What Are the Biggest Problems with Electric Cars?

Electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids have been gaining traction in recent years, but they come with their own set of problems. Battery-powered electric vehicles have more issues than the average car, according to the annual J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS). The biggest concern that people usually have when it comes to electric vehicles is “autonomy anxiety”, or the fear that your electric vehicle will run out of battery before you can find a suitable place to recharge it.

This is especially true when it comes to extreme temperatures, as heat can accelerate the degradation of an electric vehicle's battery pack, while cold can adversely affect its range. The Tesla Model S has an estimated range of 652 km.Price parity between electric vehicles and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles is expected to occur over the next five years, making electric vehicles more accessible. However, as the shift to electric vehicles accelerates, three major challenges stand out: mining and supply chains to support the change; building a ubiquitous electric vehicle charging infrastructure; and modernizing and expanding the electric grid. Mining and supply chains are a major challenge for electric vehicles, as batteries require a lot of minerals that need to be extracted and transported.

According to mining and energy specialist Mark Mills, a thousand-pound

electric car

battery requires moving 500,000 pounds of land during mining. However, battery costs have been greatly reduced due to government and private sector research.The Song-Beverly Consumer Guarantee Act (also known as the Lemon Act) protects

electric car

owners if they discover that their vehicle is defective. However, building a supply system that will sustain the current 600,000 new electric vehicles a year in one capable of supporting President Joe Biden's goal of selling about 9 million new cars a year by 2030 will be a huge task.In addition, electric cars are still more expensive than ICE cars. Most pure electric vehicles (not hybrids) tend to be high-end luxury vehicles, which can have staggering prices.

This is partly why the electric car has become an example of the fight against climate change, despite its rather limited potential to avoid CO2 emissions.In a reliability survey released last November, Consumer Reports ranked electric SUVs as the least reliable type of vehicle. Ford is also making a partnership with electric vehicles and an investment of $500 million in the start-up company Rivian, which will introduce electric vans for Amazon deliveries and all-terrain electric trucks and SUVs this year.Electric cars have some disadvantages and problems that you should consider if you are thinking of getting behind the wheel of one. But with government support and private sector research, these issues can be addressed in order to make electric cars more accessible and reliable.