Throughout the twentieth century, and for the start of the twenty first century, man has been obsessed with cars. How fast they are, how big they are, how loud they can be, how comfortable they can be, how many miles to the gallon they get and so on. However, a new topic of discussion is emerging in the automobile market; electric as opposed to gas. Can electric cars really be better than gasoline powered ones? Are electric cars already better than gasoline powered ones? Many people believe that they are. While others believe that they are not better yet but will be. Tesla motors is the newest car manufacturer in the United States. In just a few short years they were able to establish a formidable force in the automobile market and leave car companies such as Ford, Chrysler, General Motors, and Chevrolet scrambling to catch up to their methods. Tesla has proven that electric cars are the way of the future. While some may disagree, there is no denying that the automobile car industry is changing at a rapid pace; Tesla and electric cars are at the forefront of this movement, and it will change the world forever and put an end to gasoline powered automobiles for good.  

The man at the forefront of this movement was Elon Musk. He sought to turn cars from gas guzzling and oil burning annoyances into something better. Something that was better in performance, and better for the environment. Elon Musk imagined a car that would drive the gas-powered counterparts out of business. In 2003, this was an incredibly bold ambition as electric powered cars at the time were nowhere near the realm of capabilities to compete with other vehicles of any type. For one, electric powered cars did not have as good of a range as they do now. Secondly, electric powered cars tended to overheat which meant that the car had to be cooled down for a significant period after driving only a short distance. Car enthusiasts at the time did not see electric cars as a viable option to replace gas powered cars. Many car enthusiasts simply enjoyed experimenting with building electric powered cars to challenge themselves and their abilities. This was all until one young investor named Elon Musk took millions of dollars that he had earned from selling PayPal to invest in Tesla Motors. Elon believed in the future of electric vehicles and saw the potential that they could have on the car market. Because Elon Musk was willing to risk everything, he revolutionized the car industry and changed the future forever. 

Electric cars are amazing for multiple reasons. These include, maintenance that the vehicles require; especially Teslas. The limited amount of engine parts, the sustainable energy that the cars use, and finally, the technology that the cars themselves have. Many car companies do not earn money on the initial sale of the vehicle, rather, the automotive giants such as Ford, Chrysler, Chevrolet, and General Motors just to name a few earn most of their money off of servicing the vehicles after sale. However, an electric car does not have a radiator, a transmission, or alternators. (Henry, Jim). Many gasoline powered cars will have around 200 parts to the engine whereas a Tesla model S sedan would have twelve. Because of this, Teslas require little to no maintenance at all. The car barely ever needs to be serviced, in fact, the only things that require regular maintenance are the tires and the windshield wiper blades. Even the brakes on the Tesla model S do not need to be serviced as often as other vehicles because the Tesla uses a regenerative braking system which transfers the energy from the brakes to the motor and finally to the battery pack. Many car analyst experts estimate that having an electric or battery powered vehicle is about one third the price to maintain as compared to gasoline powered vehicles and this is thought to be a conservative estimate. To top it all off, electric vehicles just make more sense financially for individuals if they were to buy a budget electric vehicle. Electric vehicles save $5,000 in fuel cost when compared to a twenty-four mile per gallon gasoline powered vehicle. Not only are the fuel cost significant, but electric vehicles are cheaper to ensure as well as they do not require oil changes. Oil changes cost the average car owner anywhere from $250 to $1000 per year; not to mention the countless hours saved not having to wait for one’s car to be serviced. (Voelcker, John). 

The next disadvantage to driving a gas-powered vehicle as opposed to an electric vehicle are the harmful effects that it can have on the environment. This is not only a matter of automobiles, but it is also a matter of other ways that gasoline is consumed in the United States. Americans not only use automobiles in their everyday lives, but also use other gasoline powered machines such as planes, trains, motorcycles, and boats. These modes of transportation require an abundance of gas to power them. However, the hope is that as the electric car industry expands, more electric forms of transportation will emerge in all the modes of transportation when companies begin to see the practicality in them. Other than using electric completely, other modes of sustainable energy are readily available. Solar power, for example, would be useful for all kinds of ships ranging from passenger, freight, and even cruise ships. Due to the ships being in the water always of the day, solar panels could prove to be an effective way to seek alternate forms of energy. However, this pursuit of alternative fuels and power sources must start with the automobile industry as it is the most common and popular mode of transportation. 

The automobile industry seems to be spilt almost down the middle as to what type of fuel will be used in the future to power cars. Whether it be hydrogen powered or electric and battery powered. Some of the advantages to hydrogen is that the mileage is great at around 400 miles per tank with most hydrogen cars. Hydrogen cars also have a quick refueling time, it is the equivalent to one filling his or her car up at the gas station or about five minutes of time. This is a significant difference to Tesla’s supercharging station which takes about thirty minutes to fully power their vehicles. Not too many individuals would be willing to spend thirty minutes at the gas station as it is, and hydrogen fuel cells last roughly 100 more miles per tank than electric. Why then would electric cars be more practical? The problem with hydrogen is that refueling stations lack the proper infrastructure to really be a viable option for a vehicle. However, when one purchases a Tesla, Tesla puts a charging station in that person’s garage and the vehicle can be charged overnight (Humphries, Matthew). This may lead one to question, “What about long distance trips that are outside the range of the Tesla?” Elon Musk and his team at Tesla are working to expand the amount of Tesla charging stations in the United States. In April of 2015, Tesla had 101 charging stations in the United States. By the end of the year, Tesla had increased the total number of charging stations to 151. Now, as of March 15, 2017, there are a total of 810 Tesla supercharging locations (Tesla, Inc). With growth like that, it is easy for one to see why driving long distances will soon be more practical in a Tesla than in any other vehicle whether gasoline or hydrogen powered. 

The next big advantage that electric vehicles have over hydrogen fuel cells is that electricity is much easier for car companies to attain and for the car owners to attain compared to hydrogen fuel cells. Electricity is easily accessible and readily available whereas hydrogen fuel cells are not a natural resource, atoms must be split in order to form the fuel cells. Elon Musk expressed his disapproval of hydrogen fuel cells in a video stating, “I don’t want to turn this into a debate on hydrogen fuel cells because I think they’re extremely silly.” Elon Musk then goes on to discuss the complications that arise with hydrogen fuel cells. Such as the complicated process of splitting water molecules to form the hydrogen which he says is about half as efficient as efficient compared to using solar panels. Not only is hydrogen not a source of energy such as electric, but it is also an invisible gas which could be incredibly dangerous if one were to have a leak in a hydrogen powered car. Also, the process for forming hydrogen into a usable source of energy is far more complicated and complex as opposed to using electric. To produce hydrogen from water, molecules would need to be split and then oxygen would have to be extracted from the hydrogen and then compress the hydrogen into an incredibly high pressure. Only then can the hydrogen be used in a vehicle (AUSSIEsmartboi).

Many car enthusiast have expressed their concerns as to why electric cars are flawed and not as useful as gasoline powered cars. These concerns have to do with the range of the vehicle, the long refueling time, and the significant higher price of some Teslas when compared to gasoline cars. As discussed previously, long range trips in a Tesla will soon be as easy to do as it is with a gasoline powered car. Charging stations will not sprout overnight, the growth, development, and infrastructure will be steadily improved over time just as gas stations were. Tesla is expanding their super charging stations at a rapid rate, and they will soon be all over the United States to where Tesla car owners can easily access them. Not only are charging stations being built by Tesla at an incredible rate, but Tesla is also working on practical ways to improve the mileage of their vehicles. Right now, Tesla is working on a way to use energy from the brakes of some of their newer models to transfer from the brakes and to the battery pack similar to the regenerative braking system found in some hybrid electric cars. This would make the longevity of the cars range on a single charge increase drastically and it would actually be possible that individuals that own a Tesla would get better mileage in the city rather than on the interstate. As for charging time, it takes an average of thirty minutes for a Tesla to fully recharge at one of their super charging stations. However, as time passes, the charging time will decrease steadily as the efficiency of converting electricity to fuel gets better. Also, the batteries in the Teslas will be steadily improving as well to make charging and refueling times similar to that of gasoline powered cars (Tesla Model S Range and Charging: Some Clarifications). 

The final criticism people have of Tesla and some other electric cars is the price. The price for Tesla’s 2016 Model S cost anywhere between $88,000 and $139,000 depending on what one would want to come equipped with their vehicle. Many people have longed complained about the price and that the car is unaffordable. However, the Tesla Model S is one of the nicest cars on the market. The 2016 Model S was given five-star safety ratings for both side and frontal impact when tested. Secondly, the Tesla Model S is faster than a Ferrari with a zero to sixty speed of 2.4 seconds. Ten years ago, no one ever imagined that an electric car could be so quick, but Tesla have managed to make it happen. The interior of the Model S is top of the line leather and quality. The center of the car is dominated by a massive touchscreen that controls almost everything that happens in the car. This sort of technology is unparalleled to what is seen in other high end cars on the market. Also, the Tesla Model S was given the highest customer satisfaction rating from consumerreports.org. Stating that 91% of previous Tesla owners would buy a Tesla again. Tesla beat every other car manufacturer in this category such as Porsche, Audi, and Subaru which were all also in the top four. All of these factors and variables seem to justify the huge price tag from Tesla from their top of the line vehicles. However, Tesla still listens to what the people want. This is proven because in the fall of 2017 Tesla is releasing a car that would cost around $35,000. One could be lead to believe that if Tesla were able to pull off an outstanding vehicle for that price, gasoline powered based car manufacturers may be closing their doors sooner than anyone thought (2016 Tesla Model S Review and Ratings). 

Although Tesla’s profits are unmatched at the moment and the competition such as Mercedes Benz, Volkswagen, BMW, Ford, and General Motors are all trying and failing to produce a car to compete with Tesla, some analyst and experts believe that as these companies get better car designs and structures they will destroy Tesla and their profits. However, other experts believe that Tesla is here to stay no matter how diligent other car companies are in eating into Tesla’s profits and this is because of multiple reasons. The first has to do with the fact that the other car companies can not compete with Tesla’s pace of innovation. The company never stops innovating. Tesla employees are constantly looking outside the box to improve some aspect of their product and Elon Musk does the same. One example of Tesla’s innovation was something as simple as door handles. Elon Musk wanted the door handles in the Tesla Model S to fit into the car rather than jut out when the car was locked. This lead to a sleek looking design that other car companies began to emulate. Another big advantage that Tesla has over the competition is their extensive charging network. No other car company is building charging stations as quickly as Tesla is. Due to this, more people will be likely to purchase a Tesla because of their vast super charging network. For other companies to mitigate the gap between Tesla and themselves, they would have to spend years building charging stations of their own. Lastly, Tesla will succeed over the competition because of Elon Musk. Elon Musk founded two multi-million dollar companies (one of which was PayPal) as well as founded SpaceX at the same time as Tesla. This proves that Elon is an innovator, genius, and a man that could catapult Tesla to unprecedented levels of success (Shahinian, Stephan). 

In conclusion, electric cars are here to stay because of their practicality and reliability. Due to the rising concern of greenhouse gas emissions, more people will see that electric vehicles are the way to go in order to best preserve the environment. Electric vehicles are also more practical for long term cost effectiveness due to drivers not having to pay for gas, oil changes, engine tune ups, and will also pay cheaper car insurance. As more charging stations pop up all over the United States, they will become as common as gas stations. Because of this people will no longer suffer from ‘range anxiety’ and will be more open to taking their electric vehicles on long trips across the country. Also, as batteries for the electric vehicles are improved they will become more efficient which will lead to a quicker charging time. Electric cars will prevail over hydrogen powered cars because hydrogen is not as practical as a form of energy as electric is. Finally, Tesla Motors is here to stay because they were pioneers for the electric car movement and were able to establish themselves as the most popular and most liked electric car company. Tesla also has some of the highest safety ratings cars can possibly get, as well as the highest customer satisfaction rating for any vehicle. Tesla are here to stay because they are innovators, their vast network of charging stations, and their brilliant CEO that is Elon Musk. 
