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The Race For The Electric Car

October 5, 2008 8:16 PM

Lesley Stahl reports on the race to develop and produce a viable electric car being waged between Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and Detroit auto executives.

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by EV-lover July 1, 2009 12:32 PM EDT
If anyone is interested in learning more about this topic, there is an excellent book recently published which argues for the electric car and scrutinizes hybrids, hydrogen-based vehicles, and the automotive and oil industries as well as the government for their neglect of the electric vehicle as as viable alternative. It's called "Two Cents Per Mile" and it's a great starting point to understand the mechanics, history, and possibilities of the electric car. You can get it on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Two-Cents-per-Mile-President/dp/0615293913/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246464373&sr=8-1
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by electrabishi October 9, 2008 7:36 AM EDT
To the commenter who wondered about the lower to middle class...drive what I drive...an electric Pinto, heh heh. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMGomFODHk0 I admit mine costs slightly less than what the Volt is tagged at but its a race car. Convert your old Pinto (or any well cared for used car) for about $10k. You''ll save enough on gas every year to buy a new set of batteries that often. However you''ll probably get longer than that on a set. But in the upper $3 to $4 range a year is about the break even point on either paying for gas or replacing batteries. Batteries are 99+% recyclable. Even charged from coal fired power plants the emissions are still significantly less. And with the tax credits now offered for alternative energy for your home you could probably get set up with a solar/wind system and charge for free. Yes there is such a thing as free energy. It lands on the earth every day to the tune of 1000 watts per square meter :-)
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by hamster17 October 8, 2008 10:23 PM EDT
@sfranciosa

"How much electricity in Kwh ( killowatt hours) would be needed to obtain a fully charged vehicle?"

Depends on the design, and depends on how many batteries the manufacturer puts into the vehicle.

Tesla has a 53 kWh battery and supposedly a 250 mile range on one charge. So it would cost you $10 to go 250 miles. About a quarter of what it would cost to drive the same distance in a comparable gasoline sports car.

Aptera is supposed to be more efficient. Their original specs were 10 kwh and 100 miles on one charge (at 65 mph). $1.75 for 100 miles.

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by mkspence October 8, 2008 7:58 PM EDT
The best electric car technology is not in Silicon Valley nor in Detroit; it''s in Japan.

The batteries for all the world''s electric cars are made in Japan by Sanyo, Panasonic, or Sony.

The auto manufacturer with the best electric vehicle technology is Toyota; if Toyota can''t make a practical electric car, then nobody can.
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by frepi-2009 October 8, 2008 5:57 PM EDT
It is much easier to build a 109 000 $ electric car than a 40 000 $ car. And the people buying the Tesla will never have only one car so they won''t be stuck when the Tesla''s batteries go up in flames
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by Dsuupr October 7, 2008 2:11 PM EDT
Going Electric or Hybrid sounds like a great idea until one considers that 20% of American families make less than $20,000 a year, about = what a new Volt is expected to cost and less than a new Toyota Prius. Families in this lower income rely on well cared for used cars costing less than $5000. That means buying used cars with 120,000 to 200,000 miles on them, the exact time that any hybrid or electric vehicle would need new batteries. Replacing batteries at a cost of $4000 to $10,000 is not an option for these families. Going %u201Cgreen%u201D is just not an option for these families.

So what kind of vehicle could these people buy that would allow us to reduce the amount of CO2 we put in the environment and reduce our dependence on oil? Used vehicles in good condition that run on Ethanol with 70,000 to 150,000 miles can be bought for less than $5000 at any local retailer. When fueling the vehicle with Cellulosic or Algae ethanol, these vehicles use less oil and pollute less than a Toyota Prius and most are able to run for more than 200,000 miles without any major repairs.

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by Dsuupr October 7, 2008 2:10 PM EDT
Going Electric or Hybrid sounds like a great idea until one considers that 20% of American families make less than $20,000 a year, about = what a new Volt is expected to cost and less than a new Toyota Prius. Families in this lower income rely on well cared for used cars costing less than $5000. That means buying used cars with 120,000 to 200,000 miles on them, the exact time that any hybrid or electric vehicle would need new batteries. Replacing batteries at a cost of $4000 to $10,000 is not an option for these families. Going %u201Cgreen%u201D is just not an option for these families.

So what kind of vehicle could these people buy that would allow us to reduce the amount of CO2 we put in the environment and reduce our dependence on oil? Used vehicles in good condition that run on Ethanol with 70,000 to 150,000 miles can be bought for less than $5000 at any local retailer. When fueling the vehicle with Cellulosic or Algae ethanol, these vehicles use less oil and pollute less than a Toyota Prius and most are able to run for more than 200,000 miles without any major repairs.

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by sfranciosa October 6, 2008 11:10 PM EDT
I enjoyed the segments on the electric cars. Perhaps I missed it, How much electricity in Kwh ( killowatt hours) would be needed to obtain a fully charged vehicle. Currently my kwh costs are around $.175 ( 17 1/2 cents.)
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by liberator122 October 6, 2008 9:47 PM EDT
October 6, 2008

I believe that the price of oil is the extreme cause of our financial problems. Five other businessmen and I have come up with a solution to the $4.00 a gallon price of fuel.
Our small business, rebuilding used farm tractors, was decimated by the high fuel prices after Katrina. First we got mad. Then we decided to get even.
We started installing fuel efficient diesel farm tractor engines into cars and full-size pickups. We were happily surprised. They would run up to 90 miles per hour and achieve 40-50 miles per gallon, burn 2/3 less fuel, cut pollution by 2/3%u2019s, and it also cut our fuel bill by 2/3%u2019s. They also run well on homegrown bio-diesel.
We have found the cure for our nation%u2019s energy woes. Hundreds of thousands of old farm tractors, air compressors, generators, irrigation pumps, pecan harvesters, etc. have compatible engines. They can be rebuilt like new and installed in used pickups, SUVs, and rear wheel drive passenger cars for a nominal amount.
The answer to our nation%u2019s number one nightmare for poor working people could be dad%u2019s old tractor sitting behind the barn.
We plan to continue our work with these and other vehicles in the future. Please visit our website, www.shadetreeconversions.com, for more information on what we are doing to help the American people take our country back.

Sincerely,

Gary C. Brown




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by timneagroup October 6, 2008 6:38 PM EDT
tabulcain......how many times do you need to post your comments.... I got it the first time I read it.

Lutz is one of the smartest guys in any industry, and eveyone will see when the Volt rolls into dealers in 2010. The funny thing is everyone points to GM''s financial situation.....but remember, companies only make what the buying public wants. If small electric cars were what everyone wanted then the market would be much bigger.



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by mvproject October 6, 2008 6:30 PM EDT
Excellent segment! I ordered my Tesla last year and expect to receive mine very soon. I am designing a 21st Century house (Mount Vernon Project) located just south of George Washington4s Mount Vernon 18th Century estate near Washington, DC in Virginia. The goal is to demonstrate a dwelling of significant size that generates more energy than it consumes.

It is very clear to me and to millions of other Americans that the future of this great country depends upon freeing ourselves from foreign oil. Electric cars, energy efficient homes and renewable sources are sure ways to achieve this very reachable goal.

John McEwan
Alexandria, VA
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by emmett206 October 6, 2008 4:35 PM EDT
Best quote from Lutz, "Even the lawyers have to admit perhaps we shouldn''t have crushed the EV1."

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by WopOnTour October 6, 2008 6:00 AM EDT
That''s because the Aptera is NOT a car. It''s an electrc vehicle all right but one more akin to a 3-wheel motorcycle and as such does not have to comply with automotive safety standards.
THE APTERA IS NOT A CAR!
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by WopOnTour October 6, 2008 5:54 AM EDT
That''s because the Aptera is NOT a car. It''s an electrc vehicle all right but onemorekin to a 3-wheel motorcycle and as such does not have to comply with automotive safety standards.
THE APTERA I NOT A CAR!
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by lastgascar October 6, 2008 4:56 AM EDT
Great high level overview of some of the electric car players. With Tesla significantly ramping up production and the Volt coming online in 2010 (as well as many others), it is an exciting time from American drivers.

-Steven
http://www.lastgascar.com
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by dkapolka October 6, 2008 3:49 AM EDT
Great piece. As an electrical engineer here in Detroit that has actually worked on the battery pack for the Volt, this thing is real, and it is going to blow everyone away. But, I do envy my silicon valley brethren with all that start-up venture capital.
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by lcalarea47 October 6, 2008 2:27 AM EDT
lol Bob Lutz [of general motors ]states Tesla will never make it because he [Tesla ] has no experience in the car company business . hummmm from what ive read gm is broke [ apparently bob lutz is the one who doesnt know a thing about car company business lol . plus 1 reason is from they kept making large gas guzzlers autos/trucks .lonnie
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by lcalarea47 October 6, 2008 2:26 AM EDT
lol Bob Lutz [of general motors ]states Tesla will never make it because he [Tesla ] has no experience in the car company business . hummmm from what ive read gm is broke [ apparently bob lutz is the one who doesnt know a thing about car company business lol . plus 1 reason is from they kept making large gas guzzlers autos/trucks .lonnie
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by felixkramer October 6, 2008 1:56 AM EDT
Good story EXCEPT:
* an electric mile is half the CO2 of a gasoline mile when powered by the national (half-coal) grid.
* the Volt''s price just went down by $7,500 because of the tax credit signed into law on Friday as part of the bank bailout bill.

-- Felix Kramer, Founder, CalCars.org
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by njmanboh October 6, 2008 1:20 AM EDT
Bob Lutz is a prime example of what%u2019s wrong with America today, and unfortunately for him, he has exposed himself, and General Motors, as a member of the club of corporate leeches that have led the lower and middle classes to believe that the American Dream is still possible, regardless of what%u2019s happening in the conference rooms of the biggest institutions in our land. He could be a poster boy for the yet to be named public figures that don%u2019t have a clue what %u201Cwe the people%u201D really want. He came across narrow minded, smug, and ill informed. Shame on him, and his entire ilk, for thinking that %u201Cexperience%u201D is how we will solve the mess we are faced with. His kind would have the Wright brothers make a bicycle with one wheel.
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