Early electric vehicle adopters are revealing the headaches of owning a Tesla as compared with a gas-powered vehicle. Owners told Insider of some of the challenges they face since switching, as well as the expenses they accrued.
One such issue is that the tires on the cars wear out faster, leaving many Tesla owners surprised that they had to change the tires sooner than expected. EV vehicle tires are reportedly heavier because they need to accommodate the weight of the lithium-ion battery, according to Bridgestone. Because of that, the tires reportedly wear out 30 percent faster than combustible engine cars.
This means that owners have between 10,000 to 20,000 miles before the tires will need to be replaced. But this can be much shorter when accounting for speeding and heavy braking.
In addition to the expense of tires, EV owners are dealing with higher car insurance rates. This is in part because EVs are more expensive than regular vehicles. Insurance companies determine their pricing on the price of the parts needed in the event of an accident, as well as the scarcity of repair shops that are certified to handle EVs. One owner of a Rivian was reportedly smacked with a $42,000 bill after getting his vehicle repaired.
But the cost of EVs is expected to drop once the economy and environment adapts to EVs. But this requires a full transition away from gas-powered cars. As of now, there are not enough charging stations for EV drivers which may leave drivers stranded.
Tesla owners have also reportedly filed thousands of complaints about the company’s service centers, which only number around 200 in the U.S. Owners argue that their cars were left in worse condition than when they arrived. Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that the company is trying to improve its service in North America.
