need a whole new design.  Why don't you study and get busy on that!  Who knows what you might come up with?

Answer 2

We do.  The electric cars at the following website even have the option of a solar panel so you can go further distances without having to recharge.

http://www.zapworld.com

Answer 3

Fossil fuels are used to make electricity, and it actually takes 1% more fossil fuels to run a car using electricity than it does gasoline.

Answer 4

Great question -- but the posted answers are really quite uninformed (sorry if that sounded snotty).  People really do need to see the movie (as someone else mentioned) "Who Killed the Electric Car."

Bottom line:  we already HAD electric cars here in the US that WERE exactly what many people wanted out of a small commuter car...  who killed them?  Watch the movie.

They'll make a come back.

Answer 5

We do have the technology.  Nuclear power can provide all the additional energy required. The existing power grid can be used to distribute it.

True, batteries do take hours to recharge, and the range is not yet as good as with gas cars.

However I think these limitation are perfectly acceptable for the purposes of the majority of commuters, especially if recharging points are made available in workplace parking lots.  As I think they should be.

And I think the cost of electric vehicles can be reduced greatly via mass production.  

I believe this is a matter of strategic national interest.  The US should not be burning up domestic oil reserves that it may need one day to defend itself.  Electric cars and additional infrastructure to support them should be mandated, not just encouraged.  It is about national security.

People who 'don't want the government telling them what to do' should grow up.  Should the government let you sell nukes to foreign governments?  Should the government let you kill your neighbors and eat their brains if that's what makes you feel good and prosperous?

Obviously the government is charged with the defense of the nation, and if it is necessary to declare oil a strategic resource (which I believe it is), and force you to stop using it whenever it isn't strictly necessary, then you as a good and decent citizen should not be trying to thwart their efforts.

Answer 6

erm look up. wrightspeed x1or my electric car is faster than your ferrari. title says it all and it does 150miles on a charge. or killacycle which does 0 to 60 in 0.9. get a diesel get a conversion and buy used filtered oil. 5p per litre

Answer 7

Could you really say to your friend, "my electric car gets 78 horsepower?"

Answer 8

you should watch the movie Who Killed The Electric Car.  It will give you alot of info.  Like we did have electric cars for a year in California and when the leases were up they took everyones car back, all because there is virtually no maintaince and they make No money off of them after they buy them

Answer 9

We shouldn't be required to have electric cars.  I don't want the government forcing me to do something.

If people want to buy one, they can.  There are some available, and when there's a bigger incentive, people will drive them.

Answer 10

how many of you nay-sayers have actually driven an electric vehicle? its a neat experience. I converted a full size street motorcycle to electric and its fun to drive and driven daily to and from work. the insurance was definitly cheaper.

the pure electric vehicle makes sense for the every day tasks we use our gas guzzeling fume-spittin buggies for. Save the Escalades, Navigators and Hummers for the family vacation.

take a tour thru the web sites provided and you will find answers to your questions.

Answer 11

the question should be is why we dont have air cars which is wut they are already driving in europe because gas has been high over there for a while already and it would cost like what 25 cents to fill up and the air compressor at the gas station but our safety regulations are to crappy for those cars cause they are so light and fragile that the would be split in half if they were hit by one of our hulking U.S cars haha

Answer 12

because the batteries are just not good enough.

Answer 13

First off, required to have electric cars is going a bit far.  It's my freedom to own an old gas guzzling muscle car if I choose to.

Second, they would have to purchase all the old cars off of their owners which would be a huge expense.  It's just not wise for the government to have that much say in what we choose to drive.  Also, everyone would be required to purchase new electric cars that are expensive and many, including myself, wouldn't be able to afford it.

Third, the reason the electric car is not viable for everyone is their limitations.  They can't travel as far and the energy that would be required to climb the mountains around my neck of the woods would probably kill the battery twice as fast.  4-cylinder cars barely make it up a lot of the highways around here.  They aren't suited for long distance travel for charge puropses as well.

From an economical standpoint, I've heard that there are some recharge stations that can charge a car battery in 10 minutes or so.  Let's say they rig all of the gas stations to accomodate these recharge stations.  One, they would get practically no business from locals that own their own chargers. Two, they would have to charge enormus prices to pay for the time it takes for someone to charge their vehicles. And three, unless the prices were unaffordably high, they would have to have more chargers to accommodate more customers which translates to parking lots of chargers instead of the current size of stations.

I have no problems with electric cars, they are just not appropriate for a lot of people and to require them is a bit extreme.

Answer 14

We actually DON'T have the technology.  It is far more difficult to store energy in a battery than it is in a gasoline tank.  The best battery-powered cars have a range of about 40 miles; that won't be very handy if you want to drive to visit your grandmother, two states over.

Answer 15

i have often wondered about that

i think we have the technology and we have resources

seems to me we are not getting there fast enough

i agree

electric city here we come!

;)

Answer 16

Electric cars are very limited on how far they can go on a charge. They can also be pricey compared to compact cars that get good mileage.

Answer 17

And this is good for the world's energy crisis how?

Answer 18

we do.  check out tesla motors.  

remember the EV1.  watch the movie "Who Killed the Electric Car".

Answer 19

Right now electric cars are too expensive and don't travel much more than 150 miles per charge and they take several hours to charge.

Answer 20

Well, electirc cars are pretty expensive many people can't afford it. It cost alot when itt comes to insurance.

Answer 21

It is NOT the technology of electric car that we don't have.  It is the technology of "battery" that we don't have.

Do you have a cell phone battery that still works well after 8 years?  Do you have a laptop battery that still holds charges longer than 4 hours after 5 years?   Do you have a cordless drill that still runs at full speed after 2 years of charging and discharging?

The answers are probably No.  That is the reason GM is delaying the launch of plug-in hybrid Volt by 2 years to test the battery technologies because they don't last 10 years.  

That is the key.  Until we can design a battery that holds a lot of energy and relatively quick to recharge and last 10 years or more, then we won't have a cheap solution.

Answer 22

it's a waste.. Where are you getting most of your electricity from?? Coal.... then someone asks, ok, close the coal plants and make all wind mills.... it takes up too much space and do you want a (loud) windmill in your back yard?  

Plus, I drive more than 50 miles a day.. electric cars can't go farther than that.  (recycle all the cars on the road? no way, that is wasteful and american would lose more money out of their pocket by the "mandate")

Answer 23

If you're interested in buying a electric car,  this company will convert your Scion XB to electric.  Check it out   www.acpropulsion.com  ,  Im saving my money for one,  I figured with the money saved on gas I can finance one of these.

Answer 24

no we don't have the technology yet to make electric cars practical.  A lot of research is being done by the auto manufacturers on batteries that could at least power a vehicle for 20 to 30 miles before recharging - we're not there yet.

Answer 25

The government subsidizes gas companies and corn growers whose crop goes toward ethanol, so the government wants us to use gas in regular cars.

The president is republican and supports big business. His friends profit if we keep using gasoline.

Answer 26

until oil truly runs out,it wont happen,There are too many greedy business men out there,and there is no real reason for this type of car to be expensive,there's less moving parts,assembly is only a quarter of the time, and we now have fast charging batteries,these could be swapped over at a battery bank,be side's,we also have solar and wind power to combine with this,just think how the middle east would suddenly become poor if they didn't get hold of this technology

Answer 27

back in the 1997 there was an electric car called the ev1 created by gm they were only leased to people in La and Arizona.the government destroy this car for no reason people even raised enough money to buy thousands of this cars but the government would not gm sell them so they end up destroying all of them. try google ev1

Answer 28

cause if you blow a fuse your stranded.  You cant just walk down the street and buy 150 volts of electric shock to fill up your tank.

Answer 29

Becaue the auto and oil company lobbyists own the Bush administration

Answer 30

I disagree with your assertion that we have the technology.  

Technology does NOT yet exist to make it practical to have an all electric car.  Batteries are just NOT that good yet.  

Hybrid cars are getting close but even those must use gas.

Electric cars  are OK for short commutes But not for cross country driving or going for a long trip.  NO battery will last more than 4 hours.

With gas you can drive and drive and drive. Just stop about every 4 hours for a quick fill-up.  This is not possible with any electric vehicle now or planned for the near future.

With high gas prices people will sure switch once such a vehicle becomes available.

Answer 31

Corporations run the government.

California passed a mandate requiring 12 % of all cars sold in California to be zero emissions.  In spite of the fact that demand for electric cars was discouraged by negative propaganda from car manufacturers, and it was almost impossible to "qualify" to lease one (even Mel Gibson had to go through h**l to lease one) people loved them.  The mandate was recalled after the Bush administration successfully sued California.  The leased vehicles were recalled and crushed after the leases expired despite the fact that people wanted to purchase them. There were no electric vehicles sold outright, before or after the suing and crushing.

Netflix has a documentary on corporations and one on the electric car