want to talk about some of the disadvantages of electric cars for a minute, now.
I'll let you in on the BIG secret of electric vehicles: An electric car conversion has almost none of the disadvantages you'll find in one of the neighborhood electric vehicles - those little cars sometimes unkindly referred to as "golf-carts on steroids". No, electric car conversions are the same as gas-burners in many respects - the insurance company will welcome you with open arms. The Department of Motor Vehicles doesn't treat you any differently. The police won't even notice you, except if you're speeding, which...
...you just might be; )
You'll probably be driving at freeway speeds in your conversion, because you'll have a higher voltage system than the NEVs have, and with most conversions, you can drive it for 50-100 miles between charges, depending on the batteries you choose. If you don't mind spending some money and doing some diligent searching, you can upgrade those, too.
Your safety gear will work just fine. LATCH system, air bags, crumple zones...all meet government safety standards for full-sized, full-speed vehicles.
You can get tires, brakes, windshields, side-mirrors, et cetera at the local auto parts store, or auto glass store, or whatever. The point is that an S-10 is still an S-10, even if you don't have to put gas in it anymore; )
Oops, I'm supposed to be talking about the...
DISadvantages of an electric car conversion
So here they are:
- They're not at the dealership.
For those of us who are looking for electric cars to be lined up at the autoplex beside the Hummers, the conversion is bound to be a HUGE disappointment. You actually have to go looking for them. You might even have to have one built. If you're an enterprising grease-o-phile, you might even build one yourself. - No financing.
You may get financing through your credit union or bank for one of the production electric cars you find at a green car dealership, but probably not for your conversion. They might cost a little less, depending, but the financing issue is a big one for most of us. I mean, how many people do you know with ten thousand or so dollars cash laying around? The gas-guzzlers have the advantage of finance companies associated with their dealerships, and nearly anyone can get credit to buy a fume-farter. - They're not standard.
Meaning not every electric car conversion perform equally well.
Why?
Well, boys won't admit this, but they don't all know what they're doing. Shh; )
It's NOT rocket science to convert a gas-gobbler to electric, in general, but there apparently IS a trick to getting the system to really work well together. The best amateur conversions seem to get built by electrical engineers, and that's probably because they already know a thing or two about how to optimize electrical systems. - If it breaks, who's gonna fix it?
Well, the person who did your conversion, most likely. Or YOU. The good news is, this doesn't happen very often. But it's something to think about. - The best conversions are still small pickup trucks.
Not everybody wants a pickup! Personally, I'd like a Lincoln Navigator converted to electric, but this isn't the best choice with today's technology. Conversions need to be relatively light and aerodynamic (sorry, Navigator; ) while still having the bone structure and storage space to support 750 pounds of bulky batteries. External storage is safest in the event of a crash!