{"id":2239,"date":"2014-05-16T15:31:41","date_gmt":"2014-05-16T15:31:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ignitiononline.com\/?p=2239"},"modified":"2026-05-16T00:35:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T23:35:19","slug":"electric-vehicles-everything-need-know-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ignitiononline.com\/archive\/electric-vehicles-everything-need-know-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Electric Vehicles: Everything You Need to Know, Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

A perspective from Tom Nelmes (Project Developer)<\/em><\/p>\n

In March I wrote part 1<\/a> of this 2 part post on Electric Vehicles (EVs), and safe to say quite a lot has happened in the meantime. Further investment in the UK has been made in EVs, Google\u2019s driverless car has been tested in San Francisco and I have learnt even more about Hybrids.<\/p>\n

In Part 2 I will provide an update on what has developed in the world of EVs as well as provide an overview of what manufacturers are doing. In addition I will also look at other alternative technologies that are being developed for the future.<\/p>\n

EV UPDATE<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

At the end of April, Deputy PM Nick Clegg launched a \u00a3500 million initiative to boost the use of electric and hybrid vehicles. More charging points are to be installed on motorways and A-roads all over the\u00a0UK to counter range anxiety fears.<\/p>\n

Towns and cities in the UK will also be given grants to design schemes to benefit EVs such as free parking and use of bus lanes. Clegg has also committed the Government to spend \u00a3100 million on further development and research of low-emission technology over the next five years.<\/p>\n

Despite the additional investment, alternative fuel vehicles still only count for 1% of the total number of cars on the road, with approximately 2,500 pure EVs and just fewer than 4,000 hybrids sold last year.<\/p>\n

The new investment has allowed the Government to continue its \u00a35,000 Plug-in Car Grant incentive to 2017.<\/p>\n

MANUFACTURERS<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

There are several manufacturers that will be releasing EVs over the next year or two, with the Nissan LEAF, Renault ZOE and BMW i3 already on the market. an electric version of the Volkswagen Golf will also go on sale later this year. Other manufacturers that are planning to release models in the future are Tesla, Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Citroen, KIA, Ford and Hyundai. A brand new manufacturer based in Japan called BYD (Build Your Dreams) has been created specifically for electric vehicles.<\/p>\n

With a dozen of the top manufacturers developing EVs, it is a clear indicator that carmakers are taking the EV market seriously, meaning that they trust the technology and the potential they have not just as a viable option, but as an improvement on our lifestyles.<\/p>\n

OTHER ALTERNATIVE FUELS<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Different manufacturers are taking different routes with regards to alternative fuels. Nissan and Renault have developed pure EVs, whilst Toyota manufacture Hybrid cars. BMW and Vauxhall have decided to manufacture Range Extenders. Carmakers, particularly Ford, are also investing in downsized\/turbo charged engines that are more efficient.There are more options now for manufacturers to use technology to improve efficiency.<\/p>\n

Many customers don\u2019t realise that EV and even Hybrid technology are relatively well established in comparison to other alternatives.\u00a0Let\u2019s take a look at some of these alternative fuels that have been developed and may also be driving cars in the future.<\/p>\n

Hybrid<\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/i>\u2013 <\/i>As mentioned above,\u00a0Hybrid cars have been around for many years now, pioneered by Toyota Prius. Hybrid cars use electric and gas powertrains to drive cars, often using electric for short distances and gas for longer, working together to propel the car.<\/p>\n

There are three types of Hybrid drivetrains: Series, Parallel and Series\/Parallel drivetrains. Series is the simplest version, using an electric motor as the only means of providing power. The Series drivetrain receives energy from either the battery or generator run by a gasoline engine. Parallel drivetrain uses a second electric motor to drive the rear wheels and generates power from the engine and electric motor. A Series\/Parallel combines both, with the engine driving the wheels directly and can then be disconnected from the wheels so only the electric motor powers the wheels.<\/p>\n

Range Extenders \u2013 <\/i><\/b>Range Extenders are a great way to combat range anxiety in EVs. When the battery power is low, the power will then switch to a combustion engine to extend the driving range, ensuring the vehicle will reach its destination without the need to replenish the battery power immediately\u00a0.<\/p>\n

Hydrogen Fuel Cell\u00a0<\/i><\/b>\u2013\u00a0<\/i>Hydrogen as a power generator is not new, but using it as a fuel cell to convert hydrogen into electricity. It is the process of electrolysis (using electricity to produce hydrogen from water in reverse). The fuel is non-polluting and it has many potential benefits for the environment. Many questions still remain, including cost and energy source and problems regarding infrastructure. Toyota and Honda are developing Hydrogen fuel cell cars for retail release in 2015.<\/p>\n

Aluminium Air\u00a0<\/i><\/b>\u2013 Aluminium Air batteries can provide electric cars with an additional range of 1,000 miles, using water to \u2018refuel\u2019 every 200 miles. Being developed by start-up company Phinergy, the aluminium air battery uses water and oxygen from the air to unleash energy stored in aluminium.<\/p>\n

THE FUTURE<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

It is interesting to see that the future of the automotive industry is developing, technologically and environmentally. Not only will customers have a choice of manufacturers to choose from but a greater choice of fuel types.<\/p>\n

But the future of drivers is also changing. Technologies used in vehicles have many features to assist with safety and driving, including park assist and safety alerts. Recently, Google road tested their self-driving car in San Francisco. Google looks set to bring the autonomous vehicle to production sooner rather than later. Google said their technology had made significant improvements with more comprehensive and detailed maps, improvements in detecting objects around the vehicle and classifying pedestrians and cyclists separately from moving vehicles. The company has also developed software that measures the probability of what is likely to happen in thousands of every driving situations. \u201c\u2026what looks chaotic and random on a city street to the human eye is actually fairly predictable to a computer,\u201d the company wrote in their blogpost<\/a>\u00a0about the test.<\/p>\n

Google aren\u2019t the only company developing autonomous driving software, with many other tech companies vying to produce these cars of the future. Various manufacturers are working with tech companies, as Mercedes revealed their autonomous car last September, and Volvo recently tested 100 prototypes in Sweden.<\/p>\n

With EVs slowly becoming a modern alternative engine for contemporary cars, it is clear that the future of the entire industry is shifting towards alternative technologies, albeit with a different emphasis between different manufacturers.<\/p>\n

SUMMARY<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

To summarise, I believe there is great potential for EVs in today’s market, with a growing infrastructure and Government boost of \u00a3500 million, coupled with the dozens of manufacturers developing EVs – electric vehicles are not a viable and serious option for the future, but for today. Having driven some models myself, I had no anxiety about the handling and certainly noticed heads turning as I drove past.<\/p>\n

Do you have any thoughts about EVs? What do you make of future technologies being developed? Would you trust a self-driving car?\u00a0f you have any thoughts on the matter, please don\u2019t hesitate to add your opinion in the comments below.<\/i><\/p>\n

OFFICE NEWS<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n