Even though electric vehicles (EVs) are fast replacing the normal internal combustion engine or ICE cars because of their low cost and clean fuel advantages, there are some disadvantages that the current set of EVs have. They are:
Need for better EV infrastructure
One of the main disadvantages of EVs that needs to be rectified early is the charging time and charging infrastructure.
.jpg "Some disadvantages of EVs compared to ICE cars") |
| More charging stations can give a fillip to electric vehicle sales compared to ICE cars. |
This is especially true when one has to travel long distances, that is, intercity, on their vehicles.
Currently, the infrastructure in countries like India is poor compared to China and the US, which already have a robust infrastructure in place.
That is why China’s share of EVs is the highest globally at 27 per cent of the total number of vehicles. Compared to this, India’s share is a minuscule 3 per cent or even less.
EV battery life and cost
The lithium-ion batteries, which are currently used in electric vehicles today, have a longevity of around 10-13 years.
After that, there will also be no guarantee for the battery by the EV maker.
This means the car owner will have to buy a fresh battery pack, which currently costs almost half of the vehicle price. For example, It costs around Rs 7 lakh (Rs 700,000) for a Tata Nexon EV battery.
However, these two issues (battery life and cost) can be resolved by boosting battery tech and substantially bringing down the cost of batteries. Or, costs can be slashed even by battery swapping.
Limited range of EV batteries
The batteries currently have a limited range of an average 350 km on a single charge. The more-costlier electric cars can do 500-600 km at best (even though much higher records have been set during trial runs).
So, an infra boost (with more stations) and better battery tech can resolve these issues but that won’t happen immediately.
High cost of electric vehicles
For instance, the Tata Tiago petrol version’s prices start from Rs 5.6 lakh (Rs 560,000) while the EV variant starts at Rs 8.5 lakh (Rs 850,000).
In case of Tata Nexon Max EV versus Tata Nexon ICE, the prices are Rs 16 lakh (Rs 1.6 million) and almost half at Rs 8.5 lakh (Rs 850,000), respectively.
So, higher adoption would give some respite to EV prices in countries such as India.
EVs: Question on clean environment
Although driving an EV would lead to clean tech, the case may not be so during charging.
In India for instance, non-renewable energy is used for charging an EV, and this may question the fact that EVs are helping in environmental sustainability. So, EV charging has to be done through sustainable fuel.
Less electric vehicle workshops
So, if there is a breakdown in an electric vehicle in the middle of nowhere, you cannot get any help from a road-side mechanic as he may not be trained adequately.
You will have to wait for the auto company to come and pick up your car. This may be the case in India but may not be so for China. But in a matter of five years, this may change in India too.
Disadvantages of hybrid cars
Hybrid cars take away your boot space and are heavier, which makes them sluggish compared to ICE-engine cars.
E-Vroooom’s views
So, the above fixes are needed to turn these disadvantages of EVs into advantages, and this may take several years, even if done on a war footing.
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