The Electric Vehicle: Technology and Expectations in the Automobile Age by Gijs Mom

Abstract

138 Michigan Historical Review in Congress, which his predecessor had attempted with disastrous results. Before he left office, inflation had been cut by more than one half and the number of Americans without jobs was declining. Though initially unpopular, Ford's proposals had a lasting effect: After nearly a quarter-century of focusing primarily on obtaining full employment, Washington shifted its attention toward achieving steady economic growth. Subsequent presidents also followed the courses Ford plotted for decontrolling the price of oil and deregulating industries ranging from automobile manufacturing to communication. Though Ford's success in passing legislation was marginal, Mieczkowski suggests his oudook merits the label: "long-term president" (p. 355). At the time, however, Ford's pragmatic, moderately conservative agenda did not capture the public's enthusiasm. People craved dramatic presidential leadership. It seemed that "substance was not enough" (p. 345). Gerald Ford and the Challenges of the 1970s adds a great deal to our understanding of Ford's priorities and guiding philosophy for the nation's domestic and international policies. Mieczkowski shows within a broad historical context how Ford dealt with the challenges the country faced during the mid-1970s and how many of the suggestions and proposals he made had the effect of underwriting the subsequent growth of the GOP. Mieczkowski's analysis also points to the need to consider Ford's presidency in the context of other threads of conservative thought, such as the rise of the religious right. I would recommend this well-written and useful book to academic libraries as well as students of the 1970s. David W. Veenstra University of Illinois at Chicago Gijs Mom. The Electric Vehicle: Technology and Expectations in the Automobile Age. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004. Pp. 423. Bibliography. Illustrations. Index. Notes. Cloth, $54.95. In this era of rising oil prices and increased environmental concerns, the possibility of the electric vehicle as an alternative to the gasoline vehicle has resurfaced. Thus, itwould seem a fitting time for an in-depth history of the electric automobile detailing the reasons why the technology was not fully developed during the twentieth century. In The Electric Vehicle, Gijs Mom has written such a history, explaining how the electric vehicle was developed in both Europe and theUnited States. The author has approached the subject from the premise Book Reviews 139 that the "reconstruction and analysis of the creation, development, and 'failure' of the electric-powered vehicle is likely not possible within the frame imposed by the history of the gasoline car. The expectations, technology, organization, applications, and automobile culture of the two types of vehicle were and are entirely different" (p. 297). Mom divides his narrative into three sections, discussing key technological developments from inception to failure. First-generation electric vehicles, 1881-1902, used by taxicab companies in Europe, failed because battery maintenance proved to be too expensive and revenue was too small. Second-generation electric vehicles, 1902-1925, electric taxicabs and private cars, depended on the development of the new "miracle" Edison battery. In this case, large fleets and centralized maintenance helped stabilize the electric-vehicle market. Third generation vehicles, which Mom does not date specifically, married technology with consumer-oriented features, resulting in practical applications of this technology to luxury city cars and municipal and commercial trucks. Within this chronological framework, Mom centers his research on the history of technology. Thus, the writing is often quite technical, and sometimes it overwhelms the narrative. Despite the fact that Mom believes that the electric vehicle and the gasoline-powered vehicle evolved along different paths, the development of the former nonetheless resulted in some direct contributions to car culture. Mom finds, for instance, that the electric taxicab ushered in the modern mode of transportation in cities by replacing horse-drawn carriages with small, motorized vehicles. Additionally, the professional technicians and fleet garages needed to maintain the electric taxicab resulted in a maintenance-oriented garage culture that eventually made wide acceptance of the gasoline powered car possible. Mom argues that the failure of the electric vehicle was not technologically predetermined. He finds that in areas where there was no competition from gas vehicles, the electric car flourished. The decisive batde between electric- and gasoline...