The Drawbacks of Electric Cars: Range, Charging Time & More

Electric vehicles (EVs) have grown in popularity thanks to rising gas prices and environmental awareness. A research article from Yale University mentions that EVs will hit 60% by 2035-40.

However, significant downsides still exist that make EVs impractical for many drivers. Before buying an electric car, it's important to understand the limitations. In this blog post, we'll explore the major disadvantages of EVs including limited range, long charging times, lack of charging infrastructure, low towing capacities and steep pricing. Here is a rundown of what they are.

Charging infrastructure is poor

Like its namesake, EVs need electricity to charge. Shockingly, the EV charging infrastructure is still quite poor in the US. It’s even worse in the other parts of the world. This is one of the primary drawbacks of electric cars currently. So, interstate trips are almost a no-go.

Charging is slower than regular cars

A trip on an EV necessitates strategically located charging stations. This is unavailable in most of the suburbs of the US. Even when they are available, the high-speed stations need about an hour to reach 90%. Otherwise, it may well take over 3 hours to go from zero to full-on slower stations.

it may well take over 3 hours to go from zero to full-on slower stations.

Source: Carandriver

Distance/Range is low

This is a consequence of the previous points in addition to the technology. Models like the VW e-Golf can go only 125 miles on a single charge. But the much more expensive Lucid Air Dream Edition R was rated at 520 miles of EPA-certified road-tripping. However, exceptions cannot be examples. Therefore, it cost a lot more to get a good range on an EV. Thus, the range is one of the primary dealbreakers for many.

Inadequate towing/weight capacity

The speed of an EV is directly correlated with battery consumption. So, although an EV can be used as a city commuting sedan, it cannot carry higher weights like a lorry/truck. As EV cars have heavy battery packs, their mass is typically half a ton higher than their petrol counterparts. As such, they cannot carry typical multi-person luggage for an international flight. To make it further problematic, IndustryTap wrote in an article, that their components are fully packed. Thus, leaving almost no room for improvement.

Price: Now the most obvious for the last

They are expensive. Although they are good for the environment, they are often out of the reach of the average consumer. On top of that the batteries are exorbitantly expensive should you need to replace them.

On top of that the batteries are exorbitantly expensive should you need to replace them.

To get well-measured statistics on all the metrics to see both the disadvantages and advantages, this article by Self Inc. provides some great data.

So, in summary, there are both advantages and disadvantages to EV cars. However, it will take decades for fossil-fueled cars to surpass EVs in all use cases.