Will Electric Cars Replace Petrol Cars Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Student Course Date Table of Contents Research Methodology 3 Introduction 3 Research Hypotheses: 3 Primary Data 4 Type of sampling used 4 Advantages of simple random sampling 4 Questionnaire method 4 Advantages of questionnaires 5 Interviews 5 Advantages of interviews 5 Secondary sources of information 6 Data from interview and questionnaire 7 Introduction 7 Conclusion 16 Research Methodology Introduction 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. The main objective that drove the engine of this study was to find out whether the electric cars already developed have the potential of replacing the fossil fuel driven vehicles that have been in service since the automobile industry begun. Valuable information will be formulated from analyzing data collected from respondents and the final conclusions derived from the information that will be found thereof while making a comparisons with the findings and conclusions from the literature review section. It is a tremendous study as this new technology is about to be a reality where electric cars will replace the petrol and diesel driven vehicles. Research Hypotheses: Electric powered vehicles are too expensive for the mass market. Electric cars are severely limited in terms of their driving range The infrastructure needed to recharge electric vehicles is poorly developed throughout the world. Electric cars do not have the ability to replace petrol-powered cars in the near future. Primary Data The data for the study was collected from various types of respondents including drivers, vehicle enthusiasts, professionals, company workers and random street respondents. Their opinions were recorded and taken for analysis. Type of sampling used The sampling technique employed in the study was simple random sampling. This is where a smaller sample size from the larger population was selected and used to represent the larger group. Advantages of simple random sampling Simple random sampling as the name suggests is quite simple or easy to use Simple random sampling manages to make accurate representations of the larger population To perform the research, 50 respondents were selected and hence participated in the interviews and filling of questionnaires. Data collection tools used The primary data for the study were collected using the following tools Questionnaire method A Questionnaire which consisted of of ten Questions was prepared. The questions contained options which made it easy and convenient for respondents to choose from. We appreciate Google Dos for aiding the preparation of the questionnaires which made them available in Electronic Survey Form format. This made it very easy to send the form through mail to many number of users. To increase the chances of more data collection, the form was uploaded to social sites quite easily. Questionnaires was used in the study due to its advantages when compared to other data collection tools available. Let us look at the advantages leveraged by the use of questionnaires Advantages of questionnaires The questionnaires were cheap to produce and disseminate. Since Google Docs was utilized, the cost incurred was remarkably reduced. There was no need to meet with the respondents face to face Saved time and resources Effective since the respondents filled them out without the feeling of urgency usually exhibited by interviewers There is confidentiality and privacy while answering the questions from the respondents’ side Easy to develop and disseminate Interviews Open ended questions were formulated and the selected responses from the various respondents were recorded accurately as stated. Advantages of interviews The non-verbal cues can be captured by the interviewer It is direct from the horses’ mouth hence true to type Other questions can be asked in a flexible manner compared to questionnaires which are rigid and provide no room for explanations There is an opportunity to clarify misunderstood parts Secondary sources of information These are data and information retrieved from already recorded or published materials. The data from these sources were helpful since they easily showed the trends and development throughout the ages and most of the researched already done aided the study in achieving the success The secondary sources chosen were from journals, the internet sources, news and reports All of these methods were chosen for the sake of data triangulation. This was to ensure the data collected was veracious and also a way of assuring the validity of research through the use of a variety of methods to collect data on the same topic. The use of the above methods of data collection was to ensure consistency and therefore give the true picture of what is going on instead of relying on only one source of data collection which may present a lot of bias related to that method. Data from interview and questionnaire Introduction The idea of electric vehicles to fully replace the popular gasoline powered automobiles is not fully embraced. This study will reveal various information and analysis on the possibility of electric replacing petrol cars. The analysis will then be able to inform this predicament and nagging questions that are tormenting many minds out there. The following section of the study presents the data that was collected in intuitive ways. The information is presented in charts and graphs to bring out the analysis in understandable and clear fashion. The various questionnaire questions were used as the guideline for each section of the analysis. Each question represents data and its analysis. The respondents were sixty and some of them did not answer other questions. Question One: Do you have a vehicle? Forty four of the total respondents had a vehicle or at least a machine that enabled them to travel privately. This was a good sample because most of them could easily relate to automobiles and made discussions easy to follow with them. Question Two: What Kind of vehicle do you have (if yes in one) Most of the respondents owned a two wheeler followed by Hatch back and sedan in that order. The vehicles were all gasoline powered and there was no respondent who had any experience with electric vehicle. This was a limitation since we could not tell from first hand experience how the vehicles were in terms of pricing, performance and maintenance Question Three: Do you have any desire to have an electric car? Many of the respondents wished to have an electric car while yet another huge number was not sure due to perhaps lack or inadequate information about the electric vehicles Question Four:What is your average Traveling Distance Daily(Miles)? The statistics from the pie chart show that 39% of the population travel more than 80 miles. From the discussion and findings in the literature review section, 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 shows a significant problem in adopting the electric cars for a common person with a vehicle. They will have to get used to recharging their vehicles quite often and wait for so long before they get totally refilled. 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. Question Five: What is preventing you from buying an electric vehicle? Apart from the problems of inadequate information, most of the respondents said they would not buy an electric car due to their high prices. The rest of the population needed to find out more about their prices so as to be able to make a sound decision. This coincides with William’s observations. 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. 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. This is a big challenge since most of the population will be inhibited by costs to be able to enjoy the advantages that the electric car proffers to the world and themselves. Since more development is ongoing, it would be prudent to research and to conduct more extensive studies and innovate ways to reduce the costs for future success of the product. Question Six: Where would you wish to charge your electric vehicle in future From the above data, it is clear that most of the respondents expect to charge their vehicles from public charging stations but according to Levine (2015) from the literature review, 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 car infrastructure. An overhaul of an entirely established fueling system will be a phenomenon when the electric cars will be viable enough to take over the automobile industry. As per now, when the concept is still growing and being known, it is quite difficult to substitute them for the current vehicles. There will be an infrastructural crisis. Question Seven: How much do you expect the government to reduce as subsidy for the price of batteries As can be seen, many of the people expect the government to subsidize the price of batteries. Unfortunately, the technology used to manufacture electric cars is very expensive. From the literature review we saw that 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 as well 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). It is quite unfortunate that the batteries are the only ones that make the vehicle very expensive. Further technological development needs to be done to ensure that affordable batteries that are powerful enough to power the vehicles are produced. Question Eight: Would you wish to know more about electric cars and from which sources? It seems like more information needs to be provided about electric cars. Most of the respondents do not have full knowledge about them and they need to understand their working, what will be required of them and the various changes they will be anticipating to have. The respondents would wish to have the information from television Ads and Live Demos. Electric powered vehicles are too expensive for the mass market. From the above data and analysis, this hypothesis is true for this research. The electric vehicles have a lot expenses especially in the battery making it too high for the mass market to afford. Electric cars are severely limited in terms of their driving range The infrastructure needed to recharge electric vehicles is poorly developed throughout the world. This is also true, From the above data, it is clear that most of the respondents expect to charge their vehicles from public charging stations but according to Levine (2015) from the literature review, a well-developed Electric car infrastructure would make the range challenge totally irrelevant Electric cars do not have the ability to replace petrol-powered cars in the near future. Collectively, the data has shown clearly that the world is not ready to receive the electric cars. A lot of awareness needs to be done where the population is sensitized about the vehicles and all of the pros and cons well outlined for them to make future decisions. Conclusion Electric cars definitely have many advantages over the fueled vehicles. Some of the advantages are very clear for example 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%. Moreover, 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). Probably due to these advantages, we see many of the owner of the two-wheel vehicles wishing to own electric cars Due to the expensive nature of he batteries, the respondents were hoping that the government may subsidize their prices so that they could afford them. Most of the respondents do not have full knowledge about them and they need to understand their working, what will be required of them and the various changes they will be anticipating to have. The respondents would wish to have the information from television Ads and Live Demos. From the above data, it is clear that most of the respondents expect to charge their vehicles from public charging stations or facilities. Apart from the problems of inadequate information, most of the respondents said they would not buy an electric car due to their high prices. The rest of the population needed to find out more about their prices so as to be able to make a sound decision. Fifty seven percent of the respondents owned two wheeler vehicles Many of the respondents wished to have an electric car while yet another huge number was not sure due to perhaps lack or inadequate information about the electric vehicles Limitations The sample size was sixty and this was a rough estimate of the total population. The data collected and analyzed is just an approximation and an extrapolation to the entire populace. For that reason, the actual representation cannot be fully determined by the report/research. It was expected that some of the respondents might not cooperate and it happened so. The vehicles were all gasoline powered and there was no respondent who had any experience with electric vehicle. This was a limitation since we could not tell from firsthand experience how the vehicles were in terms of pricing, performance and maintenance Since the sample was small in size and quite limited in scope, next time i would expand the sample to greater number in order to find out a more realistic picture. Random sampling is effective and i would maintain the same in future because it is simple and produces good results. Due to the advantages of questionnaires such as: cheap to produce and disseminate, no need to meet with the respondents face to face, Saving time and resources, and effectiveness because the respondents filled them out without the feeling of urgency usually exhibited by interviewers, would use the same data collection tool. References Herron D 2011. Why electric cars are cheaper to drive than gasoline car, Torque News:accessed 4th February 2016. 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, Levine, S 2015. The Car of the Future May Run on Gasoline, Wall Street Journal, accessed 4th February 2016, 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 VehiclesWon’t Dominate Gas over the Next Decade, accessed 4th February 2016, Read More

Will Electric Cars Replace Petrol Cars - Coursework Example

Extract of sample "Will Electric Cars Replace Petrol Cars"