I have been contemplating EV ownership for a few years, and with the launch of the newest generation of EV's from mainstream manufacturers, I believe I am ready to go for it. There are pros and cons to every single EV out there for what my needs are, trying to think about this logically and see if it is actually worth doing so.
Current Vehicle: 2021 Subaru Outback XT Onyx Edition, 16000 miles, purchased new December 2021. No mechanical issues. Lifetime fuel economy estimate is 20.4 mpg, filled exclusively with Costco Premium 93, oil change interval 4000 miles or 6 months. Average driving 1000 miles per month, which uses about 50 gallons of fuel. Fuel costs are roughly $4.50 per gallon of 93, which results in an average cost per mile of 22.5 cents. Over a year, this will use 600 gallons of fuel, or about $2700.
Commute: 5 days/week (sometimes 6) of either a very urban city route (think NYC-esque) 10 miles each way; alternate routes include toll highways 15 miles each way. Tolls add about $2 each way.
Summer Commute: In summer, we tend to spend a lot of time in shore areas, which changes my commute to about 50 miles each way. This is also on toll highways, but there is no alternate considered for the majority of it.
Electrical: I have a 240V 60A line ready to go, which terminates at a junction box. It is ready for up to 48A continuous charging, if the car and EVSE supports it. I have not chosen an EVSE yet, but I am leaning towards a Grizzl-e model that will be mounted on the exterior of the house, as I park in my driveway. There is no 240V option at the shore destinations, so I will use 120V and have to supplement with DCFC as needed. My workplace does not and will not offer charging options, including use of a standard outlet for 120V charging. My home electrical rate for supply and delivery, combined, is about 16 cents per kWh (it's slightly below 16 cents to a certain point, and then it increases slightly above in the next "tier" of usage).
DCFC sites: I have an Electrify America site within a half mile of my house in the event of my EVSE malfunction or power outage, another EA site about 3 miles from my workplace, another EA site half way between work and home. For the summer commutes, I have additional EA sites and EVGo sites about 20 miles into the leg from both directions. I am intending to use the one near work as needed in the summer to help supplement the 120V charging.
For rough estimation purposes, 3 miles per kWh - which seems modest/typical of an SUV-style EV - will cost about 5.33 cents per mile driven - roughly a savings of $2000 per year in fuel costs. My maintenance services typically cost around $75 each, three times a year (the oil changes are about $65 and the tire rotation every-other-service is $20). Major services are considerably more expensive, especially the spark plugs on my Boxer.
My primary focus of this is longevity, utility, and safety. I intend to keep this vehicle for roughly 10 years - perhaps slightly longer - as I believe it will fit my needs. The vehicle must be big enough to hold myself, my kids, and our sports equipment in the back (I coach baseball and soccer, so lots of stuff to haul around), so sedan style vehicles are essentially out. I enjoyed my Forester but wanted a "deeper" rather than "taller" cargo space, so I ended up changing it out at lease end for an Outback. I previously owned a 2.5 Outback and wanted more power, so having nearly 50% more horsepower for less than 10% of a fuel economy penalty seemed like a smart decision, and I went for one of the XT trims. My target is $50,000 or less before Federal Tax Credits, must be under $45,000 after all tax credits are factored in. AWD is a must as I have to report for work in bad weather.
At this time there are no state incentives other than "zero" state sales tax.
These EV's are featured in the Consumer Reports list, and I have some comments/questions/etc. about them for consideration:
Kia Nero - Too small.
Ford Mach-E: Possibly, seems like they had lot of software glitches. Would be nice to get it through X-Plan.
Hyundai Ioniq 5: Interested, seems like long wait list, would be interested in mid-trim level.
Tesla Model 3: Sedan, too small
Tesla Model Y: Pricing, too expensive, I don't want a flashy car.
Nissan Leaf: Range is too low, inability to DCFC multiple times, battery degradation due to air cooled engine
Chevy Bolt: Too small
Chevy Bolt EUV: Possibly, pricing seems good here, have to research more about AWD options, not the best track record with battery problems.
Hyundai Kona: Too small
VW ID4: On principle, I disapprove of this company due to Dieselgate, and as a punishment, founded Electrify America, and now will turn a profit from their punishment??? Possibly interested as a last resort, concerned about electrical long term reliability as this is not their strongest segment with ICE cars.
Polestar 2 AWD w/ Pilot & Plus Pack: Expensive, but appear to be selling below MSRP. Could be an option. Co-workers have them and they both have issues with data connectivity. One has had a loaner for weeks and is considering a lemon case.
Fisker Ocean: Too flashy for my tastes, too new, entry trim very minimal.
Nissan Ariya: No tax credits, so too expensive as base trim is above my target.
Toyota BZ4X: Wait list. Would consider AWD variant. Likely above target price after credits phase out.
KIA EV6: MSRP+5k pricing puts it above target. Interested. Unsure how 800V charging will hold up.
Subaru Solterra: Primary choice. Higher than expected in price but tax credits drop below target. Slow DCFC but shouldn't use that more than a couple times a year.
Volvo C40: Above target price. I do like the look though.
I suppose I have to figure out if it's worth it to me to pursue the Solterra, or if I should continue driving the Outback for a couple more years. I am hoping for an Outback or Forester EV in the future, but I am thinking that people need to support this technology to show that there's enough interested to dedicate resources to developing the EV versions of the regular fleet.
Your thoughts?
Current Vehicle: 2021 Subaru Outback XT Onyx Edition, 16000 miles, purchased new December 2021. No mechanical issues. Lifetime fuel economy estimate is 20.4 mpg, filled exclusively with Costco Premium 93, oil change interval 4000 miles or 6 months. Average driving 1000 miles per month, which uses about 50 gallons of fuel. Fuel costs are roughly $4.50 per gallon of 93, which results in an average cost per mile of 22.5 cents. Over a year, this will use 600 gallons of fuel, or about $2700.
Commute: 5 days/week (sometimes 6) of either a very urban city route (think NYC-esque) 10 miles each way; alternate routes include toll highways 15 miles each way. Tolls add about $2 each way.
Summer Commute: In summer, we tend to spend a lot of time in shore areas, which changes my commute to about 50 miles each way. This is also on toll highways, but there is no alternate considered for the majority of it.
Electrical: I have a 240V 60A line ready to go, which terminates at a junction box. It is ready for up to 48A continuous charging, if the car and EVSE supports it. I have not chosen an EVSE yet, but I am leaning towards a Grizzl-e model that will be mounted on the exterior of the house, as I park in my driveway. There is no 240V option at the shore destinations, so I will use 120V and have to supplement with DCFC as needed. My workplace does not and will not offer charging options, including use of a standard outlet for 120V charging. My home electrical rate for supply and delivery, combined, is about 16 cents per kWh (it's slightly below 16 cents to a certain point, and then it increases slightly above in the next "tier" of usage).
DCFC sites: I have an Electrify America site within a half mile of my house in the event of my EVSE malfunction or power outage, another EA site about 3 miles from my workplace, another EA site half way between work and home. For the summer commutes, I have additional EA sites and EVGo sites about 20 miles into the leg from both directions. I am intending to use the one near work as needed in the summer to help supplement the 120V charging.
For rough estimation purposes, 3 miles per kWh - which seems modest/typical of an SUV-style EV - will cost about 5.33 cents per mile driven - roughly a savings of $2000 per year in fuel costs. My maintenance services typically cost around $75 each, three times a year (the oil changes are about $65 and the tire rotation every-other-service is $20). Major services are considerably more expensive, especially the spark plugs on my Boxer.
My primary focus of this is longevity, utility, and safety. I intend to keep this vehicle for roughly 10 years - perhaps slightly longer - as I believe it will fit my needs. The vehicle must be big enough to hold myself, my kids, and our sports equipment in the back (I coach baseball and soccer, so lots of stuff to haul around), so sedan style vehicles are essentially out. I enjoyed my Forester but wanted a "deeper" rather than "taller" cargo space, so I ended up changing it out at lease end for an Outback. I previously owned a 2.5 Outback and wanted more power, so having nearly 50% more horsepower for less than 10% of a fuel economy penalty seemed like a smart decision, and I went for one of the XT trims. My target is $50,000 or less before Federal Tax Credits, must be under $45,000 after all tax credits are factored in. AWD is a must as I have to report for work in bad weather.
At this time there are no state incentives other than "zero" state sales tax.
These EV's are featured in the Consumer Reports list, and I have some comments/questions/etc. about them for consideration:
Kia Nero - Too small.
Ford Mach-E: Possibly, seems like they had lot of software glitches. Would be nice to get it through X-Plan.
Hyundai Ioniq 5: Interested, seems like long wait list, would be interested in mid-trim level.
Tesla Model 3: Sedan, too small
Tesla Model Y: Pricing, too expensive, I don't want a flashy car.
Nissan Leaf: Range is too low, inability to DCFC multiple times, battery degradation due to air cooled engine
Chevy Bolt: Too small
Chevy Bolt EUV: Possibly, pricing seems good here, have to research more about AWD options, not the best track record with battery problems.
Hyundai Kona: Too small
VW ID4: On principle, I disapprove of this company due to Dieselgate, and as a punishment, founded Electrify America, and now will turn a profit from their punishment??? Possibly interested as a last resort, concerned about electrical long term reliability as this is not their strongest segment with ICE cars.
Polestar 2 AWD w/ Pilot & Plus Pack: Expensive, but appear to be selling below MSRP. Could be an option. Co-workers have them and they both have issues with data connectivity. One has had a loaner for weeks and is considering a lemon case.
Fisker Ocean: Too flashy for my tastes, too new, entry trim very minimal.
Nissan Ariya: No tax credits, so too expensive as base trim is above my target.
Toyota BZ4X: Wait list. Would consider AWD variant. Likely above target price after credits phase out.
KIA EV6: MSRP+5k pricing puts it above target. Interested. Unsure how 800V charging will hold up.
Subaru Solterra: Primary choice. Higher than expected in price but tax credits drop below target. Slow DCFC but shouldn't use that more than a couple times a year.
Volvo C40: Above target price. I do like the look though.
I suppose I have to figure out if it's worth it to me to pursue the Solterra, or if I should continue driving the Outback for a couple more years. I am hoping for an Outback or Forester EV in the future, but I am thinking that people need to support this technology to show that there's enough interested to dedicate resources to developing the EV versions of the regular fleet.
Your thoughts?