ELECTRIC CARSBY ANDY BYRD

INTRODUCTION

• The electric car is seen today as an eco-friendly alternative to internal combustion engine cars.

• From afar electric cars are better than gas in every way, but when you dive in you find out they are not as good as once thought.

• With dirty electricity generation, high costs and low gas prices, we may not be ready for electric cars at this time.

HISTORY

1800: Alessandro Volta developed first battery

1835: First small-scale electric buggies

1908: Henry Ford introduces Model T

HISTORY CONT.

1935: Electric cars had all but disappeared from the

road

1976: Congress passed the Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Research, Development, and Demonstration Act 1996: General Motors EV1

HISTORY CONT.

2000: World’s first mass production hybrid: Toyota Prius

2010: Tesla Model S fully electric luxury sedan

HISTORY CONT.

2015: Tesla Model X fully electric luxury SUV

LIMITATIONS• Greatest obstacle is range due to lack of advancement in

battery technology• Lithium-ion batteries are expensive• Tesla is spending $5 billion to build a battery “Gigafactory”

aimed at reducing Li-ion battery cost by 30% by 2017 after 1 year of production• Tesla has developed a system of superchargers, free for all

Tesla owners• Supercharger can provide 170 miles of range in 30 minutes

• Gasoline engine is supported by an infrastructure of 115,000 fueling stations compared to Tesla’s 556 supercharging stations

SUPERCHARGER NETWORK MAPNOVEMBER 2015DECEMBER 2016

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT• Electric cars aren’t as environmentally friendly as you think• U.S. electric grid is 45% coal powered; some states such as

Texas, Pennsylvania, and Ohio are closer to 100% coal powered• An electric vehicle relying solely on coal power would pollute 17% to

27% more than a gas or diesel powered one

• Initial production of the vehicle and battery make up for 40% of the vehicle’s total carbon footprint• Carbon footprint can be offset in areas with clean power

generation

COST ANALYSISElectric cars cost half as much per-driving-mile than the average gasoline car today.

Chart compares average mpg of a 2012 model car (28.2 mpg) to an “eGallon”, calculated based on electricity used for an electric car to travel 28.2 miles.

Chart’s figures are from national averages in 2012

COST ANALYSIS CONT.Low end: Electric cost $13,000 more over 8 years

Ford Focus ST Ford Focus Electric

Sale price $24,495 $39,995

Battery replacement N/A $13,500

Major engine repair(1/5 original sale price)

$4,899 N/A

8-year fuel costs(15,000 miles/year) $16,222 $5,067

Total costs $45,616 $58,562

High end: Electric cost $23,000 less over 8 years

Mercedes S Class Tesla Model S

Sale price $92,350 $87,400

Battery replacement N/A $12,000

Major engine repair(1/5 original sale price)

$18,470 N/A

8-year fuel costs(15,000 miles/year)

$16,846 $5,262

Total costs $127,666 $104,662

CONCLUSION

• Until electricity generation is cleaner, benefits of electric vehicles are limited• As oil and coal run dry, electric vehicles will begin to truly

take off• Electric cars are the future, but we don’t know when exactly

that will be

QUESTIONS?