Honda Has Doubts About Viability of Electric Cars
Japan has long led the way in alternative fuel transportation. Given this, the comments of Honda regarding its doubts about the viability of electric cars should give us pause.
Who released the first mass market hybrid in the United States? If you answered Toyota with the Prius, you are…wrong. Honda was the first to hit the market with a hybrid although it was much less successful than the Prius. It should also be noted that both of the giant Japanese car companies have long been leaders in research and development of alternative fuel and power transportation.
Given this, the recent comments coming out of Honda are causing a rather significant stir. At issue is the viability of the electric car as a popular consumer choice, particularly in the United States. To put it succinctly, the Director of Research and Development at Honda has said the company doesn’t have “much confidence” in the cars.
The Director in question, Tomohiko Kawanabe, says he cannot recommend the cars or technology wholeheartedly for a couple of reasons. The first is the limited range of the cars, which often can go less than 100 miles per charge due to limitations in battery technology. The second is the simple time and cost in recharging the batteries. The time can be hours and the cost is thought to often be more than gasoline given the increasing prices of electricity.
 | US $12,995.00 End Date: Tuesday Sep-13-2011 20:44:51 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $12,995.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $17,800.00 End Date: Tuesday Sep-13-2011 20:52:17 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $17,800.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $20,950.00 End Date: Tuesday Sep-13-2011 22:42:59 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $20,950.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $24,769.00 End Date: Wednesday Sep-14-2011 8:48:06 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $24,769.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $12,295.00 End Date: Wednesday Sep-14-2011 15:02:05 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $12,295.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $6,100.00 (24 Bids) End Date: Wednesday Sep-14-2011 16:18:16 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $9,900.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $8,900.00 (23 Bids) End Date: Wednesday Sep-14-2011 18:47:37 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list |
 | US $14,400.00 (18 Bids) End Date: Wednesday Sep-14-2011 19:00:00 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list |
 | US $10,250.00 End Date: Wednesday Sep-14-2011 22:05:12 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $10,250.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $11,995.00 End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 0:31:33 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $11,995.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $8,001.00 (3 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 13:05:50 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $21,480.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $8,001.00 (3 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 13:06:29 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $19,980.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $8,201.00 (14 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 13:08:50 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list |
 | US $9,000.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 13:14:59 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list |
 | US $17,100.00 (6 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 14:00:00 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $23,980.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $8,100.00 (11 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 14:00:00 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $17,980.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $7,895.00 (1 Bid) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 14:45:07 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $14,371.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $8,900.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 14:46:54 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $10,500.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $13,491.00 End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 15:10:04 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $13,491.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $14,600.00 (6 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 15:14:08 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $19,995.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $26,732.00 End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 16:21:45 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $26,732.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $10,300.00 (3 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 16:36:11 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $14,950.00 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $20,900.00 End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 19:04:02 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $20,900.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $3,160.00 (11 Bids) End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 19:40:07 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list |
 | US $13,575.00 End Date: Thursday Sep-15-2011 20:46:56 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $13,575.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 | US $14,000.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Friday Sep-16-2011 4:02:59 PDT Bid now | Add to watch list |
What credibility should be given to these claims? Unfortunately, it appears that a lot should. Honda has already launched and tested a line of electric cars in the 1990s. It put more than 300 on the streets of the United States during this period to test their viability I a real world environment. The company concluded there was little practical benefit to the cars and has actually put a halt to any further development of electric cars. That’s a rather emphatic statement.
Honda views the short term solution to be more efficient gasoline engines and hybrids. Long term, the company is fascinated with the possibilities of hydrogen fuel cell cars and spends a small fortune on its development each year.