Mastodawn

"Driving a Toyota Camry (32 MPG) on gas at $4.09/gallon:

Monthly fuel cost: $144/month

Driving a Hyundai Ioniq 6 (27 kWh/100mi) on electricity at 17¢/kWh:

Monthly charging cost: $52/month

That’s a $92/month fuel savings — or $1,104 per year — just on fuel."

@BruceMirken $1100 year pales into price difference. In Australia the Ioniq 6 goes for $70k to $95k. The Camry is $43k to $60k. So bottom spec difference is A$27k or US$18.6k. Fuel savings will take 17y to recoup (no present value or financing considered), assuming battery lasts that long.

Energy security is a big plus, and if you have cheap/free PV then payoff is faster. Service costs are much lower on EV too. But capital cost of EV is a big show stopper.

@ingram I can't speak to pricing in Australia, but here in the U.S., you can get a Hyundai Ioniq5 or Toyota BZ for a couple thousand over the prce of a Honda CR V or Toyota RAV 4 -- roughly comparable 2-row crossovers. Given the savings on maintenance on top of fuel, the EVs pay for themselves in no more than 3 years, 2 if you drive a lot. You could tell the same story with a few other models.

@BruceMirken EV premium for new cars is way more than low thousands for comparable makes here. If you go with EVs from China (no shortage) you can save money but there are ongoing issues around service and support. Importers "new to the market" getting into strife with pesky consumer protection laws.

@ingram That's unfortunate. We're only starting to get some more affordable EVs here, but we do have a few (we also have the Chevy Bolt and Nissan Leaf if you want something smaller, but the Leaf is in very short supply). We need more. People are mostly not willing to pay an extra $8K or more, which is understandable. Some luxury buyers are, and Cadillac and BMW are doing okay here, but that's a limited audience.

D Ingram

@BruceMirken Leaf has just been cancelled for Australia and NZ 😕
https://archive.is/wV6dr

@ingram That bites. My local dealer finally got their first one in and it seems really nice, and a good value. I'll consider it for my next car, though I lean toward the Kia EV3, which we finally get at the end of this year. Sometimes these car companies baffle me, though I do understand the U.S. regulatory environment has been a minefield.

Carolyn 6d ago

@BruceMirken @ingram Used car? Leased?

@CStamp @BruceMirken Definitely not a lease. Maybe used, but I need to do a lot more research. At around 4500km/y (combined use of two people) the cost of fuel in a 10y old 1.6l hatch is not a big impetus for change.

@ingram @CStamp You're not driving a lot. That does shift the calculations.

@BruceMirken @CStamp I first drove (but did not own) an EV in 1996, and they've definitely improved. The limitation for Australia is charging. Even the Tesla charger sites are in poor locations, and forecourt charger locations are rare as hens' teeth. People I know with EVs all do home charging as standard and use fast charging when travelling.