Electric cars are not new, to be frank, they are quite popular and were introduced 100 years ago. Now, after decades they are giving a comeback for the following reasons:
It is difficult to predict the exact inventor or the location where the electric cars were invented, because it is a team effort which involves multiple brains globally including inventors from Hungary, United States and Netherland. The first crude electric carriage was invented by a British inventor named Robert Anderson. During the 19th century, inventors from French and English built some of the practical models. In the USA, a chemist named William Morrisan made a successful electric car around the year 1890. Over the years, electric cars from different brands popped on screen all over the U.S.Newyork city.
The Evolution of Electric Cars
During the 20th century, the horse still remained as the primary mode of transportation. When America became wealthy, people started adapting to steam, gas, and electric vehicles. Gasoline powered vehicles entered the market at the same time electric vehicles were introduced. Gasoline vehicles were promising even though they had their own flaws like manual operation and heavy noise.
On the other hand electric cars don’t have any such problems. They won’t make any noise, are simple to drive, and won’t release any toxic pollutant into the air. Electric cars are mostly preferred by women over men and gained much popularity. It was ideal for shorter road trips and roads that are cracked, damaged, and not maintained properly. During the 1910s, most people gained access to electricity, this made it easy for them to charge the vehicle without hassle.
Over the next 30 years, electric cars went through some advancement. The production of cheap gasoline demanded an alternative mode of transportation. Interestingly, overtime the oppression over cars extended beyond transportation into the entertainment world, inspiring themes in games and digital platforms, including car based mobile slots that reflects the excitement associated with automobiles. In the early 1970s, a raise in the oil price and shortage of gasoline increased the growth of electric vehicles. So, many automakers were exploring other sources rather than fuel vehicles, including electric cars. Still, the cars developed during that period were not up to the mark compared to fuel vehicles. Their performance was limited, topping at a speed of 45 miles per hour.
A New Beginning
Later on, automakers introduced electric vehicles by modifying some of the popular vehicles. The speed was increased to 60 miles per hour and performed much closer to fuel cars. To be mentioned, one of the most popular electric cars during that period would be GM’s EV1. This EV1 is not a modified version; it was developed from scratch. The speed in this car was maximised to 80 miles per hour with the ability to accelerate from 0 to 50 miler per hour under a few seconds gained its popularity. The car was discontinued in 2001, due to the heavy production cost.
The real revival of electric cars happened at the beginning of the 21th century. The first electric car (Toyota Prius) was released in Japan in 1997 and was a massive hit. The Prius was the first mass-produced hybrid electric vehicle in the world. The car was then distributed throughout the world in the year 2000 and became a cult favourite among popular icons and celebrities. The rise in gasoline prices and the air pollution, made this innovation a huge success.
In 2010, the Nissan LEAF and Chevy Volt were launched in the U.S. Volt is a plug-in hybrid car which is a combined mechanism of both electric and gasoline (electric for more trips and gasoline to extend the life of the vehicle). Whereas, LEAF is an all electric vehicle.
Different Types of Electric Vehicles
- A Hybrid Electric Vehicle or HEV
- All Electric Vehicle (often referred as an electric vehicle, a battery electric vehicle, AEV or EV)
- A Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle or PHEV
- A Plug-in Electric Vehicle or PEV
The Future
We are not certain about the future of electric cars, but it is evident that it has a great potential for a more reliable future. If light-duty vehicles are modified into hybrids or plug-in electric vehicles, 30-60 percent of oil usage might be lessened while also reducing the air pollution rate to 20 percent on an average.
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