Who Killed the Electric Car?
Did you know that a hundred years ago, there were more electric cars than there are today?
Where did all the electric cars go?
Chris Paine’s “Who Killed the Electric Car?” is a 2006 documentary film that explores the creation, limited commercialization, and subsequent destruction of the electric car in the U.S., specifically the GM EV1 Model of the 1990s. The film explores the roles of auto manufacturers, the oil industry, and the U.S. government in limiting the development and adoption of this technology.
The oil companies fought hard to stop funding of public charging stations for electric vehicles. The oil industry sells nearly 3 billion gallons of gasoline per week in the U.S. The combined profits of Exxon-Mobil, Chevron-Texaco, and Conoco-Phillips for 2007 surpassed $100 billion. As the world demand for transportation fuel increases, a lack of alternatives keeps prices and profitability going up.
GM, Ford, Honda, Chrysler, Nissan, and Toyota all developed electric vehicle programs in response to California’s zero emission mandate—and most ended up crushing at least part of their EV fleets. Even as the automakers launched their EV programs, they undermined their success every step of the way. In late 2000, GM started pulling the electric car program and sold 60% of its shares in GM-Ovonic to Texaco Inc. This was a partnership between GM and Ovonic Battery Company which developed the NiMH hybrid battery.
Why do the government and car manufacturers refuse to invest in a technology that has the potential to increase the quality of life for everyone, including our entire planet? Electric cars are a threat to the profitability of the conventional gas-powered auto industry. The Official “Who Killed the Electric Car?” Website states, “Not only would a successful electric car program cannibalize sales of conventional cars, but the electric car costs the auto industry in other ways: lacking an engine, it saves the driver the cost of replacement parts, motor oil, filters, and spark plugs.”
Questionable advertising, limited availability, weak first-generation battery technology, and simple lack of awareness gave consumers little incentive to consider EVs as a practical alternative to gas cars.
According to GM, about 4000 prospective EV1 customers were on waitlists to lease a hybrid vehicle, and when contacted about leasing the vehicle, only 50 people were willing to sign up with the EV1 program because GM discouraged consumers from trying the car by enforcing a tedious application process.
Consumer enthusiasm for the EV1 was something that John Dabels, who headed GM’s marketing team at the time, said he had never seen before. Thousands of people from all over the world were signing up to get more information about the innovative hybrid technology.
Is the electric car really dead?
Even though almost all of the EV1 vehicles were destroyed by 2005, it is impossible to “kill” a technology indefinitely. Battery-powered electric car technology is actually booming in today’s hybrids, and electric cars are going to be a large part of the future of vehicles.
Electric cars cost on average about 3 cents per gallon to operate, compared to the rate of gasoline which is just under $3 per gallon. If everyone drove an electric car, the overall savings would be enormous.
Filmmaker Chris Paine, the director of “Who Killed the Electric Car?” states that electric cars truly are making a comeback. He chronicles the EV’s resurrection in his new follow- up film, “The Revenge of the Electric Car” set to be in theaters in the Spring of 2010.
There are other fuel-savings options for consumers, such as an electric car conversion for their currently owned gas-powered vehicles. If you’re interested in converting your car to an electric-powered vehicle, you will find a plethora of information on the internet for inexpensive products and procedures.
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Posted on 04/06/2009 10:16 am