Nothing except reality. There is not enough road space in cities or enough resources on the planet for that many more people to own cars.

True is that cell phones and computers are replacing the car as most coveted items that come with development.

In just the past few days, I have seen a number of commercials advertising guaranteed reduced-cost gas for a few months with the purchase of a Chevy or a Suzuki. It is high time for the development of a car that will minimize gas consumption and lower emissions.

Full electric cars, super idea. So where does the electricity come from? A power plant burning fossils fuels. Energy isn't magic, it doesn't just appear at your power outlet. Frankly, a hybrid is about the most efficient use of fossil fuels you will find, I would wager MORE efficient than burning it at a plant and transferring the energy hundreds of miles to your home. This CEO is perfectly aware of this. He is only saying these things for good publicity, and money in his pocket. Cars contribute very, very little to greenhouse gasses, it is almost completely industry, and mainly energy plants. This will just increase the energy plant's load.

"Full electric cars, super idea. So where does the electricity come from?"

Even if we don't switch power source, using electricity is still more efficient than burning gas. But in many places, a lot of electricity comes from hydro, nuclear, or natural gas co-generation.

And as solar, wind, deep geothermal, and wave power come down in cost, they'll be used more and more.

It's a lot easier to clean up power plants than millions and millions of tailpipes.

Still a huge challenge, don't get me wrong, but with smart meters and variable electricity rates, charging plug in and electric cars at night and off peak becomes a no brainer.

Kudos to Carlos Ghosn, who turned his companies profitable. It only takes one dedicated company to introduce a new technology, and he is doing just that.

With public charging stations at each Renault and Nissan dealership, the infrastructure will be in place, and these battery electric cars will sell as fast as they can be manufactured. My prediction is that the change over to electric cars will be swift and massive. Once the price point hits 'affordable' they will become a 'first choice' and secure a status symbol as well as an energy saver, the envy of neighbors.

@Bryan .. you loose your wager. It is nearly twice as efficient to use the fuel in a power station, then have an electric car. This is why electric cars have a good 'CO2' footprint even when their electricity is provided by the dirtiest coal generators. Obviously, cleaning up the grid is a priority with or without electric cars, and this is being done.

LOL @ Bryan.
You have a lot to learn. Perhaps you should start by googling the "Dunning-Kruger Effect" and working your way up from there.

I prefer the idea of pursuing serial-hybrids like the volt to full-electric cars, at least for the time being.
As illogical as it may seem to those of us for whom green is key, many people are unwilling to give up the ability to refuel on the go, for the sake of those 2 times a year they drive 200 miles in a day. (Why not just rent for those few days?! I don't know either.)
Unless full-electric cars make it possible to switch out a dead battery for a fresh one along the way, cars still need the ability to recharge/refuel without a many-hour pause in a trip. As battery techology gets better and better, the serial hybrids will run on battery more and more of the time until the fuel-burning engine isn't worth the extra weight.

That's an interesting statement coming from Carlos Ghosn considering just two years ago he was saying hybrids didn't make any sense.

http://www.autoblog.com/2005/01/31/nissans-ghosn-tells-it-like-it-is-hybrids-suck/

"As illogical as it may seem to those of us for whom green is key, many people are unwilling to give up the ability to refuel on the go, for the sake of those 2 times a year they drive 200 miles in a day. (Why not just rent for those few days?! I don't know either.)"

ICE or even series hybrid vehicles can adapt to changing circumstances. My daily commute used to be less than 20 miles, which would have been fine for a variety of electric vehicles, however, my office moved and for the time being my commute is now over 100, so had I purchased a BEV a year or so ago, I might not have been able to work now. Worse yet, some days I now have to go to other offices that can be hundreds of miles away and often with little notice. If you frequently rent vehicles you will find that they are not always available on short notice.

"That's an interesting statement coming from Carlos Ghosn considering just two years ago he was saying hybrids didn't make any sense."

Yeah, I thought of that too.. But I'd rather have someone who changes his mind to correct a wrong than someone who sticks to his guns right or wrong.

2 years ago things were pretty different too, in that people in the US didn't even think global warming was real.

Well, he may be saying that, but the EV Renault sold, aren't anymore,

If you speak french, search "Kangoo Elect'road"
Before that one, we had a "Clio Electrique", when the Renault Clio switched generations, it lost it's electric counterpart

We have the Cleanova, on a Kangoo last-gen base, but it is NOT manufactured, or even designed by Renault, instead, It is Heuliez and Dassault, which designed the EV system on top of a motorless Kangoo.

If someone wants more information about thoses, you can mail me at wolf.sama@gmail.com

"And as solar, wind, deep geothermal, and wave power come down in cost, they'll be used more and more."

'Annon', you dope, those sorts of energies cannot be stored, an with Marxists like Obama who refuse to look into Nuclear energy, the ONLY way to power cars and other forms of "eco" friendly electric technologies will be via BIG OIL.

And Richard, "There is not enough road space in cities or enough resources on the planet for that many more people to own cars". Try telling that to our Communist Chineese friends.

It is America who has the most to loose, yet is making some of the relatively biggest strives to become "green", for many in the US public transport is simply not an option, whether its too hot in the South, inconvienient because PT doesn't go everywhere (if you've ever been to the South, you'll know how town planning differs from the North), and finally, in many cases its dangerous.