ANSWERED: Is it STILL cheaper to run an electric car? / Electrifying

It won’t have escaped your attention that we love electric cars here at Electrifying.com.
But we also know that we have to be honest, and give you guys the same sort of advice that we’d give to, say, our mum or a close friend. And although it pains us to say it, the truth is that going electric might not be right for some car buyers right now.
That’s especially true right now, because the costs of buying and running an electric car have been rising while the price of fuel has dropped. As recently as last year, the cost of electricity if you were charging at home was blissfully inexpensive. As a rule of thumb, it was about a quarter of the cost of using fuel. Add in the fact that the government would give you a grant to help with the purchase of an affordable electric car and a charge point and the sums really did add up for thousands of motorists.
So do the sums still stack up for electric cars? Join Nicki as she digs out her trusty calculator to see if there’s still a financial advantage to going electric. If you’re on the verge of making switch or still at the calculator stage, let us know in the comments below.
#electriccars #evs #switchtoelectric

[@Yanquetino]

Costs must really vary between different countries. Sorry to hear that in the UK they are rising significantly. Thanks to my solar panels, I've only spent $2,195 to fuel my EVs over the past 10 years (all of it at Superchargers), while I would've had to paid at least $20,137 at the pump if I'd kept my Subaru. Still, the overall costs have been fairly high, basically because I go way overboard with accessories. For example, after nearly 5 years with my Model 3, I've spent $65,219 for the car, registration, insurance, tires, maintenance, and all it paraphernalia.

[@qasmb1546]

you in the uk?

[@solefreak2]

So didn't tell us jack shit about how much it costs to run an electric car over say a petrol or diesel equivalent

[@briankavanagh7191]

How, you could be running a frugal 1.0 ltr petrol engine or a whopping gas guzzler, diesel or a petrol/calor gas hybrid hence the calculator part.

[@solefreak2]

@@briankavanagh7191 fair point

[@andrewgage6942]

sadly I don't have access to off-road parking, I also work nights, no chargepoints in the works car park, for me, the nearest of only two chargepoints in the local vicinity, my nearest is in a car park which charges somewhere close to £5 an hour for parking, add on Ionity charges, and the fact that I would have limited parking due to the car park opening times, I would need to buy a vehicle with a good range to be able to cover my commute before I could give the vehicle a decent charge, the cost of a new or used vehicle that has a 250 mile plus range, I doubt that I'd see change from £25000 (which I sadly don't have), at present, my 2011 Smart ForTwo diesel, which is fully paid for and if I'm heavy footed still averages high seventies to the gallon, I probably pay around £21 a week for my commute for work, I don't use congestion charge areas, I don't use public parking, my road tax is zero, so, although it's not so good for the environment, my little vehicle is still cheaper to run than an electric vehicle by a considerable amount even taking away the purchase price of the vehicle

[@goproracertv]

If you charge away from home don’t buy now

[@usaverageguy]

I am not a person who stresses out over tiny details. If the cost difference is just a few dollars. I will focus on the way the car drives, or how easy is it to park in small parking spaces. If I compare two cars and all things are similar then I comes down to which car would give me more joy to drive. So just make a choice and buy an EV.

[@John-rb2cw]

People keep saying that the price of fuel is falling, but diesel has been steadily rising over the past couple of weeks, though unleaded does seem to be holding steady ( at a price which is still considerably more expensive than the start of the year ). I’ve had my EV for about a month, I’ve done about 1000 miles and charged 4 times. Total cost, £60. For the same distance, my ICE would have cost £300. Add in £0 for road tax ( though I’d hazard a guess, that won’t last ), and much reduced servicing costs, and I’m happy with the switch…..

[@stevie-b]

You forgot the cost of an electric car vs a normal car and how many years it would take to save any money

[@verygoodbrother]

@@stevie-b price difference is circa £5000 to £7000 from what i've seen

[@MrArtist7777]

This channel seems to be directed primarily to a British audience as electric prices have stayed about the same here, for the past few years while gasoline prices have SKYROCKETED!. I've owned an EV for the past 7-years and charge it with my own solar panels, which everyone who can, should, and save ~$3,000/year, and love the car! IMO, going EV is always a good idea.

[@wasabi521]

Not even close. You don’t get free gas at work but many workplaces have free ev charging. Even without driving a normal ev is like a 100mpg car in California where gas prices are between 6 and 7 dollars per gallon

[@VinegarAndSaltedFries]

This is obviously UK focused.

[@SirGregory]

Total cost of ownership is the only way to compare any vehicles. One of the biggest factors is resale value, and for EVs that is still an unknown. It's even a difficult question to answer for ICE cars with shortages keeping resale value high. We don't know how long that will last. So, like so many things in life, the decision is an act of faith.

[@nelsonoliveira1007]

In Toronto it's at least 80% cheaper to operate an EV. I charge once a week at night at home. Electricity is 0.82 cents kWh at night. Cost me about $20 Canadian a month. 2022 Kona cost $46K tax included. Very happy with the change to EV.

[@SP-sl6dj]

Maybe not for everyone but definitely for me. I was charging at 5p per kWh, after the rise it’s still only 7.5p. And I saved £10k corp tax

[@SP-sl6dj]

Let’s hope electricity doesn’t become too expensive 🙏

[@pauleast4372]

Separate supply into my garage, the overnight tariff of 7.5p and now government subsidy means that my fuel cost for the 1250 miles per month is basically £0 until April.

[@goproracertv]

If you charge at home then yes… if not then NO … at anything from 60 - 1.00 per KW

[@CptSpears007]

I wasn’t expecting this advice. Well done

[@Sanpedranoazul]

At the end purchasing and maintaining an EV is much expensive than an ICE engine car, and wait for the battery at the end of it's cycle, it's à tramp to happen; better have the old and well known ICE car for sure

[@martinlang9615]

I won’t be committing until Li Ion base type batteries have been replaced by a safer, quicker charging, 1000 klm range (australia). Perhaps Graphene Gel? Perhaps something better. New electric cars are crazy expensive in this country and no doubt will stay that way, in which case forget it, my diesel will do just fine.

[@reiniernn9071]

Quicker charging? Why? Every morning I can start with a 100% charged car...no refuelling needed except on those few long trips. And on those long trips mostly the car is rechgarged before I am with my own sanitair stop and coffee/meal....because 3 to 4 hours driving between two charging sessions. (Charging time 18-22 minutes.....with petrol I needed 5 minutes refueling, 5 minutes fot paying inside, 3 minutes for parking the car and 10 m inutes for toilet visit and coffe at least.....now connecting the car, going immediatly to the toiletroom followed by the coffee corner....it's saving me time)

[@kennystrawnmusic]

Here in California the cost of charging an EV vs paying for gasoline is about 6 times less, and likely to get even less expensive still in the next year or two if extremely efficient upcoming vehicles like the Aptera are any indication.

[@holdontoyourwig]

A couple of weeks ago i drove from Co Durham to Dumfries in Scotland. A total of 120 miles. It cost me £1.71. I left home with 100% charge and arrived having used 46 % of the battery capacity. MG ZS EV Long range. That is based on overnight tariff of 5p per KWH. You can keep your ICE cars.

[@judebrown4103]

I'd like to congratulate you on still being able to charge at the cheap night rate. You're not insufferable at all, I don't know why people have to be so unkind. Loved the MGZS Trophy when I sat in it back in the summer, couldn't afford it when our ice got written off so picked up a two year old Ioniq 38 kWh. Totally unsuitable boot space and had every intention of going for the MG in a couple of years. However we're not sure if we could cope with not seeing 6 or even 8 miles per kWh even with the bigger battery. I'm sure I'd miss the flappy paddles for regen too so now I wonder.... Think maybe a test drive should answer the question down the line.

[@judebrown4103]

@@sailingoctopus1 their circumstances are not that unusual. There are still many people lucky enough to be on the cheap rate overnight. Don't be so unkind.

[@holdontoyourwig]

@@sailingoctopus1 My energy deal is locked until next March. My neighbour has just bought an MG5 . He changed to Octopus and has an overnight tariff set at 7.5p. Still far cheaper than petrol or diesel. I guess my circumstances are not as unusual as you might think. It would have cost my neighbour an extra 87p for the same journey. Hardly breaking the bank.

[@holdontoyourwig]

@@judebrown4103I bought the original MG ZS EV in 2019. I was one of the first to place an order so i got an extra £3500 off the price plus a free charge unit. Fantastic deal . Not to mention the government grant of £3500 I have just bought the new MG long rage.. I got 3.5 miles per KWh on the trip to Scotland. The best thing was i charged the car for free when i was up there. Cost nothing to get back home.... 😜

[@baridare5790]

I have an ev and an diesel car at present. I mainly charge the ev at home. I don't have solar panels at present, but will be installed next month. At my present electric price of 16 pence it still work out cheaper with an ev. Infact the ev cost 5 pence per mile while the diesel cost 16 pence per mile.

[@donaldduck5731]

Option 1 ID3, cost to me £37.000. charge overnight, gets me to work and back EV, but probably costs more or the same as petrol on longer journeys. Option 2 Keep my trusty Vaxhall Ampera, cost to me £00.000, I own it, gets me to work and back EV, over 40 miles petrol. Option 3 Buy Tesla M3 performance and say to hell with it and have some fun.

[@bafty0]

if Hunt has his way electricity is set to double again from here pretty much :o

[@martin4819]

Government is always slow to catch up. Business operate on supply and demand. Impossible to tell what the price of electricity might be as more people move to EV or what the price of gas will be? I’m not even certain the electric grid here in the US could handle even half the population owning EVs. Of course this can be addressed, it’s just a matter of $$. Governments, specifically state governments, have gas taxes. If increasingly they are missing out on revenue they will recoup it another way….this is a certainty. They could tax electricity or increase the price for EV registration. I’d also be a bit weary of an EVs resale value. U can buy a used gas engine with 40k miles on it and it may last another 80k miles. Not really enough info on batteries lifespan or if degradation is even linear but the numbers/lifespan looks pretty good but it will come down to perception. Most importantly, it depends on how u drive and how u can charge. Companies do a lot of bait and switch, cheap means of charging may not be cheap in the future? If too much strain is placed on our electric grid they may ban charging at home or risk rolling blackouts? Kind of doomsday stuff, but I’ve seen everything happen.

[@waynehobbs5175]

Interest in loan, depreciation, fuel, insurance and servicing are the main 5 costs of car ownership. In Australia a Hyundai Kona EV costs $60k and the identical petrol model costs $40k. Over 5 years the depreciation will see the EV lose $30k the petrol $20k so the EV is $10k dearer. Insurance for the EV is $400 a year more so that adds $2000 to the EV deficit. Interest on the 5 year loan (difference) is $3000 more for the EV. So the EV is $15000 behind excluding fuel. I live in an apartment so have to use charging stations and the going rate is 50c/kWh whilst ULP is $1.70 per litre. I drive the Australian average of 15000km per year so 75000km over 5 years. Allowing 16kWh/100km EV an 7l/100km ULP $6000 will be my electricity cost, $9000 will be my ULP cost so the EV will save me $3000 over 5 years. Servicing will save another $1000 over 5 years as EV cheaper to service. Summary EV costs $11000 more to own and run and even if electricity was free the EV would still be $5000 behind. But hey, you buy an EV for the planet, not your wallet. P.S. I want one and could learn to live with the massive refilling inconvenience which would consume 150hrs of my life over 5 years the costs just don't equate. Also from 2025, a 2.5c per km road tax is payable so for half of the next 5 years (37500km x $0.025) = $900 more worse off with the EV.

[@ISuperTed]

I hate to admit it but it totally depends on your circumstances! My EV is on a salary sacrifice scheme (effectively a fully maintained lease car) and I have home charging so it’s miles cheaper than leasing a petrol version privately. Electric off-peak costs less than 25% of petrol and it’s my only cost on top of monthly payment. However if you can’t charge at home and/or are buying privately I definitely wouldn’t do it yet - 3 years time may be different but too expensive to justify for now.

[@7443jan]

At the current price in the Netherlands at £ 2,75 - 3,50 per kWh and petrol/diesel at around £ 1,50/l. 100 km electric costs on average £ 60,-. 100 km in my Nissan Micro cost about £ 10,-

[@Banyan314]

Remember the long wait time for a new EV at the moment. This might mean that by the time it arrives the costs of energy might actually be on a downward track.

[@David-ii1cu]

The depreciation is horrendous on EVs. There is no way that a new EV can be cheaper to run. The depreciation will kill EV costs.

[@BMWHP2]

It depends on what EV you chose. We want a small EV that can do minimum 300km and if possible a cabrio. So, the Fiat 500E came into focus, nice car, but . . . . with €37.290 starting price?. The ICE version of the new 2022 Fiat 500 Cabrio starts at €19.900. That is a whoppin €17.390 difference to start with. With our 18.000 km per year it would take us around 16 years (hopefully) to get to break even point . . . . . . So it is BS to say that every EV is cheaper than the ICE version. Proof me wrong with the 42kW Fiat 500E Cabrio (normal 300km range). (I live in the Netherlands.)

[@andrewmorgan1819]

How do they justify it? They're cheaper to make than ICE allegedly

[@holdontoyourwig]

It depends on what car you usually drive. I had a VW Tiguan that cost £30K. My MG ZS EV long range cost me £30K. All i see is that i am saving £65 a month on running costs alone.

[@BMWHP2]

@@andrewmorgan1819 Dont know. Cant be just the 42kW batteries. There are some extra gimmicks like a bigger LCD screen and some software. In 2020 when they were new, the price started at €31.000. In 2 years time the prices shot up to over €37.000. Secondhand one from 2020 with 20k miles costs €31.000, same as newprice in 2020. They allways say that EV prices are coming down every year, but that is BS.

[@BMWHP2]

@@holdontoyourwig Compare same cars, same brand, same type.

[@holdontoyourwig]

@@BMWHP2 All Ev's are more expensive that their petrol / diesel equivalent. In my case i spent no more than i would if i had bought a new ice car. All i see is savings.

[@CastleKnight7]

Yes, if you are charging your car with electricity produced by solar panels.

[@hissingsidll750]

All ev are good for is so smug middle class vvankers can feel good they saved the odd penguin

[@andrewcraynor1252]

It’s still not a fair comparison if you actually factor in initial outlay for EV with a plus 250 mile range- over £30k, who’s got that kind of money. I’d love to buy an EV but would like these channels to focus on how these Chinese motor companies can produce EV’s so much more cheaper and more efficient

[@AngryBritain]

Kudos for an honest video, honesty is what consumers need right now.

[@mike-lj1uu]

Why wouldn't the EV engineers incorporate an Alternator on the engine to charge the battery while you are driving? Just like a combustible engine, Hmmm 🤔 Got to be a reason. The reason is so you have to buy electricity, 😂

[@andrewmorgan1819]

Or because the alternator would cause drag and cost you more electricity than it would generate. If this idea worked, people would have developed after market wind turbine and we'd all drive for free.

[@goproracertv]

And as a company car user the government recommended pence per mil3 is 0.05p so I loose anything from 25-40.00 per 150 miles travelled

[@TheManWithNoName786]

Lose not loose. Sorry this really irks me on social media. Crazy how people don't know the difference

[@goproracertv]

@@TheManWithNoName786 me to..

[@davidmurray1682]

And what do you pay in b.i.k? Others have to pay for all running costs so they loose (sic) more than that per 150 miles travelled. Try running your own car...it might make you loose (sic) the downer on your current ppm - you could a.ways your boss for an allowance (taxedvat 40%) plus an enhanced ppm plus claim back any balance from HMRC and that might work? Wait until they b.i.k up to what it should be. Oh dear, you'll really loose (sic) it.

[@goproracertv]

@@davidmurray1682 true David… 2%…. Yes I’m very lucky compared to some poor soles… however this vid was about buying an ev and if I didn’t have a company car I couldn’t offered to buy one…

[@elmojito]

I think as much as I would like to get an EV when I make number they just don't work, and that is with free electricity as I have solar with surplus. That is the first oversight, I say free but I do get payed by the power company for what I inject to the network. This is a result of one item you do not mention which is very important for some of us. I am retired and don't drive much so only make about 3.000 miles annually. With today's price difference (Spain-starting price) between a hybrid (€30.200) PHEV(€39.700) and BEV (€43.500) it is impossible to make a good financial decision based on savings no matter how hard I try - sad.

[@johndoyle4723]

Thanks. If you are lucky enough to have home charging, then in my case, about 2p/mile from the grid, I also have solar, so in summer, it is free. Still a few free chargers about. However, the purchase price is huge, and if you are using public rapid chargers for many trips then it all adds up, public rapid chargers are now about equivalent to petrol and diesel. Driving experience is superb, instant torque, quiet,rapid acceleration etc, so no going back for me.

[@whawkins88]

I live in the UK and I charge my EV6 overnight at 19p per kWh (after the price rise in October). I'm doing around 275 miles on a full charge of 77kwh, which at 19p/kWh = around £15. The same distance with diesel at 45mpg and roughly £8 per gallon costs around £50. Therefore EVs are so much cheaper. QED

[@theta2170]

If our useless government don’t do something EV sales are going to screech to a halt. They need to drop VAT on EVs and public charging, and make salary sacrifice schemes available to people purely through HMRC. Many employers don’t want the liability.

[@BALANCEDPORTFOLIO]

Low-emission zones are spreading fast and becoming more expensive, and for many people they will become the deciding factor when doing the calculation.

[@yips_way]

Just tried your fuel check & no matter what mileage I put in (2k, 8k, 20k) it showed the electricity cost as £840 everytime. Fail!👎

[@Electrifyingcom]

We've just tried it and it seems to be working fine. So we are confused.

[@yips_way]

@@Electrifyingcom thanks, must be somethng on my end then as the electric use charge never changed no matter the mileage.

[@yips_way]

@@Electrifyingcom Just checked again, mileage change doesn't change overall electricity cost. Weird.

[@SigmaLongshot]

This is by design. The tories HATE evs, there's not a dodgy lobby opportunity there

[@MashetEisalive]

Lol. Hogwash

[@magnesium_subsoil_94]

Actual honesty rather than picking a side like it’s your local team? Well done. Respect

[@teinspringz]

Things are quite complicated over there in the UK isn't it. It shouldn't be that complicated. Democracy and capitalism fighting for power I guess.

[@andrewgage6942]

things here aren't complicated, just corrupt, at present we are run by a government who look out for themselves and their wealthy counterparts, those who give the best back handed deals, it comes to something when you can buy a vehicle made in this country for much less in most other countries, sometimes with a higher specification, tax those who need their vehicles as we cut back on public transport, it makes sense to the powers that be

[@paulgreig9051]

A good video and honest!!! A rare thing these days. Good work

[@NickDring]

Like the channel guys, I was looking for small electric or hybrid reviews and I can't see much. Any plans?

[@Electrifyingcom]

Hi Nick. We have loads of small electric content. Have a look at the website too for reviews.

[@khalid969]

Thank you for your honesty, but it would have been more helpful had you worked out an example with actual numbers.

[@matthewjburt6482]

One of my favourite KZbinrs EVM does just that. Real world examples and very honest.

[@khalid969]

@@matthewjburt6482 Thanks for the tip.

[@richardjohnson5529]

yes but cost was not the only reason i bought an EV

[@santamariamarvy]

Keyword: For now

[@goproracertv]

I own an company EV could not afford to buy one myself…

[@reiniernn9071]

I suppose you also cannot afford to buy any New same sized ICE car if you cannot afford an EV....because the EV will have less TCO (All costs together) than the new ICE would cost you.... At least in my country...which is not the UK but the Netherlands....which high taxes onm buying cars (BPM) but not on EV cars. I saved in the years 2013-2021 more than 60000 Euro's on driving , first years partially, with EV's in compariosn to driving with ICE cars the same size...enough to bsave and buy my current EV, an Ioniq 5 all options (project 45 version) And for the purpose of this video...my solar panels produce more energy than my car consumes...with 30000 km/year. Low energy prices guaranteed. Also those people sharp on prices and energy contracts....It was possible to have a contract with fixed prices for 5 years. duration....2 years ago.

[@goproracertv]

@@reiniernn9071 thank you yes your right average cars have now gone through the roof too…. And if the UK government hadn’t lied about the benefits of brexit I would have retired to Holland …. Lovely people and lots of beautiful waterways

[@mikec2505]

@@goproracertv In fairness you can’t blame the government for Brexit. There were as many Europhiles as Eurosceptics across in the Tory party as there were in Labour. It was not based on party politics. Now Farage and Johnson lying is another matter…….

[@goproracertv]

@@mikec2505 sorry Mike I do… boris and moggy put a big sign on the side of a london bus and lied to us all about the benefits brexit would bring back to the nhs…. I do lov my ev though 👍

[@athollmcnicoll1028]

Until the last drop of petrol runs out I am sticking to my Fiesta Active. Simple as that.

[@Macmonkey1000]

And why wouldn't you ? Fiesta active = livin the dream 😉

[@mickwilson127]

For the first time in forever I’ve used a public rapid (One of the SSE new ones at the Starbucks/BK place in South St, Glasgow) Went from 30-80% in quick time, but hit me for £26, plus the £9 I spent on my toastie and the venti, triple shot, skinny latte 😂 It’s my own fault, it was chucking it down last night, and I couldn’t be assed to go out in the rain and plug in. Today I’ve had three unexpected journeys and ended up with not enough in the battery to do everything I need to do tonight with a decent margin of safety. I’m so spoiled using cheap home charging 99% of the time, I do feel sorry for those stuck with public chargers as their only choice.

[@nealm1814]

Do your research. Newton Street ChargePlace Scotland rapid charger hub under the M8 is still free. No Starbucks nearby so you'll save another £9

[@londonyes1380]

First!!