电瓶车

电瓶车(electric automobile)

由电池驱动的机动车，源於1880年代，用作私家轿车、卡车和城市中担任运输的公车。因为电瓶车的速度低，一次充电的行程有限，但它们的低噪音、维修费低，特别受欢迎。一直到1920年前後，电瓶车一直和汽油车（gasoline-fueled car）竞争，後来电瓶车开始减少，因电动起动器（electric self-starter）使汽油动力车（gasoline-powered car）变得更具吸引力，加上大量生产（mass productiion），降低了汽油车的成本。在欧洲，电车一直被用作短程载送货车。1970年代开始，又重新燃起对电车的兴趣，尤其是受到不应依赖外国石油和环境问题的影响，导致一再改进电瓶车的速度和距离方面。近来的法律已授权作商业生产，特别是在加州。「杂种车」（hybrid car）使用电力和内燃机引擎，并具有这两种技术的最佳特色，近来在商业上变得十分有利可图。实验车现在已用到太阳燃料电池（fuel cell）。

English version：

electric automobile

Battery-powered motor vehicle. Originating in the 1880s, electric cars were used for private passenger, truck, and bus transportation in cities, where their low speeds and limited battery range were not drawbacks, and the cars became popular for their quietness and low maintenance costs. Until 1920 they were competitive with gasoline-fueled cars; they became less so after the electric self-starter made gasoline-powered cars more attractive and mass production made them cheaper to produce. In Europe electric vehicles have been used as short-range delivery vans. Renewed interest in electric cars beginning in the 1970s, spurred especially by new consciousness of foreign oil dependency and environmental concern, led to improvements in speed and range. Recent laws, particularly in California, have mandated commercial production. “Hybrid” cars employing both electric and internal combustion engines and providing the best features of both technologies, have recently become commercially available. Experimental vehicles have used solar fuel cells.