{"id":633900,"date":"2018-10-24T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-10-23T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/latest-news\/articles\/the-electric-vehicle-renaissance\/"},"modified":"2019-03-04T10:01:44","modified_gmt":"2019-03-04T09:01:44","slug":"the-electric-vehicle-renaissance","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/articles\/the-electric-vehicle-renaissance\/","title":{"rendered":"The Electric Vehicle Renaissance"},"featured_media":645676,"template":"","meta":{"_has_post_settings":[]},"schools":[29],"areas":[21,23,26],"subjects":[],"class_list":["post-633900","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","schools-business-school","areas-innovation","areas-smart-society","areas-technology"],"custom-fields":{"wpcf-article-leadin":["Electric vehicles are just now starting to gain traction in the market, but their history dates back to the 19th and 20th centuries. After 150 years, very real alternatives to fossil fuels are finally within reach, thanks to companies like Tesla that are initiating a paradigm shift in the automotive industry."],"wpcf-article-body":["Although progress varies by country, the electric-vehicle industry is developing worldwide, thanks to the involvement of numerous players. Beyond the efforts of auto manufacturers and energy companies, the shift to electric cars requires a new mindset on the part of authorities, lawmakers<\/a>, and consumers. Indeed, the next decade will be crucial for efforts to definitively launch this new mobility concept, which represents a key step towards economic sustainability and an ideal complement for smart cities<\/a>.\r\n\r\nThis period of innovation<\/a> will be characterized by geopolitical tensions that will directly impact the automotive industry, which understands that the shift to electric cars is unstoppable. Automotive stock prices provide the first hint of what\u2019s to come. Classic manufacturers with more than a century in the business\u2014General Motors, Ford, Fiat, etc.\u2014have been surpassed by companies like Tesla, which was born with an electric philosophy just over a decade ago and now offers self-driving models. Elon Musk\u2019s firm has outdone companies with a 100-year track record and is fostering a paradigm shift in vehicle consumption\u2014not unlike what has happened in retail since the advent of Amazon.\r\n
The next decade will be crucial for efforts to definitively launch this new mobility concept, which represents a key step towards economic sustainability and an ideal complement for smart cities.<\/blockquote>\r\nElectric vehicles seem new... but they aren\u2019t<\/strong>\r\n\r\nThe electric car didn\u2019t begin with Tesla. Today\u2019s electric vehicles have their roots in models and patents that date back to the 19th<\/sup> and 20th<\/sup> centuries.\r\n\r\nThe first electric car appeared in 1832, when Robert Anderson invented an electric carriage powered by non-rechargeable power cells. In 1859, Gaston Plant\u00e9 invented the lead-acid battery, the first rechargeable energy-storage technology<\/a>. Nearly 50 years later, the German engineer Nikolaus Otto developed the first internal combustion engine. And in 1899, Ferdinand Porsche manufactured 300 units of the Lohner-Porsche, an electric car that could travel 64\u00a0km on battery power alone.\r\n\r\nThe General Motors EV1 marked the start of the modern age of electric vehicles. Developed in 1990, the EV1 boasted characteristics that would be more than acceptable by today\u2019s standards: a 137-horsepower electric motor, a maximum speed of 130\u00a0km\/h, and a range of 250\u00a0km. Although the EV1 was never released for direct sale<\/a>, it was special because of its symbolism and features\u2014and especially because of its truncated commercial lifespan.\r\n\r\nThe EV1 met a curious fate. With all 1,117 units on the road, the project was a clear success. But then General Motors recalled the vehicles and destroyed them in the Arizona desert. Only one intact EV1 still exists in the United States today\u2014as part of a museum display. Lack of commercial viability was the official reason given by General Motors for interrupting the project so suddenly. The EV1 disappeared from the highways, but not from the dreams of a few visionaries who remained committed to electric mobility.\r\n\r\nThis case reminds us of the power wielded by major automakers and oil companies.\r\n\r\nLet\u2019s not forget that five of the world\u2019s biggest corporations are oil companies, and that some countries have built their entire economy around this resource. But the landscape is poised for dramatic change, now that electric mobility is widely praised by manufacturers, consumers, and politicians and the necessary technology<\/a> is available. This transformation process will bring about a different sort of economy and social sphere.\r\n
This change is coming at the pace of the digital revolution. Before we know it, cars will be defined as a service rather than a product.<\/blockquote>\r\nFrom product to service<\/strong>\r\n\r\nTesla\u2019s soaring stock price exemplifies the speed with which electric mobility has taken hold. Indeed, this change is coming at the pace of the digital revolution. Before we know it, cars will be defined as a service rather than a product\u2014a shift that will redefine company-customer relations. Vehicle maintenance will be performed online by software designed and implemented by the distributor. What will become of the vehicle repair market?\r\n\r\nUnlike other automakers that have dabbled with electric cars, Tesla eschews dealerships, arguing that they add no value for the customer. In Tesla\u2019s view, it makes no sense to use the traditional value chain to sell cars that require almost no maintenance and can usually be repaired remotely.\r\n\r\nNo lobby is powerful enough to stop the changes that are coming. Automotive brands have detected a clear market niche and are working to improve the range, features, and design of their electric vehicles. Infrastructure appears to be the only obstacle. The automakers are ahead of the game; the remaining obstacles involve important issues such as charging-station networks and the capacity to generate electricity from renewable sources. Nobody said it would be easy, but the revolution is already underway.\r\n

\"El<\/p>\r\n \r\n\r\n\u00a9 IE Insights.\r\n\r\n "],"wpcf-article-extract-enable":["1"],"wpcf-article-extract":["By Jos\u00e9 Luis Portela L\u00f3pez<\/strong>. Electric vehicles are just now starting to gain traction in the market, but their history dates..."],"wpcf-article-summary-enable":["1"],"wpcf-article-summary":["Thanks to the involvement of politicians and key players in the energy and automotive industries, electric vehicles are steadily gaining a foothold worldwide. The rise of companies like Tesla has accelerated this process enormously, fostering a macroeconomic paradigm shift. Indeed, Tesla\u2019s stock price has soared over the past decade, outpacing historic automakers like General Motors and Ford. However, the concept of electric mobility is nothing new. Now long forgotten, the first electricity-powered vehicles were invented more than a century ago, and the first electric car of the modern age\u2014the EV1\u2014was undone by pressure from the oil lobby."]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/633900","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/645676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=633900"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"schools","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/schools?post=633900"},{"taxonomy":"areas","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/areas?post=633900"},{"taxonomy":"subjects","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ie.edu\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/subjects?post=633900"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}