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"Transport Canada says the vehicles made of lightweight metals and plastics are not safe to drive on Canada's open roads, and would not stand up in a collision."

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It should be noted, that despite all talk about battery technology being unchanged in the past X years, prior to Ford Model T, approximately half of all vehicles in use in the world were electric. Darlington Nuclear Power Plant is slated to open 2 more reactors by 2018. By 2018 the oil will be around 500$ a barrel. But we can easily build more solar/nuclear power plants, that are emission-free. Pumping more oil is not a long-term option. We only have about 55 years worth of oil left (unless we stop using it).

I'm sure the oil companies have a somewhat more accurate estimate of presently known oil reserves, but they sure aren't going to share that data with us.

The key word is "known" oil reserves. It's commonly believed that there is far more undiscovered oil reserves than the average citizen could know.

During the 30's, it was commonly believed that we would run out in the 80's... didn't happen. Then there was the big crisis in '73 which spelled the end of big, strong, safe cars and introduced us to puny gas-sippin' garbage like the Vega and Pinto. Now we're getting the same story. Youngn's on this board are being introduced to a fuel crisis and possible economic trouble for the first time in their lives. I've struggled through TWO recessions ('81 and '91) so I don't see any "real" trouble on the horizon yet. Surveyors serving land and business developers are the first to see an economic bust (6 to 12 months in advance), and I haven't seen any slowdown at all... yet.

So now about 50% of Canadian motorists are stuck (once again) with oversize gas-guzzlers. I'm sure gas prices will settle down within a year or two and we'll get back to driving stuff we prefer (big stuff). In the mean time, guess I'll have to blow the dust off my '74 Moped

As for electric cars, I'd consider one ONLY after many friends have nothing but good stories to relate about THEIR electric cars. Right now, if I'm leaving the office late at night in the middle of a -30deg snowstorm, I wouldn't trust the electric car to get me home worry-free. And it's not practical to expect folks to by TWO cars: One, electric for summer, and a Second, gas for winter. In fact, how do you heat the cabin in an electric car?

Bookm wrote:In fact, how do you heat the cabin in an electric car?

Electric heater

Can these batteries really run stuff like that and still last all day?

I really dont know!

But really these cars have to be small,so how much juice would one need?

Electric cars = Lost Jobs,right here in Ontario and I guess that's why

McDumb@$$ dodged Gore for so long.

Bookm wrote:Can these batteries really run stuff like that and still last all day?

Yeah, they can, if you have enough of them. Hybrid technology used today can easily be re-used in the full-electric or electric/gas hybrid, and save you battery life. And cooling your car takes far more energy (gasoline car's fuel consumption usually goes up 30% with AC on full blast).

Lithium Ion batteries must be constantly slowly discharged to keep. What can be better use for the small discharge than keeping the temperature about 0 C? Think of it as a block heater. Electric engine can produce more torque than the conventional internal combustion engines of the same physical size, hence better winter driving. Electric engine does not have nearly as many moving parts in it, especially the parts that come into friction - think about it, all the work is done by the magnetic forces that do not require contact. The only friction you will have in an electric engine is that of the bearings for the shaft - that's it, there are no pistons going up/down 2-5 thousand times per minute, trying to capture 35% of the energy stored inside that hot air, before expelling it out. When your gasoline engine is too cold, the precise machining breaks down due to temperature shrinkage, and spaces develop inside the engine between the cylinder and the shaft, in which some energy is lost, so your car eats more fuel for shorter drive and reduced power.

As to lost jobs - hell, we are losing them as we speak! GM Oshawa plant is closing next year. Remember that all prosperity and opportunity came about with innovation. Gasoline engines are over 120 years old, and the base design hasn't changed since sparkplugs! If we stick with producing gasoline-powered cars here all the market will be stolen by the Japanese, Germans, and Koreans. If (and we could) we start making the cars here in Ontario though, we could become the car capital of the world. If the Darlington expansion does not come 3 times over budget and 10 years late...