Within the next year electric cars, or zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) as they are often called, will be an everyday sight on roads right across the world. The stuff of science fiction movies will have become science fact.

Basic electric cars are already available to buyers in many places and are set to become dramatically more sophisticated and widespread in the coming years.

The concept of an electric vehicle is nothing new, it has been around for many years. However, the pressing need to reduce carbon emissions in an attempt to slow global warming has accelerated the development of the next generation of road transport.

Consumer electric vehicles and ZEVs are already being built and will shortly be widely available in car dealers around the world. We are already familiar with hybrid vehicles, which have been on the streets for a few years. These vehicles use both electric and gasoline propulsion to help reduce emissions. Electric vehicles take clean motoring to the next level, in that they have no emissions whatsoever – they don’t even have a tail pipe. The advantages of this are set to be dramatic, especially in polluted urban areas, as electric vehicles and ZEVs become common.

So how does the electric car function? Electric cars use electric motors and motor controllers rather than the conventional internal combustion engine. Instead of traditional gasoline, these cars are propelled by electricity from batteries, although new methods of energy storage are being developed that will probably replace batteries in the near future. Even now, special filling stations for the electric vehicle revolution are being built on roadsides around the world where car owners can stop and refuel their electric cars, just like at a normal filling station.

However, for some motorists, the transition from the conventional gasoline car that we all know and love to electric vehicles and ZEVs will require quite a big leap of faith. However, electric vehicles have so many things going for them that the transition should be a pretty smooth one.

Running costs – The fact that electric cars are more economical to run and cost less to keep on the road will likely win over their strongest detractors. Car owners will get a lot more miles for their dollar and the cost of maintaining these vehicles is set to be a lot cheaper than servicing a normal car.

Global warming – As electric vehicles become more common, the advantages to the environment will be very significant. This is particularly the case in large densely populated areas where smog and poor air quality at street level presents a significant health hazard to people.

A few worries do remain over electric cars, such as the length of time it takes to recharge battery packs, the top speeds and acceleration of the cars, and issues such as handling and performance. That said, as car producers invest more and more resources into perfecting these vehicles, these worries are likely to be ironed out sooner rather than later.

Tags: Trucks

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