No. of Recommendations: 4
A few points:
1. Average electricity cost in USA is not 30 cents/kWh, it is closer to 15 cents/kWh.
2. Most ICE sedans do NOT get a real-life 30 mi/gal.
3. Comparable performance ICE sedans get less than 20 mi/gal in the real world.
My personal experience is -
* Previous ICE sport sedan - got about 50 miles out of $10 of gasoline.
* Current EV sport sedan - get over 250 miles out of $10 of electricity at home (50 weeks/yr).
And then there are places, most states in the USA if I understand correctly, that have cheaper rates off peak, and charging your EV is a great way to take advantage of those rates. In Ontario, for instance, peak rates are 15.8c (about 10c in US$), but overnight rates are less than half that, at 7.6 c (about 5c USD), one third the average USA rate. And in Quebec, with mostly fixed rates around the clock, most houses get 6.5c per kWh (about 4c in US$). Canada has some of the lowest electricity rates in the world, and much higher gasoline taxes, so if EV cars make economic sense anywhere, it is in Canada, except maybe in the dead of winter (i.e. many months a year :(
My experience with a hybrid and now a fully electric car is that I don't really save much on energy, because I don't drive enough kilometres, but the things I love with electric cars are the quiet, the quick acceleration, the full charge every morning, and the simplicity of maintenance. Plus, when I make fun of the completely unrealistic expectations of people who think we can substantially reduce global fossil fuel use, I can honestly say it is not because I have any nostalgia for burning fossil fuel, just that the economics of replacing it don't make any sense for most people (except possible if we drop our objections to nuclear power and build out that sector massively, which most green nuts ALSO oppose.)
dtb
