The coronavirus pandemic took place in March of 2020, causing the consumption for fuel and other natural gases to take a decline for the worse. Despite the circumstance, Thailand still consumes gas up to 137.9 million liters per day, and is likely to increase again after the Covid-19 lockdown.
Despite the increased awareness on global warming to date, air pollution continues to threaten people’s health. This is where the electric car enters. Like most countries, Thailand desired to switch gas fueled cars to electric cars which aided in the result of a decline in fuel usage. The future of electric cars is said to be on the rise over the next few years due to the lower running costs and them being environmentally friendly. However, many obstacles remain to overcome.
Why is the Internal Combustion Engine a Problem?
Electronic car charger via Pexels.com
As with many factors of creating a ground level ozone, the combustion coming from car engines is causing a greater problem by producing gases and pollutants that end result release irritants in the air that affect the nation worldwide. When fuel burns from motor vehicles they are releasing carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons. These pollutants can cause major damage to the lung tissues, lead to respiratory diseases and even cause eye problems over time. While not only causing problems to human health, the pollution can contribute to acid rain and climate change.
What is an EV Car? Why are the Benefits of Electric Cars?
Battery Electrical Vehicles, or also known as BEV, are electrical vehicles that require a full charge. Statistics show from the Land Transport Department that the sale for battery electric vehicles was around 63 units since the year 2009-2010.
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Fewer moving parts than a conventional car
More electric cars means fewer mechanic jobs. Experts say that the all-electric car has roughly 80% fewer moving parts than a conventional car running on gasoline. So, this means that there is less to worry about. No need for starter motor or radiators. The likelihood of battery replacement in an EV is also low.
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Better driving experience.
The advantages of having a BEV is that they create very little noise, there are no gears, clutches, spark plugs, nor an exhaust. Also, because the battery weighs a decent amount, the car feels nicer to handle and less likely to roll over.
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Maintenance is cheaper in the long run.
Battery powered vehicles require about 99% less maintenance for their moving parts. Due to being fully powered by a battery, the engine parts on a normal motor vehicle are no longer needed.
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Much better for the environment.
Electric cars generate zero exhaust emissions since they do not burn any fossil fuels. Batteries will be fully used. The average charging time for these batteries range from 30 minutes up to twelve hours. The time usually depends on the size of the battery and the speed at whichever charging station you are at.
What does EV mean in Cars? Is It Different from Hybrid Cars?
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Electric Car Definition:
What does EV stand for in cars? EV is an acronym for electric vehicles. The popularity of EV's are growing throughout Thailand and are expected to rise to about 35% of all vehicles by 2040. What is an electric car you may ask? An electric vehicle can either be partially or fully powered on electric power instead of the regular fossil fuel.
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Electric Vehicles Technology Explained:
It is known that some electric vehicles use lead acid or nickel metal batteries, however, the now known standard for EV's are lithium ion batteries. These batteries are able to retain energy at an amazing rate while holding longevity. Although with any battery, there are still improving the overall battery usage within EV's for a safer experience. The cost of charging a battery within an EV costs about seven dollars to gain a fully charged car. EV's have produced two types of vehicles and those are fully electric and plug-in hybrid cars.
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Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles
Aside from having a fully battery operated vehicle, there are plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or also known as PHEV, which run on a mixture of battery and petrol and/ or diesel power. Hybrids have been launched since 2009-2010, where they were registered to be about 84,000 units deep. The benefit of having both shows when wanting to travel a further distance. Instead of searching for charging stations, you have the option of switching to fuel to conserve battery life.
While driving a plug-in hybrid vehicle, it must be noted that they too have the same disadvantages as a combustion engine vehicle. Those disadvantages are needing more maintenance because there are more car parts, engine noises,emissions, and the cost of fuel. With having a hybrid, the battery is considerably smaller and can only go a certain range.
Trends And Opportunities in Thailand's Automotive Market
EV charger on Tesla via Unsplash
OEM's have become a huge factor within the car sale industry, alongside the amount of a car's lifespan. These factors are extremely important when looking at the revenue and profit worldwide.
Thailand has seen an exceptionally sharp decline in automotive car sales due to the launching of non-OEM's. This change is causing the country to view the potential market share loss of OEM's. With the thought of OEM's taking a loss, many automotive components are looking deeper into researching a stronger revenue stream that will place the aftermarket into the main focus.
It is stated that Thailand has brought into position non-EMO's in the year 2020. Although parts quality is a criteria within the aftermarket, Thailand bringing EV's into position have created a profitable share within the market as well. Consumers have noticed their preference for OEMs over the years, however, if the non-OEM;s stand to be more reliable and cheaper in price, the aftermarket can expect to see a drastic change within sales.
A study was made by the International Energy Agency which stated that the number of electric vehicles has surfaced to be on the rise by 35% towards the year 2040. By increasing the outlook of electric vehicles, they are placing major change on the aftermarket and the auto industry as to how their models can compare. Doing so will drastically change the need for fully motorized vehicles.
By introducing a healthier environment by changing combustion engines over to batteries will indeed change the ecosystem itself by eliminating any harsh substances being put into the air. Showing the potential change in the ecosystem will allow governments nationwide to take a more focused and deeper look into the electrical vehicles sales industry and their decision to stand behind them and allow placement for them to grow.
Conclusion
By the year 2036, Thailand government has agreed to look into having at least 690 charging stations built and 1.2 million electric vehicles ready for distribution nationwide. The concept of electric cars is to increase the reliability within manufacturers to proceed with production of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles in their final phases. By the year 2025, commercial electric vehicles should be on the rise and be ready to sell to the market.
Finally, Thai Parkerizing, as a leader in coating, surface treatment and heat treatment technology for a wide range of purposes, including customers in the automotive parts industry, continues to persist in research and development to create effective solutions for customer needs.
Coating products for primer before painting, such as zinc phosphate on steel parts or non-chrome. The pre-treatment coating performance can be checked using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM).