The problem with that is people think we can transition entirely to electric cars. We can't. It's the scale.
Why do they cost so much? Not the frame, but the battery. Those big, long-range batteries require rare earths. We don't have enough to put everyone in an electric car, not even if we stopped making all the other things we make with those materials -- which we can't, because they're already in other important things. So far, every innovation in better batteries has used rare materials.
Unless one of the people working on biological batteries discovers one with features equal to or better than rare earth batteries, electric cars will remain a fringe item. Not because people don't want them, but because there aren't enough resources to replace more than a fraction of combustion cars.
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dancing_serpent
Well ...
Date: 2018-08-12 06:01 pm (UTC)Why do they cost so much? Not the frame, but the battery. Those big, long-range batteries require rare earths. We don't have enough to put everyone in an electric car, not even if we stopped making all the other things we make with those materials -- which we can't, because they're already in other important things. So far, every innovation in better batteries has used rare materials.
Unless one of the people working on biological batteries discovers one with features equal to or better than rare earth batteries, electric cars will remain a fringe item. Not because people don't want them, but because there aren't enough resources to replace more than a fraction of combustion cars.