I’ve been thinking about making the switch to an electric vehicle and wanted to get some opinions from you. Are any of you driving electric cars right now? How’s the experience?
I’m curious about things like range, battery life, charging times, and cost efficiency. Is it worth the change and what’s your recommendation?
I’ve been giving a lot of thought to making the switch myself. My thoughts go back and forth from pure battery, to plug-in hybrid. Both have pluses and minuses.
Do you have a way to charge the car, whether in your garage, or a nearby charger? That’s an important factor. I hate reading these stories about people complaining how they can’t charge their EVs, and they live in apartments. That was a poor decision on their part.
I’d suggest sitting down and doing the math for 5 years cost of ownership, comparing the costs of your current vehicle, vs switching to EV. For me, personally, the math doesn’t quite add up, but I’ve also got a 14 year old who will be needing a car in a year or two.
The folks I know that have EVs love them, for what it’s worth. All of the scare stories about running out of electricity in the middle of the freeway during a blizzard are a bunch of horse hockey. It’s certainly possible…but those scenarios are extreme situations that usually don’t apply to most people in reality.
Good luck.
You can only answer that question, but 1st you have to ask yourself is it the right fit for you and like said above, do you have support for an EV in your area??
I see a few EV’s in my area, but not a lot of support for them yet… People have gotten buyers remorse in my area and returned their Tesla’s due to the lack of EV support here, but in other areas of the states, there is lots of support… Before I retired, an EV would not have been practical for me, now, the battery would probably die from lack of use… lol
A recent consumer study conducted by McKinsey found that 46% of US EV owners surveyed said they were likely to switch back to a gas-powered vehicle, compared to a global average of 29% of EV owners who said they would likely switch back to an internal-combustion engine. Jun 28, 2024
Just posting the link for FYI, have to log in or something…
46% of EV Owners Say They're Likely Going Back to Gas, Citing Charging - Business Insider.
There are a couple of EV and PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric) owners here. Likely they will chime in but they seem to be very pleased with ownership.
As mentioned before, IF you can charge them at home with a charger that costs a few thousand to buy and install and you drive well within the EVs range, you will be money ahead on fuel costs. IF you can’t do that - apartment or rental home - recharging at a charge station will cost you roughly the same as gasoline and maybe a bit more so little to no savings there. And there are areas of the country that don’t have many EV chargers. Lots on the coasts, not the same density in Wyoming or Texas.
If you do mostly local driving, that is what an EV is best doing. If you frequently drive long distances, longer than the car’s range, you will find far more planning and stopping for long periods is required. In that case a PHEV is definitely better. EV around town, gas engine on long trips that can fill-up in 5 minutes off any interstate exit.
If you are thinking of an EV truck or SUV to tow your travel trailer or boat… don’t. You’ll need to stop every 75-100 miles to recharge for an hour. There are a number of YouTube channels that proved this correct.
Review how you use your car now. Be honest with your needs and the answer should be apparent. Used EVs are a steal right now, so buying used may be a bargain.
I own a 2023 Tesla standard range Model 3 and like it a lot. Current range is about 265 miles, but I never let it get that low. The LFP batteries should be kept near full and I charge when the SOC drops to 85% or so. I charge at home with a 120V line and that’s a full overnight charge. Installing a 240V line is too expensive for me since I only drove 4300 miles last year. Low mileage makes 120V charging practical.
If I commuted (I’m retired) I might install the level 2 (240V) charger, but $450 for the Tesla charger and a new 240V line from the circuit breaker box on the other side of the house would cost around $1500.
There are a few Tesla Superchargers nearby, but the closest is 12 miles away and the cheapest is 15 miles away. I used to use the cheapest and the go to the gym next door while I waited the 45 minutes to charge from 15% to 100%.
If you want to take advantage of the federal tax credit, consider the Model Y. It qualifies for the full $7500 credit because the batteries are made from US materials and the car is assembled in the US. Note that the 2WD long range Model 3 is $4000 less than the 2WD short range after the tax credit because the LR uses the US manufactured batteries as the MY. You get 363 mile range instead of a 272 mile range. The Model Y 2WD and AWD both cost less than the M3 standard range and both have 320 mile range.
I definitely would buy again but only the LR M3 or the MY. Less than $30,000 MSRP with tax credit for the LR M3 is a bargain IMO.
I am extremely pleased with my PHEV. It recharges in my garage, overnight, from a standard 120V home outlet. And, even though its battery-only range is “only” 57 miles, that is sufficient for 90% of my driving. When I take a longer drive, HV mode allows it to switch back & forth from the gas engine to battery motive power, as is appropriate.
A couple of weeks ago, I “filled-up” the tank (actually, it took just 7.5 gallons), and I had driven 1,422 miles on that small amount of gas. I will leave it to the OP to calculate my overall gas mileage, because if I posted it, he might think that I was bragging.
For some reason, it seems like a lot of people aren’t aware of PHEVs, and the fact that one really doesn’t experience range anxiety with one of these vehicles.
This is one of those things that you will have to just do a lot of web research . Just because I may like or dislike an Electric vehicle means nothing.
What are your driving habits - do you take long trips - how is the charging station around you - if you are in an HOA do they have rules that make this choice yes or no - do you have a garage so someone will not steal your charger for the copper - look on line for stories by people who enjoy their EV and those that don’t .
Just take a few mornings with fresh coffee and use the web as that will answer most of your questions.
Couple things here, I would not put a 240v charger inside my garage because of the danger of fire with rechargeable batteries. I’ve seen a couple of installs on the This Old House program and they always put the chargers outside, although they never addressed the reason why. In one case, the house did not have a garage.
A 120v charger may not be as dangerous, but you may need to check local codes about that. Lion batteries are known to catch fire even when not being charged so maybe parking an EV in the garage is not a good idea in the first place.
As for running out of a charge during a blizzard on the freeway because traffic isn’t moving, most of the gas vehicles run out of gas during that situation too. Don’t drive during a blizzard, gas or EV.
An EV can be a practical commuter vehicle as long as the commute is within the range of the battery and you can get enough charge on it overnight to make it through the next day. But it is not practical for a trip. If you go on trips very often, you will need another gas powered vehicle. If you don’t take trips very often, renting a gas powered vehicle might be the best solution.
There is a social issue that will need to be addressed if EV get more popular, or are mandated and that is collecting a road tax to maintain our roads and highways.
If you use a commercial charging station, in some states you may be paying a tax on the electricity you buy, but right now, as far as I know, home chargers do not tax the electricity you use to charge your vehicle.
The simple solution would be requiring chargers that meter the power used to charge the vehicle and send it to the utility company to be added to your electric bill. Drivers of ICE vehicles will not tolerate a lot of EVs getting a free ride for long.
Looked at my electric bill, there are already three separate taxes added to the bill.
Your idea does have merit. The meter on the charger would determine a separate tax that would be paid to your state DOT.
Some states have a tax on public charging already, Washington State charges ev owners an extra $225/yr for registration.
Suit yourself but I read a while back that in California about 40% of electric buyers were switching back to ice. Just too much of a hassle. So if I put 220 in, it should be outside so the car could be parked in the cold, snow, and rain for safety? I’m thinking bell bottoms.
My Tesla Model 3 uses LFP batteries that are less prone to fires than other chemistries. I’m not aware of any fires during charging if undamaged LFP batteries, or at any time for that matter. Also, modern charging technology uses a properly sized heat pump to keep the battery well below combustion temperature. There are also temperature monitors on board to shut down the charging process if safe temperatures are exceeded. See below for information about LFP safety.
I think the plug-in hybrids are the more practical version. Suggest to do a little research what other folks are buying, which type has + inertia in the sales numbers, before deciding. You want to be a member of a large group of owners b/c then you can take advantage of economy of scale for maintenance, repair, and parts.
Personally, sorry sir about the late reply …
I came across a lot of negative news/ articles about EVs recently, which adds up to my concern. There’re quite a lot of charging stations where I live, but the waiting while charging would be a big problems for me
this is so helpful, thank you so much
When I first bought my EV I used commercial charging stations. Tesla Superchargers are the least expensive, fastest, and most prevalent in Central Maryland. No matter where you charge, it will take a while. It takes about 45 minutes to charge my standard range Model 3 from 10% to 100%. You need something to do while it charges. I used to take a walk or go to the gym. The chain I belong to has a branch very near the Supercharger I used. Tesla also has computer games on board that you can play while waiting. It should take about 1 hour to charge a long range M3 from 10% to 100%. I mention the M3LR because it is the lowest cost M3 assuming you can use the federal tax credit of $7500.
If you can pick your charging time, using the lowest cost time of day will save money. As traffic at the charger picks up, the cost increases. Earlier in the day, like before 7am, seemed to be least expensive. I never tried after 7pm though.