Interesting read.
I’ve been saying this as well, but he’s a scientist and has charts!!
His thesis is basically EVs don’t really save any energy or money and most of the world’s big cities (outside N. America) are going car free, so where they are most beneficial, they will not be used.
I stopped reading when he compared electric cars to ICE cars and said that they should be compared to plug-in hybrid cars? huh?
The gist of the article is that it costs about the same to operate an electric vehicle or gasoline vehicle or hybrid and that the “all-in” pollution from both type cars is on the same order of magnitude.
In essence, there is no big advantage to electric cars (per the article) with respect to pollution or saving money when you consider everything.
Yea, there’s a lot of benefits to fully electric over gas though (no more exhaust out of the car, completely quiet, pure torque. etc). All things equal (price of car, insurance, etc) then there’s no question electricity is going to be cheaper than gas. Also, maintenance may be similar costs, but oil changes are no longer needed.
Depends where you live. Electricity rates vary wildly across the country.
https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_5_6_a
In southern CA, electricity is more expensive than ICE, esp hybrid. And, the data shows “environmental” impact from start to finish is no lower with electric vs. ICE. And it has less upside to get better / more efficient. And electric cars don’t yet pay the equiv taxes for roads, etc. that are captured in gas taxes.
Electric cars are more expensive than their ICE counterparts… Look at Leaf vs. Versa, or eGolf vs. Golf
Point being, the SCIENCE and DATA shows we’re throwing lots of taxpayer money something that is driving lots of good feelings (or Smug as the Simpson’s episode called it), but no actual beneficial results.
I’m in SoCal and based on my calculations (even without having solar) charging my future electric car won’t even cost a fraction of the cost of gas. Gas is now over $3.00 per gallon where I’m at. Electricity at super off-peak hours is $0.19-$0.21/kWH if you have an EV (where I live in San Diego). For a few bucks an electric car can go 200+ miles. That’s not even in the realm of comparable. I’d understand if you made the argument that electric cars are more expensive and that offsets the difference in savings, but you definitely can’t compare the cost to gas.
I did the math - electric wasn’t really cheaper than gasoline. By charging everyday - I get pushed into the ~40cents per KW hour (thank you SoCalEdison for your progressive rates). costing me around 15 cents per miles which is a bit more than gasoline costs. For what it’s worth I pay around 8 cents a mile for gasoline in my Encore (35 MPG, ~$2.75/gal)
Here’s a little blurb from the “Alternate Fuels data center” - note that electric rates matter.
If electricity costs $0.11 per kWh and the vehicle consumes 34 kWh to travel 100 miles, the cost per mile is about $0.04. If electricity costs $0.11 per kilowatt-hour, charging an all-electric vehicle with a 70-mile range (assuming a fully depleted 24 kWh battery) will cost about $2.64 to reach a full charge
From a quick google search I got this:
“Just as with gasoline cars, some electric vehicles are more efficient than others, and the average EV needs about 30 kWh of electricity to power the vehicle for 100 miles. For example, the EPA rating for the Nissan LEAF is exactly 30 kWh per 100 miles. A Tesla Model S 60D is rated at a combined 32 kWh per 100 miles and uses a little more energy since it’s heavier and more powerful than a LEAF. The Chevrolet Bolt is currently the most efficient electric car and has a combined consumption rating of 28 kWh per 100 miles. The consumption for all electric vehicles can be viewed at the US Department of Energy’s website”
So 30 kwh at $0.20 is $6 for 100 miles.
A hybrid getting 40 MPG at $3/gallon would go 100 miles for $7.50.
So yeah electric may be somewhat cheaper, in SoCal, but not by a lot. And this assumes that you will always get off peak pricing, which is obviously not the case for everyone. And SoCal has the most expensive gas in the country (outside of Hawaii and Alaska). In most of the country gas is still well under $3 and the same 100 miles would be right around $6.
As more and more EVs are on the road, there will be more demand for electricity. What happens with increased demand? Higher prices. And decreased demand for gas will have the opposite effect.
Not saying it’s for everyone, but for me it definitely makes sense. I don’t have any car that goes 40MPG. Some of my cars I’m happy to just get 20, so that already doubles the cost. Like I said, if you’re already considering hybrids (or plugin hybrids) then going fully electric isn’t too much of a stretch. With hybrids you’re dealing with batteries AND gas. So more potential for complications and maintenance costs.
I’m one of those people that will likely get solar for my house, so at that point an electric car won’t really add to much additional cost of ownership. I anticipate many EV owners will be in the same boat, so it’s definitely not an apples to apples comparison.
Boomba:
I believe that we have come to similar conclusions regarding costs to drive an EV.
regarding the cost per kwh, SoCalEdison (where I live) has either…
I haven’t looked too much into time of use plans, but can you switch plans at different times of the year? Like can I do time of use the whole year except June-Sept when I would run my A/C units?
One other thing to consider…states will start taxing cars on mileage in order to get the lost revenue from gas tax. Washington state, where I live, is already starting. It was announced today that a pilot program is under way. The plan is to eliminate the state gas tax which is now 46 cents, and instead tax everyone 2.4 cents per mile driven. The reasoning is to get drivers of electric and/or super fuel efficient cars to pay more.
All states will do this eventually. So do the Kwh exercise above and add 2.4 cents per mile to the total cost.
It’s pretty funny (or sad depending on how you look at it). The state was begging people to go green. They went green. And now they’re penalizing them for it. LOL. Just like how Portland imposed a tax on bikes, after begging and pleading with people to ride their bikes in order to save the earth.
Govt will never allow to to pay less. So if you have this illusion of cheap transportation via electric, think again.
I don’t know the answer to that. Ask your electric company.
The take-away here though is that it costs about the same to operate an EV as a gasoline car with many different variants that influence costs
I’m still not seeing that for my situation, but everyone will have to figure it out for themselves.
You compared driving a sub-compact-like EV to your big truck/muscle-car/big whatever that gets 20 mpg. If you’re going to make that comparison you are fooling yourself.
Most full size cars from 15 years ago got about 20mpg 
I wasn’t comparing. I’m just saying, if you’re going to buy a fuel efficient car that goes 40MPG, then might as well hop on board the EV train
Why? If it costs the same, why add the inconvenience of dealing with charging? I’d be on the EV train if there were and actual cost benefit. But there isn’t. In the future it may very well be. But right now, other than having the cool new toy in the sandbox, there’s no rational reason for an EV. Not that there’s anything wrong with having cool toys 
I dunno, I haven’t found a hybrid that looks as awesome as a Tesla and has the cool features of it either. I don’t find it inconvenient at all that I’ll never have to show up to a gas station ever again. Also, as soon as I get solar, charging costs are negligible.
Right. The Tesla is the cool new toy.
But I’m telling you, your costs will never be negligible. The state will find a way to tax you on the solar, on the miles on the charging station, whatever. Right now we’re in the honeymoon stage of solar/EVs. It’s like the drug dealer who is giving you a taste for free to get you hooked And once you’re in…watch out. The only reason solar is negligible is because of the subsidies. Those won’t be around forever.