Would you consider having an EV as the only car in your garage?

EVs have several advantages over ICE cars, but highway / rural charging is not one of them.

BHPian Livnletcarsliv recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Globally, while the share of EVs is increasing in the overall vehicles sold per month/year for many countries, going with the current trend, it is just a matter of a couple of years before EV sales will eventually overtake ICE sales. Having said that, globally the result and the experience of the early EV adopters are kind of mixed and the actual impact vs expected impact is still ambiguous. So whether the growth of EVs will continue at the same pace is still a question mark.

Given the current situation (and considering the future), will you still buy an EV as a one-car garage (In India >99% of car garages are still 1 car garages)? Yes or no - Why and what is your rationale? If yes, will you STILL use the same EV for as long as you would use an ICE car (say 6-7 years)?

PS1: For fair discussion, let us consider the cost of an EV is at least 20%-50% more expensive than the same ICE variant. The difference in the cost of a Tucson Diesel AWD and Ioniq 5 is about 5 lakhs approx.

PS: This is not a poll discussion on whether EVs are good for the environment or not. This is about the practical use case of EVs, especially in India.

Here's what GTO had to say on the matter:

I would not have a one-car garage for any car, so just an EV is a far-fetched thought. Voted NO. My ideal & perfect garage is with a mix of all 3 types of engines = turbo-petrol, turbo-diesel & electric power.

Even if I buy an EV with a 500-km range, charging is a big pain on the highway. Forget in India, even in the USA, EV owners keep complaining (the sole exception = Tesla owners due to their terrific charging network). Wait times are long, pricing is on par or more expensive than petrol, software bugs & niggles while charging, availability of charging stations, time wastage, excessive planning needed etc.

Not to forget, if you drive an EV at 120 km/h, there is a drastic reduction in range as compared to cruising at 80 - 90 km/h. I don't know about you, but I don't cruise at 80 - 90 km/h on the expressway. Porsche solved this problem in the Taycan with a 2-speed gearbox for high-speed efficiency, but all the mainstream EVs don't have that.

And in India, we have other unique problems. If I take my EV to Pawna & there is a 12-hour power cut in that rural area, what the hell am I going to do?

Petrol cars are going to be around for a minimum of 20 years in India. They aren't going anywhere. Diesel, on the other head, is already battered, bruised and in the hospital. Diesel will move to the ICU in a few years, after which they'll be dead.

Update: In the last 13 years of my going to Pawna, I have never once seen a petrol pump strike there. However, power cuts are encountered on almost every visit.

And the difference is, I can always call for fuel in a jerrycan from nearby. Portable charging in a rural area? Lot more challenging. Charging a 400-km EV with portable charging? You'll need to have the patience of God, as compared to 5 minutes in a jerrycan.

Even in a city like Pune, power cuts are way too commonplace. Petrol pump strikes? Not so.

The fact is, it is way easier to be stranded in a remote area with an EV's dead battery than a petrol/diesel car. EVs have several advantages over ICE cars, but highway / rural charging is not one of them. Not by a long shot.

Here's what BHPian ashivas89 had to say on the matter:

Right now? no. ICE cars are far more compelling in most areas when it comes to long-distance driving, especially in India. Even a simple Bangalore-Goa trip needs a lot of planning with an EV and will take too long.

Maybe.. when EVs are more compelling (FTD on long drives, price, decent range despite cruising at 120, reliable charging infrastructure, the usual suspects..) in the segment I shop in after 7/8 years.

Here's what BHPian shankar.balan had to say on the matter:

I fancifully consider my Petrol AT Thar as my ‘Go Anywhere, Anytime, Grand Tourer’. Basis my experience of it in the last 26 months, I can reliably get anywhere from 400-525 kms range out of it on a Highway or general hill trip drive before refilling. (I don’t like letting the tank get too close to empty). (This also means I cannot drive to Hyderabad from Bangalore (590kms) without getting anxious and refilling my Petrol!

In this circumstance, a proper Grand Touring EV, with a similar real-world range, would be lovely to have someday (considering that the EV revolution seems to be both inevitable as well as inexorable!).

There is presently a lack of proliferation of enough Fast Chargers along highways, rural areas, hill stations and other places. But obviously, there are lots of Dino-Juice Junctions (Fuel Stations). The time taken to charge up is also not as short and quick as the process of refilling fuel is. I don’t particularly like breaking journeys too often and for too long either. These circumstances cause range anxiety. (This is a less logical and more psychological distress situation really. Especially considering that some of the modern-day Touring EVs have a similar real-world range as my Thar offers.)

There is also a lot of practical stuff with Hybrids and a lot of discussion around Hydrogen Fuel Cell. I wonder what the future of these are going to be. I am definitely more inclined towards this direction, to be honest.

The Jeep Wrangler 4XE plug-in hybrid seems to be doing a good job if TFL on YouTube is to be believed. I am sure that Mahindra Thar or Scorpio N or one of these will also come up with better plug-in hybrids and EV solutions which have a long-range and are able to charge quickly and fulfil the go-anywhere character and need!

However, all things considered, until the situation becomes a bit clearer, say in 4 or 5 years or so from now and considering also that I am a stick-in-the-mud, quasi-Luddite when it comes to EVs, I will purposely hold off on EV technology and continue to use the various antediluvian Dino-Juice powered machines that I own.

Here's what BHPian ninjatalli had to say on the matter:

Voted a big resounding YES.

But the question is not if but rather when. Today I wouldn't be fine with one EV garage but in a few (2-3) years, definitely. My garage has always been one-car based, so an EV is going to be the next vehicle to replace my diesel S-Cross.

Back in 2020 if somebody has asked me this question, I would have assumed by mid-2023 EVs would have become more mainstream (than they are now). I guess the question is getting to the day of adoption and acceptance for EVs when they will be considered on an even level with petrol & diesel options. We currently are much ahead on that curve with 2-wheelers; eventually, we'll get that for cars too.

Same thing if there's a sudden petrol pump strike for 12 hours in the area and one is out of fuel (petrol/diesel) in the car; there will be always innovative 'jugaad' alternatives (e.g. 3rd party battery backup-based charging options at a premium rate) that will come up. We just haven't reached that stage yet.

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