‘EV' stands for ‘electric vehicle’ and that’s - in its purest form - a car that’s powered by a battery pack and an electric motor. While you might be considering one for the very first time, EVs are not new to the world. The first electric car actually dates back to 1884 (we don’t sell those). EVs got really interesting in 2008 when Tesla launched their Roadster which took advantage of cutting-edge battery technology and an electric motor.

It was the advent of lithium-ion batteries that made possible the fully electric vehicles we have today. The same technology that powers your smartphone and laptop now powers pure EVs (albeit with a bigger battery), that’ll get you to the supermarket and do the school run without fuss, or take you on much longer trips with short stops to charge. This all means EVs are an increasingly attractive option for all motorists.

Hybrids and electric vehicles often get bundled together but there are some key differences.

EVs and hybrids are often referred to in acronyms. these are the 3 most common and what they mean:

Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) - such as Tesla - have a fully electric motor powered by a battery you plug in and recharge, just like your mobile phone!

Hybrid-electric vehicles like the Toyota Prius have an electric motor and a traditional engine that work together to balance performance and economy. These electric cars can’t be plugged in for a top up, as the electric batteries and motor draw charge from the traditional engine.

Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) like the eye-catching BMW i8 or Mitsubishi Outlander power the battery from the running engine, as well as offering top-ups via a plug-in charger.

Charging should be one of your considerations when deciding to buy an EV.

There are public chargers to help you re-juice away from home. As of April 2021, there are nearly 15,000 public charging points across the UK, a number that’s growing by as many as 1,000 each month. In fact, there are now more public charging points than petrol stations! You’ll find them at motorway services, supermarkets, shopping centres, public car parks, hotels, some workplaces and tourist attractions.

If you want to recharge at home, you’ll need the ability to plug it into a domestic power outlet. Be aware your regular domestic power supply might need a rejig if you’re considering options to charge your car in rapid time.

If you have a garage or private driveway, charging your vehicles at home should be straightforward. If you park on the street or away from a power source it could be a tad trickier but can be overcome by visiting public charging stations or charging elsewhere. Another option to consider is a self-charging Hybrid as they don’t require plugging-in.

Around a third of charging stations are also currently free to use. Check ZapMap for locations near you.

This all depends on the type of charger you plug into.

Charger technology is on the move too, so if you find yourself an ultra-rapid charger, you should be able to juice up most EV batteries to 80% in under half an hour. If you’re plugging into a wall outlet at home however, you could be charging at a slower speed. Most EV owners choose to plug in overnight so they’re good to go on a full charge the next morning.

Owning an EV can have lots of benefits, although you’ll have to think more about your planned journey so you’ve got enough charge to get you where you're going. Explore buying a charger for your home and make sure you get familiar with recharge sites near you. This will help ease a lot of the so-called ‘range anxiety’ some people feel when thinking about buying an EV.

Honestly, it depends…

Firstly, consider your current driving habits. Are you doing long drives on a daily basis or sticking close to home? Given that the average car journey in the UK is only 8.4 miles - think the school run or a trip to the shopping centre - the range for an EV during everyday use shouldn’t be an issue for most drivers.

If you stick close to home most of the time, then cars like the VW e-Golf or Renault Zoe have a real-world range of 125 miles per charge, perfect for most journeys and day trips.

If you are a ‘long-ranger', then have a look at models like the Tesla Model S which has a real-world range of about 415 miles between charges, ideal for weekends away.

There are other factors in getting the most from your EV’s range. Your driving style will play a huge part in how far you’ll get on a charge. If you don’t hammer the accelerator or brakes at every opportunity, you’ll see a lot better battery performance than those who drive with a lead foot.

Also, the heavier the car, the shorter the range. Having lots of passengers or luggage on board will decrease the driving distances your EV can achieve.

The capacity of the battery will fall with age (see Do the batteries deteriorate over time?), but recent studies have shown range might only decrease by around 15 miles in the first six years of ownership. Not a deal breaker by any means.

In a word: No.

For example, if you own a Nissan Leaf and charge it using your domestic electricity, it’ll cost about £6 (depending on your tariff). Compare this with the cost to fuel the petrol/diesel equivalent and, purely in price terms, you could be on a winner.

Another example is the Tesla Model S 100D. It has a 100kWh battery so it costs around £15 to charge and will give you 300+ miles in range. In price-per-mile terms, there’s not much between them: Nissan 4p and Tesla 5p per mile, whilst petrol/diesel equivalents would cost approximately 7-13p/mile.

There are nearly 5,000 free-to-use public charging points across the UK. The rather nifty rapid chargers at motorway service stations now cost £6-7 for a 30-minute charge that should have you set for plenty of miles. The trick is to make the most of the free and at-home chargers and you could have some fuel savings in your pocket.

The cost of buying and running an EV over the typical lifespan of a car - 14 years in the UK - can work out about the same as a petrol or diesel equivalent.

With average refuelling/recharging, servicing, insurance, tax and MOT, you should consider annual running costs of around £1,700 for a typical EV and £2,200 for the equivalent petrol/diesel. Don’t forget, when it comes to servicing, you can make your motoring more worry-free with cinchCare from just £34.99 a month.

One major advantage of EVs is that with so few moving parts in the motors (forget spark plugs and cylinders and timing belts and transmissions…), they can offer greater reliability and be easier to service.

Insurance is one running cost that doesn’t tip in favour of EVs. As they’re not as prolific on our roads as traditional cars, so follows that the cost of repair or replacement is higher, and that bumps up premiums.

One final cost benefit to consider is that EVs retain their value better than petrol/diesel cars and only depreciate by approximately 12% each year, rather than 24% average for conventional cars. Result!

The government grants you might have read about for new EVs don’t apply to used cars. Like all cars however, you can still find some great value second-hand EVs that offer substantial savings over new cars. Used EVs can be economical to run, are exempt from congestion charges and can offer great value.

Yes. But don’t panic!

Long gone are the days when a rechargeable battery was less than useless after a handful of charges. A recent survey found that EV battery degradation was just 2% after three years and only 8% after six years. To put that into faff-free terms, an EV with a range of 188 miles would see that range fall to 173 miles after six years.

Whatever your motivation for buying an EV, they have one thing in common - less or zero emissions. That suits those with concerns about their environmental impact, as well as those with more pragmatic concerns about the cost of driving in built-up areas.

Pure EVs are exempt from road tax and congestion charges. In pure price-per-mile terms, EVs cost around a third of petrol/diesel.

The driving experience is also a huge pro. Electric motors are quiet, efficient, and punchy. In performance terms, they deliver the power to the wheels immediately for instant acceleration, whereas petrol and diesel engines need gears and transmissions to accelerate.

One con is charging times and the range of an EV. This involves changing your habits, remembering to plug in overnight and planned stops on longer journeys.

Electric is the future. In the UK, no new petrol or diesel cars will be sold from 2030. All the major manufacturers– from Audi to Volvo and Ford to Porsche – have chosen to invest in electric car production. As joining the EV club is inevitable, it’s worth considering getting up to speed with your next car purchase.