AARP Smart Guide to Electric Cars

11. Apply for incentives

Numerous incentives exist to help consumers set up at-home charging. For example, the Biden administration rolled out national tax incentives to help cover up to $1,000 of this cost. But you can also find additional savings locally. “It’s worth asking your utility what types of programs are offered for those who are considering purchasing an electric vehicle,” says Francis. She says her utility offers a special rate plan, and they also have incentives for purchasing and installing electric vehicle chargers. “So there were some special chargers that you got a better, more competitive rate on if you purchased through their utility store,” she says. 

12. A bit more planning needed

If you’re going to drive long distances in your BEV — farther than the total range of the car — you must plan in advance to make sure you’ll have enough juice to get to your destination. According to Voelcker, the onboard navigation systems in many contemporary electric vehicles can help. “The best new cars have maps in their navigation that you enter your destination and they will route you through fast-charging stations,” he says. “So you don’t have to worry about finding them. The car will just take you there. ... And then you charge, run it right down, charge back up to 80 percent, drive another two or three hours, do the same thing.”

13. Download the official apps

Even if you have access to charger-guidance data via your in-car navigation system, you’ll also need to download and familiarize yourself with several smartphone-based apps in order to pay for charging, which is generally required. (Some automakers have special deals with specific charging networks and offer included or discounted charging rates.) This is because each public charging company requires you to use its own app. “There are probably two dozen significant networks nationwide,” Voelcker says. “And not every one of them has the ability to take a credit card payment. ... So they want to sign you up as a member and have you download their app to get your charging information and follow you whenever you use one of their charging stations, wherever you are. And the analogy is … imagine having to sign up and download a Texaco or Shell or Mobil app before the gas pump works.” Expect to pay around two to four times what you pay at home for juicing up at public chargers, though fast (Level 3) chargers will generally add range far more quickly than the Level 1 or Level 2 system you have at home.

14. And consider third-party apps

Luckily, additional assistance is available. Of course, it requires downloading even more apps. However, these apps help you negotiate the other charging companies’ apps simultaneously. “The best known is called PlugShare,” says Voelcker. “The second one is called A Better Routeplanner, or ABRP for short. .... And the third one is called Chargeway.” These apps are third-party charging-station locators and route planners. “Importantly, each of them lets you set filters so that you only see certain kinds of charging stations,” Voelcker says. For example, you can sort for only fast chargers, only Level 2 hotel chargers or whatever you need, he says.

15. Check hotel details

If you’re traveling long distances in your BEV, you may discover that some hotels provide charging for overnight guests. But check those aforementioned apps to note the level of charge they offer, the number of chargers available and whether or not they’re occupied. You’ll need at least a Level 2 charger to fill up overnight. “In many places outside of big cities like L.A., you end up with a Level 1 charger that might offer just 7.2 kilowatts per hour, which means it’ll take you 12 hours to add 60 miles,” Loh says. “So even for an overnight stay, you might not be getting enough range.”

16. Be realistic about infrastructure 

Be aware that the charging system is unwieldy and spottily maintained. Despite the presence of more independent consumer-driven apps, it can still be difficult to know where you’ll get your next charge. This can be true even if you arrive at a station that the apps claim has a charger that’s unoccupied and functioning. “The big problem with the infrastructure ... is that you don’t know what you’re going to get when you pull up,” Loh said. “They are definitely getting better. But often you don’t know if there are vehicles on the charger, you don’t know if it’s broken when you pull up or you don’t know if it’s occupied. It can be very frustrating.”

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WHY GO ELECTRIC?

17. The price is right

Electric vehicles have a reputation for being pricier than gasoline-powered vehicles. Overall, that’s true. As of April 2024, the average transaction price for a car with an internal combustion engine was roughly $10,000 cheaper ($44,989) than for an EV ($55,242). But this doesn’t compare apples to apples. First, there aren’t as many less-expensive EVs on the market, which still tilts toward luxury vehicles. Second, it doesn’t take into account tax incentives. “If you get all of the federal and local incentives and rebates, EVs are very competitive to gas-powered vehicles,” Loh says. However, EV affordability will increase with the introduction of vehicles like the Volvo EX30 ($34,950), Chevrolet Equinox EV ($30,000) and others. “EVs are just starting to get into the $30,000 range [before incentives],” Loh says.

18. Less chance of rollover

Though they often weigh more than their gasoline-powered counterparts, electric vehicles frequently have superior handling. This is because they distribute their weight differently, which gives them a lower center of gravity and provides more stability and less chance of a rollover. “Because the battery is typically the full length of the underside of the car, that makes that vehicle much more stable,” Francis says. “So, for example, if you’re driving in snow, it just adds a level of stability to the vehicle because of how the weight is distributed down low.”

19. Home charge advantage 

Compared to refilling and driving a gasoline-powered car, there are significant financial benefits to recharging and driving an EV. These savings accrue every mile you drive. This is particularly true if you can charge the vehicle at home, which is less costly than using public charging infrastructure. “Charging at home can be anywhere from a third to half the price of refueling with gas,” says Loh. “So for those people on a fixed income, that’s very appealing.”

20. Low maintenance

One of the biggest cost advantages with pure battery-electric EVs is that they need significantly less regular maintenance than gas-powered vehicles. Things like oil changes and transmission fluid flushes simply don’t exist on EVs. “Electric vehicles have about one-tenth the number of parts that a combustion engine vehicle has,” Francis says. “I usually say ‘limited to nothing’ in terms of maintenance. It’s windshield wipers, brakes, fluids and tires. That’s about it.”

21. Tax incentives

As noted above, battery-powered vehicles often cost more than gas-powered ones. So, to spur further adoption, the government provides significant tax incentives. According to Loh, the largest of these are currently available on “wholly American-made electric vehicles where the batteries are also made in the U.S.” Check with the federal government and your car dealer to see which vehicles qualify. But Loh also notes that states and municipalities can provide additional incentives on the purchase price or for home-charging infrastructure. “Just be very savvy, ask a lot of questions, do a lot of research, go to online forums, look around and find all the deals you can before you buy the EV,” he says. “And you’ll be delighted at how much you can get back.”

22. Quiet, fun to drive

“People like driving EVs because they’re smoother, calmer, quieter, and you don’t have all the weird noises and vibrations,” Voelcker says. Moreover, because EVs create all their torque — the thrust that provides your sense of acceleration — as soon as you press the pedal, you get an instantly energizing rush of speed.

23. Environmental details 

Electrified cars have earned an environmental halo because they burn little to no carbon-based fuels. However, they still require fossil fuels in their production and also to generate the electricity needed to recharge them. But Voelcker says they rapidly repay this debt, so that by the time you’ve owned one for several years, its footprint becomes smaller than a gas-powered car. “A battery electric car requires more CO2 to build because it’s heavier,” Voelcker says. “It has this big battery, there’s a lot more metals and minerals and refining and so forth.” However, Voelcker notes that the CO2 footprint per mile for an EV is so low that these vehicles can reach a carbon break-even point between 15,000 and 40,000 miles. Since most EVs last 100,000 miles or more, they clearly generate much less CO2 over a lifetime, he says.

A related issue to the increasing eco-friendliness of EVs is our current reliance on fossil fuels for the national electrical grid. As the country continues to decarbonize its electricity production — retiring coal-fired power plants and replacing them with natural gas facilities and renewables like wind, solar and hydropower — your electric car will keep cutting its carbon footprint over time. “So CO2 emissions per kilowatt hour goes down, and the electric car gets greener and better,” Voelcker says. “You can’t say that about gasoline-powered cars.”

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WHAT TO UNDERSTAND

24. Comprehending the tech 

Loh says one possibly underreported concern related to electric vehicles is that they tend to contain more, and more complex, technology than gas-powered vehicles. This can be challenging to some users. “There are a lot of screens in the car, and a lot of physical buttons have gone away, so it’s a lot more eyes on the screen versus hands touching buttons and turning knobs,” Loh says. “There’s lots of voice commands and things that theoretically make your life easier, but there’s a learning curve to all of it. For some, it’s very steep.”

25. Battery drain

We all know how our phone batteries lose their ability to retain the fullest possible charge over time. This happens to car batteries, too. But Loh says the actual effects may not be as grave as you think. “The verdict is still out,” he says. “We are 10 years after the Tesla Model S has gone on sale, and we haven’t seen a huge … fall-off in Model S range. Similarly, we haven’t heard very much about the original Nissan Leaf or any of the other early plug-in hybrids in terms of [degradation of] their battery performance.”

26. Towing not recommended

If you want to pull a boat, trailer or RV behind your vehicle, a pure EV may not be for you. The added weight and reduced aerodynamics greatly diminish the EV’s range. “Towing? Yeah, don’t do it,” Loh says. “We’re not quite there yet.” Moreover, trying to recharge your vehicle’s batteries while towing comes with major access issues. “The infrastructure does not support charging a vehicle while towing something,” Loh says. “This is because most chargers are head-in or nose-in charging situations, which means you have to unhook your trailer and pull the vehicle in or back it in.”

27. Charging in the rain 

We’ve all been taught that electricity and water don’t mix, so many people fear plugging in during inclement weather. However, Francis says this isn’t a concern for EVs because the batteries are encapsulated and enclosed on the underside of the car. “Yes, you can charge your car in the rain,” she says. “You’re not going to get electrocuted by washing your vehicle.”

28. Rates of fire 

There’s been much media coverage of the alleged tendency of some EV batteries to spontaneously combust, producing fires that can be extreme and difficult to put out. First responders across the country are getting new training to handle this threat. But statistically speaking, according to the Phosphorous, Inorganic & Nitrogen Flame Retardants Association, the rate of fires in EVs is far lower than in gasoline-powered vehicles. “There’s some concern about battery fires,” Loh says. “But the incidences of battery fires — or thermal runaway, as the industry calls it — is lower, significantly lower, than the risk of an internal combustion vehicle catching on fire.”

29. Extreme temperatures 

EVs are like people — they tend to operate best in temperate conditions. Extreme weather can greatly reduce the range of many electric vehicles. But Francis says improved battery-management systems make this less of an issue in new models. “You won’t see as much battery degradation, for example, in extreme heat, driving and running the air the whole time,” she says. Precooling or prewarming the vehicle at home, while it’s still plugged in, can help. Simply turn on the car’s heat or A/C before leaving. (If you have a garage, no need to worry about it filling up with dangerous tailpipe emissions; there are none.)

30. Residual value 

We’ve all heard that new cars lose significant value as soon as they’re driven off the lot. For some time, this was even more true for EVs. But in recent years, as demand outpaces supply in many parts of the car market, this has shifted. Still, Loh says location matters. “Generally speaking, in the major metropolitan areas and large suburbs, EVs are hot there,” he says. “They retain their value, with the exception of some of the older ones with limited range and abandoned architecture [outdated tech] like the early Nissan Leaf or Fiat 500e.” Teslas in particular remain top sellers, Loh says — except in areas where there are lots of them and a turbulent economy.