I think electric cars can be fun to drive, and certainly useful in a lot of situations, but won't ever be a 100% replacement for gas and diesel without forcing a change in how some people (including me) use cars that I wouldn't be in favor of at all. I could see around 50-75% of new cars being pure electric in 15-20 years being reasonable but getting past that would be difficult.
alfadriver wrote:frenchyd wrote: The fact is electric cars are the future and the future started more than a decade ago.. Those who are successful early in the game will reap the biggest rewards.I'm still not convinced that pure electrics will be the future. While not really in the major game right now, to me, fuel cells solves most of the EV problems pretty nicely.
Fuel cells solve exactly one problem EVs have, and that's charge/fillup time. A problem that can absolutely be solved with different battery technologies and higher charging voltages. Other than that, fuel cell cars nearly have the best selection of the worst downsides:
The Most Dangerous fuel: Hydrogen escapes through solids, embrittling steel on the way out where present, and is stored in pressurized containers that can explode all at once. Batteries can burn, even quickly and violently, but they can't go off like a bomb. Liquid gasoline sitting in a tank can burn but can't go off like a bomb. Hydrogen can first explode like a bomb out of its pressurized container AND THEN ignite if it hits the right A/F ratio in the presence of an ignition source.
A Dirty fuel: Most hydrogen is currently produced as a fossil fuel byproduct, negating any potential economic or environmental benefits of getting off of fossil fuels. Right now hydrogen IS practically a fossil fuel.
An Expensive car: A hydrogen car costs about as much as an EV. Unlike an EV, you don't get any break on fuel costs after spending all that money up front...
Expensive fuel: Right now, hydrogen is expensive.
Hard to find fuel: Gasoline is at every gas station and electricity is in basically every structure, but there are only 34 Hydrogen stations in the US, most in California, 2 in the northeast, 1 in SC. None anywhere else.
Hydrogen-powered cars are such an incredibly bad idea that I can't figure out how it hasn't been stuffed deep into the dustbin of history by now. Every 10 years or so, car makers try it out, figure out that it's a bad idea, and then they forget and the cycle repeats!
GameboyRMH wrote: Hydrogen-powered cars are such an incredibly bad idea that I can't figure out how it hasn't been stuffed deep into the dustbin of history by now. Every 10 years or so, car makers try it out, figure out that it's a bad idea, and then they forget and the cycle repeats!
But it burns great in a rotary! :)
In reply to Ian F:
Real life needs to be considered.. Most of us use our cars for the daily urban commute. Something an electric car is particularly well suited for. While we all would like a "Toy" car be it track car or winding country road car, collector car, or even a "truck" most car use is urban and less than 45 miles..
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