Why don;t electric cars have more than one gear?

Question

Why don;t electric cars have more than one gear?

Answer 1

you could have an ev with more than one gear, but it usually is not necessary. the motor controller controls the speed electronically, and does a much better job than a gear set change does.

Answer 2

The Tesla does, and in fact the transmission is the biggest problem with the car: they demanded a continuously-variable, automatic, high-speed transmission, and these don't exactly exist yet.  Had they not insisted that  the car go speeds higher than are legal anywhere in North America, they could have done without the transmission and the car would perhaps be on the market by now.  

Answer 3

the reality is that they dont need more than one forward gear. the biggest issue with gas and diesel engines is the need to multiply the engines torque output to prevent stalling the engine, where as the electric motor puts out its maximum power starting at 1 rpm, and continues to produce that power through its redline. it is virtually impossible to stall an electric motor as long as it has enough power to move the load it is tasked with moving.

Answer 4

Everyone else has already said it, but they operate differently than normal gasoline powered cars.  They have no real need for a transmission the way that they function.

Answer 5

Because they don't need them.

Petrol and diesel engines have a limited power band and could not provide power from start to top speed without multiple gear ratios while electric motors can produce full power over the entire rev range (from 0 rpm right to the red line).

Answer 6

imagine a dimmer switch

you turn the light up or down

the same with the car