Manufacturers won’t tell you that there are issues with electric vehicles that make the argument for them less clear-cut.
Our list contains 13 of those unfortunate reasons. They range from simple matters, such as the high cost of EVs, to trickier problems, such as how batteries are produced. Even issues such as the design of EVs can pose problems for customers.
The Public Image on EVs
One of the downsides to electric cars isn’t down to them but how others push their image. In 2023, Mr. Bean and Blackadder actor Rowan Atkinson published how he felt about EVs via the British newspaper The Guardian. The comedian and actor expressed how, despite being an early adopter of EVs, he felt duped due to the production of the batteries, scrapping the cars, and the fact that synthetic fuels offer a better alternative.
Several experts debunked his views and claims; some even felt that his feature could hurt sales of EVs, particularly in the United Kingdom. Despite their slow rise in popularity, electric cars still face an uphill battle to become more widely accepted.
Range Anxiety
One of the most significant issues facing electric cars is range anxiety. This term describes EV drivers’ anxiety about their range going down and their inability to find a charging station to top up. Whereas gas stations are widespread, electric charging ports are not quite meeting demand.
A way around this is to buy an EV with a longer range, and more and more are seeing an increase in how far they can go. However, those EVs with a longer range tend to be more expensive, which could force buyers to opt for cheaper, shorter-range versions instead and thus increase their range anxiety.
Battery Degradation
Battery degradation in an EV is another issue that sometimes prevents people from buying one. Like cell phone batteries, batteries degrade over time, causing them to lose some of their capacity and potentially deplete quickly.
There is debate about how long EV batteries can last. Tesla and Elon Musk say they expect at most 12 percent capacity loss after 200,000 miles, which would still mean around 90 percent battery retention. Others believe it could be more than that and that temperature will play a key role in how fast an EV’s battery lasts. Solid State Batteries, currently being developed by manufacturers such as Toyota, could ease the problem.
The Price of Electric Cars
One of the most significant issues with electric cars is their cost. Although the gap is narrowing, EVs cost much more than their gasoline counterparts. An example is the Tesla Model S, which, without the estimate of EV savings, costs $72,990.
To put that into context, the 2024 Mazda 3 S sedan will only cost $25,000. Even luxury vehicles such as the new Acura Integra start at just $31,800, so there is a massive gulf between the cost of EVs and gasoline-powered cars. However, the gap is shrinking, as shown by Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6, which cost around $41,000.
Charging Station Locations
While multiple manufacturers are set to transition fully to electric vehicle production over the next few years, are we ready for it? To cope with the increased demand, countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom must invest heavily in their charging infrastructure to increase the number of EV chargers available.
The Department of Energy lists the currently available charging stations in the United States. The number can vary between the different levels, with 65,954 available at Level 2. But more than that will be needed for a country with millions of people. It is getting better, but there need to be more EV chargers available.
Production of the Batteries
While electric cars produce an ultra-low carbon footprint when in operation, the manufacturing process still harms the environment. The batteries’ production contributes significantly to that, as lithium-ion batteries need rare materials, which we have to extract.
EV batteries contain nickel, manganese, cobalt, lithium, and graphite, all of which emit substantial amounts of greenhouse gasses during the mining process. The next step in the EV race might be to decarbonize the process of producing the batteries to make the whole operation as carbon-neutral as possible. Manufacturers can influence this by their design choices and how they create their vehicles.
Quality Problems With Electric Cars
A recent JD Power study found significant issues with the EV segment. Alarmingly, one of the areas where it saw persistent issues was the frequency of repairs with EVs, showing higher repair rates across all categories. JD Power found 266 problems per 100 BEVs, 86 points higher than gasoline vehicles.
The problems also extended to the technology within EVs, as JD Power found a 30 percent higher incidence of issues with the technology in an EV versus a gas-powered car. These staggering and alarming figures show that EVs still have a long way to go before they are on the path of gasoline vehicles.
The Impact of Cold Weather
Not everyone is lucky enough to live in a constantly sunny area. If you own an electric car and live in a colder environment, you should seriously watch out for this. Some research shows that temperatures close to freezing can decrease the range of an EV by as much as 30 percent, and it remains a concern even as battery technology progresses.
There are knock-on effects to this as well. The colder it is, the more you will use the car’s heating system. This will sap energy from the battery and potentially significantly impact the range of your EV. These issues are less noticeable in gasoline-powered vehicles. Still, they rear their ugly heads when it comes to EVs.
Our list contains 13 of those unfortunate reasons. They range from simple matters, such as the high cost of EVs, to trickier problems, such as how batteries are produced. Even issues such as the design of EVs can pose problems for customers.
The Public Image on EVs
One of the downsides to electric cars isn’t down to them but how others push their image. In 2023, Mr. Bean and Blackadder actor Rowan Atkinson published how he felt about EVs via the British newspaper The Guardian. The comedian and actor expressed how, despite being an early adopter of EVs, he felt duped due to the production of the batteries, scrapping the cars, and the fact that synthetic fuels offer a better alternative.
Several experts debunked his views and claims; some even felt that his feature could hurt sales of EVs, particularly in the United Kingdom. Despite their slow rise in popularity, electric cars still face an uphill battle to become more widely accepted.
Range Anxiety
One of the most significant issues facing electric cars is range anxiety. This term describes EV drivers’ anxiety about their range going down and their inability to find a charging station to top up. Whereas gas stations are widespread, electric charging ports are not quite meeting demand.
A way around this is to buy an EV with a longer range, and more and more are seeing an increase in how far they can go. However, those EVs with a longer range tend to be more expensive, which could force buyers to opt for cheaper, shorter-range versions instead and thus increase their range anxiety.
Battery Degradation
Battery degradation in an EV is another issue that sometimes prevents people from buying one. Like cell phone batteries, batteries degrade over time, causing them to lose some of their capacity and potentially deplete quickly.
There is debate about how long EV batteries can last. Tesla and Elon Musk say they expect at most 12 percent capacity loss after 200,000 miles, which would still mean around 90 percent battery retention. Others believe it could be more than that and that temperature will play a key role in how fast an EV’s battery lasts. Solid State Batteries, currently being developed by manufacturers such as Toyota, could ease the problem.
The Price of Electric Cars
One of the most significant issues with electric cars is their cost. Although the gap is narrowing, EVs cost much more than their gasoline counterparts. An example is the Tesla Model S, which, without the estimate of EV savings, costs $72,990.
To put that into context, the 2024 Mazda 3 S sedan will only cost $25,000. Even luxury vehicles such as the new Acura Integra start at just $31,800, so there is a massive gulf between the cost of EVs and gasoline-powered cars. However, the gap is shrinking, as shown by Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6, which cost around $41,000.
Charging Station Locations
While multiple manufacturers are set to transition fully to electric vehicle production over the next few years, are we ready for it? To cope with the increased demand, countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom must invest heavily in their charging infrastructure to increase the number of EV chargers available.
The Department of Energy lists the currently available charging stations in the United States. The number can vary between the different levels, with 65,954 available at Level 2. But more than that will be needed for a country with millions of people. It is getting better, but there need to be more EV chargers available.
Production of the Batteries
While electric cars produce an ultra-low carbon footprint when in operation, the manufacturing process still harms the environment. The batteries’ production contributes significantly to that, as lithium-ion batteries need rare materials, which we have to extract.
EV batteries contain nickel, manganese, cobalt, lithium, and graphite, all of which emit substantial amounts of greenhouse gasses during the mining process. The next step in the EV race might be to decarbonize the process of producing the batteries to make the whole operation as carbon-neutral as possible. Manufacturers can influence this by their design choices and how they create their vehicles.
Quality Problems With Electric Cars
A recent JD Power study found significant issues with the EV segment. Alarmingly, one of the areas where it saw persistent issues was the frequency of repairs with EVs, showing higher repair rates across all categories. JD Power found 266 problems per 100 BEVs, 86 points higher than gasoline vehicles.
The problems also extended to the technology within EVs, as JD Power found a 30 percent higher incidence of issues with the technology in an EV versus a gas-powered car. These staggering and alarming figures show that EVs still have a long way to go before they are on the path of gasoline vehicles.
The Impact of Cold Weather
Not everyone is lucky enough to live in a constantly sunny area. If you own an electric car and live in a colder environment, you should seriously watch out for this. Some research shows that temperatures close to freezing can decrease the range of an EV by as much as 30 percent, and it remains a concern even as battery technology progresses.
There are knock-on effects to this as well. The colder it is, the more you will use the car’s heating system. This will sap energy from the battery and potentially significantly impact the range of your EV. These issues are less noticeable in gasoline-powered vehicles. Still, they rear their ugly heads when it comes to EVs.
