There are a wonderful array of benefits from switching to an electric vehicle. Read on about to find out about the eight key benefits by switching to an EV.
1. Fun and easy to drive
They are fun and easy to drive. EV’s are smooth, quiet and simple to drive after a short adjustment period.
Instant torque and higher revving motors mean electric vehicles don’t need any gears, resulting in acceleration that is smooth and powerful
2. Extra features and functionality
Many EVs include features to pre-cool or heat the vehicle remotely during hot or cold weather.
On hot days you can leave the climate control running, guilt free, while you duck into the shops or sit parked waiting somewhere. You aren’t spewing toxic exhaust fumes to pollute the local environment.
You can use the EV battery pack to power things using vehicle to load (V2L). During power outages, you can power fridges. EVs with vehicle to home (V2H) and vehicle to grid (V2G) will arrive in the near future.
3. Quiet inside and out
EV’s vehicles are very quiet. You may still hear road or wind noise on the highway, but EV manufacturers are using EV specific tyres and acoustic laminated glass to help make their cabins even quieter.
4. Convenience of charging
Charging is probably the biggest concern for new EV buyers. However, you can charge your EV from a standard 10 amp powerpoint top up each day. Otherwise, a higher power wallbox which can fully charge most EVs in several hours.
For people without off-street parking at home, EV charging providers are also starting to roll out diverse solutions such as kerbside and power pole mounted chargers.
Public charging on road trips in an EV is getting easier as the charging network continues to expand, particularly into rural and remote areas.
5. Extra space and storage
Electric vehicles are generally more spacious than similarly sized combustion vehicles, especially those based on dedicated EV platforms.
There is no transmission tunnel or gearbox, seats can be more roomy and more usable. Ioniq 5’s relaxation seats.
Storage space is also better in EVs and they often include additional space under the bonnet via a front boot (froot) or front trunk (frunk)..
6. Lower running costs
Charging an EV can be very cheap if you have access to off-street parking. For example, homeowners with solar systems or off-peak tariffs can pay as little as $5 to $10 to charge their electric vehicle. Some owners may be able to take advantage of free charging at work or public chargers too.
For EV owners relying solely on public charging, costs will be higher than charging at home but can still be significantly cheaper than petrol or diesel by seeking out AC chargers which have lower per kWh rates.
Service intervals for EVs are usually longer, with cheaper fixed price servicing from manufacturers or in some cases free for a number of years with new EV’s.
7. Versatility of electric vehicles
An often, overlooked benefit, of driving an electric vehicle is their versatility. A family sized car can also be something that is fun to drive on the weekend, while being efficient for daily commuting and spacious enough to load up with gear for a camping trip.
8. Wider public benefits
Wider public benefit from EV ownership includes no exhaust emissions. EVs reduce deaths caused by particulates and have a lower carbon footprint over their entire lifetime compared to ICE vehicles. Their carbon footprint will continue to improve as the electricity grid becomes increasingly renewable.
Wider economic community benefits with of EV’s means you are no longer giving money to overseas oil companies.
What can electric vehicle owners and advocates do?
Keep busting those EV myths. These 8 benefits help to demystify EV ownership and give more people access to the numerous benefits that are available with an EV!
(from The Driven, 15 February, 2024, by Tim Eden)
