By Rowland Benjamin

These tend to be powered by lead acid batteries but car manufacturing companies are working to find alternatives to the inefficient and relatively short lived acid type. For example, the Lithium-Ion battery has a much longer travelling range before it needs recharging and this may revive the manufacture of electric vehicles.

Nickel Metal Hydride batteries are now used in the petrol/electric hybrid cars manufactured by Ford, Honda and Toyota. These contain no cadmium and are less environmentally damaging.

Advantages of electric cars

• They are ideal for city commuting
• They produce no toxic emissions
• They produce no engine noise
• They are low maintenance
• They are cheaper to run than petrol cars
• It may be cheaper to licence an electric car
• In some countries there are tax concessions for owners

Disadvantages of electric cars

• The batteries have a limited range (about 50 miles or 80 km)
• The batteries need time for recharging
• The batteries are heavy
• The batteries are expensive (from US$2000 to $15000)
• The batteries have a short life span (between 3 to 4 years)
• A replacement system for batteries is not in place
• The old batteries may need to be disposed of if they are not recyclable
• The lead and sulphuric acid in the batteries are an environmental hazard

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  Cars Electric Cars These tend to be powered by lead acid batteries but car manufacturing companies are working to find alternatives to the inefficient and relatively short lived acid type. For example, the Lithium-Ion battery has a much longer travelling range before it needs recharging and this may revive the manufacture of electric vehicles. Nickel Metal Hydride batteries are now used in the petrol/electric hybrid cars manufactured by Ford, Honda and Toyota. These contain no cadmium and are less environmentally damaging. Advantages of electric cars They are ideal for city commuting They produce no toxic emissions They produce no engine noise They are low maintenance They are cheaper to run than petrol cars It may be cheaper to licence an electric car In some countries there are tax concessions for owners Disadvantages of electric cars The batteries have a limited range (about 50 miles or 80 km) The batteries need time for recharging The batteries are heavy The batteries are expensive (from US$2000 to $15000) The batteries have a short life span (between 3 to 4 years) A replacement system for batteries is not in place The old batteries may need to be disposed of if they are not recyclable The lead and sulphuric acid in the batteries are an environmental hazard   Return to Cars Introduction

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