Are electric vehicles really cheaper than combustion engines?

DW (English)

Fewer parts to wear out and lower operating costs: EVs are considered low-maintenance and durable. But are they really that economical? We visit a repair shop for some insights.

Transcript

00:00This is a Tesla Model Y. With about 18,000 km on the clock, the car is ready to get serviced.

00:08But it's important to note that Tesla doesn't have a mandatory service schedule.

00:13Owners can decide on their own when they want to have their car checked over.

00:17A vital element in keeping maintenance costs down is the motor.

00:22A gasoline or diesel engine will have between 1 and 3,000 components depending on the size of the engine.

00:29Say a V6 or a four-cylinder unit.

00:32And here we're talking about between 200 and 400 parts, which is a big difference.

00:37As you can see from the space, there's practically enough to sit inside the motor.

00:44That's because in a combustion engine there are a lot more moving parts and fluids compared to electric cars,

00:51as well as more things that need checking during a service.

00:56Basically, there's nothing for us to check.

00:59After 200,000 km, you might change the oil in the differential, the only oil it has.

01:05Otherwise, assuming it works, everything's okay.

01:10So, the engine is off the hook, but other fluids need to be checked.

01:16In the air conditioning, for example, or your classic windscreen wiper fluid.

01:23Plus, is the brake fluid still in top condition?

01:28But we're not just finished yet with the brakes.

01:33Because electric engines mean that cars actually use them less often.

01:41The problem here is the recuperation.

01:43When you take your foot off the gas, the energy is recovered by the motor and the brakes aren't used.

01:49A lot of car makers don't allow you to activate them.

01:52Although some, like Tesla, do.

01:54Deactivating, less so.

01:56There are special settings ranges.

01:58Most people want that energy recovered.

02:00And not using the brakes causes the discs to start rusting.

02:09To prevent this, some manufacturers have it programmed in,

02:13so that the car uses the brakes from time to time to get rid of that corrosion.

02:19The brakes can become a safety worry and might need to be replaced earlier than in a combustion engine car.

02:25There's also another source of concern on the Tesla's underside that can wear out sooner than in gasoline-powered models.

02:31The axle.

02:33In 2023, many Tesla Model 3s failed Germany's mandatory inspection due to faulty axle construction.

02:40The most obvious thing is the far greater weight.

02:43We have far more power going to the wheels, which of course means an even greater burden on the axle.

02:50Another component affected by the weight and power of electric cars are the tires.

02:55They are more expensive and might need replacing more frequently.

02:59That's the case when EV owners go pedal to the metal more often.

03:03As a result, the tires are used up more quickly.

03:06But apart from the possibilities of minor cost increases,

03:09there are a whole bunch of things absent in an e-car that mechanics like Philipp would usually need to look at in a combustion engine car.

03:19Something anyone would notice is that we have no exhaust.

03:23It would normally start here, at the engine, then the transmission,

03:27and down here to the catalytic converter or particle filter, and the muffler at the rear.

03:33But we only have plastic from the front to the rear and nothing else.

03:37If it's not there, it doesn't need to be serviced.

03:40This can lead to lower overall servicing costs,

03:43which is what Jennifer Almarales-Guerra and her coachwork team have been experiencing after starting to service EV cars a few years ago.

03:56With regular engines, the cost can be more in the thousands of euros, depending on the intervals,

04:01and is far less for electric vehicles.

04:03Maybe one or two hundred, again depending on the maker and the service intervals.

04:11But for independent repair shops it can be a challenge financially.

04:15As there aren't many electric vehicles on the road yet,

04:18the workforce requires special high-voltage training to deal with EVs,

04:22and special equipment is needed as well.

04:27We might need a separate workspace for that,

04:31plus the colleague in question needs to be able to work in peace.

04:35Ideally in a team of two to cover each other.

04:38And that means they're not available for other repair jobs.

04:43But what's the deal now?

04:45Is an electric car going to cost me less or more than a combustion engine vehicle?

04:51In 2022, Michael Kreil set out to tackle that question.

04:55The total costs for owning an electric car versus the costs of owning a fossil fuel car.

05:01And the results weren't the same for every car type.

05:04For example, when you look at small cars versus SUVs.

05:09And there the price difference, which we identified for the small and for the mini car segment,

05:17were significantly higher as for the middle class and the SUV segment.

05:22And that's why they had a harder time, let's say,

05:25to achieve a cost-beneficial situation over the years.

05:30So small EVs are a lot more expensive than their combustion engine counterparts,

05:34according to Kreil's analysis.

05:36But there's another big factor which impacts the total cost of ownership.

05:42If you have, for example, access to a private wall box at your home or for example at work

05:50and might be able to charge there for a large majority of your trips that you're making

05:56and you have, for example, a photovoltaic installation on your roof,

06:00then it might be factor three better than this energy price scenario.

06:06So in the middle class, the benefits would be about 10,000 to 12,000 euros over 15 years,

06:13which is quite much.

06:16So the best option is to buy a mid-range car and charge at home or at work if you can.

06:22Relying on public charging points increases the overall costs.

06:27And total costs for EVs, as with gasoline models, depend on the model.

06:33Some are cheaper than a combustion engine, others not.

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