The Unfamiliar Sensation of a Vibrating Car

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Yesterday I drove the petrol car for the first time in a while. I did it for two reasons. The first is that I didn’t feel like waiting five hours for the car to charge. Especially since it was cold, and rain was predicted. I also drove the petrol car because I wanted to run the engine and charge the battery, rather than letting it gradually degrade, from lack of use.

In the process I felt an unfamiliar sensation. The sensation of a car vibrating as I drove it. The sensation of a noisy car, with the sound of the engine running. It got me to think about future generations of children, who may never get into a vibrating car.

Future Generations Will be Unfamiliar with Vibrating Cars

Imagine, several years from now, when almost everyone has an electric car we will be familiar with linear acceleration with no gears, no noise of engines. It will just be a smooth ride. The culture shock between being in a diesel car and a petrol car was already pronounced. Now, with electric cars, the sensation will be even greater.

Recharge as You See Family and Friends

Out of curiousity I checked the price of an energy refill at a recharging station near where someone lives. It’s 50 centimes per kilowatt of power. That’s about twenty swiss francs to refill a 42 kilowatt battery to full, from completely flat. In practice a car should be much higher than that, so the price for a charge, whilst you have coffee or dinner would be smaller.

The Primitive Petrol Car

It’s funny to see how primitive a petrol car feels after three or four weeks of using an electric car. Acceleration feels more sluggish. It vibrates, it’s noisy. Its driving assistance is more primitive. Slowing down doesn’t regenerate power. It just feels like a different era.

The Freedom of Petrol

If I had a power socket in my garage driving electric cars would feel liberating because as soon as I get home I could plug it in and charge the battery, in anticipation of my next drive. As things are now, I can’t. As a result of this driving the petrol car felt liberating. You have “unlimited range” in a petrol car. You refill every 800 kilometres. The one drawback is that refilling a petrol car costs 2 francs per litre, so 80-100 francs per refuelling. Spending 100 CHF per week is not a freedom. Neither is paying 20 CHF per 200 kilometres. If you refill fast electric cars cost the same as petrol. If you recharge slowly electric cars are cheaper.

And Finally

I look forward to a future where children have never been in a petrol driven car. Electric cars are comfortable to drive and manoeuvre and they are easy to charge, once you have an electric plug. I look forward to a future where cars are driven by driver assistance rather than human beings. With driver assistance you supervise the car, and it does the rest. You look for dangers, and you’re ready to act, but it takes care of the tedious part of driving.

Children that have never been in a petrol car will see electric cars as normal, and think nothing of the limitations. Electric cars are quiet and clean, compared to petrol cars. I look forward to a future where electric cars have become the norm.