Making EVs More Efficient Can Reduce Their Cost By Almost $5,000 (Research)

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Once in a while an exciting email pitch reaches my personal inbox. Recently I was delighted to see one from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. It pertained to its encouraging and important EV research news. The press release was titled: Study: Greater Efficiency Can Cut EV Cost by $5,000. The press release also mentions the Hummer EV as an example of an inefficient EV. Before I get to the question and answer section of this post below, there are some points that need to be brought up.

Electric vehicles are far more energy-efficient than gas cars. In fact, Yale Climate Connections posted an intriguing article in which the following was stated, “Today’s gasoline-fueled cars and trucks waste around 80% of the energy that gets pumped into their gas tanks.” Let that sink in for a moment.

Despite this simple and profound fact, there are a few EVs that could be more energy efficient, such as the Hummer EV. Make no mistake, the Hummer EV, while not a very energy efficient EV, is still far more efficient than a gas-powered H1 or H2, which average about 10 miles per gallon. The Hummer EV’s combined miles-per-gallon-equivalent (MPGe) is about 53, according to FuelEconomy.gov. So, that’s multiple times better than a gas-powered H1 or H2. This fact is worth mentioning because some online trolls and EV critics, in a turn of whataboutism, may try to point to the Hummer EV as an example of a bloated, overly large EV. Well, among EVs, it may be, and yet it still is far, far better than its gas siblings, as are all EVs.

Now let’s get to the encouraging and important research from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

Peter Huether, lead author of the EV efficiency paper and senior transportation research associate at ACEEE, answered some questions about the research for CleanTechnica.

Making average electric vehicles as efficient as their higher-performing peers can reduce the upfront cost of an EV by almost $5,000 and cut charging costs by nearly a third. How is that possible?

More efficient EVs require smaller battery packs to have the same range and since battery packs are a large portion of the cost of an EV, reducing their size can reduce upfront cost. More-efficient EVs by definition need less electricity to go the same distance and so that is how they reduce fueling costs and it is a 1-to-1 relationship for fueling costs, so a 10% decrease in electricity use per mile means a 10% decrease in fueling costs per mile.

What is an average electric vehicle?

It depends on what is sold, but the top two selling EVs (which are a very large portion of the market) are Tesla Model Y and Model 3, which have efficiencies around 3.4 and 3.9 mi/kWh, respectively. They tend to be more efficient than other best-selling EVs.

A 40% more efficient EV will significantly reduce carbon emissions and pollutants that directly damage human health, such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter. Choosing an efficient EV is far more impactful, but what should EV buyers look for so they can select the most efficient EVs?

EPA includes efficiency information on the label for new EVs, generally in MPG-equivalent or MPGe and so looking for an EV with a high MPGe is best.

The inefficient 9,000-pound GMC Hummer EV gets only 1.4 mi/kWh. Are there other EVs with similarly low efficiency?

None are quite as low as the Hummer EV, but ultra-luxury SUVs and pickup truck EVs are also fairly low, generally below 2.5 mi/kWh.

Electric grids are gradually getting cleaner, but fossil fuels are not. Is there a trend where EVs are also becoming more efficient because battery technology is improving?

I don’t have good information on the trends in EV efficiency, but we are seeing a wider variety of EVs being sold.

Your press release states that using a more efficient EV (3.5 mi/kWh) could result in additional savings of $680 a year. Miles per kWh might be an odd metric for many adult consumers. Is it part of the EV learning curve and what about MPGe, is that relevant?

MPGe can also be used and is the most visible efficiency figure on EV labels, but it tells you less about the performance of EVs themselves since there are no gallons involved with EVs. It can be used to differentiate EVs, however, and is especially good at showing how much more efficient EVs are from internal combustion engine vehicles.

Are there any other important EV metrics or factors EV buyers should consider?

There are many other factors to consider when purchasing any vehicle.

Your press release mentions the Tesla Model Y as an efficient EV, is the Tesla Model 3 also efficient?

Yes, the Tesla Model 3 is a fairly efficient EV and is generally more efficient than the Model Y.