This article from Jalopnik says that research indicates that EV battery degradation is not something to obsess over anymore. This is especially true for second and ensuing generation EVs like the Bolt and Model 3 (whew!). If you are thinking about buying a new or used EV, battery anxiety shouldn’t figure heavily into the decision. You can also use the battery life misperception to score a good deal on an EV.
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I have a 2022 Chevy Bolt with around 88K miles on it now.
As far as I can tell, there’s little to no battery degradation on it. I’m sure it’s not like it was when brand new…but the estimated range is at or exceeding what it’s supposed to be every day.
EVs are not nearly as scary as some people think.
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Even if there’s some degradation, you don’t have to replace the whole battery pack. There are companies that’ll refurbish the battery at a fraction of the cost.
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The Nissan Leaf did a lot of damage to the battery life model.
A few other high profile battery failures - Hyundai for example - just added to this.
Irrespective of the facts, that image of EV battery life will depress sales for quite a while.
From my perspective, it’s not just the early cars that caused trepidation in buying a hybrid car. It’s my experience with lesser cost items with the same battery technology that seem to croak prematurely. I bought two e-scooters from reputable manufacturers where the batteries lasted about a year before they wouldn’t hold more than 10% of their original capacity. I could go on w/cell phones, ipads etc. The batteries in the scooters cost nearly as much as a new scooter to replace. So when it comes time to think about a car with orders of magnitude more $ risk, then I am very hesitant. I think a lot of people have similar experience.
Now I understand that’s not apples-apples because of the technology being used to control the battery and likely the higher attention to battery cell quality. So eventually I broke down and bought a hybrid. But not until I could see solid data supporting the reliability and the beta testers had suffered through the second wave of customer testing 
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Thermal control is a big life extender. The heat pump in my Model 3 can turn on in the garage after I return home even though it wasn’t running when I parked. Sophisticated thermal control systems can also reduce the likelihood of a fire by preventing thermal runaway.
You aren’t making me feel better. The car turns on in your garage to cool the battery to prevent a fire? I’ll sit this one out.
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The fan in your car turns on to keep the engine cool.
Besides, just sitting won’t cause thermal overrun. That could occur during charging in a system without thermal management. That’s why you shouldn’t charge e-scooters inside. A neighbor was charging his child’s e-scooter inside his garage and that started a fire.
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My EV does not have an engine.
Battery degradation and range was never something that should have been taken seriously or obsessed about. True, EV batteries are lasting longer and better than anyone originally anticipated, but even from the outset the failures and cost were blown out of proportion. People used to say “what if I buy a Prius and the battery goes bad at 60,000 miles?” Well, what if you buy a Tahoe and the transmission goes out at 60,000? What’s the difference?
Sure, some mfrs have had worse battery life than others, but that’s no reason to condemn the whole industry. Hyundai has had some trouble with their Theta engines. Does that mean you should never buy a car with an engine? Tesla warrants their batteries to 120,000 miles and guarantees that they will stay above 75% capacity for that time period.
But you’re OK with a gas furnace burning away in the garage sitting 10 feet away from your 30-gallon gas can on wheels? 
And no, the car doesn’t “turn on” to cool the battery.
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Tolerance for risk.
Yes, the financial ramifications may be similar but there’s a reason many people shy away from the bleeding edge. My career is in technology development, including R&D. I do risk assessments every day for our programs. I tend to stay away from anything novel until it has had a chance to grow past the infant mortality stage when using my own money. Some people like being the first- more power to them. It helps w e e d out the bugs before I step into the purchasing line… 
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Very true. I will not buy a product that doesn’t have that, and other safety features, built into the pack control. Look at the regulatory certifications on the product, it helps to at least w e e d out the really sketchy stuff.
It’s because Nissan tried to cut corners. The early Leafs had air cooled batteries. In just a few years their batteries started losing range. Tesla and all the others have found if your control the temp of the battery it can last a longtime. My 9 yo Chevy Volt Phev has about the same range on a full battery as when I bought it new.
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Are you kidding me? A transmission rebuild is far cheaper than a battery pack replacement. More importantly, when a transmission is rebuilt by a reputable shop or company, they will install improved parts, which should reduce the risk of future problems. A new or rebuilt battery pack is unlikely to have any such improvements, and the probability that it will go bad is no less than when the vehicle was new.
You improve your chances by making informed decisions
Sometimes that means leaning towards certain brands and avoiding others at all costs
I’ve had several family members ignore my advice several times and pay dearly for it
Years later, when they again asked for advice, I politely declined
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That IS my point. Nissan helped damage all EVs with this mistake.
Just like the $60,000 CAD battery replacement for the Hyundai Ionic
Note an additional point made in the article… EVs are getting totaled in accidents that are not that serious because they cannot risk the slightest bit of damage to the pack creating thermal runaway… Sooo replace the battery pack (for $60K) in a car costing $60K new?? That is a big NO.
Even Tesla had their own issues… Remember the Roadster? If the batteries discharged to a certain point the cars were “bricked” requiring replacement of all the batteries at a cost of $40K. Remember the Finnish man who blew up his Tesla Model S because the battery replacement cost was $22K?
People remember these articles from the history of the modern EV and it affects their buying decisions.
The facts may show the battery life is not a huge concern but the facts also show the cars setting homes on fire when flooded, setting ships on fire when transported and insurance costs increasing because the cars are being totaled in minor accidents. That scares some people off and the sales reflect it.
…of hybrid batteries? The Prius has been on the road for +25 years. Tesla Model 3 for 8 years.
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The Prius is no longer bleeding edge. Hybrids are proven technology. But they don’t suffer the same problems EVs do. To compete, there are EVs flirting with “bleeding” a little more than they should.
You want to REBUILD a transmission but REPLACE a battery pack. Let’s compare apples to apples. A battery pack can be rebuilt at a fraction of the cost.
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