It’s no surprise that the electric car is taking over the car market. But are they actually any good? I’ll be looking at it from a consumer’s point of view and from a potential environmental point as well because for all we are told, it doesn’t seem to be that black and white.
The good?
Although it will be debated later, it is hard to deny the fact that electric cars will be better for the planet. The lack of a combustion engine means it doesn’t emit any CO2 and thus reducing our carbon footprint. Aside from that, electric cars allow for a new generation of technology to come through. A main focal point is the massive touchscreen pads. With many complain that this could be a distraction to drivers and could cause a serious hazard, but they think that it is more useful than it is dangerous. With the ability to make handless calls, listen to music and many other features that are to come, it is a great addition to the car and allows for the tech industry to thrive and produce more driving new innovations. The technology behind a self-driving car is extremely complicated but very interesting. The number of sensors and cameras needed and the coding aspects which have to take into account billions of situations at once may lead us to question whether we will need to drive at all anymore. Having seen the success that Tesla and Elon Musk has had at the moment it’s clear that we might be heading in this direction. This again opens up a whole new world of innovation for tech companies and car makers a like to create new and improved ways to maximise the self-driving aspect. The self-driving has come a long way from where it was first introduced and we are still seeing companies like google and even Apple trying to build an electric car and make them completely autonomous. Whether or not these cars are gonna be any good is another question in itself
For many, including myself, the idea of electric cars seems counterproductive. Although the cars themselves will not emit carbon emissions all the time. The way these cars are made is still not environmentally sound. Firstly, the lithium from within these batteries has to come from somewhere and this is done by digging massive holes in the ground, which itself is destroying areas around the world. And there is a finite amount of lithium in the world and thus will run out eventually. This is only of the many issues that electric car faces. From this, the lithium from the batteries has to be shipped from the said country to another country on a boat to be turned into batteries to then be shipped back to other countries to then be placed in the car and then be shipped again around the world. A famous clip from Jeremy Clarkson is a great example of how the challenge we face to make these cars environmentally friendly.But for those who are interested in cars, I think the thing that would trouble the most the the fact that they are losing the sense of what a car is. With everything being simply done for you, there is no sense of you and the car anymore. Driving for those is a hobby and is something they enjoy, the worry is that it will now just become “one of those things”. You lose the magic in the sense of a car. I think that despite the benefits of an electric car, they will never be able to replace the feeling and the sensation of an internal computation engine which is why I wish to still be driving in one for as long as possible. I could’ve used stats and figures but that’s not what this is about. It’s simply a matter of opinion
No responses yet