The useful life of an electric car battery lasts much longer than you think

The autonomy of the electric vehicle is one of the concerns of buyers.

Oliver Thansan
Oliver Thansan
31 March 2023 Friday 22:18
19 Reads
The useful life of an electric car battery lasts much longer than you think

The autonomy of the electric vehicle is one of the concerns of buyers. Many do not end up buying a car with these characteristics for fear of not being able to complete long journeys. The lack of infrastructure or charging points does not help either, which in our country is even more pronounced, if we compare ourselves with other European countries.

For this reason, one of the most recurring questions is how long the useful life of a battery in an electric model lasts. Car manufacturers say that an electric vehicle should last between 15 and 20 years. However, it appears that EV batteries have a much longer lifespan than anyone imagined, as very few of them have been replaced, even after the eight-year warranty period ends, according to a study. of Recurrent auto.

It is not a simple matter, remember from this specialized portal, that they have published the results of an investigation in which they have analyzed 15,000 zero-emission cars. The reason for this complexity is that most vehicles have been on the road for much less than six years, with almost 30% sold in 2022, so older ones were also included.

Among the conclusions drawn from the report, battery replacements for electric cars have been rare in recent years. From their data, it appears that they have a much longer lifespan than anyone imagined, as very few of them have been replaced, even after the eight-year warranty period ends. Some "encouraging" data, according to the portal.

However, two exceptions are noted: the batteries of the Chevrolet Bolt EV and EUV and the Hyundai Kona Electric, which had to be recalled due to major failures. "However, apart from these two recalls, battery replacements in the Recurrent community remain rare," they say. In fact, the peak in the highest battery replacements is observed in 2017 for this Chevrolet model.

Beyond these earlier outliers, according to the study, the Nissan LEAF and Tesla Model S have the highest percentage of battery replacements, as they are some of the oldest models in their fleet of vehicles.

The useful life of electric car batteries is one of the main concerns of users. This is so because most of these vehicles rely on a high-voltage lithium-ion battery, which is the same type of battery found in other household devices. "Lithium-ion batteries begin to degrade as soon as they are manufactured and that affects the available range as cars age," they point out in their analysis.

However, these specialists remember that the battery is much more complex and sophisticated than other lithium-ion batteries in its life and is designed to ensure that its useful life exceeds its warranty. Something that should give users and potential buyers peace of mind.