美国有线新闻 CNN 汽车行业的未来——电动汽车

 

According to InsideEVs.com, which covers news about electric vehicles and tracks their sales, there was a deep in the average number of electric cars sold in the U.S. between March and April. Still, for the first four months of this year, EV sales have been higher across the board than they were last year. Is that a sign of things to come?

据InsideEVs.com网站报道，今年3月至4月份，美国电动汽车的平均销量有所下滑。InsideEVs.com网站聚焦有关电动汽车的新闻并追踪其销售情况。尽管如此，今年前4个月的电动汽车销量整体来看仍高于去年。这是否预示着未来的发展趋势?

For the past 100 years or more, Americans have mostly bought cars, filled them with gasoline, and driven them places.

过去100年或者更长的时间，大部分美国人都买了车，给车装满汽油然后开车去各个地方。

Get ready for all that to change.

这一切都将改变，拭目以待吧。

First, electric cars are coming on strong. Batteries are now better and cheaper to make. The Chevrolet Volt¹ and soon the Tesla model 3 both get more than 200 miles of range for under $40,000. They promised to make practical electric cars accessible to the masses.

首先，电动汽车越来越强大。现在的电池也变得更优质更便宜。雪佛兰伏特和特斯拉Model 3的售价不到4万美元，可它们都能行驶200英里。他们承诺将制造出大众可购买的实用型电动汽车。

At the same time, advances in computers, software and sensors² are bringing the dream of self-driving cars to reality. Already, many luxury models can largely drive themselves on highways and in stop and go traffic.

同时，计算机、软件和传感器的进步使自动驾驶汽车的梦想成真。目前许多豪华车型都可以在高速公路上和较拥堵路段进行自动驾驶。

That's easy stuff, though. The real challenge is driving on city streets and in suburbs where are there complex intersections³ and pedestrians⁴.

虽然，这些都是很容易的事情。真正的挑战是在城市街道和郊区驾驶，因为这些地方路况复杂，有许多十字路口和行人。

Companies from both inside and outside the auto⁵ industry are working on those problems. Several automakers have promised to put self-driving cars on the road in just a few years. They'll probably show up in fleets at first, think self-driving taxis with a driver at the wheel.

汽车行业内外的公司都在研究这些问题。多家汽车制造商承诺在几年内生产出能上路的自动驾驶车辆。他们一开始可能会比较谨慎，考虑给无人驾驶出租车配个司机。

Once cars can drive themselves, car sharing becomes much more attractive. After all, if your car doesn't need you to drive it, why just let it sit in a parking space all day? For that matter, why buy a car at all when you can cheaply ride in one that's just driving around on its own anyway.

一旦汽车实现自动驾驶，汽车共享就会变得更有吸引力。毕竟，如果汽车不需要你驾驶，那为什么还让它一整天都停在停车场呢?就此而言，既然能够花很少的钱就乘坐到自动驾驶的汽车，那为什么还要买车呢?

With all this going on, it's no wonder automakers and auto industry investors⁶ are nervous about which companies will come out on top when the future finally arrives, and it's arriving fast.

随着这一切的发生，难怪汽车制造商和汽车行业的投资者对未来哪家公司会独占鳌头感到紧张，而这很快就会到来。

1 volt   

n.伏特，伏

参考例句：

• You may use 100 and 110 volt appliances in your room.您可以在房间使用100及110伏特的电器。
• The common service voltage of electric power in our country is 220/380 volt.我国普通供电电压为220/380伏。

2 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

3 intersections   

n.横断( intersection的名词复数 )；交叉；交叉点；交集

参考例句：

• Traffic lights have been placed at all major intersections. 所有重要的交叉路口都安装了交通信号灯。
• Intersections are of the greatest importance in highway design. 在道路设计中，交叉口占有最重要的地位。 来自辞典例句

4 pedestrians   

n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Several pedestrians had come to grief on the icy pavement. 几个行人在结冰的人行道上滑倒了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Pedestrians keep to the sidewalk [footpath]! 行人走便道。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

6 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会