Pros and Cons of Electric Cars

Electric cars are fast becoming popular and could totally replace internal combustion engine-powered vehicles in a not-so-distant future. While there are a lot of advantages that electric cars bring to the table, there are even some disadvantages. Here, in this post, we will bring to you the pros and cons of electric cars to help you make an informed decision in case you’re considering bringing an EV home.

Let’s start with the advantages of electric cars. 

Higher Efficiency 

Electric cars have higher energy efficiency than fossil-fuel-burning models. A vehicle’s energy efficiency is the amount of energy it gets from a fuel source. Battery-powered electric vehicles are known to benefit from an energy efficiency of up to 62 percent, which simply means that a high amount of electric energy is converted into the power source of the vehicle. In comparison, fossil fuel-powered vehicles do not have an energy efficiency of more than 21 percent  

Zero tailpipe emissions

One of the biggest advantages of electric cars is zero tailpipe emissions. This is a huge advantage as EVs lead to a sizeable cut in vehicular pollution. However, it’s worth mentioning here that before one calculates the pollution a car causes, it’s essential to know the source of electricity that was used for charging the batteries. An electric car battery charged through electricity produced in a thermal plant pretty much defeats the purpose of the EV. 

High performance and low maintenance

A characteristic of electric cars is that they produce the maximum torque right from the word go. What this means is that the driver benefits from a strong surge of pulling power as soon as he steps on the gas. This makes the EVs a lot of fun as they offer their users with a very strong acceleration as compared to an ICE-powered vehicle of a similar category. Electric cars are also quite easier to maintain as they have less number of moving parts. However, this also depends on the market where a particular EV is sold. In the Indian scenario, EVs have just started getting noticed, and as technology would get cheaper only with increased adoption, maintaining an EV could even turn out to be slightly more expensive than a regular car. 

Also Read: Tips to Maintain Diesel Car Engine

Disadvantages of electric cars

Electric Cars Travel Less Distance

Most petrol and diesel cars on sale in the country offer a driving range of anywhere between 500-700 km on a full tank. On the other hand, even the best of electric cars sold in India won’t clock more than 400 km on a single charge. What makes it even worse is the range anxiety. With a really limited number of charging stations available in India, the drivers of electric cars subconsciously stay anxious about running out of battery power without a charging station in sight. Hence, electric cars are less suitable for long road trips.   

Electric cars take longer to “refuel”

It doesn’t take any more than a couple of minutes to completely fill the fuel tank of a petrol or a diesel vehicle. On the other hand, even with the availability of fast chargers, it takes at least 30 minutes to achieve an 80 percent charge. Charging through a standard charger can take up to 8 hours to completely replenish the battery. Now, this is something that comes across as a major limiting factor for electric cars. All owners will not only have to install an electric charger at home but even carry a fast charger along on longer trips to ensure quick charging in case the battery runs dry. 

Electric cars are more expensive

Currently, the battery packs are among the most expensive parts of any electric car. While battery technology has come a long way in the last few years, and it’s predicted that these batteries will cost a lot lesser in the future, in the current scenario, the electric version of any car costs a lot more than the regular ICE-powered version. This has turned out to be a major discouragement for many who wish to purchase an EV but are put off by the high purchase price. Thankfully, the governments of various states are realizing the advantages of having electric cars on the roads and are hence providing subsidies to make them more interest propositions. However, even after accounting for the subsidies, the EVs end being a pretty expensive proposition.

So, these are the pros and cons of electric cars. Our small comparison here should help in case you’re someone who has been planning to purchase an EV but have been deferring the purchase owing to second thoughts on the electric cars.  

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