Huh. I've got an electric moped and I prefer it because it never requires repairs. Electric motors have just one moving part, and as the modern ones are brushless there's nothing that can wear out over the lifetime of the vehicle. The most maintinence I've ever had to do was to replace a blown out tire.

Yeah! And color is a gimmick, right? HD too! ;)

Steven: Do your homework. All Project Better Place charge points and swap stations are powered exclusively by solar and wind farms owned by partner corporations.

So do you also cringe every time evolution is mentioned? Or 9/11 is referred to as something other than an inside job? Or when people talk about the moon landings as though they really happened?

You nutjobs crack me up.

I enjoy doing the same thing to cyclists on my electric moped. Sometimes they get all buttsore that I'm in the bike lane until I explain that it's a low speed electric and that it's intended to use bike lanes/paths. Pisses people off when it's on the road, pisses people off when it's in the bike lane or on the sidewalk. Pretty much unavoidable, but it doesn't need gas, a license or insurance so it's worth putting up with the occasional angry, confused motorist.

I think you'll be surprised when most Americans convert to electric transportation, as they don't have their sense of masculinity tied up in what they drive. For ordinary people cars are about getting from point A to point B, and with battery leasing options and battery swap stations instead of gas stations, EVs will get the same range as any gas vehicle and cost roughly the same while requiring far less maintinence.

@poached

Nobody said "stop using energy". The point is to reduce *emissions*. Although much of our energy currently comes from coal, electric cars are capable of using energy from any source, so they are ready for a transition to nuclear and renewable power, which ICE cars are not. Also as previously mentioned, most EV charge stations use only electricity from renewable sources, so in fact it is not a "coal powered car" at all.

As for batteries, they are recycled, not dumped. The concern over their toxicity was raised the last time electric cars were seriously considered in the 1970s and programs were put in place to fully recycle the batteries they used, including the electrolytic solution.

@abbas350

Any Better Place compliant electric car can drive indefinitely so long as there are battery swap stations on the way.

http://www.betterplace.com/

I own an electric bike, an electric moped and I intend to buy a Nissan Leaf when they arrive. Electrics may not be the answer *you're* looking for, but for the rest of the country, electrics are just what the doctor ordered.

@EM1:

Not all electricity comes from coal. In fact it's possible to call your power company and specify renewable-only electricity for a small premium. It's also the case that the biggest provider of EV charge stations, 'Better Place' corporation, supplies only electricity from solar and wind farms.

The range of electrics is also soon to be a non-issue as that same corporation is building battery swap stations. When you run low on power you simply pull into a swap station, where the spent battery is pulled out and a freshly charged one is put in, all automated and in less time than it would take to gas up.

Not in every state. Some states generate most of their energy with nuclear. And in Canada, 45% of their energy comes from Nuclear. There's also Project Better Place, a company building charge stations in the US that get 100% of their power from renewable solar and wind farms.