Battery-electric vehicles owners can expect to pay more to service their vehicles, including maintenance and repairs, at least during the first year of ownership, according to new research — but the cost quickly tumbles and, by year three, BEVs have a significant cost advantage over conventional gas-powered vehicles.
Previous research revealed that consumers also can expect to see a sharp drop in energy costs with a battery-electric car, especially if they do most of their charging at home.
With more and more battery-electric vehicles now on the road, and plenty of new models set to debut in the coming years, “Consumers are trying to understand the risks and what they’re going to have to deal with if they buy one of these vehicles,” said Renee Stephens, vice president of automotive operations for research firm We Predict.
The study looked at the cost of servicing a battery-electric vehicle, breaking it down into three buckets:
- Routine maintenance, such as replacing wipers and filters and keeping a vehicle in tune;
- Repairs, including broken body and drivetrain parts; and
- Recalls, though manufacturers normally cover the cost of these repairs.
Higher costs up front
Right out of the box, BEVs cost about 2.3 times more than gas-powered vehicles during the first three months of ownership, the study found. Most of that is in the form of repairs and recalls.
But costs quickly start to decline for battery-powered cars, while rising for vehicles using internal combustion engines, or ICE.
For the first full year, service runs about 1.6 times higher. Breaking that down by category, maintenance costs an average $7 per vehicle for BEVs compared to $30 for the average gas model. But repairs ran $247, nearly double the $142 the owner of a typical gas model spent. BEVs also ran up $50 in recall costs compared to just $12.
“Over time, the relationship changes,” however, according to Stephens.
Lower costs later
BEVs continue to have lower maintenance costs — since they don’t need oil changes, tune ups and the like. But other service costs also begin to drop, as well.
After three years, the typical BEV ran up $77 in maintenance bills, $301 for repairs and $136 for recalls — for a total of $514.
By comparison, ICE models averaged $228, $387 and $136 in those respective categories, for a collective $751.
Now, not all of those expenses come out of pocket. Recall costs are normally born by the manufacturer and, depending upon the warranty, maintenance, and even some repair bills could also be shifted away from the owner. But the study shows how BEVs are, during the life of a vehicle, less expensive to service.
Energy cost savings
And other studies have added to that equation. Energy costs typically run less than half as much for a battery-electric vehicles, depending upon where it is charged. The savings mount when charging is done at home overnight using the reduced rate programs many utilities offer.
“A typical EV owner who does most of their fueling at home can expect to save an average of $800 to $1,000 a year on fueling costs over an equivalent gasoline-powered car,” Consumer Reports concluded in a report released in October 2020.
The magazine concluded that when all ownership costs are added in, a typical BEV buyer can expect to save $6,000 to $10,000 during the vehicle’s lifetime — even after an apples-to-apples comparison to an otherwise identical gas-powered model.
Recalls remain a headache
The higher initial cost of repairs for a BEV appears to reflect problems manufacturers have with some electrical and electronic components, said We Predict’s Stephens. And, that’s not unusual for new products in the period immediately after they launch. Most of the repair and recall problems appear to show up during the first year of ownership and then come down “rapidly,” though not always.
She also anticipates that average BEV repair costs will come down in the future as automakers learn to avoid problems with battery packs and other expensive components.
That will be critical in dealing with recalls, as well. Stephens cautioned an update of the BEV cost study could show a sharp surge in average recall costs as the result of some high-profile problems. That includes battery pack failures involving the Hyundai Kona EV and Chevrolet Bolt EV and EUV models.
Chevy is replacing the battery packs on all Bolts built since the line’s initial 2016 debut. Parent General Motors forecasts the program will cost about $1.9 billon. So, dividing that by 142,000 vehicles works out to around $13,000 for each and every Chevrolet Bolt — though all costs will be covered by the manufacturer.
This makes no sense. Both of the electric cars I’ve owned cost me nothing the first year except tire rotation. And wouldn’t more significant repairs, if they were needed, be covered under warrantee?
I put 80,000 miles on my first electric and needed brake work at 75k because they rusted up from non use because I primarily relied on regenerative braking. With my second electric car I made sure I used the brakes real hard about once per month and that car now has 110,000 miles with pretty much ONLY tire rotations and wipers.
Mark, see the other replies I just posted, as I have gone into great detail. You are quoting anecdotal information. The We Predict study is based on manufacturer and broad owner data using large samples. And it is backed up by reports published by both J.D. Power and Consumer Reports. (Tesla was third from the bottom in terms of reported problems in the just-released Power Initial Quality Study…completely backing up the We Predict report noting higher initial repair costs for BEVs that fall sharply over time.)
As I point out in a separate comment, automakers — like any business — factor in all projected costs when setting MSRP. If they know from experience they will have higher maintenance or service or repair or recall costs, that will be passed on.
Paul E.
Total BS. Like all new cars, EV’s have bumper to bumper warranties for 1-3 years. So no cost owners.
You clearly didn’t read the story. This was made clear. Meanwhile, the critical point of the story is that the longer the EV is on the road the lower the costs, and that goes beyond the period of the warranty. Oh, and not all maintenance and service costs are covered, even with such warranties. As also stressed in the story, recalls are covered by manufacturers.
The other point is that BEVs tend to start out with more repair issues, regardless of whose pocket the money comes out of. As noted, that drops with time. But automakers don’t magically give you free maintenance or repairs. The numbers are calculated into the cost of the vehicle. So, if internal numbers show higher costs, that will be baked into the MSRP.
Paul E.
Baiting false news. If this article is meant for the vehicle manufacturers then it is fine but if this is written for the vehicle owners you need to rewrite the title and first paragraphs to tell the truth. The costs you mislead us with are not paid by the owners thus the cost is zero.
You obviously didn’t read the story. I took pains to make this clear. Not all details will be in the first three paragraphs. Otherwise, that’s all you would write.
Paul E.
I would love to know who conducted this “study” and what “repairs” were required of electric vehicles. My partner has owned an electric vehicle and the only expense in eight years and 43,000 miles has been been the replacement of two tires. Your “study” does not appear to include the price of fuel, where electric cars on average according to AAA will take you 30 times farther per $1.00 spent on fuel.
Hi, Mike,
The study looks at all forms of maintenance and repair costs, including recall-related. The story about the We Predict study makes clear differentiation — if you read through — on several things which you are either confusing or leaving out:
1) some of the expenses will not be born by consumers. Recalls, in particular, are covered by manufacturers. As I also stressed, some automakers will cover routine maintenance and even some repairs. How much and how long varies by mileage and time and the vehicle’s specific warranty.
2) the costs are, as with any study, an aggregate. So, your partner may have no problems. Other folks may have vehicles that go in repeatedly and even sit in repair shops for extended periods. Several other studies back that up and show that, in particular, Tesla has some serious issues with quality that result in numerous repairs on the typical vehicle. The latest J.D. Power Initial Quality Study found Tesla the third-worst brand overall. Consumer Reports has frequently faulted Tesla quality problems. BOTH IQS and the CR studies are based on statistically valid survey data provided by owners.
3) The AAA has never said that an EV will take you 30 times farther than a comparable gas model. But both CR and AAA have indicated the EV WILL generally have energy costs running, on average, about 1/2 that for gasoline, or better. The issue is what source is used to charge.
The typical BEV right now averages around 3.5 miles per kilowatt-hour, with some automakers getting barely 2.5 miles per kWh, others topping 4. (I will use this rather than pack size, as pack size is misleading. Typically, automakers allow you to draw down only a % of the total pack.) So, let’s do some math.
A) The average U.S. home electric rate is 13.19 cents. That works out to 3.7686 cents per mile. Using mileage numbers for comparably sized gas vehicles — ie the Hyundai Tucson or VW Tiguan which are running around 28-32 combined — you’d see around 10 cents/mile. At those numbers, the BEV’s energy costs are about 37% of the ICE model.
B) Charging at public quick chargers, however, typically runs above 30 cents/kWh. That bumps the BEV’s energy cost to around 8.5714 cents/kWh. If gas hovers above $2.40 a gallon or so, the BEV has the advantage, but much less of one.
C) On the plus side: if you have a charger that takes advantage of the reduce-rate packages SOME utilities are offering rates at a nickel or less. SOME. at 5 cents per kWh, the cost of energizing a BEV drops to 1.4286 cents/mile. So, in a best-case scenario, you may be able to charge up your EV for about 1/7th the cost of a gas vehicle.
Again, the figures vary widely. AND NOTE: I did not factor in charging inefficiencies. You actually will require slightly more than 1 kWh of current from your utility to actually put a kWh into the battery.
The figures ALSO leave out the reality that BEV range and energy numbers are based on ideal conditions. AAA and CR both have determined that just dropping to 20 degrees Fahrenheit reduces range by 40%. ICE vehicles lose significantly less — largely because cabin heat comes from an engine’s waste heat. But looking just at a typical BEV drawing power at 13.19 cents/kWh, the cost per mile tops 6 cents/mile in winter.
Paul A. Eisenstein
Publisher, TheDetroitBureau.com
Paul,
If ‘everyone’ is reading the article wrong, it was written poorly.
Actually, Jim, not everyone is.
And those three who raised questions are all EV acolytes. So, it’s no surprise they would challenge the points raised.
But thank you for letting me know you’d like to be our editor!
Paul E.
What on Earth? I am on my second all electric car and what I most love is the fact that I have essentially NO maintenance! I sold my first EV (BMW i3) before I ever even needed to change the brake pads! I think I brought it in a couple of times for regular checks that cost nothing, but I never paid a penny on service. This article is insane!
John,
I guess the industry data and the consumer data that the study is based on is thus insane!
These numbers were not invented. First, did you notice how much less maintenance costs are for EVs? Significantly less. No tune-ups or oil changes but some filters, wipers and possibly tires, among other things. That’s in line with what Consumer Reports and others have quoted.
As for repairs, recall that Tesla has had some real nightmares — again, backed up by J.D. Power (it was third from worst in the latest Initial Quality Study) and Consumer Reports. Some problems, like battery “bricking” have gone away but the Model 3, in particular, has required massive service on a high number of vehicles. That has been widely reported and verified.
Meanwhile, there have been a number of recalls, and I point out that this has yet to include the cost of the Bolt battery issue. So, again widely verified and validated.
As the story clearly emphasizes, consumers typically don’t pay for recalls and repairs that are manufacturer problems (crash repairs and those post-warranty are another factory). And they may have maintenance absorbed under warranty, as well. But those costs don’t mysteriously vanish. They may not have come out of your pocket…at the time…but automakers factor in those costs when determining the price of their vehicles. So, one way or another, you still pay.
You need to be careful of trying to extrapolate from anecdotal, personal data. It’s great you haven’t had expenses. I don’t know what you own or whether, for example, you had to go back to a Tesla dealer to lock down a loose rear seat — a common problem with Model 3. But lots of folks did. And there are plenty of reports, ie from CR and Power, that validate this study. I’ve spoken to other analysts and several BEV manufacturers to get their view and I have not had one challenge the general numbers that We Predict reported.
Paul A. Eisenstein
The long-term / high mileage cost of owning an EV is still a long way off from an ice car due to the battery replacement cost.
Simplified example; Say you do 20,000 miles a year and intend to keep the car for 15 years (drive it in the ground). 300,000 miles.
An EV saves $11,000 in gas vs electricity costs by 150,000 miles. However at around this mileage it will require a new battery at $20,000. A typical Japanese ice car can cover atleast 250,000 miles before the engine needs replacing. A rebuilt engine may cost $5,000. There’s also the opportunity cost of currently paying more upfront for an EV.
Hi, James,
A number of assumptions made that make your analysis questionable. First, EV charging costs vary widely, depending on location AND whether you charge at home/office or at public chargers. Using a home system on a special overnight rate could add thousands to your estimate. Charging publicly minimizes the EV advantage. Secondly, the miles-driven number is extremely high, most Americans clocking 12,000-15,000 miles annually. (EVs average less but that’s reflective of today’s shorter-range and lack of a broad charging infrastructure.) So, this estimate would only apply to a limited number of commercial or business travelers. The time tomorrow’s batteries last is unclear. Tesla believes they can get the new cells they are developing to go 1 million miles. Let’s assume you are right on miles before replacement. The cost of replacing is going to come down sharply. Where the Chevy Bolt battery cells cost $145/kWh, GM is initially targeting $100 for Ultium, the longer-term goal being $70. That’s a widely shared target. So, the price of a replacement could be half your figure — and come at a much later date, in terms of miles driven. You fail to factor in the huge savings in maintenance for EVs which actually expands over time. And your cost of a rebuilt engine is not necessarily accurate, especially not when considering the turbocharged small engines now becoming norm v exception.
Bottom line, I think your bottom line estimate is likely skewed against EVs for more than will be the case going forward.
Paul E.