Ideas related with electric cars are slightly diverged into 6 available types of electric vehicles.

Electric vehicle based on traditional idea

Hybrid electric vehicle (combining battery and internal combustion engine)

Vehicles with replaceable fuel (vehicles using fuel cells or metal-air batteries)

Vehicles that are supplied with power lines

Vehicles using energy from the sun radiation

Vehicles storing the energy with super capacitors (nearly always hybrids having other source of power)

Human concerns about quality of live are rapidly growing in 20 century. Negative environment issues are resolving in many ways. Cars with eternal combustion motors seriously pollute urban areas. Emissions of toxic carbon monoxide and dioxide, noise and vibrations got negative impact on human’s quality of life. Many cities overcrowded with vehicles and polluted air are trying to do their best to avoid such negative impacts. Implementation of electric vehicles is one of the most serious cures to this situation. In favor of electric vehicles goes great technical and technological development in area of rechargeable batteries, electronic controllers and electric motors. Nowadays, many cities in the word got zero negative emissions tolerance in their centers. Only way to achieve that is encouraging implementation and further research in the area of electric vehicles. Recent improvements in batteries charging, improving of battery specific power, reducing battery specific weight, implementing of new materials are pushing idea of man relaying on electric vehicles. Nickel cadmium batteries can hold double the power of lead acid. Temperature high Sodium Nickel can hold tree times the power. This is great improvement, but it’s still not enough to provide bigger moving span to electric vehicles. Let’s make some assumptions. 45 liters or 10 gallons of petrol will give a vehicle moving range of 450 km or 300 miles. To take that distance electric vehicle will require 800 kg lithium battery. That’s great deal of weight, so further research and improvement of battery characteristics will deliver smaller and lighter batteries.

Start of the electric vehicles goes back in 1830’s. It’s very symptomatic, so many years passed by and there were no real revolution at everyday exploitation. Other vehicles, running on motors with internal combustion despite their negative impact to environment got their enormous success, making our modern life dependable upon various vehicles with internal combustion motors. They got great moving span and very easy refueling. On the other hand they produce such negative environment impact that got mankind to think how to reduce them.

First electric vehicles used elemental batteries non rechargeable, with considerable weight and dimensions. Mass production of rechargeable batteries leads to spreading use of electric vehicles back in 1900’s. Rare private cars and taxis were electric. Speed record was set at 106 km/h (66 m/h). These vehicles were staring instantly, quietly without any smell and other negative products.

Vehicles with internal combustion engines at that time were much more unreliable with need of manual cranking start. Also they were producing great deal of smoke, noise due to small thermal engine efficiency. Even with all those positive exploitation characteristics of electric vehicles, not to mention their environment friendly role, they lost development battle with their eternal combustion motor relatives.  

Good news from Mitsubishi.

Mitsubishi Motors Corp did some testing on Manhattan.

iMiEV got 4 doors and can pool up to 80 miles with full charged battery. This car could be on sale in mid 2009 and to generic public in 2010. Its price will be between $25,000 and $30,000 in Japan. In Mitsubishi are planning to sell the car in US if there is market demand for small electric cars.

This small car needs 14 hours charging for complete charge of its batteries on 110 V home plug or 7 hours on 220 V plug. There are plans, in Japan, for building quick charge electric stations where cars can be charged in about 30 minutes. Building of those charge stations in US will be announced when and if sales starts

This car is completely mute. It does not making any sounds even when it starts. Of course it’s not making any environment negative emissions. Production of these cars will be limited due to battery production process. So production for 2009 would be 2000 cars and hopefully next year’s production will go up to 5000 cars.