When it comes to the electric car revolution there seem to be two divided camps: Those who say electric cars are going to save the world and others who believe that it’s just the latest woke fad.
Personally, I fall somewhere in the middle. As a hot-rodder myself who has built several fire-breathing gas-devouring muscle cars and a Tesla-powered 1965 Mustang, I find some truth to both sides of the argument.
Like any new technology or innovation, there are pros and cons. The question is: Are there more pros or cons for you? Let’s explore the pros and cons of electric cars together to help you decide.
The 6 Pros of Electric Cars
Let’s begin with the pros—but we encourage you to keep reading all the way through the cons for a full picture.
1. 0-Emission Technology
The obvious point of electric cars is that they are 0-Emission vehicles, right? Well, sort of. While driving an electric car around town may not be spewing carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC), and nitrogen oxides (NO) into the atmosphere, the energy has to come from somewhere.
Many argue that the production of electric car batteries and the emissions produced by coal power plants to generate electricity to charge the batteries offsets the benefits gained by the lack of emissions.
The point that is overlooked here, however, is that technology and innovation will make battery production and recycling more efficient, and solar, wind generation, and “clean coal” will continue to reduce the emissions to produce electricity.
There may never be a point in our lifetimes that electric cars are 100% 0-Emission, but it’s clear that they will have a lesser impact on the environment than gas-powered vehicles in the near future.
2. Speed/Power
Prior to the Tesla Model S, electric cars were thought to be weak—especially compared to the power of a ground-rumbling V-8 engine. Then, the Tesla Model S broke the sacred 3.0 seconds to 0-60mph milestone, a speed previously held only by $200,000+ supercars like Ferrari and Lamborghini.
The motors that power electric cars can reach peak power almost instantly. Whereas gas engines don’t reach their peak torque until the engine’s RPM reaches its optimal power range.
Today, the Tesla Model S Plaid can go from a complete stop to 60mph in less than 2.0 seconds, a speed comparable to professional drag cars. There is no question that the speed and power of an electric motor outperformed internal combustion motors.
3. Lower Maintenance Costs
Maintenance is probably the most misunderstood area of electric car ownership. Many believe that electric cars are more difficult and expensive to maintain than gas-powered cars. In fact, the opposite is true.
Electric motors have fewer moving parts than their gas-powered siblings. Moving parts create friction and wear, and only fresh oil and other lubricants keep these parts from failing. Since electric cars have a sealed motor with only one moving part there is no need for expensive motor oil and transmission fluid changes.
Another interesting benefit of an electric-powered car is that the motor is used to slow the car when slowing or stopping. This is due to the regenerative braking system: the system that charges the batteries by using the momentum of the vehicle to create power through the motor.
Since this system creates drag where traditional brakes would normally be used, it has been reported by electric car owners that they are getting over 100,000 miles on one set of brake pads vs. 30,000 miles on a typical car.
While there are several reports that show Teslas have higher repair costs than the “average automobile,” these reports also point out that the repair costs are mainly due to the premium cost of the Tesla Service Centers and the higher number of mechanical issues. These issues are mostly from things like faulty displays and door handles, not the common maintenance or drivetrain.
With more manufacturers entering the electric car space, repair costs will come down, and minor kinks with displays and door handles have already worked out on their gas-powered predecessors.
4. Time Savings
If you’re using your electric vehicle to commute to work and occasionally drive to the grocery store, you’ll find you have more time than you did in the past. This is because you’re not having to stop at gas stations.
For the driver who makes short commutes to and from work, you’ll just need a few seconds to plug in your electric car when you get home and unplug it in the morning. No dirty gas stations or smelly hands.
Sure, it doesn’t take long to fill a gas tank but 10 minutes a week adds up to nearly 9 hours a year, and if you’re like me and spend another $10 on Dasani water and two RedBulls, you’re going to save money too!
5. Lower Cost to Use
After the initial expense of purchasing an electric car, the cost to maintain and drive an electric car is much lower than a gas-powered car. The main reason for this is that electric motors are exceedingly more efficient than internal combustion engines.
The most efficient gas-powered engines are barely 40% efficient, whereas the average electric motor is rated at 85% efficiency. This means that they turn 85% of the electrical energy into mechanical energy, compared to a gas engine that turns only 40% of the thermal energy into mechanical energy.
This means an electric car needs less energy to go the same distance as a gas-powered car resulting in a lower cost to operate. Currently, the average cost of electricity in America is $0.14 per kWh (Kilowatt Hour), and a typical electric car can drive 100 miles on 35 kWh. Meanwhile, today’s fuel prices of $3.83 per gallon.
Here’s a breakdown of the cost of driving 100 miles in an electric vs gas-powered car:
Driving Cost Comparison
| Car Type | Cost for Driving 100 miles |
|---|---|
| Electric Car | $4.50 |
| Gas Powered Car | $15 |
The average electric car owner can expect savings of around $850 annually on fuel. The reduced maintenance and services may save up to $300 a year on fluid changes alone.
6. Tax Credits
The federal government is currently offering up to a $7,500 tax credit for all new electric vehicles. The credit amount varies based on the capacity of the battery used to power the vehicle and your personal taxes owed. Any unused portion of the credit will not be refunded or credited to future years’ taxes.
Many states and power associations offer additional incentives, rebates, or credits for purchasing an electric car or even installing a charger in your home. If you are considering purchasing an electric car be sure to check for additional credits in your area.
The 4 Cons of Electric Cars
Electric cars have many benefits—but there are downsides to any emerging technology. Here are some of the big ones for you to consider.
1. Limited Range
The greatest downside of electric cars is their limited range, meaning the distance an electric vehicle can travel before the battery needs to be recharged. While the average gas-powered vehicle can drive nearly 400 miles on a single tank of gas, the average electric car is still limited to an “aspirational” range of 220 miles on a full charge.
I call it “aspirational” because the range in an electric car will decrease as you drive. Remember that systems like heat, AC, and even the radio draw on the same power as the motor. Electric car owners commonly report that they feel the stress of constantly monitoring their range due to their fear of running out of battery and being left stranded.
This stress has contributed to some electric car owners trading in their EVs for a less efficient gas-powered equivalent.
The other obvious negative to a lack of range is the inability to drive long distances without having to stop at multiple charging stations. Some electric car owners have even been known to rent a gas-powered vehicle for their summer road trips just to avoid the inconvenience of stopping to charge.
2. Upfront Cost
Electric cars are much more affordable to maintain and drive, but the higher upfront cost may prevent many people from ever having the opportunity to own one. The main factor in the expense of the electric car isn’t the motors or even the technology. It’s the high cost of the batteries. So as the battery manufacturing technology improves the cost of batteries and electric cars will improve too.
Even if you can get past the sticker shock at the dealership you may feel another financial sting when you bring it home. A small battery electric car, like a Nissan Leaf, may take 10 hours to fully charge on a standard Level-1 (120-volt) charger, whereas a high-capacity EV, like the Tesla 100d, may take literally days! To solve this dilemma, owners install a Level 2 (240-volt) charger in their homes.
The challenge isn’t the expense of the charger (between $500 and $1,200,) that sends people into shock… it’s finding out your home’s electrical system isn’t able to handle the draw that a Level 2 Charger requires.
Some stories include having to upgrade breakers for a few hundred dollars to an entire electrical panel upgrade that could cost $5,000-$7,000!
3. Charging Stations
From the outside it looks simple enough that if your battery gets low you can just pull into a charge station and “top-off” your electric car while you’re taking a 20-minute break at the local Starbucks.
The reality is much different. There are different types of chargers, some that are only for Teslas and others that are not Rapid Stations. These differences are minor compared to the bigger issue of the lack of available or working chargers compared to the ever-increasing number of electric vehicles being sold.
Most Rapid Charging stations only have 3-6 spots to begin with and many electric car drivers are reporting that they are seeing an increase in broken and inoperable chargers.
The typical electric car can increase its range by 30 miles in about 20-minutes on a Rapid Charger. This means that during high-demand times there may be 10 or more cars waiting in line just to “top off.”
4. Battery
The biggest issue that has and still prevents electric vehicles from taking over the entire car market is the inefficiency of their energy storage or battery. Battery technology has made leaps and bounds in the past 10 years, with lithium-ion batteries taking the place of larger lead acid. But the weight and size of a battery can’t compare to the power density that comes from gasoline.
Gasoline has about 100 times the energy density of a lithium-ion battery. This means that if you were to add a fuel tank in your average commuter car large enough to carry 133 gallons of gasoline or the equal weight to the 796 lbs of the batteries of a Tesla Model 3, you could drive nearly 3500 miles on just one tank!
Battery Replacement
Battery replacement is a large concern for most electric vehicle buyers. There are plenty of scary stories about electric car owners spending $6,000 to $20,000 replacing their damaged or defective battery.
This is a very real concern that shouldn’t be taken lightly, however it is unlikely. There are thousands of older model Teslas driving the streets today with well over 150,000 miles still operating on their original battery. In fact, many manufacturers are now offering up to 8-year and 120,000-mile warranties on their batteries.
As batteries are charged, drained, and recharged they lose Capacity Retention, or the ability to charge fully. That said, real-world results from Tesla owners report that the average battery only loses about 7% of its capacity at 175,000 miles.
Battery Manufacturing and Disposal
As mentioned earlier, the environmental impact of manufacturing and eventually disposing of lithium-ion batteries may actually outweigh the environmental benefits of electric cars at this point.
The manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries emits about 2920kg of CO2 for just a small electric car like a Nissan Leaf and up to 7300kg for a Tesla 100d. The main reason for the high carbon footprint is the policies in the country of origin where the batteries are made. Most lithium-ion batteries are made in countries where the main energy for production comes from coal.
The good news is that in the near future, the batteries will be made in countries with higher sources of greener electricity sources like solar, wind, and nuclear. When this happens, the carbon footprint of the batteries will reduce.
Currently, it is difficult, if not nearly impossible, to dispose of lithium-ion batteries. This too is rapidly changing. New industries are emerging to find ways to recycle the lithium and other precious metals from the batteries to be reused in future battery production.
Weighing the Pros and Cons of Electric Cars
Now that you have a fuller picture of the pros and cons of electric cars, where do you stand? For me, that question depends if you believe in performance first… then it is a big fat YES from me!
If you’re looking for an affordable commuter car just to get you to and from work, it will be a NO right now due to the high upfront cost of the car and the charging station.
Lastly, if you believe buying a new electric car is going to directly help the environment today, then it’s another NO. The truth is the environmental impact today is as great if not worse than a gas car. However, if you want to buy an electric car today to help create a future that is less dependent on fossil fuel then move your chips to the YES column!
Have more pros or cons that I missed? Let us know in the comments.
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