Electric car


An electric car or electric vehicle is a passenger automobile that is propelled by an electric traction motor, using electrical energy as the primary source of propulsion. The term normally refers to a plug-in electric vehicle, typically a battery electric vehicle, which only uses energy stored in on-board battery packs, but broadly may also include plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, range-extended electric vehicle and fuel cell electric vehicle, which can convert electric power from other fuels via a generator or a fuel cell.
Compared to conventional internal combustion engine vehicles, electric cars are quieter, more responsive, have superior energy conversion efficiency and no exhaust emissions, as well as a typically lower overall carbon footprint from manufacturing to end of life. Due to the superior efficiency of electric motors, electric cars also generate less waste heat, thus reducing the need for engine cooling systems that are often large, complicated and maintenance-prone in ICE vehicles.
The electric vehicle battery typically needs to be plugged into a mains electricity power supply for recharging in order to maximize the cruising range. Recharging an electric car can be done at different kinds of charging stations; these charging stations can be installed in private homes, parking garages and public areas. There is also research and development in, as well as deployment of, other technologies such as battery swapping and inductive charging. As the recharging infrastructure is still in its infancy, range anxiety and time cost are frequent psychological obstacles during consumer purchasing decisions against electric cars.
Worldwide, 14 million plug-in electric cars were sold in 2023, 18% of new car sales, up from 14% in 2022. Many countries have established government incentives for plug-in electric vehicles, tax credits, subsidies, and other non-monetary incentives while several countries have legislated to phase-out sales of fossil fuel cars, to reduce air pollution and limit climate change. EVs are expected to account for over one-fifth of global car sales in 2024.
China currently has the largest stock of electric vehicles in the world, with cumulative sales of 22.09 million units through December 2024, although these figures also include heavy-duty commercial vehicles such as buses, garbage trucks and sanitation vehicles, and only accounts for vehicles manufactured in China. In the United States and the European Union, as of 2020, the total cost of ownership of recent electric vehicles is cheaper than that of equivalent ICE cars, due to lower fueling and maintenance costs.
In 2023, the Tesla Model Y became the world's best selling car. The Tesla Model 3 became the world's all-time best-selling electric car in early 2020, and in June 2021 became the first electric car to pass 1 million global sales.

Terminology

The term "electric car" typically refers specifically to battery electric vehicles or all-electric cars, a type of electric vehicle that has an onboard rechargeable battery pack that can be plugged in and charged from the electric grid, and the electricity stored on the vehicle is the only energy source that provide propulsion for the wheels. The term generally refers to highway-capable automobiles, but there are also low-speed electric vehicles with limitations in terms of weight, power, and maximum speed that are allowed to travel on certain public roads. The latter are classified as Neighborhood Electric Vehicles in the United States, and as electric motorised quadricycles in Europe.

History

Early developments

is often credited with inventing the first electric car some time between 1832 and 1839.
The following experimental electric cars appeared during the 1880s:
Electricity was among the preferred methods for automobile propulsion in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, providing a level of comfort and an ease of operation that could not be achieved by the gasoline-driven cars of the time. The electric vehicle fleet peaked at approximately 30,000 vehicles at the turn of the 20th century.
In 1897, electric cars first found commercial use as taxis in Britain and in the United States. In London, Walter Bersey's electric cabs were the first self-propelled vehicles for hire at a time when cabs were horse-drawn. In New York City, a fleet of twelve hansom cabs and one brougham, based on the design of the Electrobat II, formed part of a project funded in part by the Electric Storage Battery Company of Philadelphia. During the 20th century, the main manufacturers of electric vehicles in the United States included Anthony Electric, Baker, Columbia, Anderson, Edison, Riker, Milburn, Bailey Electric, and Detroit Electric. Their electric vehicles were quieter than gasoline-powered ones, and did not require gear changes.
Six electric cars held the land speed record in the 19th century. The last of them was the rocket-shaped La Jamais Contente, driven by Camille Jenatzy, which broke the speed barrier by reaching a top speed of in 1899.
Electric cars remained popular until advances in internal-combustion engine cars and mass production of cheaper gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles, especially the Ford Model T, led to a decline. ICE cars' much quicker refueling times and cheaper production costs made them more popular. However, a decisive moment came with the introduction in 1912 of the electric starter motor that replaced other, often laborious, methods of starting the ICE, such as hand-cranking.

Modern electric cars

In the early 1990s the California Air Resources Board began a push for more fuel-efficient, lower-emissions vehicles, with the ultimate goal of a move to zero-emissions vehicles such as electric vehicles. In response, automakers developed electric models. These early cars were eventually withdrawn from the U.S. market, because of a massive campaign by the US automakers to discredit the idea of electric cars.
California electric-automaker Tesla Motors began development in 2004 of what would become the Tesla Roadster, first delivered to customers in 2008. The Roadster was the first highway-legal all-electric car to use lithium-ion battery cells, and the first production all-electric car to travel more than per charge.
Better Place, a venture-backed company based in Palo Alto, California, but steered from Israel, developed and sold battery charging and battery swapping services for electric cars. The company was publicly launched on 29 October 2007 and announced deployment of electric vehicle networks in Israel, Denmark and Hawaii in 2008 and 2009. The company planned to deploy the infrastructure on a country-by-country basis. In January 2008, Better Place announced a memorandum of understanding with Renault-Nissan to build the world's first Electric Recharge Grid Operator model for Israel. Under the agreement, Better Place would build the electric recharge grid and Renault-Nissan would provide the electric vehicles. Better Place filed for bankruptcy in Israel in May 2013. The company's financial difficulties were caused by mismanagement, wasteful efforts to establish toeholds and run pilots in too many countries, the high investment required to develop the charging and swapping infrastructure, and a market penetration far lower than originally predicted.
File:Volkswagen ID.3 at IAA 2019 IMG 0779.jpg|thumb|Volkswagen Group has invested in a wide-ranging electrification strategy in Europe, North America and China, with its electric "MEB" platform.
The Mitsubishi i-MiEV, launched in 2009 in Japan, was the first highway-legal series production electric car, and also the first all-electric car to sell more than 10,000 units. Several months later, the Nissan Leaf, launched in 2010, surpassed the i MiEV as the best selling all-electric car at that time.
Starting in 2008, a renaissance in electric vehicle manufacturing occurred due to advances in batteries, and the desire to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and to improve urban air quality. During the 2010s, the electric vehicle industry in China expanded rapidly with government support. Several automakers marked up the prices of their electric vehicles in anticipation of the subsidy adjustments, including Tesla, Volkswagen and Guangzhou-based GAC Group, which counts Fiat, Honda, Isuzu, Mitsubishi, and Toyota as foreign partners.
In July 2019 US-based Motor Trend magazine awarded the fully-electric Tesla Model S the title "ultimate car of the year". In March 2020 the Tesla Model 3 passed the Nissan Leaf to become the world's all-time best-selling electric car, with more than 500,000 units delivered; it reached the milestone of 1 million global sales in June 2021.
In the third quarter of 2021, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation reported that sales of electric vehicles had reached six percent of all US light-duty automotive sales, the highest volume of EV sales ever recorded at 187,000 vehicles. This was an 11% sales increase, as opposed to a 1.3% increase in gasoline and diesel-powered units. The report indicated that California was the US leader in EV with nearly 40% of US purchases, followed by Florida – 6%, Texas – 5% and New York 4.4%.
Electric companies from the Middle East have been designing electric cars. Oman's Mays Motors have developed the Mays i E1 which was expected to begin production in 2023. Built from carbon fibre, it has a range of about and can accelerate from in about 4 seconds. In Turkey, the EV company Togg is starting production of its electric vehicles. Batteries will be created in a joint venture with the Chinese company Farasis Energy.