I own 2 fully electric cars (2018 Soul EV and 2018 Chevrolet Bolt) so can answer better than most here who are speculating and or believing everything they read on the internet.
Re: the battery lasting less time due to moving the vehicle - your gas (ICE) car is using a lead acid battery - a completely different animal than the lithium batteries driving these cars. Apples and oranges can’t be compared.
Charging 2 vehicles and driving approx 2,500 kms a month costs us about $35 a month. We rarely use free charging, though there are lots of stations around for that.
The only fluid you put in is windshield washer fluid.
No oil changes, etc. The only maintenance is to go once a year to have bearings, etc. greased and wipers possibly replaced.
Range - your client is confused - there is no EV out there that can get 2,000 kms (or the gas car companies would all be out of business in a heartbeat) The Volt does have a gas engine, but it is used to charge the battery on the fly, not to drive the car. That is where your client is getting the 2,000 km’s from (extended range). Using regeneration all EV’s get more range than their advertised range, but this is dependant on your driving style and how much you adopt the EV best practices to extend your range (lead footed peeps need not apply)
Battery life - 99% of companies are saying useable life is 8 years. Each winter the cold steals a bit of your range unless you are parked in a warm garage. Each of my cars lost about 6% last winter. One of them was outside through the ice storm, one in the unheated garage. Cost to replace the batteries is estimated to be about $5,000, which would equate to the cost of regular maintenance of an ICE vehicle (oil changes, brakes, rad, etc.) Oh! And about brakes. Because all electric cars are equipped with regenerative braking, you extend your range considerably when doing stop and go driving - by not using your brakes! You let the car slow itself by simply taking your foot off the accelerator. If done right, you could actually have the original brake pads still on the vehicle when it gets scrapped 10 or so years down the road. Tough to accomplish, yes, but feasible if you only drive in the city. My Bolt will bring the car to a complete stop, hubby’s Soul gets it down to a crawl and the brake pedal finishes the job.
Would I use one as an Uber? Here in the lower mainland, most cab companies are now using at least the plug in hybrids and are moving to the fully electrics. Considering the mileage they put on, it’s a good choice since there are a massive number of free charging options located just about everywhere and fast charging gets you to 80% charge in 30 minutes (while you have your lunch)
Hope this helps you out Dominique
