The EV stereotype is that they can only be slow, boring, and ugly golf carts. That's actually a matter of design choices and price, and the Tesla Roadster proved it was possible to build fast EV's that look great. Others are on their way from many sources - Honda, and Audi have both shown electric sports car concepts. A couple smaller companies are on the scene. There is an electric-only Formula format racing series that I think is due to start in 2012.
When the technology advances to where an electric sports car matches any gas sports car, why drive with gas?
A good point
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That's exactly what I thought when I first rode in a Tesla Sport Roadster and experienced the true zero to 60 in 3.7 seconds - and quietly. What really blew my mind was it will do the same thing from 60 to 120.
True it's not much good for bringing home the groceries but compare it to the gas-guzzling Bentley Supersports convertible. It's nice and roomy, plush and opulent but it takes a W-12 engine with over 500 horsepower to move its 5,000 lb bulk from 0 to 60 in 3.8 seconds - not to mention a gallon or two of the precious resource it took whole forests and thousands of years to create.
Electric autonomous cars are the not too distant future of the automobile. If the condition of our roadways permit, travelers with the same destination will be able to link up into super-trains traveling at speeds to make the Autobahn look sloth-like.
By this time there will be tracks where nostalgia buffs can go and drive the old petrol cars around racetracks - which brings up another point...
Do fans of dragster and similar racing really go to see speed or the noise and pyrotechnics? Electric cars can be made much, much faster for short bursts like that but without the explosions and sparks. But would anyone want to watch?
The problem with electric race cars...
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In reply to A good point by Don Bain
is that while advances are being made in "range", high performance driving really kills the battery in a hurry and they just cant recharged them fast enough to keep up with a large racing event. Take the original Mini E concept...which used 4 150hp engines (one at each wheel). it was super fast...running the quarter mile in something like 10 or 11 seconds, but the battery died during the 4th testing run and it took something like 5 hours to recharge the system. In a car that makes 5,000 horsepower (which is the range of the faster pro dragsters), how long will the battery last if a 600hp mini only got through four runs?
I think that pure electric cars are not a viable source of transportation for many americans because we simply drive too much. i make a 120 mile drive four days a week...the nissan leaf wouldnt be able to make that range. however, vehicles like the chevy volt or fisker karma are far more viable (in my opinion), but that comes with a hefty cost.
Problem (mostly) solved
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In reply to The problem with electric race cars... by Patrick Rall
Patrick, you make some good points, but you may not be up on the advances in EVs recently. Briefly, google "white zombie" and "killacycle" for the tops in EV dragsters. They are simply amazing!
But it's the day to day driving at which the EVs are best. Consider that a very high percentage of daily driving can be done with electricity, something close to 80%. Forget all the politics and just think of the economics of that. We're spending a full 45% of our trade deficit on foreign oil. That's $350 billion leaving our economy every year. Every mile driven on domestic electricity keeps our money here.
You'll be able to drive internal combustion for as long as you like. It's just that, over time, oil will get much more expensive. The only question is how soon.
You can make kWh from the sunlight falling on your house.
Forget not paying the oil companies, you don't even pay your utility! Hundreds of us have been doing this for a decade. Thousands more just joined the club this year. The transition to electricity is unstoppable for the simple reason it's much, much better.
Don't take anyone's word for it. Go drive a Volt or a LEAF and you'll know just what I mean. And then go home and see how much electricity you use that you don't really need to use. That's "free" energy that you can drive on. Think about that for a minute. - Paul Scott
Ill take the performance car any day.
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In the battle of performance versus an electric car - I am far happier to foot the expense of buying gasoline for the enjoyment of driving a car that can get up and go while also being able to drive from Detroit to New York. If I lived in a dense city and only drove 200 miles a week, I could see the use of an EV but for me, driving is not this mundane task that i want to have my car do for me. i enjoy driving..and i enjoy driving fast. id rather deal with rising gas prices (which are under $3 a gallon in Detroit) than deal with the automotive castration that you get with the affordable hybrids and EVs on todays market.
Don't forget wireless energy transfer
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The argument that EVs cannot be race cars is invalid because of energy transmission technology. Racetracks can be built with the transfer plates in the track, allowing for constant energy supply, while removing the need for large heavy batteries and many systems needing constant maintenance – resulting in fewer pitstops and the elimination of explosive collisions.
**The Problem with Electric Race Cars...**.
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Are electric race cars truly the future of motorsport or do they compromise the very essence of racing by prioritizing sustainability over the visceral experience of speed and sound? Can we ever achieve the same thrill with silent engines or will fans ultimately demand a return to traditional combustion-powered vehicles? refusal
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