BBC has an article out now titled ‘Three big reasons Americans haven’t rapidly adopted EVs’. All three reasons included false and misleading information.
Affordability
The article asserts that “the average price of an EV is going up, not down”. This is misleading. Of Tesla’s 10 models & variants, 7 are priced lower now than at the end of 2021, two are the same and only one is higher.
What’s happened is that larger, more expensive EVs have entered the market, pulling up average prices, even though the most commonly bought EVs have become cheaper, lowering median prices. (The researcher from Harvard knows the difference between average and median). As more used EVs and post rental EVs come on the market, and as traditional automakers finally start to compete in the profitable market they ignored for decades, expect the prices to continue to drop. I see over 300 used EVs in LA for sale between $3,000 and $20,000.
The article also asserts that “the fluctuating cost of electricity means it's not always cheaper to fuel an EV, either”. This is false.
I have never paid more per mile to charge than I would for a comparable fossil fuel vehicle. Even excluding the free charging available at hotels, campgrounds, public parks, universities, and restaurants, I’ve saved well over $10,000 traveling around the country.
The context in the article might be referring to charging at home, but even in California and Massachusetts, with some of the highest electricity rates in the country, I saved even more money by charging at residences than fast charging. Only in Hawaii does the cost of electricity begin to approach the average cost of gas, until you realize that gas costs 40% more in Hawaii.
Charging Time
The article also quotes the expert’s view that while filling up a gas car takes minutes, “with EVs, it’s going to take you hours to charge that vehicle to the maximum”. This is false.
It has never taken me as much as an hour to charge my EV in any Tesla supercharger in any of the 48 states, even going from virtually empty to full for my Long Range Model 3 at a slow, crowded supercharger. Normally I’m done in 20 minutes or less for less than $20.
It is true that charging overnight can take hours, but time needed for charging while sleeping at home is not a fair comparison to going to a gas station.
No SUVs available
The article quotes another expert from JD Power, a research firm largely financed by traditional automotive companies, to argue that there aren’t EV SUVs, with a quote that “I can’t buy an EV until there’s a large SUV available” to pick up four kids at carpool. This is false.
Not only does Tesla have two different models with 3 rows of seats, but at least two other manufacturers also offer 3 row EV SUVs. And of course plenty of manufacturers now offer mid-sized EV SUVs that can carry four kids, including Chevy, Ford, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, Nissan, Subaru, Toyota and Volkswagen.
Conclusion
Telling the truth here on this site doesn’t compete with a misleading article on the BBC that doesn’t even mention carbon pollution or global catastrophes, but I have to try. I’m so tired of reading hit pieces against EVs right now. If I believed what I’ve read, I would think that the only vehicles that still have accidents are Teslas, that electric charging stations are powered by diesel generators behind the fence, that the highways are littered with EVs that have run out of electricity, and more myths. If you’re interested in more debunking, you can read Fact-check: 21 misleading myths about electric vehicles.
Clearly, there are some people who are more interested in protecting the financial interests of the automotive and fossil fuel industries than they are in saving life on earth. Maybe if the media would do their jobs in researching the facts, reporting on the climate and not misleading people, then more people would switch, encouraging production of more affordable models and helping us combat the climate crisis.
Have a nice day.