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EVs are the future, but what would it cost you to be an early adopter of the future? Here's the costs that you have to consider before making the move.
Category: Car Buying Advice
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The whole world is moving towards Electric Vehicles (EV), powered solely by electricity. Without any tailpipe emissions, EVs are a means of transport with minimal cost to the environment.
At the moment, EVs make up merely 3% of the global sales of cars. In a world where Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles still make up the majority, being an early adopter of EVs can be less than straightforward. Without the economies of scale, and more than hundred years of technological advancement that ICE vehicles enjoy, EVs can be expensive and inconvenient to own. Let's find out what are the costs that you have to consider before you get an EV in Singapore.
Procuring an Electric Vehicle is expensive (for now at least)
EVs are expensive due to the costs incurred to make them, and a huge portion of it comes from the batteries - almost a third of the cost of a typical EV car. EV batteries are made with expensive metals such as cobalt, nickel, lithium and manganese, all of which contribute to the cost. The smaller economies of scale compared to ICE cars also makes them more expensive to own, for now at least.
To put it into numbers, a Kia Niro Electric currently costs $168,999, a cool $47,000 more than the Hybrid version of the same car. The same could be said for the Hyundai Ioniq Electric which costs $167,888, $45,889 more than its Hybrid variant. And this price difference is present after the Vehicle Emissions Schemes and EV Early Adoption Incentive rebates which can go up to $45,000.
In comparison, a brand new Hyundai Avante would set you back by just $106,999 - substantially lower than EVs of a similar category in Singapore.