At this year’s Car Show in Geneva, one of the biggest trends was electric cars. Several large manufacturers showcased their electric models, both concept and production. So what should we expect over the next few years?
British Gas recently announced a partnership deal with Nissan that allows customers who own the Nissan Leaf to have home charging points installed. They will also help owners to install solar panels on their house to make charging their car much greener.
The Nissan Leaf is now available to test drive at showrooms across the country and claims to be cheaper to run than similar petrol models. Installation of the charging points is not free however and will cost consumers £995 to install. A full charge of the Leaf takes 8 hours and costs less than £2. In good weather conditions (cold weather detrimentally affects the battery) this charge could see you travel 100 miles making it an option for short trip commuters.
Nissan also unveiled it’s purely electric run car, the ESFLOW which is a concept sports car with stunningly good looks.
With electric car sales expected to grow and account for 10% of all car sales by 2020; BMW, Rolls Royce and Ford all have made announcements about their electric car ranges.
BMW will be launching the BMW i range in 2013 starting with the BMW i3, an urban four seater model followed by the i8 which wouldn’t look out of place in the film Tron.
Ford has bucked the trend with announcement of the Ford Focus Electric set for release later this year. Unlike several other electric powered vehicles, the electric Focus has a liquid heated battery which
“can accept a charge faster from the regenerative braking that recaptures kinetic energy and sends it back to the battery, essentially providing longer range for the customer in real world cold weather conditions.”
- Sherif Marakby, Ford director of Electrification Programs and Engineering.
Rolls Royce surprisingly showcased their car dubbed the Phantom Experimental Electric.
With more hybrid models coming onto the market consumers are gradually getting used to different ways to fuel their cars but until questions over where to charge, charging times and the distance you can travel are answered by manufactures uptake will continue to be slow.
Have you ever tested driven or do you own an electric car? We’d love to hear what you thought, please review your electric car experience here.
