Electric cars: study looks at reasons for discord

© Rivian

Feedback from electric car users

This month, a survey was conducted among more than 1,200 members of thirty electric car (EV) consumer communities. They are also members of the European Automobile Association (AEA). The survey was based on several brands in the electric automobile market, such as Tesla, General Motors and Fisker, and looks at the bottlenecks faced by EV owners.

In the numbers, Tesla, one of the market leaders, would guarantee vehicles more reliable than the average by 9%, with only 7% of owners reporting being left stranded and zero owners reporting that this was due to a software problem. BMW, with models like the i4, i5 and iX, which arrived later in the EV market, is still a step above in reliability, with less 5% of breakdowns requiring assistance.

With older models and EV precursors, such as the Chevrolet Volt, reliability roughly stabilizes in the average. It's the General Motors group that brings up the rear, with 20% of owners admitting to having had to face a problem.

What breakdowns can we expect in EVs ?

Logic might suggest that, in an electric vehicle, recurring problems are directly linked to the battery. Indeed, changing energy is no small feat. Less autonomy, fewer charging stations, while gas stations are omnipresent. But also the on-board electronics EQE which is still little known by ordinary mortals. It’s all scary, and yet.

The most common reason EV owners reported being left stranded (6.4%)? A purely mechanical problem with a suspension or drivetrain component, or with the cooling systems required for EVs’ powerful batteries.

Meanwhile, 2.1% of owners reported getting stuck due to a software glitch. As for the popular concern about the battery running out of charge, it seems to be virtually a non-issue. Only 0.6% of respondents actually said that this had already happened to them.

And you, what still makes you choose the thermal format today’?

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