If you’re considering purchasing an electric vehicle, you may wonder where to begin.
There is a lot of confusing information out there about whether electric vehicles will actually save you money compared to a traditional engine and their pros and cons, so this article aims to clarify some of these things for you.
Benefits Of Electric Vehicle Ownership
The first thing to consider is why it is worthwhile buying an electric vehicle.
The Environment
There are some obvious environmental benefits of electric cars. There was initially some dispute over the batteries that electric vehicles ran on, as they use a significant amount of power to produce. In addition to this, they also use electricity, which in many parts of the world is still produced by burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas, much the same as diesel or petrol fuels.
However, many studies have been done into the environmental impact of electric vehicles on the environment, particularly climate change. As a result of these studies, electric vehicles have become a significant mitigation plan for reducing climate change below the 1.5 degrees Celsius set out in the Paris Agreement.
These studies have shown that an electric car would emit significantly fewer carbon emissions over its lifetime compared to its combustion engine counterpart.
As more countries shift towards sustainable electric sources, the carbon footprint of electric vehicles will fall even further.
If you are green-conscious, then this is going to be a huge benefit for you.
Cost-Savings
However, in terms of other benefits, an electric vehicle can also save you significant sums of money on your average motoring bills.
Firstly, most electric vehicles come with zero road tax.
If you live in inner cities, they are often also exempt from the congestion charge in addition.
Clearly, the biggest saving is your fuel costs. Diesel and petrol are currently at an all-time high, and the cost of running your car has probably jumped up significantly of late.
Whilst electric is not free, to travel 100 miles in an electric car would cost an average of three times less than it would in a traditional combustion engine car.
Maintenance of electrical vehicles is also cheaper than petrol or diesel cars. This is because they have a lot fewer moving parts than a traditional engine.
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Performance
As far as car performance goes, electric vehicles have a much smoother and quieter engine than combustion-engine cars. They also handle the road very well.
With new battery technology, they can also travel up to 200 miles on a single charge, which is constantly improving. So even if you’re someone who does a lot of miles, most modern electric vehicles are capable of meeting your distance needs. However, if you do more miles than this in a single journey, there are now charging stations nationwide.
They are also now able to accelerate to 60MPH at a similar speed to a traditional engine, so you are really not losing anything in terms of performance.
Drawbacks of Electric Vehicle Ownership
The main drawback of an electric vehicle is the cost of purchasing the car in the first place. Electric cars are expensive in comparison to traditional engines. They also haven’t been around as long and so opportunities to buy good quality used electric vehicles are limited.
However, electric car leasing is also an option, as outlined by Electrix in its guide to the cost of owning an EV. Electrix can offer competitive insurance quotes for electric vehicles – the average electric car will set you back around £25,000 to £40,000. However, if you lease a vehicle, Electrix states you could pay as little as £200 per month for the car you want. The site also has info on smart chargers, which can save you even further money on fuelling your vehicle as they will charge your car when energy prices are lowest.
There are also other ways to own an electric vehicle cheaply, if you own a profitable ltd company, the company can purchase one and receive a 100% tax deduction for the cost of the car at present in a new government initiative to get more people on the roads using electric vehicles.
Should I Opt For A Certain Brand?
Brands are often a personal preference, but while some electric cars have a very large reputation (such as Tesla), they can also come with a higher price tag.
The best thing you can do is head to a garage and test drive a few electric vehicle options and find which one suits both your needs and price tag best.
Summary
Electric vehicles are extremely beneficial for the environment and your bank balance each month, and with multiple options to own an electric vehicle, from leasing, purchasing through a limited company, or buying outright, you can have access to this great piece of technology now too.
