There’s already so many ev cars in scrap yards due to being mechanically totaled from dead batteries it’s not worth buying one unless you plan to lease or budget for a new battery/motor after the warranty is out. ICE cars at the price of EV cars still last way longer, and can be maintained to continue running without a mandatory motor replacement after a certain number of miles/hours.
Do you have any source for this? EVs have so much fewer parts which need maintenance or could reasonably have to be replaced. Also batteries these days are gonna last for a long time judging from what I’ve seen.
I see some of the pain points from the original commentator, but it’s partially an unequal comparison, because many people compare used ICE cars to new EVs. But your comment is stating it like it’s snake oil.
I own a 12 year old volt. One of the community apps tracks crowd sourced battery degradation. My pack’s still about 75%-80% of it’s new range. I’m in the center of the bell curve, drive mostly on electric, but it can’t quite make it all the way to/from work anymore. :(
Chevy did a decent job at battery cooling. There are plenty of Nissan leafs that didn’t fair as well.
If I did have to replace my pack right now, (and it’s only a 10kWh) it would be around 8k, but they’re generally not available. None of the used packs on ebay have any assurance that they have any significant life left.
Bluebook on the car is maybe 5k but that is a hybrid. 8k would essentially total the car. If i did manage to get a remanufactured pack (assuming it lasted another decade) it’s still going to need wheelbearings, axels, suspension, steering, HVAC.
Just because an EV’s motor can last longer, doesn’t mean it makes a significantly better long term investment.
I have a 12 year old ICE car @ 172,000 miles and it needs none of those wheel bearings, axels, suspension and HVAC fixes. I would not bundle regular car issues with EV issues since it varies from manufacturer to manufacturer (and even model & year).
The high cost of a battery replacement compared to the cost of the car after a few years is a concern which is seems very relevant though.
Talking about battery replacement for EV is like talking about engine replacement for ICE.
“Sure, ICE car are nice but the high cost of engine replacement after a few 100k km is a concern”
Batteries in today’s EV can last way longer than people expect, changing the battery is really not something that will be fine regularly, not more than changing the engine in current ice car.
172k on a car with no suspension issues ever, you’re in the red zone for all those kind of failures, that’s just luck or very very careful driving/maintenance.
I would not bundle regular car issues with EV issues
Except for oil changes and transmission issues EV’s suffer from the same problems. And an HVAC failure can destroy a batterypack
The batteries, there’s just no way around it. Batteries are expensive as hell. You could make the pack standard and small enough to diy replace, but then you lose efficiency, safety, and have higher resistance. I was kind of hoping we could do some kind of flow battery where you’d pull up to a gas station and just swap out your electrolyte, but the power density is just awful.
There’s already so many ev cars in scrap yards due to being mechanically totaled from dead batteries it’s not worth buying one unless you plan to lease or budget for a new battery/motor after the warranty is out. ICE cars at the price of EV cars still last way longer, and can be maintained to continue running without a mandatory motor replacement after a certain number of miles/hours.
Do you have any source for this? EVs have so much fewer parts which need maintenance or could reasonably have to be replaced. Also batteries these days are gonna last for a long time judging from what I’ve seen.
I see some of the pain points from the original commentator, but it’s partially an unequal comparison, because many people compare used ICE cars to new EVs. But your comment is stating it like it’s snake oil.
I own a 12 year old volt. One of the community apps tracks crowd sourced battery degradation. My pack’s still about 75%-80% of it’s new range. I’m in the center of the bell curve, drive mostly on electric, but it can’t quite make it all the way to/from work anymore. :(
Chevy did a decent job at battery cooling. There are plenty of Nissan leafs that didn’t fair as well.
If I did have to replace my pack right now, (and it’s only a 10kWh) it would be around 8k, but they’re generally not available. None of the used packs on ebay have any assurance that they have any significant life left.
Bluebook on the car is maybe 5k but that is a hybrid. 8k would essentially total the car. If i did manage to get a remanufactured pack (assuming it lasted another decade) it’s still going to need wheelbearings, axels, suspension, steering, HVAC.
Just because an EV’s motor can last longer, doesn’t mean it makes a significantly better long term investment.
I have a 12 year old ICE car @ 172,000 miles and it needs none of those wheel bearings, axels, suspension and HVAC fixes. I would not bundle regular car issues with EV issues since it varies from manufacturer to manufacturer (and even model & year).
The high cost of a battery replacement compared to the cost of the car after a few years is a concern which is seems very relevant though.
Talking about battery replacement for EV is like talking about engine replacement for ICE.
“Sure, ICE car are nice but the high cost of engine replacement after a few 100k km is a concern”
Batteries in today’s EV can last way longer than people expect, changing the battery is really not something that will be fine regularly, not more than changing the engine in current ice car.
172k on a car with no suspension issues ever, you’re in the red zone for all those kind of failures, that’s just luck or very very careful driving/maintenance.
Except for oil changes and transmission issues EV’s suffer from the same problems. And an HVAC failure can destroy a batterypack
The batteries, there’s just no way around it. Batteries are expensive as hell. You could make the pack standard and small enough to diy replace, but then you lose efficiency, safety, and have higher resistance. I was kind of hoping we could do some kind of flow battery where you’d pull up to a gas station and just swap out your electrolyte, but the power density is just awful.