You’re considering a new EV? That’s not surprising given all the attention focused on spiking fuel prices and a general feeling of unease with our continuing dependence on oil. We’ve been down this road before for differing reasons and in response to unfolding world events, so the desire to look at alternatives is not new.
What we’ve learned over time is that oil dependence won’t go away anytime soon, though there is continuing progress leading us toward that goal. Green Car Journal has been documenting this journey for over 35 years. Through periods of fits and starts, we’ve seen alternative fuels and the vehicles that run on them come and go, linger, or be summarily dismissed as a potential mass-market solution. Amid this, electric vehicles have endured, improved, and expanded to become a desirable option for those who want to drive efficiently, support environmental progress, and do their part to move beyond oil.
But what do EV buyers look for these days and what drives their purchase decisions? Motivations are diverse, of course, but there are some fundamentals that always apply…and more than likely these fundamentals will come into play during your EV search as well. Here’s a look.
Buying a new EV, or really any new car, typically involves juggling myriad priorities. But the decision-making almost always starts with a logical first cut: What fits my needs?
Overwhelmingly, for most people these days the answer is an SUV. That’s not to diminish the importance of other battery electric models like pickups, sedans, hatchbacks, and commercial vehicles. It’s just that SUVs are widely regarded as the most versatile category of EV on the market. They are stylish, comfortable, functional, offer four doors, and feature an easily accessible cargo area. Importantly, the vast majority are now built on a car-like unibody platform rather than a truck-like body-on-frame, so they drive and feel like a car on the road while also offering a slightly elevated driving position for better visibility. All that adds up to an SUV being the most popular EV pick today.
Cost and Payments Matter
It always comes down to this, right? Buyers might want what they want, but ultimately it’s going to come down to a vehicle purchase cost a buyer can justify and payments that fit the budget. While payment plan options are now tweaking this for decreased monthly payments over a much longer term of up to 7 years, there’s generally a tipping point consumers would rather not reach.
When budget does play a part, EV buyers lean into balancing priorities with price. That means choosing a model that’s appealing, fits in a desired price range (or more likely, monthly payment tolerance), and offers most, though not necessarily all, of the features desired. There will always be those willing to pay top price for whatever they want, and others who will spend more because they enjoy the benefits of making their EV purchase a business vehicle with its attendant payment and tax write-offs. But for the majority of buyers, price, payments, and bang-for-the-buck will always be part of the new EV purchase equation.
Features and Content
Even amid balancing needs and desires with cost, some fundamentals are often non-negotiable. Style is usually one of them. It’s a given that we all want to feel good about the vehicle we drive and there’s now a wide variety of new electric choices on the market, so why settle? Efficiency is also an important consideration, though less so with an electric vehicle since all EVs are inherently efficient. Paying attention to a model’s MPGe (miles-per-gallon equivalent) rating is instructive for comparison purposes, but is less important to a purchase decision than other factors.
More important to most buyers is a refined cabin with a comfortable layout accommodating at least five. Also high on the list are quality materials, intuitive controls, and functions that are easy to access and use. Driver assist systems are highly desired since they make driving easier and enhance driving safety, so features like automatic front and rear emergency braking, blind spot warning, lane-keeping assist, front and rear parking sensors/alerts, and adaptive cruise control are increasingly important to EV buyers. Not all base models will offer these features. Ultimately, it’s important to look at what the EV you’re considering includes as standard equipment, which uplevel packages you may have to add to get the features you’re looking for, and a cost comparison between the EV models you’re considering. While it won’t always come down to just cost since one model may offer a more compelling style or feature set than another, the cost-benefit equation is important to keep in mind.
Range and Charging
Driving range remains one of the most important considerations in an EV purchase. The days of 80 to 100-mile EV range are behind us due to more powerful batteries, decreasing battery cost, and improved EV design. Now, EV drivers expect more, much more. An electric driving range of at least 200 miles has become a benchmark in recent times with many electric vehicles offering much more than that, with range expectations continuing to expand as EV technologies and vehicles improve. One of the interesting realities of EV ownership is that this kind of range is rarely required on a regular basis since the average driver travels less than 40 miles per day. Even a baseline 200 mile EV range capability far exceeds that traveled during an average commute to work. Still, EVs with a longer range capability do make longer-distance trips easier and mean that an EV doesn’t need to be charged up every day.
One of the keys to electric vehicle ownership is having a charging strategy. Simply, convenient charging is essential to daily life with an EV. If you’re going to buy an EV, install a charger in your garage or at your carport or driveway if at all possible. Those living in apartments, condos, and areas where an individual charger just isn’t possible should see if common chargers are available to residents, or explore if they can be added by management. Encourage your employer to install EV chargers if they haven’t done so already. Identify the location of convenient Level 3 fast-charge locations if you’ll be depending on public charging and confirm they are compatible with the EV you’re considering. Many modern EVs can charge back to 80 percent state-of-charge at public DC fast-chargers in just 30 to 40 minutes.
CCS, CHAdeMO, and NACS (Tesla) connectors and protocols are used by different charging locations. Today, there is movement to equip new EVs with NACS ports while also allowing compatibility with other chargers using adaptor cables. A few new EV models even come with dual charge ports that enable charging at nearly all commonly available chargers, including multiple types of fast-charge stations, without the need for adaptors.
Warranty: Peace of Mind
Choosing a battery electric vehicle is a new experience for many drivers. Taking the leap comes easier with the confidence that an electric model will perform as expected and prove dependable over time. Manufacturer guarantees are an important part of this. Battery longevity has long topped the list of concerns, which is why new battery EV models offer at least an 8 year/100,000 mile battery warranty, with a few manufacturers offering an even longer period of 10 years. As an aside, it turns out that early concerns about battery longevity appear unfounded, with multiple studies now showing EV batteries lasting significantly longer than expected and, in fact, are likely to outlive the useful life of the vehicle they are powering.
Comprehensive and powertrain warranties are also important, not only because they cover the standard parts and systems in a vehicle, but also the components and electronics unique to an EV. New models are typically covered by a 3 year/36,000 mile comprehensive (bumper-to-bumper) warranty and a powertrain warranty of 5 years/60,000 miles. To further instill confidence in a model’s durability and dependability, some manufacturers stretch these guarantees further for an EV, up to 5 years/60,000 miles for a comprehensive warranty and up to 10 years/100,000 miles for the powertrain/EV battery warranty, providing even more confidence in an EV purchase.
Regularly scheduled maintenance is required to maintain any warranty coverage, so here’s one last thing to consider: Some manufacturers bundle in additional benefits like free roadside assistance and complimentary scheduled maintenance for a period of time. It isn’t always offered, but when it is this can mean hundreds of dollars of savings in overall ownership cost when crunching the numbers for an EV purchase.