The pluses of electric cars are myriad: quieter driving, ridiculous torque and acceleration, more pure driving fun, less maintenance needed, and so forth.
And there certainly are challenges ahead with electric cars – charging infrastructure probably being the most pronounced.
But as an experienced electric driver, I can’t tell you how utterly fantastic it is not to have to pump gas anymore. Beyond not having to deal with the environmental frontal assault that gas stations foist upon your senses, what seals the deal for me is the time saved and the convenience that electric refueling adds to my every day life. I plug in when I get home, and my car fuels itself.
The perfect encapsulation of this happened this past Sunday. We were at the end of a long drive, nearly home, and my “tank” was getting quite low. In the past I’d have to search about for an open gas station, driving out of my way to get to the station that was open past 9pm, adding an extra 15-20 minutes to my journey when all I wanted to be was home after a long day. Instead, I was able to simply drive home, pull into the garage, and plug in. Filling my tank is now found time.
Yes, I have it easy. I have a garage with a 240v outlet, so filling up is no problem and it is relatively quick to charge. If I rented an apartment in the city the calculus certainly would be much different. But for me, driving an electric car is exponentially a better experience than my old ICE rides.