RE:RE:RE:Reality check on EV operating costsNewf: Reasonable questions.
Battery costs have already dropped 80% in the last ten years and are expected to drop another 50% by the end of the decade.
Today, it costs about $8,000 to replace a Tesla battery and that cost is expected to drop under $5,000 in the next 3-5 years. Telsa batteries are under warranty for 8 years. Today, the life expectancy of a Tesla battery is about about 400,000 miles but the technology is already in place for a million mile battery. IThere is no rush to produce million mile batteries in cars untill Robotaxis are a thing as the average American car currently lasts about 140,000 miles.
Where do the old batteries go? Telsa already has working on its first recyling plant at Giga Nevada. The company has explained how the easiest and cheapest way to build new batteries is to recycle old batteries as none of the required materials are lost and they are already refined.
It only takes 13,500 miles of driving a new Tesa 54 kWh model EV to offset the materials required for its battery to be "more green" in total than a Toyota Carolla. From that point going forward, the Tesla blows the Carolla away in terms of the environment. As Tesla starts recyling its EV batteries in big volumes (which is going to take many years as the batteries last so long), the math is going to get exponentially better.
Tesla already has announced plans to build its batteries with zero rare earths. That means China will no longer have a strangehold on the raw materials needed for batteries in the next couple of years. Therefore, we can expect cheaper batteries with no supply chain issues going forward.
There is currently zero concern about the earth being capable of producing all the batteries the planet will need as the total future requirement will only tap 20% of the lithium deposits that have already been discovered.
The biggest concern in the battery industry these days is that there is going to be too much capacity which will eventually drive prices down even further.
Tesla intends to offer a $25,000 compact Model 2 vehicle within the next 12 to 18 months. They expect to produce and sell 5 million per year. The market in Europe and Asia and India will be huge.
The amount of MISINFORMATION about EV's in the media is staggering. What is even more gross than the lies in the media is the fact that 2/3 of Americans know that the $7,500 federal IRA tax rebate for EV's exists.
The fact that you have read this post means that you know more about EV's than 99% of people in North America. You are welcome.