Electric revenge after 100 years? Comparing car market patterns around 1900 and 2000

During the closing years of the nineteenth century electric vehicles(EV) outsold every other type of vehicle. Yet within ten years the electricautomobile was no more and the internal combustion engined carpredominated. Could EVs have succeeded or was the technology – in particularthe batteries – simply not good enough? As EVs make a comeback in the early21st century some of the same problems persist. Only one manufacturer (Tesla)has built an electric automobile capable of approaching the range of an internalcombustion engined vehicle. Most modern EVs have a range of approximately160 kilometres, which decreases their usability in longer trips. This papercompares the introduction of electric vehicles in the USA in the late19th century with the early 21st century from a socio-technical transitionperspective. It discusses similarities and differences in market innovationpatterns and concludes on the chances for a successful revenge today