Professional Engineering

If the range and charging time issues can be sorted I’m sure a lot more people will drive electric cars. I will probably be pushing up daisies, having been knocked off my bicycle because I didn’t hear one coming up behind me!
Jon Tyrie, Guisborough, Teesside

Yes to both. With peak oil at hand and readily available oil supplies increasingly out of hand, we will be forced to consider the alternatives. However, the major concerns I have are around the battery recharge/replacement argument and whether this will lead to standardisation between manufacturers and also how much extra strain electric cars will put on the national grid.
Daniel Anderson, Salisbury 

No, not unless they have developed a people carrier with a range of 300 miles. There are many reasons that liquid-fuelled vehicles will be with us for years to come. One is energy density, another fast refuelling.
Martin Roberts-Jones, Eastleigh

At present electric cars are a nonsense. If we can develop new bulk sources of electricity, nuclear fusion perhaps, I might see electric cars becoming viable; but in
the next 10 years, no chance!
Jeff Bulled, Lidlington, Bedfordshire

They are the future. The internal combustion engine is such old, inefficient technology, and will always pollute. Something like 90% of car journeys are below 50 miles, and electric cars can have a range up to 300 miles. Batteries for electric vehicles are an underdeveloped technology. It’s all suppressed by government politics, greedy oil and automotive companies. They’re not going to make as much money when we all have electric cars.
Timothy Hadland, Uckfield, Sussex

Electric cars will eventually dominate, though the pace of introduction will be over decades. Infrastructure for battery charging needs to be introduced and the manufacturers have a challenge to make the cars as exciting to drive as the petrol-fired equivalents. 
John Robson, Burley in Wharfedale, West Yorkshire

Electric cars will occupy a growing proportion of the industry. Within 10 years there will be practical options available as levies and restrictions drive the technology forward. There are valid concerns about the impact of generating the electricity but this keeps the pollution away from populated areas, and can be dealt with by further technology developments.
John Whitty, Lancaster

With the increasing efficiency of internal combustion engines and the still overwhelming reliance on fossil fuels to generate our electricity, I don’t see how a sensible argument for electric vehicle use can be made. Only when we’re able to generate electricity predominantly from non-fossil fuel sources, and the issues over range and/or battery exchange stations are resolved, would I consider buying an electric car.

John Saunders, Rosemarkie, Ross-shire

I would use an EV if financially viable. EV market share for town cars will increase as they become cost competitive with ICE vehicles which is likely over the next decade. The range limitation of batteries will drive dependency on ICEs (with increased hybridisation or as range extenders) for the foreseeable future.
Jeremy Norton, Stansted

No and No. Hybrid cars will become mainstream in the next 10 years. Charging infrastructure and battery life will not give like-for-like with existing systems and will require driving habits to be changed, which us humans are not the greatest at and will have a good moan about.
Ian Oldfield, Coventry

There are about twice as many bicycles as there are cars on our planet and they have been with us longer than cars. My alternative to a car for short commutes is my bike, not an expensive electrical car.
Jeremy Lambert, Coventry

Conventional cars are cheap(ish), have long range and refuelling stations round every corner. Electric cars are expensive, have short range and very limited recharging availability. Are they the future of the automotive industry? Not while there’s oil in the ground.
Steve Gallimore, Lincoln

I cannot see myself driving an electric car in the foreseeable future, if at all. Certainly would want to see a range of at least 500 miles and to know the life and replacement cost of the battery pack. I think there is a lot of development still to come. Perhaps my preference for classic MGs sways my opinion!
Richard Homer, Stone, Staffs

My PV system has been spinning my electric meter backwards for the last two years in anticipation of my first EV. I can’t wait! In the long term, the automotive industry will engineer a variety of different power sources for different applications.
Matt Hall, Littleton, Colorado 

I do not believe electric cars are the vehicle of the future. They still have a long way to go regarding speed and range before I will have any interest. I believe atomic cars will probably be developed first. Now there’s a controversial point, eh? 
Jonathan Knew, Atherstone, Warwickshire

I won’t be driving an electric car unless the infrastructure is sorted out first. I have only ever seen electric car “plug-in” points in London. The demands on our creaking grid will also be increased.
Jon Baggs, Craigleith, Edinburgh