Electric vs Petrol vehicles: Which would be the best choice?

Purchasing a car can be a headache, because there are so many options to choose from. As the demands for EVs are building, now it is more confusing for consumers what vehicle you should select. Which is why it is important to fetch all details and specifications of fuel vehicles as well as EVs, to decide which option would be the best suitable for you.

In previous centuries, we have only used fuel powered vehicles. And, now as the days are passing, the prices of petrol and diesel are also hiking rapidly. That is why more people are inclined towards buying electric vehicles, as they require power from electricity. The price of electricity is low as compared to petrol and diesel vehicles.

There is also another option worth mentioning in the topic is hybrid-electric cars. These are also considered as eco-friendly vehicles. They are also gaining fame because they can both work with gasoline and electricity as well. Too confused to decide right? There are so many options of vehicles to select from. So, here is the detailed discussion of electric vs petrol vehicles, which will help you to make the right decision.

What are Fuel vehicles?

This type of vehicles are installed with internal combustion engines that require fuels, and the IC engines burn fuels to mobilize a car. These kinds of vehicles are equipped with different types of moving parts. Now let’s talk about how a petrol car operates.

A petrol car uses a spark-ignited system to burn the mixture of fuel and air, and produces mechanical energy. Then the mechanical energy is conveyed to the transmission, and then transfers the power to the wheels through driveshafts and differential. In simple words, a petrol vehicle burns fuels to produce energy to move forward a vehicle.

What are Electric vehicles?

First, it is essential to understand what exactly an EV is and how it works. An EV has quite fewer parts as compared to petrol or diesel vehicles. Petrol vehicles are installed with IC engines, likewise, an EV is installed with electric motors, inverters, drivetrain, battery packs, charging system and many more.

The energy stocked in the battery pack relayed to the motor through a controller. Via transmission the electrical energy is transmuted to motor energy to move the vehicle. However, one thing must be noted is that the electric motors are quieter than IC engine motors.

Electric vs Petrol vehicles: must know things

• Price contrast: To compare both types of vehicles, the first thing which comes to our minds is the price. The prices of these types of vehicles are noticeable. As we know, in 1933 Eddy Current Corporation created the first ever electric car in India in collaboration with Yaskawa Electric corporation. Even after our Indian government has permitted marketing that car, the purchasing response of that car was not very appreciable. However, as the world is developing, the demands of electric cars are also rising. As compared to the other countries around the globe, the production of EVs in India is quite low. Which is why, the prices of EVs are also on a higher side compared to the traditional petrol cars. Because of the lithium-ion batteries, the cost of an EV is 25 to 30 percent greater than the cost of a fuel car. But despite that, the cost of EVs might go down as the technologies will vastly improve in the future. The price of an EV may seem a bit higher than the usual IC engine cars, but later on you might end up saving loads of money as they do not require any fuel to charge.

• Running cost: Generally, in the span of 6 to 8 years, the running cost of an EV is around little more than 1 lakh because of the low-cost electricity. Besides, the petrol vehicles would have a running cost for around 3 to 4 lakh for the same span.In short, in the long run, the running costs of EVs are more cost-effective than petrol vehicles, even if the purchasing price of EVs are high.

• Maintenance cost: So far, we know that to buy an EV can be pricey, though, the maintenance and service fee is fairly lower than the petrol cars. The reason is, EVs have comparatively fewer moving parts unlike IC engine cars.Hence, IC engine cars have too many moving parts, which requires regular oiling in the gears or engines, and some parts need high maintenance as well. However, EVs may have need of brake fluid top-ups, and survey of battery health once in a while.

• Functioning: With an EV, you will experience a smooth and relaxed ride because these cars have electric motors. The production of energy is directed to the electric motors which leads to high torque powers and pickup speeds. While, in IC engine cars, the energy is not directly delivered to the motors, the energy needs to be processed through the gears, clutches, and engine to propel the car.Besides, as mentioned earlier, an EV has fewer moving parts than an IC engine car, which is why Evs run smoothly and efficiently. However, the only drawback for having Ev is that there are insufficient EV charging stations available in India. Also, these cars might require a long time to get charged.You are willing to go for long road journeys, then petrol or diesel cars would be a great choice, because you can get to a petrol station anywhere. However, with an EV, you might not get a charging station every place.

• Life expectancy: To prevent excessive pollution in the country, our Indian government has declared that one needs to discard their IC engine car because after 12 to 15 years these cars release an uncountable amount of pollutants. Whereas, EVs do not spread pollutants, and they are quite safe for our nature. As we know that the main part of an EV is the battery which might need to be replaced after 10 to 12 years, and until it degrades in the performance. Besides, different companies are offering 5 to 8 years of warranty on the EV batteries.

Which one should you go for?

Thus, we have explored some significant factors of fuel vehicles and e-vehicles, that you need to evaluate before purchasing a car. To conclude, we can say that an EV is the best choice if you are concerned about our nature, and if you want a vehicle to use for daily purposes considering that these are low-maintenance, and cost less to recharge.

Also, you can recharge the batteries conveniently at your home. However, the disadvantage of these cars is that the battery replacement cost can be high after 10 to 12 years, and also the prices of these cars are higher than our traditional IC engine cars. Although, you can still choose petrol vehicles undoubtedly for recurrent long trips, because you will find a petrol station at least in every corner of our country.

Speaking of the prices of EVs, one of the best parts is that multiple state governments are giving subsidies of up to Rs. 1.5 lakh on the purchasing of an EV. Our Indian government has taken some initiatives to promote the use of e-vehicles in our nation. Fortunately, the government has started to establish charging stations for e-vehicles in the whole nation. We can definitely expect some major developments in the upcoming years.