To back up your claim about EV non-viability, I would point to the ~2000 Ford Ranger. While the GM EV-1 gets the spotlight, it was a weird car with a specific purpose. The Ranger, on the other hand, was a very normal vehicle with an EV powertrain shoved in where the gasoline wasn’t. A few hundred were made. It used lead acid batteries, the only viable option at the time. NiMH and NiCd weren’t good for the amperage needed and were expensive by comparison. The Ranger had about a 60 mile range at best and I think 60mph top speed. Great for parks and municipal trucky things, not great for the gen pop. That’s just 25 years ago. Sure, one could argue that the main manufacturers could have done better with actual dedication and less comfort with cheap gasoline, but it doesn’t change that lithium wasn’t commercially viable yet. No other magical source could have appeared either, as even with the current EV push, Li-ion is still the top choice.
Lithium isn’t the long term answer either unless you’re fine with swapping middle eastern and russian human rights abusers with east Asia human rights abusers. The trade war this year has proven china knows right where to squeeze.
To back up your claim about EV non-viability, I would point to the ~2000 Ford Ranger. While the GM EV-1 gets the spotlight, it was a weird car with a specific purpose. The Ranger, on the other hand, was a very normal vehicle with an EV powertrain shoved in where the gasoline wasn’t. A few hundred were made. It used lead acid batteries, the only viable option at the time. NiMH and NiCd weren’t good for the amperage needed and were expensive by comparison. The Ranger had about a 60 mile range at best and I think 60mph top speed. Great for parks and municipal trucky things, not great for the gen pop. That’s just 25 years ago. Sure, one could argue that the main manufacturers could have done better with actual dedication and less comfort with cheap gasoline, but it doesn’t change that lithium wasn’t commercially viable yet. No other magical source could have appeared either, as even with the current EV push, Li-ion is still the top choice.
Lithium isn’t the long term answer either unless you’re fine with swapping middle eastern and russian human rights abusers with east Asia human rights abusers. The trade war this year has proven china knows right where to squeeze.