From a wheelchair to a roadster, the exciting world of electric vehicles!

There is no escape from an electric car. All the achievements of the last five years do not allow us to draw a different conclusion: electric cars are on the way, and they cannot be stopped. We'll show you how to prepare for it!

From beloved child to problem

When the car was ready for mass production about 100 years ago, it meant a real revolution. Now it is possible to travel anywhere, anytime and with anyone. Neither the horse nor the railroad could compete with the unsurpassed flexibility of the automobile. Since then, enthusiasm for the car has not waned.

However, there is also a downside: the vehicle consumes liquid fuel in the form of diesel or gasoline, both of which are petroleum products . The fuel is burned and released into the environment. For a long time no one cared. Now it's hard to imagine, in the first decades of car operation, leaded gasoline was normal. Megatons of this toxic heavy metal were added to fuel and released into the environment by engines. Today, thanks to modern exhaust gas cleaning technology, this is a thing of the past.

But cars continue to emit toxins: carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrous oxide, soot particles, particulate matter and many other harmful substances enter the environment. The automotive industry knows this — and is doing it completely wrong: Volkswagen diesel scandal — proof that corporations lack the will and experience to make cars really clean.

Only one way to zero emissions

Only one type of car actually drives clean and emission-free: electric car . An electric car does not have an internal combustion engine and therefore does not produce toxic emissions. Electric vehicles have a number other advantages compared to internal combustion engines, as well as some disadvantages .

Electric mobility initiatives have been around since the beginning. Even before the beginning of the twentieth century, the first inventors considered the electric motor to be the future of the young automotive industry. However, the internal combustion engine dominated, although electric vehicles never disappeared. Their main problem was the battery. Lead batteries, the only ones available for several decades, were too heavy for electric mobility. In addition, their capacity was not enough to use them economically. For a long time, the world of electric vehicles was limited golf carts, scooters and mini cars .

Lithium ion batteries became a breakthrough. These ultra-compact drives were originally developed for mobile phones and laptops and soon conquered the battery world. They were a death blow to nickel cadmium batteries : shorter charging times, significantly higher capacity and, especially, no memory effect or battery death due to deep discharge were significant advantages of lithium-ion technology. . A young billionaire from California came up with the idea to serially change battery packs and install them in an electric car. Tesla is definitely a pioneer in lithium-ion electric vehicles.

Break point: Exit

There is no doubt: the days of the stinking internal combustion engine with its meager power are numbered. Gasoline and diesel engines are dead, they just don't know it yet. In laboratory conditions, fuel-powered engines reach 40% power . Diesel achieves three percent more, but what does that really mean?

This means that even an idling engine under optimal conditions and ideal speed loses 57-60% its energy through thermal radiation.

Performance internal combustion engine worse in a car. Warm must be constantly removed from the engine . By default, this is done by a water cooling system. The cooling system and coolant add significant weight to the vehicle. Ultimately, internal combustion engines don't always run at optimum speed - quite the contrary. In most cases, the vehicle is running at too low or too high a speed. It means that when a car consumes 10 liters of fuel per 100 km, only 3,5 liters are consumed for movement . Six and a half liters of fuel are converted into heat and radiated into the environment.

On the other hand, electric motors have significantly lower heat dissipation. The power of a conventional electric motor is 74% in laboratory conditions and often does not require additional liquid cooling. Electric motors have significantly better acceleration than internal combustion engines. Optimal rpm is better in electric vehicles than in petrol and diesel engines. In the field of power, the electric motor is far superior to the conventional internal combustion engine.

Transition technology: hybrid

Hybrid car is not a new invention. In 1920, Ferdinand Porsche experimented with this drive concept. However, at that time and in subsequent decades, no one seems to have appreciated the benefits of this twin-engine concept.
A hybrid vehicle is a vehicle with two engines: an internal combustion engine and an electric motor. . There are significant differences in how both of these drives interact.

С Prius Toyota made the hybrid available to the masses. An electric motor and an internal combustion engine are compatible in their drive function. The driver can switch from fuel to electric at any time. This initiative is already showing many benefits: lower fuel consumption, very quiet driving and a clean image were the most important selling points for the hybrid. .

The original concept gave birth many variations : plug-in hybrids let you charge your battery in your home garage . Very interesting are electric vehicles with the so-called " power reserve extension ". These are purely electric cars with a small internal combustion engine on board that charges the battery while driving with the help of a generator. With this technology, pure electric mobility becomes very close. Hybrid vehicles should be seen as a transitional technology between internal combustion engines and electric motors. After all, electric vehicles are the future.

Currently Available

Electric mobility is the first and foremost focus of research and development on traffic-related technologies. Apart from American pioneers , significant pressure on the market was exerted Chinese. Already, three of the ten most successful electric vehicle manufacturers come from the Middle Kingdom. If add Nissan и Toyota , Asians currently own half of the global electric vehicle market. Although Tesla is still the market leader, traditional concerns such as BMW и Volkswagen , will definitely catch up with him. The available spectrum is wide. From combustion engine vehicles to electric vehicles, there is a vehicle for everyone.

At present, electric vehicles still suffer from three main disadvantages: relatively short range, few charging points, and long charging times. . But, as stated earlier: research and development continues .

Choosing the right time

Incentives for electric mobility exist all over the world. The so-called Plug-in Car Grant program in the UK has been extended until 2018. What will happen next is still unclear. Hybrid cars , Especially plug-in hybrids , usually have very small internal combustion engines, which provide significant tax advantages.
The choice of purely electric vehicles is constantly growing. The latest generations will be available soon Golf , Polo и Smart, working exclusively on electricity.
The current market is very interesting and growing as we speak. From a very cheap Model 3 , TESLAonce again confirmed his status as a pioneer. Affordable, practical and interesting electric vehicles will soon be available from all manufacturers.

The EV market still looks somewhat experimental. Clumsy and expensive BMW i3 и strange and bright Renault Twizzy are two typical examples. In a few years, however, electric vehicles will be as common as they are affordable.

Electric mobility and classic

Purists are outraged by yet another very interesting trend in electromobility: more and more companies offer to convert cars from internal combustion engines to electricity . Company CALL has been doing for some time discussion of Porsche models . The module is constantly becoming cheaper and more flexible, which allows you to implement exciting projects: driving electric cars on classic cars . Enjoy the benefits of an electric vehicle in beauty Jaguar E-type no longer a dream, and now it can be ordered - in the presence of cash.