So, We've Got Electric Cars, Now What?

There are only 3 problems that I have with electric cars.

1) Miles per charge: This is something that will obviously be fixed in time as more research is done to find longer lasting batteries etc so it's not a long term problem but might be a short term problem depending on how far people need to drive day to day. But again, not a huge concern in the long run.

2) Where to charge: Right now I can look out in the parking lot of the shopping center where I work and how many charging stations are there? None. Now this is one of those chicken or the egg type situations where everyone is waiting for someone else to do something before they do something, just a big mess. The main problem becomes, who pays to install the charging stations? There are some 200 parking spots in this lot. Sure in the beginning you might only need 20 spots with charging stations but eventually over half will have to have charging stations then all of them since you can't tell gas owners they have to find a different spot just because this one is for electric vehicles, that might work in the beginning but eventually that won't work. So who pays for the charging stations? I assume they could be subsidized or even installed for free by the manufacturers or electric companies in the area until electric cars are in enough numbers that it will just become normal to have to pay to install them in every spot.

3) Price of the electricity: Somehow we have to decide how much the electricity will cost. I know here in San Diego electricity isn't exactly cheap (although it's probably cheaper than our crazy gas prices) but it's something that will have to be addressed. Here in San Diego we already have energy shortages and plugging in a bunch of cars isn't exactly going to help.

Actually, people prefered electric cars 100 years ago. They didn't make you choke on smoke and they were quiet. But big oil won out.

Here are 8 things you don't know about the Nissan Leaf: http://www.energyinyourlife.com/article.php?t=100000076

here are 6 things wrong about that article
1. leaf doesn't get 100 miles per charge, it gets an epa rated 76 miles.
2. the leaf actually does have a transmission, and does use fluids to cool the batteries/motors
3. while a mobile phone can turn on the heater, since the leaf doesn't have a real engine it uses battery power to inefficiently heat the vehicle, this cuts into your already meager 38 mile driving radius.
4. most noise from cars these days comes from tires on the road and not engines.
5. most cars timing belts are incorporated into the serpentine belt, and the serpentine belt is connected to the air conditioning, the leaf still has a belt that needs changing.
6. the tax rebate will only cover half of your purchase for a quick charge station, meaning $2200 charger and $2000 rebate doesn't work, more likely is $1100 rebate with a $2200 charger, or a $4000 charger with a $2000 rebate. The $2000 is the maximum amount you can claim this way.

Mr. Limon: 6, Nissan leaf: 0

@Joe_Limon:
1) I have one; it gets 94mi with mostly (70mi) freeway.
2) No transmission, just a reduction gear; No coolant for the batteries, motor inverter yes but these coolant loops are very low maintenance compared to engine coolant loops; i.e. >5 yrs;75k mi between servicing.
3)The remote climate control feature is pretty nice in SoCal where pre-cooling is the likely use. I've used it and love it.
4)true; but the LEAF is still extremely quiet. So quiet, I wish it had a better sound system.
5)Wrong, no belts to change
6) My charge station was $770; self install; much easier than an electric range; expect these prices to drop since there's nothing to an EVSE box... a few relays and a cable with a fancy connector.

The LEAF is not for everyone and doesn't try to be. It's just one option for some needs. No reason to hate on it.
It's perfect for my needs since I get free miles off my rooftop solar. Yeah, the sun is my bitch now.

I'm 56 years old and for nearly as long as I can remember I've been reading and hearing we are on the cusp of the next battery breakthrough that will make electric cars viable to an average buyer. Here we are four decades+ on and we finally have a nearly affordable full electric car on the market--and it can't go 100 miles between a several hours long recharge. And the manufacturer is almost certainly selling the too-expensive Leaf at a loss!!
An electric car won't be viable, in my mind, until it can go at least 250 miles between a recharge that won't take more than 30 minutes and is priced competitively with normal cars ($20-$30k at today's prices)and that a mamufacturer can make a profit on. Until then it's just an exercise in marketing one-upmanship and lining the battery developers pockets with tax money.
I don't know of one "green" industry or product on the market that isn't there because of government intervention in the form of tax money to support research and development which makes the products barely affordable--and then usually only after tax credits directly to the consumer. It's one of the biggest scams of all time--including electric cars!
BW