WITH the latest news telling us that power bills are going to continually rise, which goes against pre-election assurances, I believe it is timely to have a look at the viability of electric passenger cars. Apart from generally being more expensive to buy than fossil-fuel powered cars, I think the beneficial effect electric vehicles (EVs) have on the environment is, at best, marginal.
Some simple mathematics will demonstrate the proposition. In Australia, most passenger cars travel on average about 20,000 kilometres or less a year, using about eight litres of fuel per 100 kilometres. That equates to 1600 litres a year. At average specific gravity of 0.75, this equates to 1.2 tonnes a year, or three kilograms a day.
