EV Batteries 101: Degradation, Lifespan, Warranties, and More
It's common knowledge that smartphone batteries only last a couple of years before degradation sets in and performance takes a nosedive. But what about electric vehicle batteries?
Over time, battery degradation is inevitable, so if you're mulling the switch from a gas-powered vehicle to an electric one, this is a valid concern. I started thinking about this issue recently after an anti-EV post showed up in my Facebook feed. The post claimed to show a graveyard of EVs—rows and rows of them in a field in France, all purportedly abandoned due to dead batteries that were too expensive to replace. The viral post states that replacement batteries cost "almost double" the price of a new vehicle, and that no landfill or disposal would even accept the dead ones.
"These green fairy tale electric cars are all sitting in vacant lots while their batteries drain toxins into the ground," the post claims. "Still think we need to go green?"
Don't trust everything you read on Facebook: This post, which first started making the rounds last year, has been debunked(Opens in a new window). According to PolitiFact, the cars in the photo "are part of a fleet from a failed car-sharing service" and were in the process of "being resold or sold for parts."
Even so, it got me thinking: What is the lifespan of an electric vehicle battery, and what happens when it dies? I have a personal interest in this topic; Since road tripping 1,000 miles in a Tesla, I've been weighing the pros and cons of trading my gas-guzzling 2015 Jeep Patriot in for an EV. Let's investigate.
Concerns about the lifespan of EV batteries are not new. PCMag executive features editor Jamie Lendino, a car expert, tells me that this conversation harkens back to the early days of
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