Breaking down the Pro's of the EV

April 7, 2023

*General note, this article will NOT discuss the mining or building of batteries. The purpose of this article is to look at EV's from potentially uninformed or less informed outsider's POV.

The internal combustion engine (ICE) has been the primary solution to build an efficient and reliable car for the past century with electric vehicles (EV) becoming popularized over the last decade. As shown here by Visual Capitalist, the EV has gone from 55,000 units per year sold in 2011 to over 7 million units in 2021 globally. 


Why has the EV become so popular? We've all heard the pros of electric vehicles from friends, family and colleagues including:

  • "EV's are better for the environment"
  • "EV's are faster"
  • "EV's are simpler"
  • "EV's are the future of cars"
Let's break down each of the points listed above:

"EV's are better for the environment." 


  • Short and simply, if you don't see the emissions they must not exist; this is a very common thought process and argument, but it is not necessarily true. 
  • Electricity is a form of energy, however electricity as a bi-product of changing one type of energy into another. For example, we don't pull energy from the Earth; it can come from renewable resources (like solar, wind or nuclear) or the burning of natural gas and then converted to electricity
  • Now where this point gets interesting is around efficiency. A vehicle like a Tesla Model 3 has the lowest coefficient of drag and is therefore a super efficient vehicle and would be a good use of electric energy. However, something like the Hummer EV (which I do think is a very cool EV) is hands-down one of the most inefficient EV's ever produced as stated by Business Insider and is not a great use of electric energy
"EV's are faster"


  • There is a misconception that the more horsepower there is, the faster a car is. While that's somewhat true, the big measurement (at least that you feel when accelerating) is torque or a measure of the force that can cause an object to rotate about an axis
  • Where EV's succeed in feeling "fast" is the power off the line versus an ICE. ICE have to hit a certain RPM in the rev range to hit maximum power where an EV has that power readily available at 0 RPM's
  • For public road use (and at normal speeds), electric cars are dominant in terms of quickness (Model S Plaid doing 0-60 in sub-2 seconds). ICE vehicles, while slower off the line, can be dominant higher in the rev range where the power is made; this would be an advantage of gearing (or lack there of in EV's)
"EV's are simpler"


  • EV's are simpler and realistically there is less to break due to the simplicity, at least regarding drivetrain. Simply, EV's operate with a battery that spins a brushless motor with a controller handling speed of the motor spinning
  • Without getting into specific brands, EV's come with a connotation of being the more advanced vehicles on the road, often having neat infotainment, new self-driving features, and various other new technologies. The new technology outside of the drivetrain is not necessarily more reliable and should be heavily considered when looking to purchase an EV
  • For me, something like a 5-7 year old Nissan Leaf would be perfect as technology outside of the drivetrain is minimal and it benefits from being a simple EV
"EV's are the future of cars"


  • We are currently living in the golden era of the ICE (I will be writing an article about this) and are in the infancy of the EV. As the points above show, the EV absolutely has its benefits but its not without its faults
  • In order for the EV to truly replace the ICE the cost of entry has to decrease, longevity of batteries must be addressed, and there has to be a better or more efficient way to produce electricity (and handle the electricity because our grid outside of California cannot handle it)
In conclusion, would I consider an EV? Absolutely, but I definitely want to see the industry continue to advance. Do I think the EV will end up being the long-term solution? Maybe, but there's one other solution I'm waiting for advancement on: Hydrogen



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