Shopping for any vehicle can be challenging, but for first-time electric car buyers, it can be a whole new world. To help make the experience easier, we’ve created a helpful guide that allows car shoppers to learn about electric vehicles in the most simplistic and comprehensive manner available.
Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) run only on electricity from batteries charged by plugging into an outlet or charging station. BEVs have no gasoline engine and don’t produce tailpipe emissions.
E-VEHICLE
Electric-only motor
No emissions
Does NOT require gasoline
Requires plug-in charging
Some electric vehicle models are:
Tesla Model S
Nissan LEAF
Fiat 500e
Hybrids combine a gasoline engine with an electric motor, but they can’t plug-in because their batteries are charged from capturing braking energy that converts kinetic energy into electricity.
HYBRID
Gasoline engine and electric motor
Some emissions
Requires gasoline
Does NOT plug-in
Some conventional hybrid models are:
Toyota Prius
Honda Accord
Toyota Highlander
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) are similar to conventional hybrids, except PHEV batteries can be charged by plugging into an outlet and PHEVs can substitute plug-in electricity for gasoline.
PLUG-IN HYBRID
Requires gasoline and plug-in charging
Some plug-in hybrid models are:
Chevy Volt
Hyundai Ioniq
Toyota Prius Prime
Depending on your location, and your personal tax situation, you may qualify for federal, state, and local tax incentives for driving an electric vehicle. Find all incentives listed at the US Department of Energy.
FEDERAL INCENTIVES
STATE INCENTIVES
LOCAL INCENTIVES
Electric Vehicle Buyer's Guide
BMW Electric Vehicles
Mercedes-Benz Electric Vehicles
Ford Electric Vehicles
Electric vehicles significantly reduce a driver’s tailpipe emissions and therefore his or her personal impact on our environment. Reducing your impact on the planet will allow future generations to enjoy our blue planet to the fullest.
Electric vehicles are significantly cleaner and much safer for people & our environment than traditional internal combustion engine vehicles. By driving electric, you’re helping to reduce air pollution from traditional exhaust systems; the type of pollution that can irritate and even cause severe health issues like asthma and bronchitis.
Solving climate change is one of the most important challenges of our time, and driving an electric vehicle is one of the ways you can take action. Since fully electric vehicles use energy efficiently, they don’t consume any fossil fuels whereas a traditional internal combustion engine relies on gasoline made from fossil fuels pulled from the earth.
In the last few years, e-vehicles have set a high bar for performance and technology. With unbeatable built-in features and instantly available torque, you’ll have difficulty finding a traditional vehicle that can keep up.
State-of-the-art technology
Electric vehicles often come with tons of exciting features.
Pedestrian Detection
Adaptive Cruise Control w/Stop and Go
In-Car WiFi
Remote Engine Start
Forward Collision Warning
Front and Rear Parking Sensors
Lane Keep Assist
Power Trunk/Liftgate
4 yr / 50K mi Basic Warranty
8 yr / 100K mi Hybrid/EV Warranty
Android Auto and Apple CarPlay
Spacious, Quiet, smooth, Green
The safest option
Quick acceleration
Wait less, drive more, and save an average of $4,500 in fuel over 5 years. No more lines, dirty pumps or gassy fumes. With an electric vehicle, your peace of mind and extra time are priceless.
There are lots of mix-ups about electric vehicles, but the main one is the fear that you can’t drive very far, known as range anxiety. In fact, many electric vehicles can go over 200 or 300 miles on a single charge and the ongoing build-out of the national EV-charging network should help reduce any fears of running out of charge.
There are 21,000+ public charging stations with 65,000+ individual charging outlets in the United States, as of late July 2019. But EV and plug-in hybrid owners don’t need charging stations the same way traditional vehicles need gas stations, because most of the time they’re charging at their own garage or workplace.
EV and plug-in hybrid owners can charge at home by plugging in the charging cord that comes with the vehicle to any standard three-prong outlet. It takes a while, but you can charge anytime in the convenience of your own home. Alternatively, owners can install a wall charger for a much quicker charge.
A vehicle without all of the complicated moving parts in a traditional combustion engine doesn’t need all of the maintenance of a vehicle with a traditional combustion engine. Less moving parts with electric vehicles means less maintenance with electric vehicles.
Less maintenance means Lower costs
Fully electric vehicles don’t have a traditional combustion engine. As a result, 24+ mechanical components that would ordinarily require routine service are no longer a problem because EVs don’t have them. Choosing EV means bypassing oil changes, cooling system flushes, transmission servicing, and air filter, spark plug, and drive belt changes.
Lithium ion battery warranty
Whereas the standard warranty coverage for a traditional vehicle is 3 years or 36,000 miles with 5 years or 60,000 miles for the powertrain, electric vehicle’s lithium ion batteries are under warranty for at least eight years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes first.
Find any electric or hybrid vehicle’s range
Make
Model
Trim
Year
Tesla
Model X
range
255 mi
mpg / mpge
107 CTY / 204 HWY
Battery
50 kWh
engine
Electric Motor
from
$150,000
$10,000
Electric vehicle charging time calculator
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