The maintenance that the car will have is always has to be taken into account before the purchase. Nissan Leaf, Tesla, BMW i3, KIA Soul EV, etc. continue to win steadily the hearts of motorists. The electric vehicle has many mechanical differences with respect to one of gasoline and therefore its maintenance will be completely different. Its system is much simpler and this theoretically tells us that its maintenance will be less. This fact would also entail a lower cost.
In the electric car there are many of components that directly disappear. Here we will not find some parts with a limited life as is the case of the timing belt or the clutch. In the electric car will continue changing the tires in the same way as in other vehicles. That moment will be when the tread is less than 1.6 millimeters it is advisable to review this aspect every month. The brake fluid will also be recommended to change every 50,000 kilometers. However, the pads and discs suffer less thanks to the absence of the engine brake. In its place is the regenerative brake that helps recharge the batteries thanks to the kinetic energy.
The air conditioning filter will also need to be changed every 12,000 kilometers. It will be the only filter that we find in the electric car, since it does not require oil, air or fuel filters. Therefore we have an exclusive element of this type of vehicle: the battery. The one in charge of storing the energy will need a maintenance that luckily will not be very intensive. The coolant of the batteries is convenient to change it for the first time to 170,000 kilometers and from there every 120,000 kilometers. At this point we can say that the maintenance of the electric car will be considerably cheaper than that of a gasoline or diesel vehicle. According to some studies it has been estimated that the maintenance of the electric is between 40 and 55% cheaper than in the rest of vehicles. It has also been shown that hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars are the worst off, having a more complex and expensive maintenance. The simplicity of the electric propulsion system will not only reduce maintenance costs, but also reduce possible breakdowns. It has no distribution belt therefore it can’t be broken. It does not have filters that can clog. It also does not have a clutch that can be damaged by wear.
Comparing with a gasoline car, an electric car has around 60% less parts. We will not have any exhaust pipe nor even transmission in most of them. Simplicity will be its main advantage, which allows the electric vehicle to be placed ahead of the rest in terms of maintenance.
Normally the price of electric cars will be quite above that of their gasoline namesakes. Currently users who decide to buy it may benefit from some state aid. It is also necessary to take into account the scarce amount of charging points in public places and the disbursement necessary to install one in the private home.
