Contemplating An Electric Vehicle?  The Pros and Cons

So, you are thinking about going electric.  You likely know someone who has one, and he or she told you how wonderful they are and how much they love it, right?  As I say on the Car Pro Radio Show all the time, EVs are not for everyone, like diesel-powered vehicles are not for everyone.  I decided to give you some things to ponder if you are in the market for a new vehicle and you are unsure if you are ready to embrace the electric lifestyle.

I took the plunge myself!

I told you on the air that my next vehicle would likely be all-electric, and it is.  I got a 2025 Porsche Taycan (pronounced tie-con) from Avondale Porsche, my Porsche dealer affiliate in Dallas-Fort Worth.  I can tell you that it is a wonderful car and the first 500 miles have been terrific.  It is parked right next to my Level 2 BreezEV charger making it easy to charge.  Porsche was smart and put a charging port on both sides of the car.  Acceleration is amazing with 420-horses and range has not given me any problems with 318 miles driving available.  I have reviewed several dozen all-electric vehicles so far, and the truth is, I haven’t had one I didn’t like.

In the mantra of the show:  Straight talk and honest answers, I will point out that the Porsche is sort of a 3^rd car, not a daily driver, although it would make a great one.  As I have said for close to 15 years now, I can see a world in which most households have one electric car for commuting, and another gasoline vehicle for longer distances, such as vacations, or perhaps a pickup for towing or hauling.         

The Pros of going all-electric

• The Environment:  There is no denying electric vehicles, at least for the short term, are better for air quality since they do not emit any exhaust gases.  The longer term effects are still unknown, however.  What becomes of the huge, heavy batteries that power an EV?  Can they be recycled or reused?  EVs are still in their infancy, so these questions won’t be answered anytime soon.
• Say goodbye to gas stations:  You’ll never swipe your credit card and handle a dirty gas nozzle again.  If there is a hurricane or a war in another country and gasoline suddenly shoots up in price, you won’t care.  Bear in mind, events of the world could affect electricity prices some and cost you more money to charge your car.
• The quietness of electrics:  If you like driving in solitude, you’ll love an electric car.  They are whisper quiet and talking on your Bluetooth or enjoying your tunes is a different and wonderful experience in an electric car.
• Less Maintenance:  Oil changes will be a thing of the past, there are no tune-ups, EVs have fewer moving parts by far than gasoline.
• Acceleration:  Have a heavy foot like me?  The one thing everybody raves about is the immediate acceleration of an EV.  It’s incredible, you just have to experience it yourself and you’ll likely be hooked.
• Driving impressions:  The heavy batteries that power electric vehicles are generally centered under the floorboard of a car, especially dual-motor all-wheel drive versions.  This gives your EV a low center of gravity and generally better ride and handling quality.
  
• Incentives:  Although I don’t believe the government has any business in giving away tax dollars on cars, you might as well take advantage of the Federal and State money that is available, lowering the cost of buying and especially leasing an electric vehicle.

The Cons of electric cars

• Battery replacement costs:  While replacement battery costs are coming down, it can still be in excess of $20,000 or so, roughly double the cost of an engine replacement in most cases. 
• Limited range:  This is likely the main deterrent to most people considering an EV.  Who wants to plan their next vacation going from charger to charger and sitting in a line to charge your vehicle?  That certainly doesn’t appeal to me, so this is a big thing to consider.
• Charger woes:  I have been reviewing EVs and let the car direct me to a charging station as I was getting low on range only to find out the charger was inoperable, or someone’s car is sitting at a charger, fully charged, and the owner is not around anywhere. Now you have to find the next closest charger and hope you can make it. It is maddening.  Range anxiety is a real thing.
• Upfront costs:  Although this is changing and more EVs are coming down in price, there is still a premium to be paid for new electric vehicles, versus gasoline-powered vehicles, and this should be factored into your decision.
• Rapid depreciation:  We know the EV market has plummeted and used prices are WAY off.  Those early adopters who paid a premium for a new EV suffered massive losses, and that may not change anytime soon.  I’ve seen some people who were $30,000 or more upside down on a 2-year old electric vehicle.  Hertz wishes they hadn’t gone all-in on electrics, they’ve lost millions of dollars on EVs.  In fact, they have some low mileage electrics on the Hertz website as low as $12,300.  Tesla prices at the dealer auctions continue to fall.
• Fires:  We are seeing more and more spontaneous fires with EVs that are just sitting parked.  I brought you a Video Of The Week in the newsletter recently that showed an electric Mercedes catch fire in an apartment complex, damaging 140 cars and sending 23 people above to the hospital.  Ask any firefighter how easy it is to put out an electric car fire.  It isn’t.
• Weather:  Extreme hot and extreme cold is proving to shorten the range you can drive, so this can be an issue depending on where you live.
• Towing:  Electric pickups have been pretty popular, but usually just for people who use a truck as a car.  If you are towing or hauling heavy loads, the battery range can drop as much as 50% according to many tests.
• Tires:  EVs are always heavier than equivalent gas vehicles of the same size.  We are learning that the extra weight causes EV tires to wear quite a bit faster.

Things To Consider

Before you get an electric car, ponder these things:

• Are you a high-mileage driver?  If so, reconsider an EV.  You will end up charging your vehicle a lot and the long term reliability is still a bit of mystery.
• Get a charger for home:  This is a must, trust me.  If you don’t have one, or can’t have one for some reason, you will likely not have a stellar EV ownership experience.  Even before I got the Porsche, I had one installed because I am reviewing so many EVs and it was a life saver.  I can’t tell you how much time I lost sitting at public chargers.
• Lease your first EV:  This solves SO many problems.  If an EV isn’t for you, you are not stuck for six or seven years.  If the market suddenly drops more, not your problem.  If it goes up, you could be the beneficiary of that equity at the end of the lease.  Drive too many miles to lease?  Refer to my first point in this section.
• Transition with a plug-in:  For some people, plug-in hybrids are the perfect world.  If you have a daily commute that will keep you inside the range of a plug-in hybrid, you’ll reap all the benefits of an all-electric car yet have the ability to go across the country if you wish.  You can experience all-electric driving, but it’s your choice. If it’s a hassle or you don’t like it, don’t charge it, just use it as a gasoline hybrid.  At least for now, the resale value on a plug-in hybrid is exceptional.
• Consider Certified:  I see an incredible amount of very low mileage EVs go through the auction every single week, especially Teslas.  People get caught up in the hype, they worship Elon Musk, they think it’s cool to have an EV, or they succumb to peer pressure.  They get their EV, and 1000 miles later, reality sets in and they trade back for a non-electric and take a bath.  If you are on the fence, this may be a good way to get a real bargain and find out if an EV is right for you, after some other poor schmuck loses his or her shirt.

In Closing

I laid out the pros and cons of electric car ownership.  You may have noticed the cons list is a lot bigger than the pros list. Just remember that there are few perfect scenarios in the world, so don’t let anyone, including me, influence your choice of vehicles either way.  It is a personal decision that only you and your family should make.  Do your research, for goodness sakes take a long test drive, or better yet, rent an electric vehicle for a weekend, they are super cheap right now.

I liken EVs to cell phones.  I got my first one in 1985 and paid $2,500 for it.  Battery time was little more than a hot minute.  You’d get a hernia carrying it, but look at them today.  You are carrying around a computer in your pocket that will do so many things, the power lasts for days instead of minutes, and they weigh nothing.  Electric cars will drastically improve, too.  They will get cheaper, the range will be longer, the quality better, and there will be many more public chargers. 

The decision is: Wait on them to get better, or take the plunge now?  That’s your call.