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If you have a question that is not on this list, contact us!
Q: Doesn't the electricity come from coal fired power stations, energy which is then transmitted over lossy lines to fill up your car battery?
A: With an electric car, unless you charge your car with green energy from the grid, or solar panels from your roof, the electricity probably comes from greenhouse polluting sources. The difference however is in the efficiency for which the vehicle uses that energy. By using regenerative braking, the kinetic energy of your EV is converted back into battery power instead of heat in your brake pads. Electric motors are also much more efficient than internal combustion engines (petrol or diesel). Therefore the car will produce less than a third of the emissions than that of a hybrid equivalent, for the same perceived performance, and this is without even considering green energy options. A power station is also much more efficient at producing the energy through economies of scale. Another advantage is the fact that you could charge up your car at night under tariff agreements with your local utility company which will even out the load usage profile reducing the wasted energy in spinning reserves, and load forecasting margins.
Q: You mention using solar power to charge up your car during the day, however solar panels require energy intensive processes to make them in the first place.
A: Yes, many of the more cost effective solar panels are made from silicon dioxide, which requires large amounts of energy to refine. Newer generation solar panels however are coming up with alternative technologies which cut down on the energy intensive manufacturing process. These are often less efficient, but area cheaper to refine and make so their dollar per watt makes them competitive. Although cost is a major issue with such technologies presently, prices are dropping everyday and efficiencies are ever climbing, so whilst the option for large solar stations on your house may still be a little expensive currently, 5 years down the track they will be much cheaper, especially in comparison to our future inflated oil prices. Here is an interesting look at advancements in solar efficiencies over the last 30 years.
Q: Could you put a propeller on the front of the car which then recharges batteries in your car as you drive?
A: Yes you could, however energy is lost in the form of heat and sound along the way, so your recharge rate is far less than the rate at which you are using the energy. However what we want to do with regenerative braking is similar in a way to the propeller on the front of your car. As you decide to slow down, the momentum of the vehicle will drive the motor, which at the flick of a switch can behave like a generator, which charges your batteries instead of that energy becoming wasted as heat energy in your brakes. Although we can never achieve perpetual motion, we can head towards it by making the vehicle more efficient to drive.
Q: If regenerative braking is so good, why hasn't anyone used it before?
A: Actually, regenerative has been successfully deployed on hybrid vehicles such as the Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid, helping them to achieve fantastic fuel efficiency in stop/start traffic. Regenerative braking is also used in large trucks to recapture energy that would otherwise be lost. Trucks still use a diesel motor as the number of batteries required to make long journeys would prove too costly and bulky, although this will likely change as fuel prices increase and battery technology becomes both better and cheaper. Bob Albertson is developing an electric pickup truck, complete with systems to reclaim energy from the brakes and shock absorbers. Even Formula 1 is about to embrace a more sustainable approach to racing through the use of biofuels and regenerative braking.
Q: I drive a V8 mainly for the sound. Why would we want to buy a car that is almost silent?
A: No project can ever please everyone. While some folk will never be able to resist the purr of a V8, we believe that the stealthy turbine-like sound from our new electric car will be preferable to many. Of course you could always use a petrol engine sound synthesizer on board and still receive the low cost/emission benefits, but again some will accept no substitute. The important thing is that the choice is there for those who wish to go down a more sustainable path.
Q: I like to drive long distances on road trips. How will I fill up my batteries on such trips?
A: One of the challenges with introducing electric vehicles is the need for supporting infrastructure such as refueling stations. In America the US government has just granted Tesla motors over half a million dollars to introduce refueling station technology, and there are already many in place. Therefore we believe that although you may have difficulties in the short term, the infrastructure will follow in the future. Short term goals however would focus on city driving and door to door journeys < 200km. If you refuel your vehicle over a long enough time, you will be able to fill up from your house electricity supply. For charging over a few minutes, you would need high current carrying cables, and the appropriate sockets. This is where you would need to design the correct infrastructure requirements i.e. recharging stations. However this is about 100 times easier to install than a petrol refueling station, so it would be cheap to install them.
Q: Isn't the battery really heavy compared to a normal petrol engine?
A: Yes, an electric car will be heavier than the petrol-powered equivalent. However, the mass an electric vehicle can be better distributed - the batteries can be placed low and toward the centre of the vehicle. This leads to a low centre of gravity (which improves stability) and a low polar moment of inertia (resulting in nimble handling). There is also the option of removing remove a large portion of the battery packs if you are traveling short distances. This could improve your performance and allow you to keep some of your batteries on charge. Lastly, you can actually link your electric vehicle into the grid in a Vehicle to Grid (V2G) system. This allows a smaller battery to be used for greater range, and also allows greater penetration of renewable energy onto the grid.
Q: Why make a sports car conversion? Wouldn't a cheaper car be more widely popular?
A: Rather than aiming to produce the lowest-cost EV, we want to challenge people's perceptions by demonstrating that a desirable high-performance sports car can be electric. Auto manufacturers have long recognized that the choice to purchase a vehicle is typically one based upon emotion and desire, rather than need. We at evsportscar.com agree and believe that even though the world needs EVs, they will not be popular until the world wants EVs. If you are a rational car buyer on a budget, we suggest you visit www.revaindia.com. We will applaud your level headedness, but we know you'd secretly still prefer to be in the Tesla or the Venturi Fetish.
We want to make a high-performance vehicle that is desirable. Making a transition from one technology to another is not a cheap process.
Buying the same performance in an electric conversion for a consumer range vehicle would be a large jump in price which the average consumer is unlikely
to have the start up capital for despite its long term cost effectiveness. As with many past implementations, it is usually the rich that kick
start the technology. The same thing happened for laptops, and broadband internet, yet these have quickly found their way into consumer level living.
Another driver is the rate at which battery prices are decreasing. Our aim is to prove that the technology can be implemented and bring together a
variety of designs and science behind electric cars. In the next few years we will see a rapid shift to electric cars, and already having the technology
in place is a vital step to large scale production.
Q: There have been other conversions done in the past. What makes your project any different?
A: Our aim is to get people involved through the media, an exciting webpage full of recent updates and links, and interactivity with regards to the decision making process.
We can't pretend to make a massive difference without millions of dollars in start up capital. However we can generate the media interest, collective science and public awareness which
can then be used to leverage political and financial means for the costly implementation.
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