Electric Vehicles as a Replacement of Petrol-Powered Vehicles - Assignment Example

Electric Cars Name Institution Date Introduction Electric cars are considered a long-term replacement of petrol-powered vehicles. The serious threat of climate changes and the dwindling oil reserves across the globe support calls for more electric vehicles on our roads. Some scholars hold the opinion that massive substitutions of internal combustion engine cars with electric cars can solve the carbon emission problem they cause. However, the ability of electric vehicles to fully replace the popular gasoline powered automobiles is doubtable. This paper will review various authors’ views on the possibility of electric replacing petrol cars. What are electric cars? The “electric car” is a reference to cars that use various variations of electrical propulsion systems. Electric cars include fuel cell automobiles and battery cars (Offer et al, 2010). To avoid ambiguity, hybrid vehicles that use both internal combustion and electric propulsion will not be considered electric cars. Electric cars have many benefits to the nation Supporters of electric vehicles argue that electric cars are the cars of the future as they can help in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Offer et al (2010) points out that a combination of all variations of electric cars including hybrids can help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80%. In addition, electric cars will assist the nation reduce dependence on oil imports, and also reduce air pollution in urban areas (Westbrook, 2001). However, the authors note that hybrids and plug-ins that combine combustion engine with electric propulsion cannot help society’s goals of reducing greenhouse emissions. Electric cars are cheaper to maintain? According to Herron (2015), electric cars have great potential to replace petrol engines as they have very low maintenance costs. Lower vehicle maintenance cost may lead many consumers to abandon petrol engine cars in favor of electric cars. Electric cars have very few moving parts, and thus do not suffer frequent breakdown like Internal Combustion Engine vehicles (ICE cars). In addition, electric cars do not need oil changes, and other regular maintenance costs are avoided. With an electric car, the owner does not need to make changes of oil, cylinder heads, gaskets, plugs, clogged pipes and many other parts that are found in ICE cars (Herron 2015). Overall, this means that owners of electric cars will not need to visit maintenance shops as often as owners of Petrol cars. In contrast, one author asserts that ICE cars “seem to be designed to fail” as they require regular maintenance(Herron, 2011). Almost every car dealership has a repair shop at the back, and vehicle repair business are some of the most common establishments. Herron (2011) points out that ICE car demand at least one oil change for every 3-5,000 miles of driving. ICE vehicle parts also need to be constantly repaired throughout the car’s life. The complexity or petrol engines also means they are prone to break downs. While most scholars agree that electric cars allow significant cost savings, very few can put a number to the savings in maintenance costs consumers can benefit from as a result of using electric cars. A 2013 AAA press release puts the cost of a single oil change at $45, meaning four changes in an year costs the automobile owner almost $200 (Herron, 2015). Electric cars are too expensive Electric cars have been around for longer that ICE cars, but they have never been able to replace latter. The William (2015) argues that the slow adoption of electric cars is a result of their comparatively high prices. William (2015) writing for the economist explains that electric vehicle sales have been increasing despite falling oil prices. The economist explains this phenomenon by arguing that electric vehicles are the preserve of the rich, and the super-rich who do not care about cost-saving benefits from lower oil prices. These views are supported by Williams (n.d) who compares the prices of petrol cars with ICE cars. The prices of electric car are described as “prohibitive” by (Williams n.d.). William (2015) argues that very few ordinary individuals can afford the $100,000 needed to purchase some models of electric cars from dealers such as Tesla. William (2015) laments that the rich buy electric cars as badges of pride that showcase their commitment to environmental conservation. The appeal of electric cars also comes from their low maintenance cost and the ability to refuel (recharge) at home. In addition, electric cars are given favored status in Chinese Megacities and in London where they do not incur the city’s congestion charge. William (2015) presents a strong argument that electric cars are incapable of replacing oil powered unless there is a significant reduction in the cost of acquiring a new electric car. Unfortunately, the technology used to manufacture electric cars is very expensive. The battery used in the Nissan Leaf accounts for half of the car’s selling price. Levine (2015) argues that only a breakthrough in battery technology or other associated technology can help to reduce the cost of electric cars. The Economist calls attention to the need to bring down the selling prices of electric cars to make them more appealing substitutes to petrol engine vehicles (William 2015).Based on cost/benefit analysis, very few people would choose an expensive electric car fitted with an expensive battery whose performance is bound to degrade with time. Replacing the battery of an electric car battery comes at a prohibitive cost making electric cars poor substitutions for petrol-powered cars (Levine 2015). However, cost is not the only factor supporting the arguments that electric cars are poor substitutes for petrol engine cars. Poor performance is arguably the greatest shortcoming of electric cars especially when compared with the proven performance of internal combustion engine cars. The range of electric vehicles per full battery charge is a significant drawback of the electric car technology. While Electric vehicles provide a significant cost saving in terms of gallons of fuel consumed per mile, their driving range is severely limited. The Tesla Model S can cover up to 265 miles with a full charge of its 85 kWH battery pack (Williams2015). The Tesla S driving range is several times more than the average driving range of an ordinary Electric car at full charge. The Mitsubishi i-MiEV only does 62 miles, while the Nissan Leaf needs a recharge every 84 miles (Williams 2014).In contrast, a petrol powered vehicle car can do more than 1000 miles without needing a refill. This performance shortcoming makes electric vehicles only practical for driving within the city limits. Unfortunately, electric vehicles also face a poorly developed electrical vehicle infrastructure. According to Levine (2015) a well developed Electric car infrastructure would make the range challenge totally irrelevant. It is easy to refuel a petrol powered car anywhere in the world as petrol station are among the most common establishments in the world. Building an equivalent infrastructure for electric cars will be an expensive undertaking though not impossible (Williams 2014). Already, electric cars’ supercharging station networks have been set up, and are expanding in western European countries and in the United States. However, developing countries which are expected to drive growth in auto sales have poorly developed or no-existent electric According to William (2015) the electric car supercharging networks are still too few to make electric cars equals to petrol charged cars in terms of mileage range. Tesla the top seller of electric cars has tried to solve this problem in the United States where they are building a network of Supercharger stations. These stations allow electric car drivers to get his battery half charged within 20 minutes of plugging-in a supercharger station (Williams 2014). This compares poorly with petrol powered cars that only need to stop for several minutes to get their tanks refilled. There are only 106 electric car supercharger stations in the United States(Williams 2014). In addition, people who live in apartments and condos do not have plug-in terminals to recharge vehicles parked at ground level. Conclusion For many years, electric cars have been mentioned as a potential solution to the greenhouse gas emission problem that faces the world. Some optimists claim that a full substitution of all petrol powered cars by electric equivalents can see an 80 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emission levels. In addition, electric cars allow for significant cost saving when it comes to maintenance, and fuel costs. The absence of moving parts and oil in electric cars means they are less prone to breaks up. Individuals who substitute their petrol-powered cars with electric cars can benefit from significant cost savings. However, electric cars are characterized by several shortcomings that make them very poor substitutes for petrol-powered cars. First, electric powered are too expensive for the mass market. In effect, electric cars are the preserve of the rich who use them as badges of honor that show their commitment to a greener planet. Some electric cars retail for as much as $100,000 making them inaccessible to ordinary citizens. Secondly, electric cars are severely limited in terms of their driving range. The best performing electric car can only cover 265 miles with a full charge. Thirdly, the infrastructure needed to recharge electric vehicles is poorly developed throughout the world. Thus, it can be authoritatively concluded that electric cars do not have the ability to replace petrol-powered cars in the near future. References Herron D 2011. Why electric cars are cheaper to drive than gasoline car, Torque News:accessed 4th February 2016, http://www.torquenews.com/1075/why-electric-cars-are-cheaper-drive-gasoline-cars#sthash.ux2l5s1J.dpuf Herron, D 2015 - Electric cars are cheaper to maintain, no oil to change, no gaskets to ...., The Long Tail Pipe Jun 23,accessed 4th February 2016, http://longtailpipe.com/ebooks/green-transportation-guide-buying-owning-charging-plug-in-vehicles-of-all-kinds/electric-cars-arent-too-expensive-you-can-own-one-for-free/electric-car-ownership-economics/electric-cars-are-cheaper-to-maintain-no-oil-to-change-no-gaskets-to-replace-etc/ Levine, S 2015. The Car of the Future May Run on Gasoline, Wall Street Journal, accessed 4th February 2016, http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-car-of-the-future-may-run-on-gas-1422646049 Offer, G.J., Howey, D., Contestabile, M., Clague, R. and Brandon, N.P., 2010. Comparative analysis of battery electric, hydrogen fuel cell and hybrid vehicles in a future sustainable road transport system. Energy policy, 38(1), pp.24-29 Westbrook, M.H., 2001. The Electric Car: Development and future of battery, hybrid and fuel-cell cars (No. 38). William, S 2015, Why the low oil price will not harm sales of electric cars The Economist Feb 24,accessed 4th February 2016,http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2015/02/economist-explains-21 Williams, S n.d. Why Electric Vehicles Won't Dominate Gas Over the Next Decade, accessed 4th February 2016, Read More

The economist explains this phenomenon by arguing that electric vehicles are the preserve of the rich, and the super-rich who do not care about cost-saving benefits from lower oil prices. These views are supported by Williams (n.d) who compares the prices of petrol cars with ICE cars. The prices of electric car are described as “prohibitive” by (Williams n.d.). William (2015) argues that very few ordinary individuals can afford the $100,000 needed to purchase some models of electric cars from dealers such as Tesla.

William (2015) laments that the rich buy electric cars as badges of pride that showcase their commitment to environmental conservation. The appeal of electric cars also comes from their low maintenance cost and the ability to refuel (recharge) at home. In addition, electric cars are given favored status in Chinese Megacities and in London where they do not incur the city’s congestion charge. William (2015) presents a strong argument that electric cars are incapable of replacing oil powered unless there is a significant reduction in the cost of acquiring a new electric car.

Unfortunately, the technology used to manufacture electric cars is very expensive. The battery used in the Nissan Leaf accounts for half of the car’s selling price. Levine (2015) argues that only a breakthrough in battery technology or other associated technology can help to reduce the cost of electric cars. The Economist calls attention to the need to bring down the selling prices of electric cars to make them more appealing substitutes to petrol engine vehicles (William 2015).Based on cost/benefit analysis, very few people would choose an expensive electric car fitted with an expensive battery whose performance is bound to degrade with time.

Replacing the battery of an electric car battery comes at a prohibitive cost making electric cars poor substitutions for petrol-powered cars (Levine 2015). However, cost is not the only factor supporting the arguments that electric cars are poor substitutes for petrol engine cars. Poor performance is arguably the greatest shortcoming of electric cars especially when compared with the proven performance of internal combustion engine cars. The range of electric vehicles per full battery charge is a significant drawback of the electric car technology.

While Electric vehicles provide a significant cost saving in terms of gallons of fuel consumed per mile, their driving range is severely limited. The Tesla Model S can cover up to 265 miles with a full charge of its 85 kWH battery pack (Williams2015). The Tesla S driving range is several times more than the average driving range of an ordinary Electric car at full charge. The Mitsubishi i-MiEV only does 62 miles, while the Nissan Leaf needs a recharge every 84 miles (Williams 2014).In contrast, a petrol powered vehicle car can do more than 1000 miles without needing a refill.

This performance shortcoming makes electric vehicles only practical for driving within the city limits. Unfortunately, electric vehicles also face a poorly developed electrical vehicle infrastructure. According to Levine (2015) a well developed Electric car infrastructure would make the range challenge totally irrelevant. It is easy to refuel a petrol powered car anywhere in the world as petrol station are among the most common establishments in the world. Building an equivalent infrastructure for electric cars will be an expensive undertaking though not impossible (Williams 2014).

Already, electric cars’ supercharging station networks have been set up, and are expanding in western European countries and in the United States. However, developing countries which are expected to drive growth in auto sales have poorly developed or no-existent electric According to William (2015) the electric car supercharging networks are still too few to make electric cars equals to petrol charged cars in terms of mileage range. Tesla the top seller of electric cars has tried to solve this problem in the United States where they are building a network of Supercharger stations.

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