ELECTRIC CARS HISTORY

Battery electric vehicles or BEVs are electric vehicles whose main energy storage is in the chemical energy of batteries. BEVs are the most common form of what is defined by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) as zero emission (ZEV) passenger automobiles, because they produce no emissions while being driven.



The electrical energy carried onboard a BEV to power the motors is obtained from a variety of battery chemistries arranged into battery packs. For additional range genset trailers or pusher trailers are sometimes used, forming a type of hybrid vehicle. Batteries used in electric vehicles include "flooded" lead-acid, absorbed glass mat, NiCd, nickel metal hydride, Li-ion, Li-poly and zinc-air batteries.







Thomas Edison - 1912 Detroit Electric





While hybrid vehicles apply many of the technical advances first developed for BEVs, they are not considered BEVs. Of interest to BEV developers, however, is the fact that hybrid vehicles are advancing the state of the art (in cost/performance ratios) of batteries, electric motors, chargers, and motor controllers, which may bode well for the future of both pure electric vehicles and the so called "plug-in hybrid".

History



BEVs were among the earliest automobiles, and before the preeminence of light, powerful internal combustion engines, electric automobiles held many vehicle land speed and distance records in the early 1900s. Most notable was perhaps breaking of the 105.88 km/h (65.79 mph) speed barrier by Camille Jenatzy on 29.4 1899 in his rocket-like EV named La Jamais Contente. This was the first world record over 100 km/h.



BEVs were produced by Anthony Electric, Baker Electric, Detroit Electric, and others and at one point in history out-sold gasoline-powered vehicles.



Some feel that the introduction of the electric starter by Cadillac in 1913, which simplified the difficult and sometimes dangerous task of starting the internal combustion engine, was the downfall of the electric vehicle, as 1912 may have been the pinnacle year for BEVs. Still others point out that it was radiators, in use as early as 1895 by Panhard-Levassor in their Systeme Panhard design [1], which allowed engines to keep cool enough to run for more than a few minutes, before which they had to stop and cool down at horse troughs along with the steamers to replenish their water supply. The truth may be that EV's had fallen out of favor over the mass produced Ford Model-T which went into production four years earlier in 1908. [2]