Forward Drive

Despite their clear disadvantages, the private motor car and internal combustion engine are so dominant in our society that it's tempting to assume a conspiracy on the part of motor and oil companies to block the alternatives. In 'Forward Drive' Jim Motavalli shows that on the contrary, such businesses are doing lots of research into electric cars, fuel cells and the like. If you want to find out more about what is happening behind the scenes in the move away from fossil fuels, or if you want to see what form transport in the future might take then you should take a look at t

Reading the book I found that Motavalli was upbeat about the coming of alternatives to the petrol driven car, and writes as if they are just around the corner. The thing is though that I also saw that the fundamental problems of alternative fuels - a price comparable to normal vehicles and a long range without using too much space for fuel - are still some way from being solved. In a way the book seemed to be more of a report of Motavalli's visits to factories and car shows in the 1990's than a serious discussion of the issues.