Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs), like the Nissan Leaf, Tesla Model S, Chevy Volt, and Toyota Plug-in Prius, are everywhere these days. Perhaps you’re considering buying one, but wonder how they measure up to conventional vehicles. This handbook is designed to answer your basic questions and point you to the additional information you need to make the best decision about whether an electric-drive vehicle is right for you. More than 100 years ago, all-electric vehicles (EVs) held much of the U.S. car market. Their popularity waned as interest rose in cars with internal combustion engines (ICEs). The ICE vehicle had a longer driving range, petroleum fuel costs were low, and the electric starter and manufacturing assembly line improved the affordability and usability of these vehicles. Today, PEVs are ready to compete with–and complement–the ICE-based technology that currently dominates the U.S. market. Technology advances led to hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), which integrate an ICE with batteries, regenerative braking, and an electric motor to boost fuel economy. Continued advances have spawned plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), which integrate small gasoline engines and grid-chargeable batteries that enable all-electric driving ranges of 10 to 80 miles. These same advances are applied in today’s EVs, which don’t use gasoline or ICEs and have driving ranges between 60 and 265 miles. Today an EV or PHEV model is offered by nearly every original equipment manufacturer. This means that there is a configuration and range option to meet any driving need. What drivers notice is that these PEVs perform as well as or better than conventional vehicles in most categories. They are safe and convenient and can save you money on fuel costs while slashing emissions and increasing the nation’s energy security. Drivers are also being rewarded by a growing charging infrastructure of more than 22,000 charging outlets at some 10,000 stations across the country. Finally, federal, state, and local incentives are in place to potentially shave thousands of dollars off the price of these vehicles. This all represents a growing commitment to see this vehicle technology succeed. As far back as 1990, California passed the nation’s first zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate requiring that auto makers produce a certain percentage of ZEVs (which include PEVs and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles) for sale in California. More recently, in October 2013, the governors of California and seven other states signed a memorandum of understanding and committed to having at least 3.3 million ZEVs operating on their highways by 2025. See the agreement at http://nescaum.org/documents/zev-mou-8-governors-signed-20131024.pdf. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting