You don’t have to be an expert to know that the electric car is the future . The question is: is it the present? As almost always in all questions, everything is relative, it will depend on different factors.
What is a reality is that the fleet of electric cars in Spain is small. Selling this type of vehicle is still very prudent. At this time it only reaches 0.6% of the market. What is the reason for this low figure if it is the car of the future and there is a wide variety of makes and models on the market?
Let’s first analyze the advantages of buying an electric car right now:
- The cost of consumption is minimal
The economic efficiency will depend on the daily kilometers that are made. The more kilometers a day, the more efficient the electric car will be versus the combustion car option.
- Maintenance cost is lower than combustion
Existing studies indicate that the cost will be between 30% and 40% lower as a consequence of the number of car parts being between 50% and 60% less. That is, fewer parts to check and fewer parts that can be damaged.
- Free parking in many cities
There are more and more payment exception zones in time control parking lots.
- Toll payment exemption
On highways of certain Administrations, such as the case of Catalonia, its exemption from payment has been established .
- Total or partial reductions of certain taxes, tax advantages
In both state and municipal taxes, electric cars can benefit from tax advantages , for example, the total exemption from registration tax and the partial reduction of the road tax, specifically, up to 75% in state tax. This number can vary drastically with each passing year so you should file taxes with a CPA to ensure you’re getting the most accurate, up-to-date information.
- Possibility of mobility
In large cities such as Madrid and Barcelona, on days when high pollution reduces the mobility of combustion vehicles, electric vehicles enjoy more mobility.
These are undoubtedly the advantages that exist from a personal and family point of view, but probably the most important advantage from a social point of view is respect for the environment in the form of aid to reduce CO2 emissions and avoid global warming of the Earth.
If all these advantages exist, how is it possible that the market penetration of electric vehicles is not yet greater?
Let’s see the disadvantages :
- More expensive electric cars
An electric car is much more expensive . Depending on the model, between 5,000 and 13,000 euros more than its equivalent in combustion engine.
- Lack of battery autonomy and recharging time
It is currently the weak point of the electric car, although all brands are working to improve these two aspects.
It is essential to have a car recharge in the family car park and then there is the problem of a significant lack of infrastructure in Spain for recharging, complicating the administration on long trips.
- Fear of expiration in the purchase of an electric vehicle
As a result of it being a new product and taking into account the rapid advancement in technologies, it may mean that buying an electric car at the moment is an unwise decision in view of the probability that it will become obsolete in a few years.
We could even name one more cause of reluctance when buying an electric car, a psychological cause , which consists of some individual resistance to making a significant investment in a new product that is not entirely known.
All this conditions the electric car for sale and, for the moment, we can still consider it as an eminently urban car .
Answering the initial question: is it time to buy an electric car? The answer is: it depends on the balance between the advantages and disadvantages previously exposed for each individual decision. We should make our own individual calculation based on the kilometers we make daily and analyze where we make the journey of these kilometers.
The variables will be basically oriented towards the situation that the habitual residence is in a large city or town, the kilometers that are carried out daily, the structure available for loading, etc.
Assess in each case, quantify and make the decision
And if you are not decided towards one or the other decision, but you are sure that you want to buy a vehicle, the following graph of the Lucera electricity company can help you, where it informs, in a short summary, of the current options in the type market of cars , both electric and hybrid:
