Time To Go Back To The Drawing Board, EVs To Be WORTHLESS Unless Action Is Taken

It looks like the automotive manufacturers better get in the board room and get in there quick. That's because they are going to have a huge problem on their hands and quite quickly on that note.

According to the pricing experts at Glass Guide, electric cars are essentially going to be worthless after several years of ownership. The reason?

The damned batteries, which only have a "USEFUL" life of eight years and cost a boatload to replace.

Do the Spies think this holds water? Seems to make a lot of sense to me.

The question now becomes, will manufacturers wise up and offer special warranties on the batteries OR will there be a push towards leasing programs?

After all, I do not think many owners will want to make a purchase knowing that after merely five years the auto holds only 10 percent of its original value. Not even the early adopters looking to save the world will buy into that...


The car valuation experts at Glass’s Guide have warned that, unless manufacturers take action soon, electric cars will suffer horrendous depreciation on the used market.

“If cars and batteries are sold rather than leased, and no special warranty cover is in place, the typical EV will retain only 10 per cent of its value after five years,” warns Andy Carroll, managing director of Glass’s.

This, says Carroll, is a function of the recognition that a typical EV battery will have a useful life of eight years and cost £8000 to replace...

[Source: Autocar]








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pennfootball - 6/21/2010 11:05:36 AM

0 Boost

LOL That's a problem!

uaw_lax - 6/21/2010 12:11:46 PM

+2 Boost

Gm will have a battery leasing plan geard toward those with concerns like that. I see the rest of the industry doing the same.

wins555 - 6/21/2010 11:21:12 PM

+2 Boost

Can you imagine leasing for a part on an 8 year old car? Seriously?

Agent009 - 6/21/2010 1:53:27 PM

+2 Boost

Makes sense to me. The batteries will always have a finite number of charges. Now what that figure is will vary from car to car, but unless someone can step in with a reasonable replacement program they are doomed.

At least with the hybrid you have an alternate power source.

Agent00R - 6/21/2010 2:38:05 PM

+1 Boost

Agreed.

Plug-ins be doomed?

It will be interesting to see if this gets that battery exchange idea off the ground. Recall that Japanese company that was doing it with a fleet of taxis?

http://www.betterplace.com/global-progress/japan/

thetruth01 - 6/21/2010 4:42:53 PM

+3 Boost

Ask all those owners of Gen 1 Priuses and Insights, and plug in Rav4 EVs how many batteries have had to be replaced?

Useless FUD about EVs as usual.

thstone - 6/21/2010 5:00:16 PM

+1 Boost

Toyota has already set the expectation for batteries with the Prius - 8 years or 100,000 miles (10 yrs/150K for Cali and a few other states). Toyota OEM replacement battery costs are ~$3,000.

Thus, I am expecting the Volt and Leaf to carry a 10/150 warranty and cost around $5K to replace. This will keep the used car value from falling through the floor until the car is well through most of its useful life.

t_bone - 6/22/2010 9:39:12 AM

+1 Boost

Also it shouldn't be forgotten how many costs there are to ICE...everything from fluid changes to water pumps.

Neverfollow - 6/22/2010 1:33:31 PM

+1 Boost

I think this is a little overstated.