Why Switch to an EV?
As gas prices skyÂrockÂet, the interÂest in EVs is also skyÂrockÂetÂing. TesÂla reportÂedÂly has seen a douÂbling of orders in the past few weeks. OthÂer EV manÂuÂfacÂturÂers have not reportÂed in, but their demand has probÂaÂbly gone up as well.
PowÂerÂing an EV is much cheapÂer than powÂerÂing a gas car. Before the recent price increasÂes, the averÂage AmerÂiÂcan spent an averÂage of $131-$176 per month on gas. In the past month prices have gone up anothÂer 50%, so AmerÂiÂcans are now spendÂing $197-$264 per month on gas.
An elecÂtric vehiÂcle usuÂalÂly costs about $25-$35 per month to powÂer but can be powÂered for free at no cost pubÂlic chargÂers availÂable in many locaÂtions. ChargÂing at off-peak hours or using powÂer from rooftop solar also brings down the cost.
Why are EVs so cheap to powÂer? Is elecÂtricÂiÂty that much cheapÂer than gas? The main reaÂson is that EVs are much more effiÂcient than gas cars. Gas cars use about 12–30% of their enerÂgy for propulÂsion. The rest is wastÂed as heat and noise. A cool, quiÂet EV uses about 77% of its enerÂgy for propulÂsion. This makes for an inexÂpenÂsive source of transÂportaÂtion, as well as a cliÂmate friendÂly vehicle.
PeoÂple are interÂestÂed in savÂing monÂey on gas and proÂtectÂing themÂselves from future gas price surges, but many do not know about othÂer huge advanÂtages of EVs.
ReducÂing CarÂbon Emissions
25% of ColÂorado carÂbon emisÂsions come from transÂportaÂtion, with anothÂer 11% from oil and gas. If we could elimÂiÂnate these emisÂsions, we could go a long way towards net zero, and save 20,000 lives a year lost from breathÂing car exhaust.
EVS are not zero carÂbon. They require carÂbon for manÂuÂfacÂturÂing and the elecÂtricÂiÂty that powÂers them often comes from fosÂsil fuels. HowÂevÂer, because of their greater effiÂcienÂcy, they use much less elecÂtricÂiÂty than a gas car uses gasoÂline. A TesÂla ModÂel 3, for examÂple, has the enerÂgy equivÂaÂlent of a 132 mpg gas car.
Graph showÂing 2020 carÂbon emisÂsions broÂken down by sector.
In addiÂtion to effiÂcienÂcy, the cleanÂness of the grid deterÂmines how much carÂbon an EV creÂates. In ColÂorado, sadÂly, over a third of our powÂer comes from coal. An EV in ColÂorado proÂduces about ½ of the emisÂsions of a gas car (takÂing into account manÂuÂfacÂturÂing emisÂsions). HowÂevÂer, our grid is becomÂing cleanÂer over time. An EV bought today will proÂduce fewÂer emisÂsions each year. To figÂure out how clean an EV could be with 100% renewÂable enerÂgy, we can look at WashÂingÂton State, which uses about 90% renewÂable enerÂgy. An EV in WashÂingÂton proÂduces about 1/5 of the emisÂsions of a gas car. Of course, you can immeÂdiÂateÂly get Washington’s 1/5 rate if you install solar on your roof or buy elecÂtricÂiÂty from solar or wind sources.
An EV proÂduces more carÂbon emisÂsions to manÂuÂfacÂture, but this is quickÂly recouped in 6 – 18 months by the lowÂer elecÂtricÂiÂty emisÂsions. Future EVs will proÂduce fewÂer carÂbon emisÂsions in manÂuÂfacÂturÂing because the EV batÂterÂies of today are 95% recyÂclable and will be used as raw mateÂriÂals for future batÂterÂies, and because batÂterÂies are getÂting more effiÂcient.
SafeÂty
Very few peoÂple are aware of how safe elecÂtric vehiÂcles are. At first glance, it seems strange that a difÂferÂent powÂerÂtrain would make a car safer. EVs are safer for a variÂety of reasons.
EVs are safer in an acciÂdent. The TesÂla cars have the lowÂest probÂaÂbilÂiÂty of injury of any car ever testÂed by NHTSA (NationÂal HighÂway TransÂportaÂtion SafeÂty AdminÂisÂtraÂtion). TesÂla has delibÂerÂateÂly put a lot of work into safeÂty, but othÂer EVs are safer too. The IIHS (InsurÂance InstiÂtute for HighÂway SafeÂty) comÂpared EVs and gas cars that had the same design, but difÂferÂent powÂerÂtrains (like the Hyundai Kona gas vs. elecÂtric). They found that injury claims for EV verÂsions were 40% lowÂer than for gas versions.
EVs are safer in acciÂdents for sevÂerÂal reaÂsons. First of all, the batÂtery is a large, heavy slab under the cabÂin. This means that EVs have extremeÂly low cenÂters of gravÂiÂty and the car is evenÂly weightÂed front to back. As a result, EVs are much less likeÂly to spin out and are easÂiÂer to conÂtrol. The 1000 lb. batÂtery also makes them almost imposÂsiÂble to roll over. The TesÂla ModÂel X SUV was the only SUV that NHTSA had ever testÂed that would not roll over.