With the price of oil spiking every year and the constant wars caused by the need to consume it, is it worth the trouble when we can change this oil-driven lifestyle?
Imagine a world without oil or at least a world with a minimal need for it. It could happen, but it won’t anytime soon. According to an editorial on hybridcars.com, battery-powered cars made up a measly 1.2 percent of cars sold in 2005 and only 2.2 percent in 2010. Vehicle manufacturers and oil industries have no intention of making this a swift transition. Battery-powered cars and gasoline-free cars have fewer moving parts and thus require less attention and parts to replace. This, of course, hurts the current automobile industry.
The transition away from oil is an economic nightmare with the complete turnaround of gas stations to electric stations and emissions testing to battery efficiency testing. But for the better of all, the transition must be made. With jobs lost will be jobs gained, and with industries making the transition, a better, cleaner, oil-free world can be made.
Serina Malec
Mesa
sockratties posted at 6:56 am on Fri, Mar 18, 2011.
A reduction of demand for oil is, of course, a good idea, but it will not change the world into a utopian energy sufficient place where electric vehicles and curly light bulbs set us free. Even if the U.S. were to stop importing oil today, emerging countries will quickly step up the demand. In fact, a reduction in demand will lower oil prices, making it more a desirable choice.
Look what’s happening in Afghanistan which has little oil, but has possibly the world’s greatest deposits of lithium, the most expensive component of electric and hybrid batteries. China is currently maneuvering to contract future rail and highway contracts and Russia is staking out claims for mining. Meanwhile the U.S. is securing the area at little cost to anyone else. The U. S. battery manufacturing plants the administration has bragged about will be assembling parts manufactured in Korean factories. Once again we are being manipulated. The change to electric cars is just one more twist.
Most solar components are of Asian origin, some assembled here in the U. S. so they can be considered “Made in U. S. A.” much like cars of both Asian and U.S. badges. Notice that just today a U. S. factory building GM cars has been shut down because the Japanese earthquake disaster has made parts unavailable. The jobs created will be overseas unless major changes are made in the way we tax and buy. Most of the solutions you tout are of foreign sources and will be competed for by other economies. The price will escalate as demand increases.
Electric cars get their energy off the grid. Recent events are sure to prevent new nuclear power plants from being built so the alternative is fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas, wind and solar, or bio-fuels. Solar and wind require tremendous arrays, are very expensive to build and maintain, thus are a long way from being a practical component. Their introduction into the energy mix is still at the experimental level and their contribution will be minimal for a long time. Fossil fuels used for electricity production still pollute although generating plants can be made more efficient and less polluting than cars. The loss of energy during transmission offsets much of the gain perceived relative to the amount of fuel used to generate a given amount of power on the road. Greater demand for electricity can be expected to raise the cost of electricity unless it is subsidized, so market forces of supply and demand will cost the user in one way or another.
As the infrastructure of service stations is eradicated and those jobs are lost, power grids will need to be upgraded to handle a greater demand for electricity. Imagine everyone with a car to two charging in their driveway. The “brown-outs” during the summer in Southern California will be “black-outs” once a few million cars start competing for power. And the problem of the diesel truck, diesel trains and fuel oil heating on the East Coast will still exist, with a continued demand for oil.
Bio-fuels compete with the food supply. The use of corn for production of ethanol and biodiesel have already impacted availability of cereal foods to a starving world population and raised the price of domestic meats and products that are dependent on food starches, oils, syrups and grains (which includes just about everything we eat) as well as competing with other crops for acreage.
Before you decide that we should change to electric cars, you might want to think about electric mass transit with independent dedicated power systems, not dependent on the grid. The idea of everyone having a personal car is outdated, expensive and unrealistic. It is an atavistic lifestyle that no longer fits in an energy and food hungry world.
Dale Whiting posted at 8:30 am on Fri, Mar 18, 2011.
Yes, sockratties,
Hence my idea to build that high speed rail line from Phoenix to Tucson! Florida seems to be too Neo-con to adopt a high speed rail. Is Arizona, potentially the US solar energy capital, also too Neo-con? Yesterday, I suggested that with First Solar's pending announcement, we ought to take this project up. Now it would appear that First Solar's plant will be only minute removed from a likely rail avenue. I'd like to see whether going down the middle of I-10 or following the current rail line would be best. First Solar new capacity from this new plant is already spoken for! We'd have to get them to build more capacity.
EmperorSmith posted at 12:09 pm on Fri, Mar 18, 2011.
Sockratties has some points but the components of battery do not go away they can be "refurbished" so to speak, like melting the lead out of a old battery for a new. Fossil fuels that is not the case. If the rest of the world like China does not see then I refer them to my avatar.
There is not going to be one sizes fix all solution as I believe a venter about electric vehicles mentioned.
PS This drew me out of hiding because I am passionate about the subject and You know where I stand.
Accuracy posted at 12:45 pm on Fri, Mar 18, 2011.
The following battery-electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, and electric vehicles will be on the U.S. roads by 2011 year-end:
(1) Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid with 40 miles of electric range and 500 miles per gasoline fill-up range, (2) Nissan Leaf battery-electric cars, (3) 2012 Ford Focus Electric and Ford C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid, (4) Toyota new Prius Plug-in Hybrid (PHV) using a 5kWh battery for a 14-mile electric range and 2012 Toyota RAV4 EV pure battery-electric small city car, (5) Mitsubishi iMiEV electric car, (6) Honda Fit EV plug-in hybrid, (7) Daimler Smart Fortwo ED using Tesla battery packs, (8) Fisker Karma luxury sports plug-in hybrid with 20kWh of lithium batteries.
So far, General Motors with the Chevy Volt plug-in hybrids and Nissan with the battery-electric Leaf are early movers in electric vehicle sales and deliveries.
sockratties posted at 3:57 pm on Fri, Mar 18, 2011.
A comprehensive site covering the wide range of electric and hybrid cars (not all available in the U.S.) can be found www.comparehybridcars.net. It also notes some of the pros and cons related to the many choices.
The expected availability of the Chevy Volt may be delayed because some components must come from Japan. Now the batteries will be coming from LG in Korea and future engines will be from a European source. The $370M factory planned for Flint, MI has been put on hold.
Bye the way, not all hybrids operate the same. A notable difference is between the Toyota Prius and the Chevy Volt. The Prius is driven through a transmission by either the gas engine, the electric motor or both, depending on demand and battery charge. The Volt is always driven by the battery/electric system, and the gasoline engine drives an electric generator that replenishes the charge if the batteries are depleted below a certain level. After a 10 hour plug-in charge (4 hours on 240 VAC) It should be able to run 40 miles before the engine ever has to start so if it is charged daily and never driven more than 40 miles a day, the gas generator should never have to run.
Most currently available hybrids use metal-hydride batteries. The Volt will use lithium-ion technology. The jury is still out on the cost/performance comparison of the two technologies. Until battery prices come down due to competition from after market sources (most batteries are now made in China and packaged by the auto manufacturers) replacement of hybrid batteries after 8 to 10 years can be expected to be around $3000. Add that to the $3000 to $10,000 premium on the original hybrid, compared to a conventionally powered car and the cost will be prohibitive for many buyers.
Dale Whiting posted at 7:04 pm on Fri, Mar 18, 2011.
Bad news guys. China is working discretely behind the scene in Afghanistan to develop the world's largest Lithium deposites, the metal necessary to make the batteries needed for all of these solar energy powered vehicles and devises of the future. And China also has the corner on 95% of the rare earth metal deposites needed for other electronic devices.
It's high time we stop worrying about al Qaeda and start worrying about things which will become much much more important very soon.
Leon Ceniceros posted at 7:33 pm on Fri, Mar 18, 2011.
Let's see...we have a problem with oil-producing "nations" in the Middle East for those who drive gasoline powered cars.
Or the yuppie/tree hugger/Liberal/Socialist/Progressive/Democrat can worry about where their ..."HYBRID CAR BATTERY" ...is going to be coming over on the boat from Japan.
Oh, that's right there won't be any more "HYBRID CAR BATTERIES" coming over from Japan because of the Tsunami and Radioactivity....boy...that puts the "ecology-lovers"...in a world or hurt.
Reasons for ....NOT...buying a Hybrid/Gasoline Car;
1. $10,000 more than a comparable gasoline powered car.
2. $3000 - $5000 Hybrid car battery replacement (only good from 80,000 to 100,000 miles).
3. LITTLE OR NO RESALE VALUE = why would anyone buy a ..."USED HYBRID CAR".....when they know that they will have to sink another $3000 - $5000 to replace the battery.
4. NO GUTS....that's right...hybrids have zilch "HORSEPOWER".....great for "pink-haired, tennis shoe wearing, grandmothers from Pasadena, CA...but not exactly......"Bragging Material"...at the old ....sportsbar.
5. No more ..."throaty, window-shaking" muffler sounds to tick off the neighbors.
6. You will never be able to ...."CHOOSE-OFF" anybody again. A "Sun City Geezer" would kick your patootie at the stop light in a ...SMART CAR....A LOUSY SMART CAR.
wdgnas posted at 5:55 am on Sat, Mar 19, 2011.
leon: where do you get your facts? ever heard of a diesel electric locomotive? no guts. an electric motor winds up faster than any infernal combustion engine. do you this to stir the pot or do not know any better? for your sake i hope it is the former and not the latter...