History of Electric Powered Motor Cars / Automobiles
3.1 1900 to 1939
- For the early history of electric powered cars see Part 1, Section 4.
- In 1912 there were 34,000 electric cars registered in the U.S., at which point annual sales started to decline.
- By 1913 sales of electric cars in the U.S. had reduced to 6,000. By comparison nearly 183,000 gasoline powered Model T Ford cars were sold that year.
- Between the mid 1890s and 2007 at least 280 companies and a few individuals (the best known being the American inventor Thomas Edison) had produced electric powered cars.
Possibly as many as 60% of these companies had ceased operating by 1919.
Many of these early electric carmakers typically operating for only 2 to 5 years.
The majority of the early electric carmakers were located in the U.S.A.
Other countries known to have produced electric cars between 1893 and 1920 are: Austria (1), Belgium (1), France (5), Germany (8), Great Britain (9), Italy (2) and Switzerland (1).
In 1907 the Anderson Carriage Company in the U.S.A started production of an electric car with the brand name “Detroit Electric”.
Their first electric car was powered by a rechargeable lead acid battery, with a nickel-iron battery available as an optional extra from 1911 to 1916.
The company claimed the cars had a range of 80 miles (130 km) on a single charge and a top speed of about 20 mph (32 kph).
The company changed its name in 1911 to the Anderson Electric Car Company and again in 1920 to the Detroit Electric Car Company.
Between 1910 and 1920 production was at its peak, selling 1,000 to 2,000 cars a year.
The final Detroit Electric car was produced in February 1939, with production during the last few years limited to an “as-ordered basis” only.
It was one of longest production runs in the world for an electric car.
The other early, longer established, electric car makers in the United States include Baker (1898-1915), Milburn (1914-1923), Rauch & Lang (1904-1915), Studebaker (1902-1912), Walker (1907-1916) and Woods, which between 1899 and 1919 , produced possibly as many as one thousand electric cars.
- During the 1920s and 1930s only about two-dozen electric car companies are known to have existed.
3.2 Decline in Popularity
- The electric car's decline in popularity in the 1920s is attributable to a number of factors, including:
- The almost total non-existence of an electricity infrastructure outside of the cities, which limited electric car usage to city travel.
- The growing requirement for cars to travel longer distances and the ready availability of gasoline.
3.3 1940s
- A shortage of petrol during World War 2 resulted in a renewed interest in electric powered cars.
At least 14 companies in Europe started producing electric cars during World War 2; 8 in France, 2 in Holland, 2 in Spain and 2 in Great Britain. Establish how many others existed.
- As petrol became readily available again all these companies had ceased making electric cars by 1950.
Between 1947 and 1951 Japan produced its first electric car. It was called the Tama and it had a top speed of 35 kph (19 mph) and a maximum range of 65 km (40.6 miles).
For information on electric cars produced from 1950 to present date see Green Cars, Section 7 (Battery Powered Cars)".
For comprehensive lists of electric carmakers select “Historical & General Information Web Sites” on the main menu. Then select “The Early Electric Car Site” and/or “Some EV History”.
For historical and general information about batteries see Green Cars, Section 6 (The Battery).
3.4 Electric Car Web Sites
- The Early Electric Car Site
- www.earlyelectric.com
- Historical and general information about electric cars. Includes a list electric car companies.
- Some EV History
- Electric Car Society
