Why automakers don't want an electric car

Despite the fact that the technology to produce a viable electric car has been around for at least a decade, automakers have dragged their feet and claimed that such a product could not be produced at a price people would pay, and that the car would have too many limitations on range and service options, making it even more undesirable to American drivers.

GM went as far as actually producing a limited run electric car, the EV-1, to further make this point, only to have the car become so wildly popular that they canceled the program and destroyed the cars.

"But why?" you ask. "Why would they do that. A car is a car and Detroit is in the business of selling cars, so what's the diff if it is filled up with gasoline or simply plugged in?"

Well, that's your first mistaken assumption. Automakers are in the business of making money, not making cars. Cars are a means to make money, and in their view, an electric car will greatly reduce the money they make.

40-50% of an automaker's profits come from the sale of spare parts, specifically the thousands of parts that wear out and must be replaced in your average car. The engine and transmission (including the cooling, lubrication, and charging systems) of an average car represent over half the cost of the car and a third of it's weight. They also represent a cornucopia of parts that wear out, break, or simply must be replaced on a regular basis. Starter motors, timing belts, radiator hoses, belts, spark plugs, fuel injectors, water pumps, generators, batteries, motor mounts, clutches, head gaskets, valve cover gaskets, fuel pumps, thermostats, oxygen sensors, crank sensors, engine speed sensors, and many, many more are sold with 200-300% markups by the manufacturer. With those types of margins, you can see why Detroit likes cars the way they are.

Trouble is, electric cars require almost none of these parts. As there is no internal combustion engine, all of the parts related to the engine vanish, as do the associated repair/replacement costs. In an electric car, the transmission is either absent, or greatly simplified. Translation: Fewer repairs for the consumer, less profit for the dealer. Oh, and since there are fewer parts, the car is more reliable and lasts longer, meaning even less money for the car maker.

With an electric car, there are no oil changes, no tune ups, no coolant flushing, no muffler repairs, no blown head gaskets requiring replacement at $1200 a pop.

Once we understand this dynamic, it is easy to see why Detroit had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, to make an electric car. You also see why the first commercially "viable" electric car was a hybrid, not a pure electric car. Hybrids give Detroit all the profit of a regular gasoline car (they still have an engine and transmission) while taking on the extra complexity of a battery system that must be coordinated with the gasoline system, meaning more parts, more chances for failure, meaning more repair dollars (and they will charge you a 300-500% markup for hybrid parts, because they no longer compete with independent shops for your repair dollar).

To be fair, there are disadvantages to an electric car. Unlike a gasoline car, heat in the winter will be an additional drain on your batteries, since there is no free "waste heat" to use (internal combustion engines have LOTS of free heat). Energy wise, you must also pay full price for your A/C and any other light, radio, CD players and mobile phones. Also, the newer batteries required to run an electric car are more expensive and potentially damaging to the environment to make. The iron law of TANSTAAFL has not been revoked.

The cost of replacing batteries is also an issue, as the battery packs, especially the newer Lithium-Ion chemistries are VERY expensive. Batteries would probably need replacing every 3-5 years depending on use.

Another major drawback to an electric car is temperature. Batteries can lose power in cold weather, and degrade in hot weather.

Of course, these drawbacks will be addressed in the future. New technologies such as nano-wire batteries and ultracapacitors will address the battery problems, which also solves the A/C-heating issue (denser batteries mean more power), while some of the problems can be addressed by simply building solar panels into the roof.

Another false objection to electric cars is that we would simply be substituting one monopoly (oil companies) with another (electric companies). One of the reasons Big Oil is a monopoly is because few people can afford the expense of drilling a well, pumping out the oil, then refining the oil into usable distillates. This is not true of electrical power, since anyone with a few hundred dollars of solar cells can make his own electricity.

Internal combustion engines (ICEs) are extremely inefficient systems, losing 80% of the energy produced by a gallon of gasoline to heat and vibration. Electric motors, by comparison, convert 90%+ of the energy supplied into actual motive power, though the actual efficiency of the power plant supplying the energy must also be factored in (about 40% for the U.S.), and the efficiency of the batteries 80-90% when charged and discharged.

Electric cars are ultimately good for everyone, consumers and manufacturers, not to mention very good for the environment. Not only is the cost of fuel far cheaper (about 1-2¢ a mile versus the current 15¢ a mile for gasoline), but that car itself is more durable and easier to maintain, thanks to having thousands fewer parts to wear out or break.

Simpler cars mean fewer parts to manufacture, transport and store, which means less energy being expended for those activities, which also means less carbon being dumped into the air.

Of course, the most efficient solution to the transportation problem is mass transit. A diesel bus hauling 110 passengers is still vastly more efficient over the same distance than any electric car can ever be. 110 passengers hauled 20 miles is 2,200 passenger miles, whereas a single person in a 2-passenger electric car is only 20 passenger miles. Plus, that single bus would take about 50 cars off the road, reducing traffic congestion.