With a zero emissions electric vehicle, it’s Earth Day, every day.
But there are other benefits: EVs typically require less maintenance than conventional vehicles: no oil changes, no filter changes, and no tune-ups. And the brakes generally last longer.
A Consumer Reports analysis found that, EVs save 60 percent in fuel costs and 50 percent in maintenance costs when compared to gas-powered vehicles.
“EV owners could save between $1,800 to $2,600 in operating and maintenance costs for every 15,000 miles compared to drivers of gas-powered vehicles,” said Mike Monticello with CR Autos. “So, there’s some real savings to be had there.”
Consumer Reports has always advised against buying a model during its first year of production. Monticello says that includes the new crop of EVs coming to market in the next few years.
“Let the automakers work out some of those bugs that typically happen with new vehicles,” he said. “It’s not necessarily even related to the electric powertrain. It might be just maybe they put a new infotainment system in, or they put different controls in and stuff like that. Any time you bring in a whole bunch of new parts, you’re asking for some potential reliability issues.”
By waiting, you’ll get more models to choose from. That means more features and lower-priced options.
More Info: Is It Time to Buy an Electric Vehicle? This story includes an episode of the Checkbook’s Consumerpedia podcast about electric vehicles.
