Whether you’re an SUV or a coupé driver, we all need the right car to get from A to B.
Electric cars are quickly gaining popularity as an alternative to petrol-powered vehicles as they can be more sustainable, easier to maintain and more efficient.
But electric cars aren’t exactly new, with the first models existing as early as the 1800s. The 1920s saw the increasing availability of petroleum, so petrol-powered cars were suddenly cheaper to run, which made them more popular.
We’re seeing a drastic resurgence in the popularity of the electric car thanks to several standouts, including the BMW i3, Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Volt, as well as other models produced by Mitsubishi and Renault.
This modern revival can be attributed to the increasing availability of plug-in technology, which has allowed owners to charge their cars quickly at home, and more powerful lithium-ion batteries that allow them to travel over longer distances.
In the 2010s, US states started offering incentives for public charging stations making long-distance travel a much more viable option for electric car owners.
Further, there are now companies beginning to develop wireless charging for electric cars, making the charging process that much easier and less involved.
A paper published by the Climate Council of Australia suggested that houses using battery storage could have the option to use their car’s battery to store excess energy and further increase their system efficiency.
As these vehicles continue to grow in popularity, it’s likely we’ll see much more integration with other new technology, such as home battery storage powered by solar, which can help make travelling by electric car even more sustainable.
The idea of autonomous vehicles, self-driving cars or driver-assisting vehicles is growing more popular every day, as technology and safety continue to improve.
In the case of driverless cars, we’ve already started to see much more involved versions of driver-assist in current models. There’s also parking assist technology and emergency brakes. This evolved further with Volvo testing a car that can balance driver involvement with autonomous modes over long distances.
These vehicles could be fully autonomous in certain circumstances but need driver involvement in other, more complicated situations, such as self-correcting to avoid collisions through smarter braking and sensor technology.
Another avenue for assisted driving is already in use and is the evolution of sensor technology. Google Glass and Microsoft Hololens offer augmented reality to help you live your everyday life. In a car, this means smart windscreens that can use light displays to show you where to turn or tell you what song is playing so your eyes are always on the road.
Security has also come a long way. You only need to look in your pocket to see where most of our future technology is going.
The smartphone pioneered many modern technologies that will likely spread to other areas in a few years. One technology, in particular, is biometric operation.
Most newer cars have keyless entry and start, but before long that key in your pocket will likely be gone and replaced with a thumbprint.
It may sound like something out of a spy movie, but a thumbprint can be much harder to trick for security and insurance purposes than a radio signal or a key.
Biometric operation could be a huge benefit to law enforcement and insurance companies. Being able to tell who is driving a car at any one time and the ability to deactivate it remotely could help keep the roads safer.
With technology racing faster than ever, driving could be a different experience. Whether you look at security, connectivity or interactivity, getting from A to B will be smarter than ever before.
Keep reading to discover the benefits of owning an electric car.
