Switched-On Highways

Fareed - you usually show amazing understanding of complex international issues, but here you have succumbed to the hype. The linkage to this future is what needs to be exploited now: hybrids going to plugin hybrids (PEVs). All-electrics have substantial disadvantages as cited by the many comments below - OK perhaps for compact countries like Israel and Denmark, but not tenable for widely spaced countries such as the US and Canada.

PEVs will have a major impact for the next decade or two as it allows full electric mode for a large percentage of miles driven - and therefore a big advantage in terms of oil dependence and CO2 emissions (electric generation by utilities being much more efficient that the IC engine, especially using natural gas, wind, solar, etc.). Beyond that, who knows? Fuel cells using H2 as the source, all electric, etc...

Fareed - you usually show amazing understanding of complex international issues, but here you have succumbed to the hype. The linkage to this future is what needs to be exploited now: hybrids going to plugin hybrids (PEVs). All-electrics have substantial disadvantages as cited by the many comments below - OK perhaps for compact countries like Israel and Denmark, but not tenable for widely spaced countries such as the US and Canada.

PEVs will have a major impact for the next decade or two as it allows full electric mode for a large percentage of miles driven - and therefore a big advantage in terms of oil dependence and CO2 emissions (electric generation by utilities being much more efficient that the IC engine, especially using natural gas, wind, solar, etc.). Beyond that, who knows? Fuel cells using H2 as the source, all electric, etc...





from the infernal combustion engine to gas/electric hybrid

They do have air conditioning, and it is better than a gas cars, there is no belt to break. A separate small motor runs the air so you will not have a belt break and strand you. The electric cost to run it has been proven by earlier models. We didn't abandon the idea years ago, the car manufacturers realized they could bleed the consumer for much more money by milking us on the replacement parts and labor costs to maintain an out of date gas engine. Transmission alone is a $3000 job. Electric cars don't have a transmission, fuel delivery system, exhaust system, ignition system, or any of the other out of date items in a gas car. No oil changes or tune ups, ever again. They leased them before and when the realized the money they would lose they confiscated them at the end of the lease and crushed them. Watch ???who killed the electric car on u toob. Cost of operating it is like getting gas for 60 cents per gallon. I have my eye on the BYD E6. 185 miles per charge, 375,000 mile battery life, 93 mph speed, $20,000 purchase price. I will get one when they come out. Several other companies are bringing them in a year or so. Phoenix electric, tesla is designing some lesser expensive models. It is the future, and the local manufacturers will not stop it this time. My next car is No Plug, No Deal. I will not buy another new car until this comes out.

They do have air conditioning, and it is better than a gas cars, there is no belt to break. A separate small motor runs the air so you will not have a belt break and strand you. The electric cost to run it has been proven by earlier models. We didn't abandon the idea years ago, the car manufacturers realized they could bleed the consumer for much more money by milking us on the replacement parts and labor costs to maintain an out of date gas engine. Transmission alone is a $3000 job. Electric cars don't have a transmission, fuel delivery system, exhaust system, ignition system, or any of the other out of date items in a gas car. No oil changes or tune ups, ever again. They leased them before and when the realized the money they would lose they confiscated them at the end of the lease and crushed them. Watch ???who killed the electric car on u toob. Cost of operating it is like getting gas for 60 cents per gallon. I have my eye on the BYD E6. 185 miles per charge, 375,000 mile battery life, 93 mph speed, $20,000 purchase price. I will get one when they come out. Several other companies are bringing them in a year or so. Phoenix electric, tesla is designing some lesser expensive models. It is the future, and the local manufacturers will not stop it this time. My next car is No Plug, No Deal. I will not buy another new car until this comes out.

It's true that widespread use of electric cars would create an increased demand for electricity. Where would this additional power come from? Hopefully not from coal and nuclear power plants! This type of "big picture" planning is exactly why our government needs to get involved.

This "Better Place" organization is on the right track; there needs to be standardized battery packs that multiple manufacturers could make. There needs to be several different sizes for small, medium and large size vehicles. There needs to be software that is designed to charge our cars at home during "off peak" power generation periods. In other words, if you plug your car in at 6 PM when you get home for work, the software doesn't actually allow your car to begin charging untill say, 11 PM. Another idea I've heard presented is having software that allows the power companies to draw small amounts of power from nearly fully charged car's batteries to meet demands during peak electrical consumption hours. This would make our all our car's batteries balance out our country's electrical demand, negating the need for additional power plants.

Electric cars are the LEAST efficient option out there. You lose energy in the conversion of heat to the steam turbine, you lose more energy and effiicency in the transmission of electricity to the home/business charging station, and then you lose more efficiency because the best batteries are only marginally efficient in converting energy in to energy out.

What about the disposal of these batteries? Literally tons of hazardous waste.

What about the CO2 emitted by coal fired power plants needed to generate this electricity?

LESS total pollution is created by gasoline powered engines of similar mileage and power than by the use of electric cars. While the US is the Saudi Arabia of coal, the energy obtained from coal is less than that gasoline, meaning ANY electric vehicle [not hybrids] is less effficent in the macro sense than ANY gasoline vehicle. WHY are the environmentalists all charged up over this - because most of them are intellectually dishonest and could not think their way completely out of a paperbag. Let science control instead of politics.

I have been waiting for some major company to make and sell to the general public electric cars. An I don't mean at $40+ like the Chevy Volt but one the average guy can afford to buy. Hope my CR-V lasts until we have an affordable EC or I'll be buying a Fit..

No wonder people go on about the US being capitalist.

If you state that there is "no subsidy" of this industry and two paragraphs later talk about heavy tax differentials and "forced adoption" of a particular industry and don't see "subsidy" in them, then it seems pretty simple to live in a country simply abounding in market interferences from an alphabet soup of bureaucracies and call it capitalist. You just have to ignore blatantly manifest contradictions or embrace Doublespeak.

"155 miles without air conditioning"? How many Americans live in climates that make this a feasible condition? Most of us sincerely desire a practical and affordable electric car. But if the disastrous experience of GM a decade ago has taught us anything it should be that it is far better wait for a workable scheme than one clearly destined to fail. Green energy, recharge infrastructer, and all the other objections are easily, if not cheaply, overcome--but an electric car that is good enough to actually be bought by the people not only isn't available, it isn't even on the horizon. Undoubtedly we will get there some day, but this proposal hasn't a chance.

Didn't anybody see the obvious nonstarter buried in this aritcle? "155 miles without air conditioning". How many people live in cllmates that make them likely to forego the use of air conditioners? Most of us sincerely desire a good and practical electric car, but transparently false assumptions about what is practical and what isn't will not take us very far. Better by far to wait for a systrem that actully has a chance of working than to foul the nest with schemes that are destined to fail. Didn't we lear anythiing from GM's experience of a decade ago?

If there is an 8-year old planning to read this article, I can save him or her some time: Dumb idea, dumb interview. Zakaria is a brilliant writer but he seems to have been switched-off during this farce. Among major problems: comparing the per-mile cost of an electric car to the current U.S. fleet average isn't even close to valid since electric cars tend to be two-seaters of very modest capabilities; I don't believe a battery cost of $0.04-0.06/mile; and electricity is no sense green since our cheapest kWH's come from coal and will do so for many years into the future.

There are many business models that will solve every perceived problem but "[won't] happen without government." (Read: Massive long term subsidies.) You want green transportation then get nuclear power stations built AND THEN (20+years hence) figure out a convenient and portable packaging method for the energy, using the technology then available.

If there is an 8-year old reading this article, I can save him or her some time: Dumb idea, dumb interview. Zakaria is a brilliant writer but he seems to have been switched-off during this farce. Among major problems: comparing the per-mile cost of an electric car to the current U.S. fleet average isn't even close to valid since electric cars tend to be two-seaters of very modest highway capabilities; I don't believe his battery cost of $0.04-0.06/mile, and electricity is in no sense green since our cheapest kWh's come from coal and will do so for many years into the future.

There are many business models that will solve every perceived problem but "[don't] happen without government." (Read: Massive and long term subsidies.) You want green transportation then get nuclear power stations built AND THEN (20+years hence) figure out a conveinent and portable packaging method for the energy.

This probably great Idea but you forgot some main problem Nancy Pesopi us. congress woman Harry Reid us Senate both got heavy investment in the oil indusrty and GM. until they no longer have the control of the house and senate This have too many road block

Why do I have to pay a monthly contract to buy my fuel? Why can't I pull up to a charging station and pay per watt/kilowatt? I don't want to be paying the same amount every month if I don't drive the exact same amount every day!!

Aren't cell phone contracts bad enough??

http://wtfdidhesay.blogspot.com

All parts of the lead-acid batteries are recycleable. I'm not so sure about the newer Nicad and Lithium. The estimated replacement costs I've seen over the years has been from $3000 to $10,000.
In the senario where the consumer owns the car but rents the batteries, the rental company would be buying these battery packs in bulk (probably from China :) at a significant saving. You would probably have a flat monthly rate plus the per mile rate when swapping packs at a charging station (gas station for everyone else).
Perhaps if you got this type of contract as part of the vehicle purchase the partial cost of the batteries would be discounted. I doubt they would discount the complete amount. Just a possibility.
Electricity can come from lots of places much closer to home, not just the mega-companies. People have to think beyond their utility company and the wall switch. As you can probably tell, I'm pro-electic cars. All these problems can be worked through. The infrastructure to support automobiles was not in place until long after it was invented.

electric cars are basically worthless, unless you live in a city.