Quick draw ping.
From 10 technologies to watch in 2011 - EET, by Nicolas Mokhoff, 2010 December 15
Many exotic technologies loom as long-term prospects for efficient energy storage, but to date none poses a commercially feasible alternative to lithium-ion batteries, and recent refinements to lithium-ion technology will keep it in the lead for the short haul. A123 Systems, a developer and manufacturer of advanced Li-ion batteries based on nanoscale materials that were conceived at MIT, was recently selected to develop battery packs for a 2012-model-year electric passenger car from Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp., the largest automaker in China. A123 has also signed a deal to sell 44 megawatts' worth of its batteries to AES Energy Storage, in a step toward putting solar and wind farms on the grid. While lithium-ion today is the poster child for energy storage, the technology has inherent limits in energy density and readily available raw materials. Those restrictions, in turn, could limit the production of electric vehicles if a commercially feasible alternative to lithium-ion batteries is not found soon. ..... < snip > .....
Energy storage media sought
Despite apparent progress on increasing density with nano-materials, article sounds quite gloomy.
Of course, the biggest obstacle for any significant size of consumer electric auto market to develop would be the electric energy generation, and the undue emphasis of governments on inefficient and expensive "green" wind and solar technologies (instead of accelerating deployment of nuclear reactors) just is not going to get it done.
Development of inexpensive portable / removable batteries would take care of the [high-speed] charging problem, if the batteries could be quickly replaced or "rented" in any "charging" station or auto store or department store... but that seems to be a fantasy for now.