Hold your horses everyone, let me clarify by saying every type of car and truck could be offered as an EV and still function perfectly well, as good or even better than its fuel-burning counterpart, assuming there’s convenient charging and all that. However, some specific cars – arguably – just don’t or won’t work as EVs.
Case in point, and Torch has made the case: the Mazda Miata.
Could Mazda build a fun electric roadster? For sure. Should it be a Miata? Absolutely not. Such a car could be as real rocket, but no lightweight, and Miatas aren’t meant to be rockets anyway. But they are meant to be lightweight, tossable cars. Jason:
EV powertrains are high-torque, high power, smooth, and fast. Those are great, but they’re not really what I think would be part of Miata DNA? And even with some clever body lightening techniques (will this resulting car look like a trypophobic’s nightmare?) can it match or even beat a current Miata’s weight of 2,300 to 2,500 pounds?
Similarly, I don’t think an electric Corvette would work. GM could certainly build an electric supercar, but don’t make it a Corvette. Yes, yes, I recall the E-Ray, and I can get behind a little e-boosting, but an all-electric Corvette would just feel wrong, to me. As the ultimate expression of high-performance American internal combustion, a Corvette packing a slab of batteries would be a Corvette in name alone, no matter how much quicker it is than the fastest gas-burning variety.
What say you? See you in the comments.
Top graphic image: GM
I don’t understand the vitriol on the Corvette. It comes across like an old man shouting at the clouds. Might as well claim that the early 6-cylinder Corvettes weren’t real corvettes.
Corvette is the “everyman’s” sportscar; it just needs a pricetag that’s attainable.
As for EVs, the speed is the easy part, they would just need to work on the packaging and make the everyman’s version of the Rimac Nevara.
Saying never is a pretty big commitment as batteries get more energy dense and lighter they could work in many cases including small sports cars. With today’s technology a true sports car does not make any sense. Overlanding unless you go EREV which would be beneficial with the onboard battery for powering needed items.
Most appliance vehicles should be EV or at least hybrid.
“packing a slab of batteries would be a Corvette in name alone”
Like the “Mustang Mach E” SUV?
E for Edge “Mustang?”
That abomination of a car is so full of cynicism that it should be a VW, BMW or Mercedes. They did the same in Europe to the venerable Capri moniker – and to add injury to insult they just reclad a f***ing ID.4.
Overlanding rigs (Land Cruisers and Pajeros with the aux tanks), until solid state batteries arrive it’s just not worth cramming in 300+ kWh of cells to get 1000+ km out of a chunky 4×4 on mud tires. EREVs though would work great, imagine getting 3000+ km from 200L of petrol or diesel!
Boxster EV is going to be a huge flop. I have had 2 Boxsters (1 currently) and I have less than zero interest in one.
Honda S2000 or just about any car that redlines above 8000rpm. There is no substitute for that sound and feeling.
EV is a sensory depravation vessel.
Pedal cars, by virtue of being pedal powered, will never work as EVs. You’re just making Power Wheels with extra steps.
Essentially, anything where the manufacturer makes an EV worse to make it more like an ICE car is a fail. You’re losing the main benefits of an EV (silence, power delivery) to try and attract someone who will just go and buy the previous ICE version anyway.
I think the best example of this is the new Charger.
In general, any car that has the engine as the central defining aspect of its identity. Examples: V12 for big lambos, flat 6 for 911s, etc…
I’m honestly surprised that the EV stuff hasn’t done well in the lux taxi category (Rolls and Bentley).
One Vehicle that I think SHOULD go EV are side by sides. Polaris uses a CVT and it’s so drone-y when you drive that thing for long stretches. Being able to woosh through the trees would be so neat to me. I know there are weight and range issues for now, but if they can make those things quiet, it would make the experience so much better.
Speaking of Polaris, I think the Slingshot would make a good candidate for an EV since they’re fair-weather cruisers most of the time and then you can blast those tunes without all the ecotec noise 🙂
Actually, the Rolls-Royce Spectre – which is an EV – has been its second most popular model of late.
Oh good to know! I thought I heard the Spectre was struggling. I liked the Throttle House review of it. I thought it was a perfect Rolls.
From what I read Spectre is outselling the Ghost and Phantom combined – the Cullinan is the model which is selling the most these days.
I’m hopeful RR will come out with a Spectre Drophead Coupe, and a sedan derivative of it to replace the Ghost.
I don’t think supercars make great ev’s mainly because the whole concept of a supercar,for me at least,is that they’re supposed to be noisy and light weight little rockets. Sure ev’s also go like fuck,but there is not the same sense of an event every time you happen to see one.
EVs can make fantastic supercars. Design constraints are off, they already don’t drive much, and they’re fast. If done right, they’ll sound diabolical too.
I think in this vain a Grand Touring car should not be electric. Hearing the engine while carving up roads is part of the charm.
“Never” is such an all-encompassing word, which has been proven wrong throughout history.
All cars will work as EVs. Battery tech can change to make them smaller and lighter, same as the first engines were massive steam behemoths compared to a modern design.
I think there will be a niche for rumbly, noisy cars that vibrate and lean and give feedback to every touch of a control. The 6yr old in me demands it.
EVs, being a horse of a different color, should have different names rather than
vehicles with an historic reputation of petrol performance. Corvette, Camaro, Mustang, Miata, et al… Most plebeian names like Malibu, Taurus, Coronet, Accord, Altima… would be acceptable. Also, just adding E, or EV to an existing model is corporate shorthand for “We don’t know WTF to call it”
I think majority of current production cars could work. Especially if you get companies ballsy enough to actually have the EV motors power going to a (possibly 6 speed) manual just for shits and giggles. But obviously the big draw of EVs is motors powering the wheels directly and not having more bits that can break. Also having a manual would add more to the cost and weight.
Certain image performative vehicles will struggle as EVs. Like Brodozers etc.
The Cybertruck being a cautionary tale in this regard.
I would have said that any cars that are sports focused and light weight would have trouble – the Lotus’s, the Porsche 718s, the Toyota/Subaru GR86 / BRZ, etc. But the existence of the Small Sports Car Company SC01 (does it exist?) has given me hope that it is possible to make a decent range lightweight sports car BEV. Hopefully it won’t require ridiculously expensive materials to make.
Yes, give us the SC01! I am going to China later this year and hope to get my hands on one.
I’ve gotten so sick of Chinese cars with the same minimalist interior and the same tacked-on iPad, and the SC01 is such a breath of fresh air. So glad to see its not vaporware, think they’ve delivered some cars now
Top Fuel type dragster. Can EVs be quick and fast? Sure.
Could they potentially become quicker and faster than an alcohol ingesting drag rail? Sure.
But an electric car will never have the drama and violence of a supercharged monster spitting fire and making noise you can feel in your soul.
Yeah, I was gonna say monster trucks.
Bigfoot 20 is the only electric monster truck I’ve heard of. The video of it crushing cars on Bigfoot’s website is boring because of how quiet it is.
You can get the same effect with one of these
Ooh, good one. Getting slapped in the face with the noise of a monster truck is a big part of the experience.
Honda S2000 with the 6-speed ripped out for the trasnmissionless electric motor.
I can’t think of a single modern car. Even the Miata could be a great EV – maybe not now, but soon (I’m saying that as a Miata owner too). Eventually, there will be smaller battery capabilities, and the success of a Miata as an EV is more about charging infrastructure since owners are already familiar with the thimble sized gas tank.
This is probably one of the things that works against adoption: the idea that an EV can’t do everything an ICE car or truck can do. They absolutely can, and will keep getting better with improved tech.
When I drive my Miata through the redwood forest on a twisty road, I’d love it if the engine would shut up. There’s plenty of other sensory input, e.g. sensations through the seat, the steering wheel, the wind, and the scenery.
Nissan Altima. You all know why.
How long is “Never”? If some new battery tech comes along in 15-20-30 years or so that drastically reduces the mass to storage ratio so you could get 300+miles of range with no more mass than 10 gallons of gasoline then you absolutely could make an electric Miata. I think that today a E-ata doesn’t work but I don’t know about the future.
There is no example that wouldn’t work as an EV. Delimiting based on energy medium doesn’t make sense.
Are there models that can’t be well represented currently? Sure. Battery weight clashes with the DNA of a lot of models. But if the chemistry gets past 500Wh/kg, that issue melts away. Until then, weight is definitely a concern for anything that is meant to convey a track-ready vehicle. But I don’t think make noise for noise-sake is limiting.
Heavy duty trucks that tow. Barring a miracle advancement in energy storage, towing range just won’t ever be enough without at least a range extender engine.
On the other hand, perfect case for an EREV. Buckets of torque, smooth, lurch-free power delivery, excellent fuel economy and unlimited electricity anywhere you go. I could see a small diesel working well there.
Any model name that is synonymous with a specific engine type probably won’t work.
Stanley Steamer EV just doesn’t have the same ring to it.
I would imagine this car to be one where the liquid battery coolant is made to intentionally overheat and boil off
Place the battery pack directly beneath the boiler and short it out!
Based on the Makita electric kettle that drains 2 18V battery packs to get you one pot of hot water, the efficiency would be terrible.