At one time in the early 20th Century, electric cars were fairly popular, especially so among city women who didn't need to drive long distances. They didn't need hand cranking to start, and no clutch or gears to shift. More or less like enlarged electric golf carts. Then Charles Kettering invented the self-starter, just before WWI, and the world changed.

Back in college, required reading for engineering students (at least at Ohio State) was "Professional Amateur," the biography of Charles Kettering. He was basically the inventor of the modern automobile. He was to cars as Edison was to electricity.