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The Electric Car in America, 1890-1922 - A Social History (Paperback)
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The Electric Car in America, 1890-1922 - A Social History (Paperback)
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At the end of 1900 the auto industry was set to become a huge force
in America over the following ten years or so as the car moved from
being a plaything of the rich to being a mass market item,
increasingly available to most segments of society. The electric
vehicle seemed poised in 1900 to be a leader, or even the dominant
force. It had large advantages over vehicles driven by the other
two main motive powers, steam and gasoline. Electric cars were
clean, odorless, noiseless and they were mechanically simple,
compared to their rivals. They rarely broke down and they were easy
to operate. An electric car could be started instantly from the
driver's seat; no other machine could claim that advantage. But
then it all went wrong. The hope and confidence of 1900 collapsed
and just two decades later the electric car was dead; two makers
continued to produce until late in the 1920s but it was all over
for the electrics by the start of the 1920s. Inherent advantages
paled in the face of disadvantages that were never resolved. The
machines were costly and never came down in price while gasoline
cars saw dramatic price reductions over time. Most of all the
storage battery was an endless source of problems. Even the genius
of Thomas Edison, who worked for over a decade to try and produce a
better battery, was unable to prevail. All the electric car
industry was able to mount in the guise of dealing with myriad
problems was to present an increasingly frantic public relations
campaign of lies and deceptive advertising; but never any solutions
to the industry's problems.
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