The inevitable is here. No-emission rules are getting legislated. Electric vehicles are gradually expanding their widespread invasion. And combustion engines might soon resemble dinosaurs – in becoming totally extinct. This makes the enthusiast's heart skip a beat, in terror and not some infatuation that it's not just the petrol-gulping engines that the human race might soon have to bid adieu to. This switch to EVs might transform the art that is the automobile entirely. 
Yes, global warming is a phenomenon that we should respect as we only have one planet to ourselves. And the advent of EVs will restrict that from sinking our planet, courtesy of zero-emission transportation. But are EVs really all that great? More importantly, are their clean and green advertisements enough to propel us to pitch-in into their notion? Is there really nothing hiding beneath the bonnet that adversely affects our planet?
But before we delve into the advantages and challenges of EVs, let us understand what and how electric propulsion will alter the car and its dynamics. 

DRIVING STYLE WILL SEE A CHANGE
With respect to acceleration, it takes a while for petrol-powered cars to get a move on. Pressing the throttle in a regular car means the operation of numerous other components, which in turn, makes the engine deploy a higher concentration of air and fuel mixture, which forces the tyres to turn and ultimately makes the car move. All this actually employs a fractional amount of time, which in our daily use is negligible. 
But with electric cars, acceleration would become a lot like flipping a switch. Mash the pedal to the floor, and the electric motor starts spinning instantaneously, providing the driver with instant power and torque. This will make off-the-line accelerations a much more rapid affair where drivers have to be mindful of being delicate with the throttle, else bumper to bumper damage amidst our traffic conditions would be a regular fallout. 
Furthermore, even the brake pedal might soon get sidelined for emergencies, courtesy of energy conservation in EVs. In order to keep the batteries topped up in an EV, carmakers have resorted to regenerative braking technology, which essentially charges your battery upon braking. And to further use this technology in the most aggressive manner, auto companies have incorporated a feature wherein the brakes would be enforced as soon as the driver takes his foot off the accelerator instead of the usual coasting at a decreasing speed. That will allow drivers to essentially drive with just the accelerator as the car brakes itself as well as charges its batteries in the process. The hydraulic brake pedal will then be utilised only in case of hard braking or emergencies. 

THE CABIN WILL BE A MUCH  QUIETER AFFAIR
As EVs employ much less moving or mechanical components than combustion engine vehicles; very little to almost no mechanical noises will invade the cabin. Even when in motion, an EV's cabin will be a much quieter place to sit in and conversations between passengers won't have to turn into episodes of the usual yelling to make oneself heard. 
The rear bench usually sees a significant portion of legroom being eaten up by the transmission tunnel's presence in combustion engine cars. But the absence of the same in EVs implies the floor remains flat, which opens up considerable legroom, thereby making the cabin more spacious. 
If the interior design in the current crop of EVs is anything to go by, expect screens to dominate all EV dashboards. Almost everything ranging from climate control, multimedia, sat-nav, car driving modes and even electric door close will perforce get embedded inside the central infotainment touchscreen. On the flipside, the gear lever on the centre console will get replaced by buttons while the rest of the dashboard will receive a minimalist treatment. Car occupants can expect a lot more control, information and graphics to be bestowed on the touchscreens – while the rest of the cabin remains fairly empty lending for a more spacious environment. 

CHEAPER AND SOFTWARE-CENTRIC MAINTENANCE 
With not many mechanical parts in an EV, there isn't much that could go wrong. Hence, the costs of maintaining one shall be a comparatively cheaper affair against a combustion engine vehicle. The need for lubricant replacement will drop down by a significant margin, and so will the need to tweak or inspect every component under the floorboard. 
Tyres will become an all-important aspect of an EV as not only will they bear the load of a heavier battery-equipped vehicle but also incorporate the regenerative braking technologies in its stride. The latter will further induce special care for the brakes, which will now bring the vehicle to a halt as well as aid in recharging the batteries. And speaking of fuel cells, batteries are the biggest and most expensive factor of an EV. Charging frequencies, sitting idle durations, and outside temperatures are certain aspects that affect a battery's performance, hence regular check-ups and proper care of the battery would go a long way in extending the life of a vehicle. 
Unlike the regular commuter, enthusiasts would feel the pinch of EVs slightly more as aftermarket tune-ups would mean mere software upgrades rather than the norm and excitement of installing performance parts. And mechanics would see their job being taken over by computer geeks, who would be hammering away on their laptops to bump up the power figures via coding and software wizardry. 

EVS WILL MAKE YOU MISS THESE
As the electric vehicle announces the departure of combustion engines, the fossil-fuel burner will be taking a host of components along with it. The most significant bit is the exhaust system, whose output was the reason behind EVs' arrival. Enthusiasts will further long for the once-abhorred exhaust noises that would now be remembered lovingly as being something akin to Beethoven's symphonies in musicality. And the revving nature of the engine is another attribute which won't be offered and be immediately craved for, in the instant-accelerating EVs. 
While on the subject of enthusiasts, a manual gearbox has been on the forefront of a joyful and engaging driving experience. But with EVs, the stick shift and the clutch will forever get exiled to the dinosaur ages. 
While these sum up the major changes in the automobile post electrification, we now take a look at the advantages as well as the challenges that the general population will face with EVs. 

THE VITAL COMPONENT
Batteries are to EVs what engines are to internal combustion cars. They sit across the vehicle floorboard and constitute as the single most expensive part of an EV. Bloomberg reports that the battery pack accounts for 30 per cent of the entire vehicle cost. As per its reports, the battery pack retail prices have reduced drastically from $1,100 per kWh (or Rs 80,000) in 2010 to the prevailing average of $137 per kWh (or Rs 9,900). The report suggests further devaluation is slated to happen in the coming years. Additionally, advancement in battery technology has only gained pace as the range has increased and charging times decreased with every succeeding year. And if this trend continues, the second-hand market for EVs seems quite volatile. As batteries are the all-important component in EVs, the vehicle’s price will largely be dependent on the condition of its battery pack, which like computers will have a much shorter shelf life, thanks to constant developments in the field.

BENEFITS OF AN EV
The primary idea by which these EVs were promoted as the future of transportation was zero-emissions. A battery-propelled car means no harmful carbon output, which further entails a cleaner atmosphere and a healthy Earth. But while EVs play the saviour to our little blue planet, they also play the hero to our wallet. 
With petrol prices about to cross the century mark in the subcontinent, there could not have been a better time for electric vehicles to foray into the Indian market. Charging up the batteries costs significantly less than pitching in for fossil fuels. According to a recent ET Auto report, the running costs of an EV sum up to about `1 per km when utilising a home charger. Simultaneously, the running cost of petrol and diesel racks up to around `9 and `8 per km, respectively. Hence, individuals running an EV for city use can save up a considerable sum on a daily basis if they opt for the new-age technology. 
As the affordable mass-market EVs operate without multiple forward gears, driving one is similar to riding a scooty – which only needs to accelerate and brake. Hence, driving an EV in bumper-to-bumper traffic would be a simpler and relatively effortless experience than regular cars. And even amateur drivers would find it easier to learn driving in EVs than conventional vehicles, thanks to the lesser manual input required. And when you have mastered the art of driving, mashing the throttle in an EV would provide you with instant power and rapid acceleration, something even famed supercars fails to offer.
Plus, sitting in an EV should be a more serene experience than in conventional cars. The NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) levels in an EV would be considerably lower, allowing more accessible communication and a relaxing commute. 

CHALLENGES OF AN EV
While I did mention cost-effectiveness as one of the major benefits of having an EV, owning one won't come cheap. For instance, the petrol-powered Tata Nexon starts from the `7 lakh mark (ex-showroom), but the same SUV variant, the Nexon EV, has a starting price of `14 lakh (ex-showroom). As EVs have expensive lithium-ion battery modules crammed together in their underbelly, the cost of manufacturing electric vehicles climbs up significantly, and the upfront cost of owning one will pinch your pocket initially. Though, with time and more research on optimising batteries, these costs are expected to come down, but we're still years away from witnessing them. 
Then comes the other major issue – range. Since its inception, range anxiety has been the EV's Achilles heel. With battery technology still in its early days, most EVs on sale right now can't offer over 350 km on a single charge. Owners start sweating once the battery levels drop to the lower levels of its capacity, as even developed nations still don't have a widespread network of charging stations. 

As per the EVI and Hybrid & Electric Vehicle Technology Collaboration Programme, Kolkata seems to be leading the charge in sustainable public transportation, having ranked third globally, superseding London, for having the largest electric bus fleet. However, the number of EV charging stations around the city doesn't touch triple digits yet. Those resorting to home chargers also don't have respective sockets installed, and the same has to be retrofitted by either carmakers or third-party energy companies. And setting these up will also attract a premium in the initial stages.
If you thought range anxiety was a big issue, the time needed to charge the batteries up is another annoying matter altogether. As mentioned before, the battery technology is still in its early stages, and that means that neither can the battery hold the charge for long, nor does it top up quickly. So, what used to be a 2-minute splash and dash in and out of petrol stations will now take upwards of an hour with EV charging by a fast charger. This recharging time will further extend to over 10 hours of charging via a home wall socket unit. For daily city use, urban residents can still make do by plugging their EVs into their domestic socket overnight, providing them with enough charge to get through most of the week's commute. But the same can get annoying when taking an EV for longer journeys and having to make unplanned stops, that too for long tenures. 

And the final concern that affects our world in a significant manner – pollution. I admit, EVs have no exhaust or carbon output and that they are zero-emission vehicles essentially, but the pollution caused while manufacturing them is a story that usually gets sidelined. More specifically, lithium-ion battery production. As these batteries are composed of components like lithium and cobalt, which have to be mined, the mining process results in a high greenhouse gas output. Plus, mining of these raw materials usually occurs around the South American countries, and extraction of these minerals causes significant extraction of water resources in that area and even drying up lakes. 
In essence, EVs appear to be an easier, cleaner and silent alternative to gas-guzzling conventional vehicles. However, they still aren't the faultless substitute that carmakers would have you believe. They still hide some secrets under the bonnet, along with some flaws under the floor. But given time, they can be perfected and be made to make sense in our urban environment. And a feasible product shouldn't be our primary concern; rather, erecting the required infrastructure such as charging stations and even adequate legislation to recycle these chemical components should be our primary focus of immediate interest, target and goal.