I know that magazine articles need controversial headlines, but the electric car is not dead — far from it (see "What Killed the Electric Car?," October 2013).
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As a matter of fact, it is in marketing terms, an embryonic technology. The industry must try several solutions before settling down with one technology. We have several that you mentioned. So far, we don’t have a turbine-powered hybrid yet — my favorite. All of these are now using lithium ion batteries, which have a poor energy density, but better than the current known alternatives. I think the future will yield better batteries or even ultra capacitors for energy storage.
The real revolution is the electric motor drive train. The inherent capability of the automotive electric motor drive is that it develops a large amount of torque at zero RPM (start-up) and requires no gears or differentials to separately power each wheel. Now we need time to evolve battery, fuel cell, ultra-capacitor technology. I fully believe that the age of the EV has not yet even begun — but it will.
Dick Caro,
owner,
CMC Associates
