Introduced over a century ago, electric cars are experiencing a resurgence in popularity today, echoing many of the reasons behind their initial appeal. As prices become more accessible and consumers seek cost-effective alternatives at the fuel pump, the demand for electric drive vehicles – be they hybrid, plug-in hybrid, or all-electric – is set to increase. Currently representing more than 3 percent of new vehicle sales, projections indicate that electric vehicle sales could surge to nearly 7 percent globally by 2020, equating to 6.6 million vehicles annually, as highlighted in a report by Navigant Research. This growing fascination with electric vehicles prompts us to delve into the history of this technology and explore its trajectory into the future. Join us on a journey back in time as we uncover the captivating story of the electric car.
The Genesis of the Electric Vehicle
Attributing the invention of the electric car to a single inventor or nation is challenging. Instead, its creation was the result of cumulative advancements – from the invention of the battery to the electric motor – throughout the 1800s, culminating in the first electric vehicles on the road.
Early in the 19th century, innovators across Hungary, the Netherlands, and the United States, including a Vermont blacksmith, began experimenting with the concept of battery-powered vehicles, developing some of the earliest small-scale electric cars. While Robert Anderson, a British inventor, pioneered the first rudimentary electric carriage around the same period, it wasn’t until the latter half of the 19th century that French and English inventors crafted some of the first truly practical electric cars.
In the U.S., the first successful electric car debuted around 1890, thanks to William Morrison, a chemist residing in Des Moines, Iowa. His six-passenger vehicle, capable of a top speed of 14 miles per hour, was essentially an electrified wagon, yet it played a crucial role in igniting interest in electric vehicles.
Over the ensuing years, electric vehicles from various manufacturers began to emerge across the U.S. New York City even boasted a fleet of over 60 electric taxis. By 1900, electric cars had reached their zenith, constituting approximately one-third of all vehicles on the roads. Their strong sales continued throughout the following decade.
Alt text: A vintage car article image depicting William Morrison’s 1890 electric vehicle, a pioneering model in early automotive history.
The Initial Rise and Decline of the Electric Car
To fully grasp the popularity of electric vehicles around 1900, it’s essential to consider the evolution of personal transportation and the available alternatives. At the dawn of the 20th century, horses remained the primary mode of transport. However, as prosperity grew in America, people turned to the newly invented motor vehicle – available in steam, gasoline, or electric variants – for personal mobility.
Steam power was a well-established energy source, proven reliable for factories and trains. Some of the earliest self-propelled vehicles in the late 1700s utilized steam. Yet, steam technology didn’t gain traction in cars until the 1870s, partly due to its impracticality for personal vehicles. Steam cars required lengthy start-up times, sometimes up to 45 minutes in cold weather, and needed frequent water refills, limiting their range.
As electric vehicles entered the market, so did gasoline-powered cars, fueled by advancements in the internal combustion engine during the 1800s. While gasoline cars showed promise, they were not without drawbacks. They demanded considerable manual effort to operate – gear changes were cumbersome, and starting them required a hand crank, making them challenging for some. They were also noisy, and their exhaust was unpleasant.
Electric cars sidestepped the issues associated with steam and gasoline. They were quiet, easy to drive, and emitted no foul-smelling pollutants, unlike other vehicles of the era. Electric cars rapidly gained favor among urban dwellers, particularly women. They were ideal for short city trips, and the poor road conditions outside urban areas restricted the range of all types of cars. As electricity access expanded in the 1910s, charging electric cars became simpler, further boosting their popularity across society, even among some of the “best known and prominent makers of gasoline cars,” as noted in a 1911 New York Times article.
Many innovators of the time recognized the high demand for electric vehicles and explored ways to enhance the technology. Ferdinand Porsche, founder of the renowned sports car company, developed an electric car named the P1 in 1898. Around the same time, he created the world’s first hybrid electric car, a vehicle powered by both electricity and a gasoline engine. Thomas Edison, a prolific inventor, believed electric vehicles were the superior technology and dedicated efforts to developing a better electric vehicle battery. Even Henry Ford, a friend of Edison, collaborated with him to explore options for a low-cost electric car in 1914, according to Wired.
However, it was Henry Ford’s mass-produced Model T that dealt a significant blow to the electric car. Introduced in 1908, the Model T made gasoline-powered cars widely accessible and affordable. By 1912, a gasoline car cost just $650, while an electric roadster sold for $1,750. In the same year, Charles Kettering introduced the electric starter, eliminating the need for the hand crank and further propelling gasoline vehicle sales.
Other developments also contributed to the electric vehicle’s decline. By the 1920s, the U.S. had a more developed road network connecting cities, and Americans desired to explore beyond urban limits. The discovery of Texas crude oil made gasoline cheap and readily available in rural areas, and filling stations began proliferating across the country. Conversely, electricity access outside cities remained limited at the time. Ultimately, electric vehicles virtually vanished by 1935.
Alt text: An archival car article photograph showcasing a 1912 Baker Electric car, representing the early 20th-century electric vehicle era.
Gas Shortages Spark Renewed Interest in Electric Vehicles
For the next three decades, electric vehicles entered a period of stagnation, with minimal technological progress. Cheap, abundant gasoline and continuous improvements in the internal combustion engine suppressed demand for alternative fuel vehicles.
Fast forward to the late 1960s and early 1970s. Spiraling oil prices and gasoline shortages – culminating in the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo – fueled growing interest in reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil and finding domestic fuel sources. Congress responded by passing the Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1976, authorizing the Energy Department to support research and development in electric and hybrid vehicles.
Around this time, numerous automakers, both large and small, began exploring alternative fuel vehicle options, including electric cars. For instance, General Motors developed a prototype urban electric car, displayed at the Environmental Protection Agency’s First Symposium on Low Pollution Power Systems Development in 1973. American Motor Company produced electric delivery jeeps, which the United States Postal Service used in a 1975 test program. NASA also boosted the profile of electric vehicles when its electric Lunar rover became the first manned vehicle to drive on the moon in 1971.
However, the electric vehicles developed and produced in the 1970s still suffered from performance limitations compared to gasoline-powered cars. Electric vehicles of this era typically had top speeds of 45 miles per hour, and their range was usually limited to 40 miles before requiring a recharge.
Alt text: A historic car article image of the Lunar Rover, an electric vehicle, on the moon, highlighting NASA’s contribution to EV technology in 1971.
Environmental Concerns Propel Electric Vehicles Forward
Advancing to the 1990s, two decades after the gas lines of the 1970s, public interest in electric vehicles had largely waned. However, new federal and state regulations began to shift the landscape. The passage of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendment and the 1992 Energy Policy Act, coupled with new transportation emissions regulations from the California Air Resources Board, helped reignite interest in electric vehicles in the U.S.
During this period, automakers started adapting some of their popular vehicle models into electric versions. This meant that electric vehicles now achieved speeds and performance levels much closer to gasoline-powered counterparts, with many offering a range of 60 miles.
One of the most recognized electric cars of this era was GM’s EV1, famously featured in the 2006 documentary Who Killed the Electric Car? GM designed and developed the EV1 from the ground up, rather than modifying an existing model. With an 80-mile range and the ability to accelerate from 0 to 50 miles per hour in just seven seconds, the EV1 quickly gained a cult following. However, due to high production costs, the EV1 was never commercially viable, and GM discontinued it in 2001.
With a thriving economy, a growing middle class, and low gasoline prices in the late 1990s, many consumers were not focused on fuel-efficient vehicles. Despite limited public attention to electric vehicles at the time, scientists and engineers, supported by the Energy Department, continued to work on improving electric vehicle technology, particularly batteries, behind the scenes.
Alt text: A car article image of the GM EV1, a pioneering electric vehicle from the 1990s, notable for its advanced design and limited commercial success.
A New Dawn for Electric Cars
While the intermittent advancements of the electric vehicle industry in the latter half of the 20th century demonstrated the technology’s potential, the true resurgence of the electric vehicle began around the turn of the 21st century. Depending on perspective, either of two events ignited the current interest in electric vehicles.
The first significant turning point, as many suggest, was the introduction of the Toyota Prius. Launched in Japan in 1997, the Prius became the world’s first mass-produced hybrid electric vehicle. In 2000, the Prius was released globally, achieving instant success, especially among celebrities, which helped elevate the car’s profile. Toyota utilized a nickel metal hydride battery in the Prius, a technology supported by Energy Department research. Since then, rising gasoline prices and increasing concerns about carbon pollution have made the Prius the best-selling hybrid globally over the past decade.
(Historical note: Before the Prius’s U.S. debut, Honda released the Insight hybrid in 1999, making it the first hybrid sold in the U.S. since the early 1900s.)
The other pivotal event was the 2006 announcement by a small Silicon Valley startup, Tesla Motors, that it would produce a luxury electric sports car capable of traveling over 200 miles on a single charge. In 2010, Tesla received a $465 million loan from the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office – a loan Tesla repaid nine years ahead of schedule – to establish a manufacturing facility in California. In the short time since, Tesla has garnered widespread acclaim for its vehicles and become the largest auto industry employer in California.
Tesla’s announcement and subsequent success spurred many major automakers to accelerate their electric vehicle programs. In late 2010, the Chevy Volt and Nissan LEAF were launched in the U.S. market. The Volt, the first commercially available plug-in hybrid, features a gasoline engine to supplement its electric drive once the battery is depleted, allowing electric driving for most trips with gasoline backup for extended range. In contrast, the LEAF is an all-electric vehicle (also known as a battery-electric vehicle or simply EV), powered solely by an electric motor.
Over the following years, other automakers began introducing electric vehicles in the U.S. However, consumers still faced a challenge reminiscent of early electric car days – charging infrastructure. Through the Recovery Act, the Energy Department invested over $115 million to help build a nationwide charging infrastructure, installing more than 18,000 residential, commercial, and public chargers across the country. Automakers and private businesses also established their charging networks in key U.S. locations, bringing the current total of public electric vehicle chargers to over 8,000 locations with more than 20,000 outlets.
Concurrently, new battery technologies, supported by the Energy Department’s Vehicle Technologies Office, began entering the market, improving the range of plug-in electric vehicles. In addition to battery technology in almost all first-generation hybrids, Department research contributed to the development of lithium-ion battery technology used in the Volt. More recently, the Department’s investment in battery research and development has helped reduce electric vehicle battery costs by 50 percent in the last four years, while simultaneously enhancing battery performance (power, energy, and durability). This cost reduction has made electric vehicles more affordable for consumers.
Consumers now have a wider range of electric vehicle choices than ever before. Today, there are 23 plug-in electric and 36 hybrid models available in various sizes, from the two-passenger Smart ED to the midsize Ford C-Max Energi to the BMW i3 luxury SUV. As gasoline prices continue to rise and electric vehicle prices decrease, electric vehicles are gaining popularity, with over 234,000 plug-in electric vehicles and 3.3 million hybrids currently on U.S. roads.
Alt text: A modern car article image featuring the Nissan LEAF, a contemporary all-electric vehicle, representing the current resurgence of EVs.
The Future Trajectory of Electric Cars
Predicting the precise future of electric vehicles is challenging, but their potential for creating a more sustainable future is undeniable. If all light-duty vehicles in the U.S. transitioned to hybrids or plug-in electric vehicles using current technology, we could reduce our dependence on foreign oil by 30-60 percent while decreasing carbon pollution from the transportation sector by as much as 20 percent.
To help achieve these emissions reductions, President Obama launched the EV Everywhere Grand Challenge in 2012, an Energy Department initiative uniting America’s top scientists, engineers, and businesses to make plug-in electric vehicles as affordable as today’s gasoline-powered vehicles by 2022. In battery technology, the Department’s Joint Center for Energy Storage Research at Argonne National Laboratory is working to overcome the significant scientific and technical barriers hindering large-scale battery improvements.
Furthermore, the Department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) is advancing groundbreaking technologies that could revolutionize electric vehicles. From investing in new battery types that extend range on a single charge to cost-effective alternatives for materials critical to electric motors, ARPA-E’s projects have the potential to transform electric vehicles.
Ultimately, only time will reveal the future path of electric vehicles. However, their journey so far, as detailed in these Car Articles, demonstrates a compelling and evolving story of innovation, adaptation, and growing significance in the automotive world.
