One of the main barriers to going electric is concern about battery life. Manufacturers of electric vehicles (EVs) typically offer warranties for between 100,000km and 160,000km, roughly eight to 10 years’ worth of driving.
Replacement batteries can be purchased, but for eye-watering sums. If a new battery costs €20,000, the maths doesn’t add up for someone hoping to buy a second-hand EV, as a five-year-old EV could leave them with a costly battery replacement bill within another five years.
Unsurprisingly, this trepidation means the second-hand EV market has remained largely stagnant, even despite recent figures showing second-hand EVs that are under five years of age are now more affordable than diesel and hybrid models.
Brian Caulfield, professor in transportation in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering at Trinity College Dublin, agrees that concern about battery life is one of the chief barriers to EV adoption.
“Changing a battery could be 20-30 per cent of the cost of a new EV,” he says. “That maybe doesn’t matter if you are not into the bells and whistles of a new car but it is still a significant outlay.”
But there is a lot of misinformation about EV batteries and how long they realistically last, he says. Some consumer reports in the US estimate the average EV battery pack’s lifespan to be around 320,000km, which corresponds to almost 20 years of use.
“People have different driving styles and there is a lot of research going on looking at how this impacts the battery lifespan,” Caulfield says.
He points to worries that regular use of fast chargers may depreciate the battery more rapidly: “Taxi drivers report their battery being affected as they use fast chargers the whole time.”
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Darren Kinsella, business development manager for new energy landscapes with Schneider Electric, says such concerns typically turn out to be unfounded and that the continuous improvement of battery technology will make them even less of an issue in the future.
“Battery concerns are prevalent among potential electric vehicle adopters,” he says. “But it’s important to educate them that EV car batteries typically last eight to 15 years based on usage, charging habits and environmental conditions; and ongoing improvements such as increased energy density, faster charging, longer lifespan, cost reduction; and the potential for more vehicle-to-load capabilities in the next five years.”
A recent study by Fully Charged in the UK suggested that almost 94 per cent of battery electric vehicle (BEV) owners would never go back to ICE – internal combustion engine – vehicles, which Kinsella says indicates that batteries are not a big concern for those who own a BEV.
A spokesperson for the Department of Transport also points to improving battery performance and says the second-hand market is beginning to grow.
“We are seeing further advancements in technology including battery performance, with the average WLTP [the maximum distance an EV will travel on a single charge] range now exceeding 400km and beyond on most new models,” says the spokesperson.
“With more brands and models entering the Irish market, we expect the industry to continue to deliver a wider variety of EVs to suit all needs and create a viable second-hand market.”
Solid-state batteries are a promising technology being explored by several EV manufacturers that could offer a cure-all for the problems associated with conventional batteries, says Kinsella.
“These could offer higher energy density, faster charging and longer lifespans compared to traditional lithium-ion batteries,” he says.
Battery improvements will undoubtedly have an impact on driving EV sales but what’s really going to help people overcome battery concerns is clearer education on how batteries work, he adds.
Caulfield agrees, saying a huge amount of research and development is ongoing in this area; the EV batteries of the future will be exponentially better, he believes.
“Think of how a brand new diesel car today is way more efficient than a diesel car 20 years ago,” he says. “Electric vehicles are the same in terms of their batteries – the technology is improving the whole time and they are getting much more efficient and durable.”