There are some fundemental problem with making an EV look like a “normal car” though.
EVs are more dense than their ICE counterparts. This means that the whole vehicle needs more structure to protect it in a rollover than an ICE of the same size. Thicker frames and pillars in a smaller car end up making it look bulgy and weird.
I think (but not 100% sure) that EVs are required to have extra protection for the battery to prevent them from getting punctured and having a “thermal runaway” event. This makes the cars even more pudgy.
The energy source and propulsion methods have changed, which will affect their design of the cars. Much in the same way early jet airplanes looked like regular airplanes with jets attached, EVs started as regular cars with electric motors. We’re currently in the weird transition phase of EV design. We’re seeing the EV equivalent of the P80 Shooting star, and maybe starting to get into some cars that are akin to the F86 Sabre. We have a long way to go until the design catches up to the propulsion.
I worked at a lithium ion battery company for 11 years. If anything, the switch to EVs gives you even more options for body shape/type. The batteries are located at the bottom of the frame, and the motors are hub motors located at the wheels. It gives the vehicle a lower center of gravity, and gives the body designers artistic freedom to make it look however they like. I don’t accept the argument that it has to look dorky. The original Tesla Roadster was just a modified Lotus Elise, and it looked basically bone stock. There is no need for the front to be loaded up with a huge motor, there is a reason a lot of EVs have a “frunk”…there is just a bunch of extra room. No need for an oil reservoir, or a transmission, or hydraulic brake lines and reservoir, or any other fluids.
There are some fundemental problem with making an EV look like a “normal car” though.
EVs are more dense than their ICE counterparts. This means that the whole vehicle needs more structure to protect it in a rollover than an ICE of the same size. Thicker frames and pillars in a smaller car end up making it look bulgy and weird.
I think (but not 100% sure) that EVs are required to have extra protection for the battery to prevent them from getting punctured and having a “thermal runaway” event. This makes the cars even more pudgy.
The energy source and propulsion methods have changed, which will affect their design of the cars. Much in the same way early jet airplanes looked like regular airplanes with jets attached, EVs started as regular cars with electric motors. We’re currently in the weird transition phase of EV design. We’re seeing the EV equivalent of the P80 Shooting star, and maybe starting to get into some cars that are akin to the F86 Sabre. We have a long way to go until the design catches up to the propulsion.
I worked at a lithium ion battery company for 11 years. If anything, the switch to EVs gives you even more options for body shape/type. The batteries are located at the bottom of the frame, and the motors are hub motors located at the wheels. It gives the vehicle a lower center of gravity, and gives the body designers artistic freedom to make it look however they like. I don’t accept the argument that it has to look dorky. The original Tesla Roadster was just a modified Lotus Elise, and it looked basically bone stock. There is no need for the front to be loaded up with a huge motor, there is a reason a lot of EVs have a “frunk”…there is just a bunch of extra room. No need for an oil reservoir, or a transmission, or hydraulic brake lines and reservoir, or any other fluids.
Teslas look pretty normal
Just in case someone here isn’t familiar, it’s not that ICE. It’s “Internal Combustion Engine” aka most cars when people think of cars
Thanks for the context.