Return trip for electric vehicles
The electric car, derided as impractical by automakers since General Motors Corp. pulled the plug on its revolutionary EV1, is staging a comeback amid lofty fuel prices and persistent worries about the nation's dependence on imported oil.
GM, the chief villain in the recent documentary "Who Killed the Electric Car?" intends to announce plans for a new family of electric vehicles as the annual North American International Auto Show in Detroit begins a four-day media preview today.
In addition, Ford Motor Co. will unveil a hydrogen-powered electric car concept of its own and Toyota Motor Corp. is ready to announce major improvements in the batteries used in its popular Prius gasoline-electric hybrid. The enhancements could extend the five-seat sedan's all-electric range and boost overall fuel economy to as much as 90 miles per gallon.
Electric cars: An article in Sunday's Business section about automakers' plans to revive electric-powered cars said auto technology analyst Roland Hwang was with the Union of Concerned Scientists. Hwang is with the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Toyota won't comment on its plans, but GM executives said last month that they believed electric power -- from onboard generators, hydrogen fuel cells and even household current -- would drive most vehicles of the future.
"The world has changed" since the EV1 project was killed in 2002, said Beth Lowery, GM's vice president for energy and environmental issues.
GM's plan "is very aggressive, and if they really go forward it gives them the potential to leapfrog the competition," said Roland Hwang, senior auto technology analyst with the Union of Concerned Scientists.
Ford's concept is similar to the vehicle GM will unveil, an electric car that powers its drive system with a generator.
But Ford has started with an advanced emission-free system. It produces power by converting hydrogen and oxygen into electricity in a small fuel cell mounted under the passenger compartment. GM's system, though it can be adapted to run on fuel cells, uses a gasoline-burning internal combustion engine to generate energy for the electric drive.
Production of the cars for the retail market depends on advances in battery technology to increase the amount of energy they can store. And, in Ford's case, further work in fuel cells as well as the development of a nationwide hydrogen fuel distribution system would be needed. A Ford insider said its fuel cell could be replaced with a gasoline or diesel generator to get to market earlier.
