By
Pete Colan
An EV will likely not exceed five digits on the odometer because the cost to replace the battery in the typical 10-year span of a battery life will exceed the vehicle’s resale value, therefore making it
economically impractical.
Other authors have all cited valid facts about the impracticality of charging these things on long trips, the stress they will add to a fragile electric grid, the lack of enthusiasm in this country for adding additional reliable energy power plants, etc. None of this has made me want to rush right out and buy an EV, but just for the sake of developing a more complete picture, let’s peel another layer off the onion.
It should come as no surprise that insurance costs are also higher, not only because of their higher sticker price but because of the cost of specialty parts (including batteries), the lack of a specially-trained workforce to fix them, and the possibility that even a younger vehicle may be totaled if there was a damaged battery simply because of the cost of the battery.
Progressive Insurance sums it up nicely:
But wait! There’s more!
I serve on my township’s Board of Advisors, with responsibility for maintaining a top-notch fire department. We keep a lot of different supplies and chemicals on hand that they may need to address in various residential and commercial situations. I asked our fire chief recently how they would handle an EV fire. His answer, because of the unique danger a battery fire poses, since there’s not enough water to extinguish it, and the
lack of any recommended protocol from the US Fire Administration or any other resource, is to “try to isolate it and let it burn out.”
