Electric vehicles are the future – and this is why…
We’re told time and time again that electric vehicles (EVs) are the future of driving. And it’s true, but what does it actually mean?
Despite the ban on new petrol and diesel cars being pushed back to 2035, many carmakers are still aiming to stop making or selling internal combustion engine vehicles by 2030. Driving habits and ownership will undergo a big overhaul with the changes coming into place. But this change will see a huge range of benefits. It’ll not only improve the environment, but also our long-term finances and even save us time. An electric revolution, indeed!
Here’s everything you need to know about EVs and their benefits.
Environmentally friendly
The first and most obvious benefit of using an EV is the environmental benefit. Currently, motoring massively contributes to global CO2 emissions, which are responsible for increasing the world’s temperature and thus threatening sea levels, losing coastal land, changing weather patterns and threatening biodiversity.
EVs have zero CO2 emissions, meaning that a complete switchover to a vehicle that emits no CO2 will have a huge impact on not only our national but also our global carbon footprint.
What’s more, EVs also have a positive impact on the cleanliness of the air. It’s not just CO2 emissions that are an issue in petrol engines; they also emit many harmful pollutants, including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide, hydrocarbons and benzene – all of which are harmful to our health. By driving an EV, you’ll be contributing to making the air cleaner and therefore improving overall public health.
Lower fuel and running costs
Another benefit of EVs is the impact on your wallet. Unlike an internal combustion engine, an EV doesn’t rely on fossil fuels to keep it running. Fuel is getting more and more expensive, but if the need isn’t there, then you save yourself a tidy sum in the process. Despite the rise in energy costs, EVs still work out cheaper to run, and with more rapid chargers becoming available, the convenience of charging your EV is much improved.
But it’s not just fuel costs that you’ll be saving on! The running costs of an EV are much cheaper and simpler to maintain. Because they run on a battery, EVs don’t require any combustion engine components and are therefore less prone to wear and tear issues and don’t require any oil changes. Additionally, EVs have fewer moving parts overall than a vehicle that runs on an internal combustion engine – meaning that there’s less opportunity for parts to fail.
Car tax is also dramatically reduced as its amount is determined by the amount of CO2 emissions a car emits – EVs have zero emissions and therefore don’t incur any charge as it currently stands.
As more cities are implementing more clean air zones, an EV can access any of these zones with no problem and incurring no congestion charges along the way, thus saving you even more money.
A quiet and peaceful drive
Not a fan of the roaring and the sometimes juddery feel of an internal combustion engine? In an EV, you’ll cruise along with just the quiet hum of the battery in your ears and no disconcerting vibrations. With smoother acceleration and braking, EVs deliver a much more pleasant driving experience. This is also backed up by scientific evidence, which found that the brain activity of EV drivers revealed that they were much more focused and relaxed than diesel or petrol engine car drivers. EVs even have the potential to impact the psychology of driving, where we could see less road rage and fewer crashes.
A better overall driving performance
There’s a common misconception that EVs struggle to get going and maintain motion when on the go – similar to that of a milk float back in the day! In fact, EVs can outperform most internal combustion engine vehicles due to their maximum torque – the twisting force that transfers power along the driveshaft from the electric motor to the wheels – from a stationary position and can therefore accelerate much quicker.
Generally, EVs only have one gear, meaning their power is transferred more efficiently and therefore maintains a continuous motion. They don’t rely on gear changes, which require lots of parts working together to enable this.
Recharge from the comfort of your home
With an EV, gone are the days of driving to a forecourt to sit in a queue of cars, fill up with fuel and then go into a store to pay at the kiosk. The only effort you need to exert is plugging your car into the mains and flipping the switch, and when you’re ready to drive it, all you need to do is unplug it, jump in your car and hit the road. Life can be frantic, and it may seem small, but any extra time that we can save during the day can make a huge difference.
Efficiency, efficiency, efficiency
An internal combustion engine has to burn fuel to create heat – that heat then gets converted into energy, which only then creates motion. With such a lengthy process, there is a huge amount of energy wasted.
EVs are designed to directly convert electricity into motion, and they have only three components: a battery, a motor and a converter. The motor only contains around half a dozen parts, meaning that there is less opportunity for parts to fail. And even if they need replacing, they are easy to source and fit and are often covered by excellent warranties to protect your wallet!
With features like regenerative braking on some EVs, any wasted energy can be reused to optimise efficiency even more. Furthermore, EVs are much more likely to have a longer life than internal combustion engine vehicles due to their technological upgrades that automatically update their software and eradicate bugs to maintain efficient and reliable performance.
The UK is aiming to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Switching to an EV is one of the ways in which we can make a real impact on our environment and ultimately achieve that goal. The future is electric, and Hendy are here to help you gear up for the change!
Information is subject to change at any time. Hendy cannot be held accountable for any declined applications.
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