An Argument for Electric Vehicles

The following information was presented to the Cars and Culture class at Pitzer College on 19-Apr-1995 by Chris Yoder: Chris_Yoder@Caltech.Edu

Electric vehicles have been a part of the automobile scene as long as there have been cars. They provide a clean, trouble-free means of transportation that can serve the needs of 90 percent of Los Angeles area commuters right now. In addition to their ecological benefits, EVs have the potential to become the performance vehicles of the future.

A Brief history of Electric Vehicles (EVs)

• EVs were a significant portion of the automobile mix in the early 1900's. 1/3 of all automobiles were EVs, 1/3 were steam, and 1/3 were Internal Combustion Engine (ICE).
• Early EVs were designed to replace horse carts, thus were designed for what we would consider 4WD conditions. This meant that many had a top speed of 20 MPH. Even so EVs were quite competitive with other vehicles of the time, competing in motor races and setting speed records.
• Early EVs had a range of between 50 and 100 miles.
• Early EVs were much more reliable and easier to handle (no need to start or shift them) than the other automobile choices of the time. This meant that even little old ladies could and often did drive them.
• By 1935 EVs had fallen out of favor with the public as the invention of the starter motor, the gradual improvement of the reliability of the internal combustion engine, and the invention of the automatic transmission made the internal combustion engine equally practical while lifting the range restriction.
• Note that the advent of the automobile solved a major problem of pollution stemming from horse emissions.

The problem of ICE vehicles today.

• Air pollution is a major problem in most cities.
  • 60 percent of the pollution in the Los Angeles air basin is attributable to the automobile.
  • Tougher emissions standards for automobiles have helped to keep the air breathable in Los Angeles, however more and more vehicles continue to be introduced to the Los Angeles air basin.
  • As ICE vehicles age, their emissions equipment wears and breaks down. The worst polluters are often 1980's vehicles with broken or missing emissions equipment.
• Petroleum based fuel is a finite resource.
• Short trips in an ICE vehicle produce relatively more pollution than long trips. Short trips also wear the components of an ICE vehicle more than longer ones.

The transportation needs of urban dwellers.

• 90 percent of Los Angeles commuters travel 74 or fewer miles per day to and from work. 50 percent of Los Angeles commuters travel 30 or fewer miles per day.
• The average vehicle occupancy rate of these vehicles is less than 2.
• People like to have their own comfortable space, temperature controlled with a good stereo.

The EV as a part of the transportation solution in Southern California.

• Hobbiest EVs have a range of 30-90 miles today with golf-cart batteries.
• Pre-production EVs such as the GM Impact have a range of 80-130 miles.
• AC drive systems eliminate the need for variable-ratio transmissions in US street-legal vehicles. (Vehicles requiring top speeds of less than 80 MPH.)
• EVs are inherently simpler than ICE vehicles, thus need much less maintenance.
• EVs are 98% cleaner than ICE vehicles when you account for emissions from the generating facilities.
• Electric power will come from cleaner and renewable energy sources in the future, so EVs will only get cleaner as they age. Southern California energy mix includes a large portion of hydro and natural gas. Southern California Edison one of the leading consumers of solar and wind energy.
• Electric busses are finding their way into fleets even now. Fleet operators find them to be much more economical that diesel and alternatively fueled busses.

The EV as a performance vehicle.

• Current land-speed record for a non-track based EV is 183 MPH set by a modified GM Impact in 1994.
• Fastest 0-60 time recorded by a commuter-class EV is 6.5 seconds.
• Fastest electric drag vehicle (1/4 mile): 10 second ETA, 120 MPH
• EVs make cheap, reliable race cars, $2,000 will get you racing very competitively in the Electrathon class. (Cheap and reliable usually don't apply in racing!)

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