I know electric cars don’t need multiple gears, but wouldn’t they benefit from them in anyway at high speed for example?

Question

I know electric cars don’t need multiple gears, but wouldn’t they benefit from them in anyway at high speed for example?

In: Technology

Answer 1

Early electric cars DID, they didn’t perform well without them. An electric motor with a fixed gearing so it doesn’t fly apart at 85 mph would be so weak at 5mph that it would burn itself up and produce very little torque.

But a transmission does create some losses, is a really common/expensive point of failure (I think most gasoline cars eventually have a transmission failure before major engine thing like a seizure), they’re super expensive to design and build, and add weight and bulk to the drivetrain that could be used for more motor or battery.

IF you can shrink or avoid a transmission, it’s usually a good thing.