Did you know that the transportation sector is responsible for 28% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions—many of which come from passenger cars? If you currently drive a traditional gasoline-powered car, switching to an electric vehicle (or “EV”) is one of the best ways you could reduce your carbon footprint and help make a positive impact on the environment every day. Here are some of the top reasons you should consider swapping out your gas-powered car for a fully electric vehicle:
One of the main advantages of electric vehicles might seem obvious, but it’s far too important to overlook: the environmental benefits. Electric cars produce significantly fewer emissions than gas-powered cars—not just while in use, but also throughout the entire lifecycle of the vehicle. This makes EVs a powerful tool in the fight against climate change, which is more important than ever. Plus, with no tailpipe emissions, electric cars can also help reduce air pollution, especially for the most vulnerable communities who are disproportionately harmed by transportation emissions and air pollutants.
Research has increasingly shown that electric vehicles are at least as safe as gasoline- and diesel-powered cars. In fact, the president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) stated that “we can now say with confidence that making the U.S. fleet more environmentally friendly doesn’t require any compromises in terms of safety.” Several EVs were awarded the 2023 IIHS Top Safety Pick+, including the Audi Q4 e-tron, Subaru Solterra, and Volkswagen ID.4, so drivers who care about both safety and the environment have a variety of great options to choose from.
With fewer parts, no internal combustion engine, no oil, less brake wear, and parts that require little to no regular maintenance, electric cars have lower repair and maintenance costs than their gas-powered counterparts—for an average of $4,600 of savings over the lifetime of the car compared to gas-powered vehicles! Fewer maintenance costs and requirements can save EV drivers lots of time, money, and headaches.
How nice would it be to no longer have to stand outside at a dirty gas station in the hot summer air, freezing cold, or pouring rain every few weeks? With an electric car, you can charge it overnight at your home (the same way you plug in your phone every night), and you’ll only need to stop and charge on longer road trips. Plus, you can save an average of up to $1,000 each year on gas money! Over the lifetime of the car, those savings can really add up.
Electric vehicle purchases can qualify for federal tax credits of up to $7,500, and many cities and states offer additional financial incentives to choose an electric car. Check out this list from the Department of Energy of all the rebates, tax incentives, and other programs offered in each state—and see how much you could save by choosing an EV!
Electric cars often have a higher sticker price than gas-powered cars. But between the lower fuel costs, the lower maintenance and repair costs, and the tax rebates available, the total cost of owning an electric car over the vehicle’s lifetime is less than the total ownership cost of a gas-powered car. Over the vehicle’s lifetime, EV owners can save up to $10,000! By switching to an electric car, you can save green while going green.
The number of public charging ports in the U.S. has consistently grown in recent years to more than 140,000 across the country, and that number will only continue to rise as federal, state, and local governments invest more in charging infrastructure. In fact, a study from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) shows that the U.S. is on track to install 1.2 million public chargers by 2030! There are also a number of smartphone apps that have become valuable resources to help EV owners find charging stations, even in the most remote parts of the country.
Whether you’re looking for a sedan, SUV, hatchback, or even a pickup truck, there are already several great electric car options on the market—and the number of options will only increase in the coming years, as nearly every major car manufacturer in the United States has announced plans to ramp up the production of electric vehicles. No matter what type of car you’re looking for or what your budget is, you’ll be able to find your ideal EV.
There are many benefits that exist to incentivize and reward electric car ownership. For instance, if you drive an EV, you can enjoy perks such as preferred parking spaces, access to some HOV highway lanes, free metered parking, and free and reduced tolls. Plus, many EV owners enjoy the smoother and quieter driving experience. One study even found that driving EVs can reduce stress and improve mental health, as drivers in EVs were more focused, calmer, and happier than drivers in gas-powered cars! If you’ve never driven an EV, try test driving one at a local auto dealer and experience it for yourself.
By switching from a gas-powered to an electric car, you can support the growth of the EV industry and help increase demand for electric cars and EV infrastructure—which will help make it easier for even more people to make the switch. Fewer gas cars and more EVs on the road will ultimately lead to cleaner air and a healthier environment for us all.
Swapping out your gas-powered car for an electric car is a great way you can reduce your transportation emissions and help fight climate change. Once you make the switch, make sure your EV is charged with 100% clean, pollution-free energy from wind and solar sources—with zero dirty fossil fuels—by choosing Clean Electricity for your home. It’s one of the easiest and most impactful ways you can help protect our planet every day—without having to change your daily routine. Learn more about how you can sign up with CleanChoice Energy today to help create a better environment for future generations.
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If you are reading this, you may be wondering if you should buy an electric car. One of your first questions might be, what are the benefits? After all, electric vehicles are relatively new given that we have been gassing up for 100 years. But a battery-powered car does have significant advantages over conventional gas-powered vehicles. Here are some of the main reasons why drivers go electric.
There are many reasons to buy an electric car, including environmental benefits. Photo: Elnur/AdobeStockElectric vehicles are more environmentally friendly than gas-powered vehicles. An all-electric car emits zero tailpipe emissions. An all-electric car, which is powered by a large battery pack, burns no fuel and has no tailpipe. (Hybrids, which run on electric and gas power, do emit tailpipe emissions but generally less than conventional cars.)
Another environmental plus is that electric cars are more efficient in using energy than traditional gas-powered vehicles. A car’s efficiency is measured by how much energy is used to move the car over a drive cycle. Each drive cycle is different, so a car’s efficiency will vary a lot depending on the speed, the weather and road conditions.
That said, the U.S. Department of Energy says conventional gas-powered cars lose most of their energy to inefficiencies, using only up to 30% of the converted energy to move the car. By contrast, electric cars on average send 65% to 69% of their energy to the wheels. Also, an electric car recovers energy and recharges the battery when decelerating, so electric cars can achieve extremely high levels of efficiency.
If you’re plugging your electric car into a socket in Washington and Idaho, your vehicle’s well-to-wheel emissions will be comparatively low. Photo: rh2010/AdobeStock.One bonus for residents of the Pacific Northwest is that the most likely sources of energy are cleaner. An electric car’s environmental impact is most accurately measured by its well-to-wheel impact, which accounts for the likely source of the electricity used to power that car. Some sources of power, particularly coal, produce a tremendous amount of emissions to generate energy. So, in regions of the United States that are coal dependent, electric vehicles have relatively poor well-to-wheel emissions ratings. They are similar to conventional cars.
The Pacific Northwest region is not coal-dependent, however, but relies primarily on hydroelectric power, natural gas and wind turbines for power, all of which are considered cleaner sources of energy.
About 65% of Washington’s power is generated by hydroelectric plants, and hydro accounts for 51% of Idaho’s power, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Coal represents less than 5% of the energy generated in Washington, and less than 1% in Idaho. The national average for coal-generated energy was nearly 22% in 2021, EIA reports.
So, if you buy and electric car and plug it into a socket in Washington and Idaho, your vehicle’s well-to-wheel emissions will be comparatively low.
High fuel costs are one of the many reasons to explore your options to buy an electric car. Photo by Ladanifer/AdobeStockYou may be surprised to hear us argue that the extremely high gas prices seen through much of 2022 are not the No. 1 reason to rush out and buy an electric car. That’s because the cost of gas is notoriously volatile. Given history, nominal gas prices will likely fall back eventually with changing global circumstances. (In late November 2022, that is exactly what started happening, with the national average for a gallon of gas tumbling 22 cents in a month.) Falling prices should make filling up at the pump more tolerable — that is, until the next global shock causes the price of gas to spike anew.
Also note that the real price of gas adjusted for inflation hasn’t really risen that much. (According to the U.S. Department of Energy estimates, the price adjusted for inflation was $4.21 per gallon nationally in 1981 and $4.39 per gallon in 2012, both of which were higher in real dollars than AAA’s estimate of the national average for regular gas in late January 2023 of around $3.44 a gallon.)
That all said, fuel savings is a legitimate benefit if you’re weighing your options to buy an electric car. The real advantage is you’ll save regardless of where gas prices are in the cycle.
DOE estimates that it costs on average about half as much to drive an electric vehicle as an equivalent-sized gas-powered car. (The actual savings will depend on the electric car model, your location and other factors.) On average, DOE says it costs about $1.22 to drive the same distance as a conventional car would travel on a gallon of gasoline. So, in other words, you’d be paying the equivalent of $1.22 per gallon to drive the EV.
Breaking it down, DOE estimates the cost of running an electric car at between 2 cents to 6 cents per mile. The most costly scenario (6 cents per mile) works out to $1.44 for every 24 miles of driving range. By contrast, a gas-powered car that averages 24 miles to the gallon would cost $3.44 (the U.S. national average for a gallon of regular gas as of late January 2023) to run over the same 24 miles.
In Washington, residents pay some of the highest gas prices in the nation. According to AAA, the average cost was $4.07 per gallon for regular in late January (falling from $5.40 per gallon at points in October). In Idaho, the price was $3.42 for regular. By contrast, thanks to a reliance on hydro power, Washington and Idaho residents pay some of the lowest kilowatt per hour rates for electricity. And that means electric car drivers pay much less to “fuel up” their vehicles.
So, given the lower average costs of electricity and the higher average cost of gas, Washington and Idaho electric car drivers should continue gaining huge savings on their fuel mileage compared to conventional car drivers even if gas prices fall.
Electric car repairs are few and far between — compared to gas powered cars. Lower maintenance costs are one of the reasons that motivate people to buy an electric car. Photo: feeling lucky/AdobeStockAnother advantage to consider when you buy an electric car is that the engines are less complex and have fewer components that can break. EVs don’t use engine oil, a timing belt, spark plugs, etc.
So, your maintenance costs should be lower. DOE estimates that it costs 6.1 cents per mile in scheduled maintenance to run a light-duty electric car, whereas the cost is about 10 cents per mile for combustion engine vehicles. A 2020 Consumer Reports article suggests that EV owners pay about half as much to repair and maintain their vehicles. RepairPal estimated that after five years it costs $1,200 a year to repair and maintain a conventional car, and about $900 annually for an EV.
Also, thanks to an electric car’s regenerative braking systems that put less wear and tear on the braking hardware, EV brakes should last much longer before they need to be repaired or replaced. Click here to learn more about common electric car repairs.
One other advantage to going electric is that you can still receive tax breaks. The federal government has long offered federal tax credits up to $7,500 when you buy an electric car or a plug-in hybrid.
One thing to note, though: The federal 2022 Inflation Reduction Act generally made it harder to get the credit.
To qualify, the price of the new car must be $55,000 or less (or $80,000 or less for a new truck, van or SUV) and all vehicles must be built in North America. Specifically, the car must be assembled and have a battery built in North America. Also, the credits are only available to buyers who meet certain income guidelines.
One change in the law, though, has made it possible to get a tax credit on a used electric car of up to $4,000 or 30% of the transaction price, with the caveat that the sales price for the used car must be under $25,000.
In Washington, residents also can get a sales and use tax exemption of up to $20,000 on the sale or lease price on electric car purchases through July 31, 2023 (after which an exemption of up to $15,000 continues through July 2025). Used car purchases can get an exemption of up to $16,000 through July 2025.
—Written by Victor Whitman
—Top photo is by Wayhome Studio and Marcos Silva/AdobeStock.