Stuff to Blog About and More: Electric Cars

Today I will focus on Cars that run on electricity as part of my series on alternative fuel.

A car that runs on electricity utilizes chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs, and electric motors and motor controllers instead of an internal combustion engine (ICE).

Electric cars can also fall under the scope of the hybrid alternative. Vehicles using both electric motors and ICEs (hybrid electric vehicles) are examples of hybrid vehicles. Hybrid vehicles with batteries that can be charged externally to displace some or all of their ICE power and gasoline fuel are called plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), and are pure battery electric vehicles (BEVs) during their charge-depleting mode.

Using regenerative braking, a feature which is standard on many electric and hybrid vehicles, a significant portion of the energy expended during acceleration may be recovered during braking, increasing the efficiency of the vehicle.

Vehicles that run on electricity produce no tailpipe emissions. As a matter of fact, the only emissions that can be attributed to electricity are those generated in the production process at the power plant. Electricity is easily accessible for short-range driving.

Electricity used to power vehicles is generally provided by the electricity grid and stored in the vehicle's batteries. Home recharging of electric vehicles only takes plugging them into an electric outlet.
Under the hood, there are a lot of differences between gasoline and electric cars:

* The gasoline engine is replaced by an electric motor.
* The electric motor gets its power from a controller.
* The controller gets its power from an array of rechargeable batteries.

You can replace lead-acid batteries with NiMH batteries. The range of the car will double and the batteries will last 10 years (thousands of charge/discharge cycles).

FTC: Your Rights: Credit Reporting

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, has prepared a brochure, Your Access to Free Credit Reports, explaining your rights under the FCRA and how to order a free annual credit report.

A credit report includes information on where you live, how you pay your bills, and whether you've been sued, arrested, or filed for bankruptcy. Nationwide consumer reporting companies sell the information in your report to creditors, insurers, employers, and other businesses that use it to evaluate your applications for credit, insurance, employment, or renting a home.

How do I order my free report?

You can order your free annual credit report online at annualcreditreport.com, by calling 1-877-322-8228, or by completing the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

When you order, you need to provide your name, address, Social Security number, and date of birth. To verify your identity, you may need to provide some information that only you would know, like the amount of your monthly mortgage payment.

A Warning About "Imposter" Sites

The FTC advises consumers who order their free annual credit reports online to be sure to correctly spell annualcreditreport.com, or link to it from the FTC's website to avoid being misdirected to other websites that offer supposedly free reports,but only with the purchase of other products. While consumers may be offered additional products or services while on the authorized website, they are not required to make a purchase to receive their free annual credit reports.

For more information on free annual credit reports, read Your Access to Free Credit Reports.