Five most frequently asked questions about electric vehicles

Electric Car

The recent industrial espionage inside the various automobile producers signifies that Electric vehicle business is surely going to be a big one. Big giants like Renault, Nissan, Toyota, etc., and many other Chinese companies are continuously planning big to produce high amount of Electric Vehicles (EVs) in the near future. Insider’s information tells that China wants to be the largest producer of EVs by the end of 2012. Although, car manufacturers and also the government is trying very hard to present some highly efficient electric vehicles, people still have some doubts in their mind. Here is a list of top five questions that people often ask regarding the EVs.

1. Are these vehicles too expensive?

Well, this is a common query that comes into the mind very often. A brief description of the prices of some of the models will make it very clear. In the year 2012, Nissan LEAF will be available in the market with a cost of $35,200 or $369 per month. Mitsubishi I can now be reserved at a cost of $27,990. Another world leading seller of hybrid cars, Toyota introduces the Prius Plug-In hybrid with an introductory reservation price of $32000.

It is expected that the purchase prices will fall down fast in the near future. Apart from the purchase price, there should be one more comparison to judge the expensiveness of the EVs. This is nothing but the cost of driving a car. The cost of electricity is very much lower than gasoline. And also, the EVs are expected to require less servicing when compared to the gasoline powered cars.

2. Are the electric vehicles very slow?

As the EVs make very less noise, some people finds out a conclusion that these are very slow. However, this is not the fact at all. Some of these may be slow sometimes, because they are equipped with only a small battery. But, their speed can be raised too, by adding a capacitor to them. The KillaCyle electric bike can get a speed of 0-60 mph in just a single second and can attain a maximum speed of 174.05 mph. Do you need any more examples now?

3. Do they take long time to charge the battery?

Well, it totally depends on what type of battery you are using and also what electricity outlet you are using to charge the battery. Generally it takes around 3-8 hours to completely charge the battery. In case of the Nissan LEAF, with a 220-240 volt electricity outlet, it will take about 8 hours to completely charge the battery. Whereas, the eye-catching Tesla Roadster takes around 4 hours to fully charge the battery with a 240 volt electricity docket.

4. Will there be enough lithium in the future?

Answer to this common question determines the future of electric vehicles a lot. The reason is that lithium is preferred as a very suitable component for the batteries. Actually, there is a great abundance of lithium stored in the earth’s surface. According to a survey conducted by U.S. geological survey group, there is 5.4 million tons of lithium stored in Bolivia, 3 million in Chile, and 1.1 million in China. Various sources say that a large stock of lithium is present in the U.S. too.

A normal 24kwh battery used in the LEAF EV is generally weights 4 kg. So, with one million tons of lithium, we can get 250 million car batteries. This figure clearly shows that there should not be a problem in its availability in the coming future. And also, recycling of the batteries brings a very positive hope for the future.

5. Are these vehicles safe enough?

There are, in fact, some safety concerns that are continuously arising regarding the electric vehicles. Some safety measures are yet to be adapted by the EV producers. Effective use of warning lights and sounds can make these vehicles safer. Especially, while reversing sound should be added to the engine so that it cannot create any type of chaos. Inclusion of cameras is another very good step that can surely be taken for granted.

Well, there are some other questions too that often arises. These are like whether these vehicles will be able to go long distance or not, do they required recharging frequently while making a long distance journey, what is the right place to buy them, etc. Questions are always there and will always be, but the fact is that EVs are going to rule in the coming period and undoubtedly you can make a move towards these kinds of vehicles.