What Is an Electric Vehicle?

Figure 1-4 Electric vehicle systems.

was as before (although today’s advanced electric vehicle designs don’t even need the transmission and drive shaft).

A simple diagram of an electric vehicle looks like a simple diagram of a portable electric shaver: a battery, a motor, and a controller or switch that adjusts the flow of electricity to the motor to control its speed. That’s it. Nothing comes out of your electric shaver and nothing comes out of your electric car. EVs are simple (therefore highly reliable), have lifetimes measured in millions of miles, need no periodic maintenance (filters, etc.), and cost significantly less per mile to operate. They are highly flexible as well, using electric energy readily available anywhere as input fuel.

In addition to all these benefits, if you buy, build, or convert your electric vehicle from an internal combustion engine vehicle chassis as suggested in this book, you perform a double service for the environment: You remove one polluting car from the road and add one nonpolluting electric vehicle to service.

You’ve had a quick tour and side-by-side comparison of electric vehicles and internal combustion engine vehicles. Now let’s take a closer look at electric vehicles.

An electric vehicle consists of a battery that provides energy, an electric motor that drives the wheels, and a controller that regulates the energy flow to the motor. Figure 1-5 shows all there is to it—but don’t be fooled by its simplicity. Scientists, engineers, and inventors down through the ages have always said, “In simplicity there is elegance.” Let’s find out why the electric vehicle concept is elegant.