- Slug: BC-CNS-Fact-Check Electric Cars. 1,030 words. By Haley Tenore, Politifact.
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- The cost of electric vehicle batteries varies widely, but $10,000 is a mid-range price, compared with the cost of $100 to $200 for a battery in a gas-powered vehicle.
- The two types of batteries play totally different roles under the hood of a car. A traditional battery simply starts the car engine, while the battery for an electric vehicle stores all the power needed for moving the vehicle.
- Early studies have found that over a car’s lifetime, consumers save money with electric vehicles because of lower fuel and maintenance costs.
Arizona Republican Rep. Debbie Lesko opposes Democrats’ climate change plans. Recently, she had harsh words for the push to expand the use of electrical vehicles.
“The average cost of replacing an electric vehicle battery is over $10,000, while the average cost of replacing the battery of a gas-powered car is $100-$200,” Lesko tweeted Aug. 30. “Democrats’ green energy only agenda will bankrupt the American people.”
Do the different price tags for batteries reflect the overall relative cost of electric and gas-powered cars? Automotive experts say they don’t.
“It’s apples-to-oranges to compare the batteries for EVs and conventional cars,” said Hanna Breetz, an assistant professor with ASU’s school of sustainability “They’re different technologies, doing different things in the vehicles. So the numbers aren’t wrong, but you could push back saying that it’s a specious comparison.”
A traditional battery simply starts the car engine, while the battery for an electric vehicle stores all the power needed for moving the vehicle.
Replacing gas-powered cars and light trucks with electric versions is central to the government’s climate plans. The U.S. Transportation Department has set a goal of having 50% of newly sold vehicles be electric zero-emissions vehicles by 2030.
Because of the complex nature of hybrid vehicles — cars that use a blend of gas and electric power systems — this fact-check focuses solely on the batteries in traditional gas-powered vehicles and those in fully electric vehicles.
Andy Garberson, head of marketing for the consulting group Recurrent Auto, said that electric vehicle battery prices can vary widely, depending on the car model. Generally, the cost falls between $2,000-$20,000. Lesko’s numbers are in the middle of that range. Her prices for traditional batteries are also reasonably accurate.
Beyond that, Lesko’s comparison is misleading, said Jeffrey Wishart, an automotive systems concentration professor at Arizona State University.
“The high-voltage propulsion battery in EVs should not be compared with the 12-volt starting/lighting/ignition batteries of all cars,” Whishart said “The fair comparison would be to compare the cost of the high volt battery and electric motor with the cost of the internal combustion engine and gasoline tank.”
Standard 12-volt batteries are cheaper because they are simpler and produced in high volume, which reduces production costs. Mark Schrimer, director of corporate communications of Cox Automotive, an automotive data and online systems vendor, said 12-volt batteries are interchangeable across car makes and models, while the batteries for electric vehicles are custom made. In a traditional car, a 12-volt battery plays a limited role.
The battery packs in full electric vehicles “are very high-tech items, made of advanced materials; they are custom made for each vehicle and not interchangeable,” Schrimer said.
Lesko also overlooks that manufacturers generally provide multi-year warranties for EV battery replacement, which often last up to 100,000 miles or 10 years. California requires 10-year/150,000 mile warranties on all electric and hybrid vehicles.
Michael Kuby, a geographical studies and urban planning professor at ASU said that ultimately, the price comparison “depends on the total cost of ownership.”
The lifetime cost of owning electric vehicles is a moving target. Technology improvements and the economics of producing them in larger volumes both work to push costs down.
Consumer Reports found that even with higher upfront costs for electric vehicles, lower operating and maintenance costs make them a better deal for buyers. They estimate that EV owners save between $6,000 and $10,000 over a car’s lifetime.
A study from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory found that EV owners save as much as $14,500 on fuel costs over 15 years.
Our ruling
Lesko said that “the average cost of replacing an electric vehicle battery is over $10,000, while the average cost of replacing the battery of a gas-powered car is $100 to $200.”
Her numbers are in the ballpark, but beyond that, her comparison breaks down. The two types of car batteries play fundamentally different roles in the operation of a car. A traditional battery only starts the engine. An electric vehicle battery stores all the power needed for moving the vehicle.
In addition, early studies found that over a car’s lifetime, consumers save money with electric vehicles because of lower fuel and maintenance costs.
The tweet includes numbers that are fairly accurate, but it omits important context that would change a reader’s understanding of the price difference.
We rate this claim Mostly False.
OUR SOURCES
Debbie Lesko, tweet, Aug. 30, 2022
Motor Biscuit, How Much Does It Cost To Replace a Car Battery? Alice Chase
United States Environmental Protection Agency, The Sources and Solutions: Fossil Fuels, January 31, 2022
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Research Determines Financial Benefit from Driving Electric Vehicles, June 22, 2020
Email exchange, Mark Schrimer, director of corporate communications, Cox Automotive, Sept. 22, 2022
U.S. Department of Transportation, Electric Vehicles & Rural Transportation
Kelley Blue Book, Evaluating EV Facts over EV Hype, KBB Editors
Email exchange, Andy Garberson, marketing director, Recurrent Auto, Sept. 22, 2022
Recurrent Auto, Costs of Electric Car Battery Replacement, Aug, 25, 2022
Natural Resources Defense Council Inc., Electric vs. Gas Cars: Is It Cheaper to Drive an EV? May 25, 2022
Consumer Reports, Electric Vehicle Ownership Costs: Today’s Electric Vehicles Offer Big Savings for Consumers, October 2020
Email exchange, Hanna Breetz, assistant professor of sustainability, Arizona State University, Sept. 30, 2022
Email exchange, Michael Kuby, professor of geographical sciences and urban planning, Arizona State University, Sept. 30, 2022
Email exchange, Jeffrey Wishart, adjunct faculty, Automotive Systems program of the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering, Arizona State University, Sept. 30, 2022
Email exchange, Abdel Ra’ouf Mayyas, associate professor of automotive engineering, Arizona State University, Sept. 30, 2022
