Column: 'Environment,' 'Safety' Forcing Cars to Change

One hundred years have passed since Henry Ford released the Ford Model T in 1908. Although vehicles have evolved in terms of safety, clean emissions and comfort, the basic principle that vehicles are driven by gasoline engines (or diesel engines) remained unchanged.

However, in recent years, vehicles are in the midst of huge waves of changes, with the shifts of drive systems from internal-combustion engines to electric motors and control systems from mechanical operation to software operation.

Vehicles, which have been perfected to some extent over the past 100 years, are taking a new step toward the next 100 years of evolution. Behind this evolution are the environmental issues represented by global warming and the social need to achieve zero traffic accident casualties.

'The century of electric cars' has started

Electric-driven vehicles such as hybrid cars and electric cars in the past were not widely accepted because of the prices higher than conventional vehicles. However, the status of electric vehicles is changing due to unprecedented escalation of gasoline prices, which now exceed ¥180/L (as of early July 2008, ≠ US$1.73). In fact, sales of Toyota's second-generation Prius, released about five years ago, are increasing substantially in 2008 compared with the previous year.

In addition to escalating gasoline prices, the growing recognition of the seriousness of global warming is another factor. Prior to the Hokkaido Toyako Summit in July 2008, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda announced his "Fukuda Vision," in which he proposed to cut CO₂ emissions by 14% by 2020 and 60-80% by 2050 compared with 2005 levels.

Nissan Motor Co Ltd changed its whole attitude, responding to the growing interest in environmental issues. Nissan was negative about the efforts for electric-driven vehicles until recently and cancelled commercialization of hybrid vehicles, anticipating limited sales due to high-cost.

However, the company announced that it would commercialize electric cars in 2010 in "Nissan GT2012," a new business plan covering the companies direction until 2012. The plan was released in May 2008 to express the company's commitment "to be a global leader in zero-emission vehicles."

Automotive Energy Supply Corp (AESC), a fifty-fifty joint venture established by Nissan and the NEC Group in line with Nissan's electric vehicle commercialization plan, announced that it will start production of Li-ion secondary batteries in 2009 and they will be used in forklifts for small businesses as the first step. AESC Li-ion secondary batteries will also be employed in electric cars manufactured by Nissan.

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