E.+Persuasive+research+essay

Janis Plotnieks1/17/2011


 * Electric cars against petrol cars.**

It is not a secret that in last few years people have become much more interested in healthy living, protecting the environment and new technologies, such as cars, electricity, mostly things that can help people live easier. The automobile has become very important part of today's society. The reasonable thing to start, if there is need for a changes in somebody's life, is a car. Unfortunately, in these days the car has a very destructive nature. So, it would not be surprising if many people start to think about an electric car,or at least a hybrid. There are many reasons why electric cars are better than petrol cars, the best is that, they are much more environmentally safe and economic. Electric vehicles (can be shortened in text as EV) can be a good answer to many 21st century problems. For example environmental, such as, the smog, global warming, CO2. Money problems, like cost for the gas, auto parts and services, and even safety problems.

Electric car affects the environment the most. Everyone knows that electric cars are better for the environment and people are really trying to "go green" if not for themselves, than at least for their grandchildren. Electric cars are vehicles that use a rechargable energy in the efforts to establish of a better fuel economy. That means that electric cars reduce the amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere by using electricity instead of burning gasoline. According to the Department of Energy's Energy Inormation Administrative (EIA) website," a gallon of gas produces about 3 times its weight, or more than 19 pounds of CO2. The EIA says that solar battery power produces between 1.3 and 1.5 pounds of CO2 per kilowatt hour", which is about 4 times a smaller amount, than for a gas car (Life123). And since scientists are arguing about saving the world from global warming and the ozone layer, the electric car could be our saver. But, not only because of the reduced CO2 amount, but because electric cars are not run by gas. That basically saves the world's oil reserves and there is one more thing less to worry about, beacause electricity is a renewable resource, which is mostly produced from coal.

In the last two decades, gas prices have climed very high. However, there is always an alternative for gas. If somebody is woried about gas prices and are wondering if, can they afford it, then they should really start to think about buying an electric car. Buying an electric car might be a little more expensive than regular fuel one, but "it's a long term investment" ("Carsbetter"). For every 100 miles that has been driven with a electric car, there is a possibility to get back ~ 2-3% of its price, compared to a regular fueled car. In addition it would take about ten years or more to get the money back from the high premium that has been paid to purchase the vehicle. "The average price for electricity spent for 100 miles on EV is $2.40" (Electricinter). "Prices for the first electric vehicle range from the low $30,000's to mid $40,000's" ("Toyota"). However,it is not only about the purchasing. Taxes are cheaper for EV too, especially in highly developed countries, where the government is trying to popularize rechargable vehicles and put the refueling stations in the parking lots, like in some places USA. Electric cars are also expected to have lower maintenance costs, since they have fewer moving parts, there is no need even to get an oil change every half a year. These details can make car maintenance much cheaper, than for a gas vehicle.

If manufacturers want people to buy new and technologicay, like electric cars, they should not be lazy with the look of the car and stay behind in the measures of safety. Electric vehicles are very safe, because they are produced by major companies and meet all safety requirements. As the EV becomes more popular the safety record is being monitored. "To date, findings are positive and have shown that numerous electric vehicles maximize safety. For example, electric cars have a lower center of gravity that makes them less likely to roll over" (Slate). EV's have also less potential for major fires or explosions. "And the body construction and durability of EVs enhance the vehicle safety in an accident" ("Ehow"). The other safe thing is the sound. Electric vehicles have almost no sound effects. EV's help to avoid explosions, because there is no grating effect in the cars exhaust pipe. I have driven an EV by myself and I have to admit, that it is so silent, that can not even notice that the car is turned on. If there is a myth about getting a shock from electric car while driving in the rain. "Electric vehicles have multiple layers of safety built in. In a gas car, the battery uses the chassis for its ground, which means the current path actually passes through the body of the car. The battery pack in an EV does not. It's called a "floating" system, which is completely electrically isolated from the chassis. In fact, some components, such as the speed controller and charger, will not function if they detect a current path to the chassis, even in milliamps" ("Electro automotive").

Nothing is ever as beautiful as it might look like. Even an electric car has some problems. The electric car is not fully comparable to the gas car yet. It cannot reach high speeds because EV engines are made to maximally save electricity produced while driving. These cars are great for short range city driving, because "an average EV can work for about 24kwh which contains approximately 100 miles(differs from manufacturer)" ("Toyota). The main reason why peoples are so sceptical about EV's, because of "the time needed to charge the vehicle battery is too long. It takes 12 hours, and so it has to be done overnight. The charging stations are far and few, so in the day you cannot take the risk of recharging the battery" (EVcons). Most importantly, if you mess up the distance to be traveled and are out of charge, well, then, there will be a big time trouble! Let us think about it. If everybody in the world had an electric car, and they all would be plugged in for a night charge, do you think that something could possibly go wrong? Well, "German scientists had came to the conclusion that with more than one million vehicles plugged in the same time, the same night, the same region, load managment is essential, but a smart grid is not enough, according to the study. A lot of electricity storage is needed as well" (Erik Palm) The electric car is a great choice for future drivers because gas cars will soon become too expensive, pollution might soon just kill us, ot the same thing can happen to us if we explode in the gas fueled car, however a lot of time will pass before people really understands the importance of electric vehicle.

SITES : "How Will Electric Cars Help the Environment? - Life123." //Articles and Answers about Life - Life123//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. [].

data[i].byline +. "Are electric vehicles really any better for the environment than gas-guzzling cars? - By Brendan I. Koerner - Slate Magazine ." //Slate Magazine//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. <http://www.slate.com/id/217960

"Are Electric Cars Better for the Environment? : Discovery News." //Discovery News: Earth, Space, Tech, Animals, Dinosaurs, History//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. [].

"Why Are Electric Cars Better for the Environment? | eHow.com." //eHow | How To Do Just About Everything! | How To Videos & Articles//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. [].

Are Electric Cars Cheaper to Run? Pros and Cons : Product Reviews Net." //Product Reviews Net//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. [].

Palm, Erik. " Study: Electric cars not as green as you think - PriusChat Forums." //PriusChat | Toyota Prius Forums, News, and Accessories//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .