Electric Cars CAN Be Cool!!

[custosnox]

As a point of reference for the price of gasoline vs. battery replacement:

Assumptions:  (Legitimate thing as long as they are stated.  You can define other assumptions and get your own numbers.)
100,000 miles at 25 MPG = 4,000 gallons
4,000 gallons at $3.50 per gallon = $14,000.  (I know the price of gas will probably not remain constant but it makes the analysis easier to do and understand.)
Free electricity for 100,000 miles.

So, at 100,000 miles if your battery replacement costs $14,000. you are at the break even point.   That does not include the premium for buying the electric vehicle at the beginning.

I'm curious, how many people do you think own a vehicle for 100,000 miles? The leaf's battery is predicted to lose 20% effectiveness in five years, 30% in ten. I would say that is a pretty good run before replacing the battery, and longer than the life of most cars today.

The bottom line is, no matter how much you want to deny it, electric cars are viable today. They may not be cheap, and you may not be able to justify it by cost alone, but if that was all John Q Public was after, we would have roads littered with Nissan Versas. People buy not only what they can afford, but also what they want in that price range. It will take time for the market to get real traction, even more so because of arguments like what have been presented on here, and in that time more technologies will come out, making these even more of an option for those who want them.

[heironymouspasparagus]

I'm curious, how many people do you think own a vehicle for 100,000 miles? The leaf's battery is predicted to lose 20% effectiveness in five years, 30% in ten. I would say that is a pretty good run before replacing the battery, and longer than the life of most cars today.

The bottom line is, no matter how much you want to deny it, electric cars are viable today. They may not be cheap, and you may not be able to justify it by cost alone, but if that was all John Q Public was after, we would have roads littered with Nissan Versas. People buy not only what they can afford, but also what they want in that price range. It will take time for the market to get real traction, even more so because of arguments like what have been presented on here, and in that time more technologies will come out, making these even more of an option for those who want them.

I think I am may be one of the few who goes over 100,000...I have 3 vehicles right now, one with 297,000 and the lowest with 193,000.  All doing well and the two Gr Marquis' are very comfortable.  Also have an older '89 Gr Marquis with about 210,000 that has electrical issues - a short in the wiring harness I haven't found yet - that should be back on the road soon - it's the most comfortable of the bunch as road trip car.  Like the looks of it the best, too.


Second part - so true... if people bought cars just on cost justification, there would never be a BMW sold again.  Or Mercedes.  The go-to cars would be Camry and Accord - arguably the best cost/performance autos made today.  Maybe (probably) the Hyundai Sonata.  Everything else is just bling and self gratification....

[Red Arrow]

I'm curious, how many people do you think own a vehicle for 100,000 miles? The leaf's battery is predicted to lose 20% effectiveness in five years, 30% in ten. I would say that is a pretty good run before replacing the battery, and longer than the life of most cars today.

I have owned 5 cars since 1971.  I have put at least 100,000 on each of them. I bought 2 of them brand new.  One of them was a 1981 Buick Skylark (X-body, Citation, Phoenix, Omega, Skylark) which I put 278,000 miles on before deciding I didn't want to put any more money into it.

The bottom line is, no matter how much you want to deny it, electric cars are viable today. They may not be cheap, and you may not be able to justify it by cost alone, but if that was all John Q Public was after, we would have roads littered with Nissan Versas. People buy not only what they can afford, but also what they want in that price range. It will take time for the market to get real traction, even more so because of arguments like what have been presented on here, and in that time more technologies will come out, making these even more of an option for those who want them.

Electric cars are indeed viable now if your needs fit the cars' capabilities.  If I drove primarily in stop and go city traffic, I would definitely consider either electric or hybrid.  I don't presently so I see no real value in either for me at the moment.  I also have all the expensive toys I care to run and maintain at the moment so an electric car as another toy is not in the picture.  Your results may vary.  Ignoring things like battery replacement is not wise.  The expected battery life will affect the resale value of your used EV when you sell it or trade it in on a new one.  One of the reasons I have been able to keep my toys is because I have evaluated the cost of keeping them after I purchase them.  As you note, we all make choices on how to spend our money.