Are electric cars more
expensive to operate than gasoline powered cars?
By Michael Coppola
and Nancy Williams
If you Google the question
above you will get some very recent articles that claim that electric vehicles
(EV) are more expensive to operate than internal combustion engine vehicles
(ICE). One of these articles was sent to me by a friend who knew I had recently
received my Ford Mustang Mach-E.
Being a proud “Car Guy,” I excessively
research a car before I make my purchase. Therefore, prior to placing the order
for my all-electric Mustang Mach-E, I spent months reading dozens of articles
and viewing dozens of YouTube videos on everything related to electric
vehicles. Being both an environmentalist and a degreed scientist my research
included not just the features of the car but its impact on the environment and
the science and engineering behind the development of the batteries and
vehicle.
I read the article that was
sent to me, The Real Costs of Charging an Electric Vehicle a rather
short article and immediately noticed that it was contradicting much of my
previous research and what I now know to be true from actually owning and using
an EV everyday. She grossly over stated many costs, including the cost to
install a 240v outlet, typically a dryer outlet at $3,500 and making claims
that the EV’s need constant maintenance to ensure the battery charges properly.
I also found several more
recent articles and to my surprise some were claiming that EV’s were more
expensive to operate than ICE vehicles. One in particular was based on a report
by a consulting company analyst for the auto industry, Patrick Anderson who has
worked with the auto industry for 20 years. It was very critical of EV’s
. Electric car charging cost vs. gas: Study shows EVs still cost more (freep.com) Again there
was a lot of unsubstantiated data as well as misinformation about EV’s. Such as
inflated cost for installing electrical outlets that already exist in
residential homes; unrealistic mpg and gas price for the ICE car. This article allowed comments so I read the
many comments posted and saw that all but one commenter called the article out
as being BS. Detroit Free Press
Which begs the question, are
the American auto makers really committed to phasing out the production of ICE
cars and going full ahead with EV’s? I think the auto industry, although making
inroads to building more EV’s is not quit ready to let go of its money making
ICE market. And the oil industry is aligned with that position. So it doesn’t
surprise me that we are seeing propaganda from both meant to slow the demand
for EV’s.
Auto dealerships make a lot
of their profits from maintenance and extended warrantees. With an EV there is
no need for oil changes, no complex engines and transmissions to repair or
replace. There are only small items like brakes, tires and wiper blades that
need maintenance. With the regenerative brake systems that use the braking
power of the motor changing to a generator it will take a long time to wear out
the brake pads. It’s obvious to me the kind of profits the auto industry stand
to lose with increasing sales of EV’s.
If you are considering
replacing your vehicle with an EV what follows is the real story of owning an
EV:
Let’s start off with the fear
the media generated with the term “range anxiety.” I purchased the base model
of the Mustang Mach-E, which Ford terms the Select model, with the smaller battery
pack. Ford puts the maximum range at 230 miles. Ford recommends that you should
avoid draining the charge below 10% or recharging it to above 90%, because it
shortens the life of the battery pack. If we use the 230 mile max and the 10%
to 90% charging guideline then you would get a 184 miles estimated useful
range. So should I have even greater range anxiety with only 184 mile range?
According to the US government statistics the average number of miles
driven by a US driver is 30 miles per day which is consistent with
my daily driving. My longest day trip thus far was a round trip of 105 miles
but I only used 90 miles of estimated range on that trip. (As other drivers have
reported Ford’s system for estimating miles available is on the conservative
side.) Of course, how you drive and the environmental conditions will effect
how much charge is used per mile. I use “engaged” mode with one-pedal drive
which maximizes the regenerative braking recharge system. On one small trip of
15 miles I returned with a few more miles than what I had when I left! Although
it sounds like I am defying the laws of physics it has to do with the regenerative
breaking which adds power to the batteries. Although it is also due to a less
than perfect estimating system used to calculate the stored mileage as well as
changes in environmental conditions that will vary the battery pack’s capacity
to hold a charge.
So, do I have range anxiety?
No. Not for 98% of the driving I do. I won’t report on long distance traveling
and using charging stations because I simply have not had the occasion to travel
beyond my round trip range. But using my Ford Pass app I can check the cost at thousands of charging stations.
What I found is that rates vary from free to 40 cents per KWH. The cost of a
trip beyond your estimated range depends on how well you plan and where you are
going.
If you want to have an
accurate comparison of the cost of having an EV to an ICE you must include the
cost of charging it at home, not just only charging on the road. So let’s see what it actually costs to charge
your vehicle at home. There are 3 levels of charging available from your home.
Level 1 uses a standard 120v outlet which will have either a 15 or 20 amp circuit;
level 2 is a 240v outlet with a range from 30 to 50 amps. Typical home electric
dryer outlets are 30 amps; level 3 uses 480v fast chargers to convert your AC
current to DC current matching the type of electricity of the battery, allowing
for a very fast charge using an amps range from 50 to 80.
Well let’s get to the cost of
charging my Mustang Mach-E. My electric rate is $.1108 per KWH. Charging on my
120 15 amp circuit I consume 1.8 KWH. 1 hour of charge cost me $.20. Since I
get 4 miles in an hour of electric use it cost me $.05 per mile. The US government states that the average gas mileage of all
cars, SUV’s and light trucks is 22mpg.
If we use the 22mpg, to travel 30 miles it would take 1.5 gallons of
gas. If we use regular gas at $3.25 per gallon the cost per mile is $.15, which
is 3 times more expensive than charging at home on a 120 15 amp outlet. The
cost to travel the 30 miles is $4.50 for the ICE vehicle and $1.50 for the EV.
Just a few importing things
one should know about charging a battery. To keep the battery in the best
condition so it can work the best and last the longest, charging is best done
slow and with low amperage current. Thus far I have only used a 120v 15 amp
outlet to charge. It is charging at a rate of 4 miles per hour which is slow
but always gives me the amount of charge I need. With a little
planning I have
always been able to have enough time to get the battery up to at least 200 miles
and many times to 220 miles. The Ford Pass app that runs on my phone is very useful for this. It
allows me to monitor the charging level; start and stop remotely the charging
and precondition the car, that is get it to the cabin temperature I want while
it is charging thus avoiding using the battery storage to get it to the
temperature I want.
If in the future a need arises
to charge faster, I can plug it into my 240v 30 amp dry outlet which is within
reach of the nice long cable Ford provides. I just change the 120 adapter to
the 240 adapter. If you needed to
install a 240v outlet you would need to pay an electrician. (I can not imagine
ever needing a DC fast charger. It is not the case that you can never use them
but they should be used only when you are on the road and must get a large
amount of mileage on your battery in a very short time.) A note on DC fast
charging; Ford and all EV makers caution on using them because they will
significantly shorten the life of the battery. Ford does sell a home DC faster
charge for $799. You would more than likely need an electrician to connect the
unit to you electrical system. Cost will vary based upon where it is installed
in relation to your electrical panel.
In the real world where you
will do 95% or more charging at home the EV is much cheaper to operate and maintain.
If part of the charging is being done during reduced rate periods and or you
are signed up for your utility’s special EV program the cost per mile becomes
even less.
My Mustang Mach-E replaced my
Mustang GT so my routine when pulling into my garage has changed from leaving
the garage door open for several hours to let some of the engine heat dissipate,
to plugging the charger into the car if my estimated stored mileage is less than 160 miles. It is just a great
experience to never have to make that once a week trip to the gas station.
Comments
Post a Comment