Should you ride the wave of electric cars?

Truth passes through three stages. First, it’s ridiculed. Second, it’s violently opposed. Third, it’s accepted as self-evident. It’s the case for electric cars: 

2016 – Edward Reuter, Daimler chairman, says, “Tesla is a joke that can’t be taken seriously compared to the great car companies of Germany.” Ridiculed.

2017 – Shai Agassi, environmental entrepreneur, says, “A few years ago you could barely see an electric car at the Frankfurt Auto Show. If you walked around talking about EVs, everybody assumed you were smoking something.” Violently opposed.

2019 – Richard Branson, Virgin company CEO, says, “We’ve got teams of people trying to develop and work on electric cars, so you never know. You may well find Virgin competing with Tesla in car business as we do in space business. We’ll see what happens.” Accepted as self-evident.

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Whatever car sends a jolt of excitement through your veins, you’ve got to admit that electric vehicles, or EVs, have made huge waves in the industry in the past decade.

Are we ready for the EV revolution?

EV-focused companies such as Tesla certainly generate a lot of buzz these days. Still, many shy away from going electric.

Why?

Perhaps the status quo kicks in. If your parents ride on petrol cars, then you should probably follow their lead, right? Electric might seem like a fad, gathering headlines today and gone tomorrow. Besides, what the heck’s going on under the hood?

Perhaps practicality is an issue. If you don’t know how driving an electric car will compare to what you’re used to, then you don’t want to burn yourself. After all, the price tag bites.

Or maybe you just have no clue which electric car to buy since there’s a damn ton of them on the market.

Whatever worries you, the Mikaniki team is here to set you at ease.

Electric cars are novelty (actually… not really)

Want to know a crazy fact? Electric engines and petrol engines were invented roughly at the same time in the 18^th century. So much for novel technology, right? The first EV was an electric wagon used for public transport in the US.

True, electric cars fell off the grid for some time. The reason had to do as much with battery technology barriers as with major car industry conspiracy.

You heard it right, conspiracy.

Ford motors allegedly bought public electric wagons only to dismantle them with the goal of pushing forward more profitable petrol cars. Money grabbers and bureaucrats, duh.

What’s under the hood?

Imagine a furry, hard-working mouse running on a wheel. Pretend the wheel connects to another similar wheel so that when the first wheel moves, the second does as well. Hooray, you’re ready for your engineering test!

Just kidding.

The underlying principle holds true though. The mouse acts as a battery, the first wheel as a motor controller, and the second wheel as an electric engine. Together those three form the heart of an electric vehicle.

If you’re sharp, you can argue that a similar analogy applies to petrol cars. The crucial difference is that petrol cars have more parts between the first and the second wheel.

Pros and cons

Pros

• Cost efficient. The distance travelled at a fuel cost of $1.00 is nearly four times as far with an electric vehicle. Plus less maintenance required.
• Extremely fast and smooth acceleration compared to petrol cars.
• No noise. None at all (not really a pro if you’re a pro petrolhead who likes to hear rumbling V8s and whining V12s).

Cons:

• Recharging is a headache (Anywhere from 30 minutes to 8 friggin’ hours depending on battery type).
• Replacing the battery will cost between $5,000 and $15,000. Also, a high price tag compared to traditional cars.
• Limited travel distance compared to traditional cars

Top 3 models of 2020

Here are 3 of our favourite EVs:

1. Tesla Model 3

Why? Because it’s Tesla, and it’s their flagship car, and customer reviews are blazing. Enough said.

2. Hyondai KONA

The best value-for-money offering in its class. Huge travelling distance that gives its premium cousins a run for their money. Comfort is decent as well.

3. Jaguar I-Pace

The most stylish electric car in the world, and it’s no slouch by any means either.

Electric cars are the future. I mean, it’s only a matter of time before we get more “ElectriCities.”

Whether you decide to wait for batteries to improve or prices to go down, the choice is yours. But the hype is real.

Stay tuned to Mikaniki for more on EVs.