St. Pete family says electric car battery replacement costs more than car

Electric cars have become quite popular lately. And with gas prices and inflation, it seems like a great way to help the environment and save money in the long term. But... what happens when the battery needs replacing? And what happens when the replacement battery costs more than the car itself? For a St. Petersburg family, that is the exact position they found themselves in.

[jasonhudson]

1997 Honda Accord 150k miles gets great gas mileage, minimum maintenance and paid cash for it. New silver paint job was done before I bought the car. Cost me $4, 000 and is a great investment

[packard]

"What do you do when the EV battery just quits?" There is nothing you can do but scrap the car. This is going to become a real big problem as more and more EVs start to hit the secondhand market as the original owners realize the battery is dying and how much it will cost to replace if it can be replaced at all. And what a lot of people do not realize as well is that every other day there is a news story about some new battery technology coming out and it is better than the previous battery and so what happens to the old-style batteries? They are discontinued and the car you spent several thousands of dollars for is no longer drivable or worth anything. This is a dirty little secret that the EV pushers are not disclosing. And every EV company is hiding this even Tesla. The original Tesla Roadster that started the Tesla company is not supported by Tesla anymore and parts and batteries are very near impossible to find for those cars. There is a video about a guy who has a business he started trying to keep those roadsters going and it is not easy and definitely not cheap to do. Just watch it and you will realize where the future of EVs is going to head and most of them will not be desirable little roadsters that someone will want to spend a lot of money on to keep going.

[adrianf]

I have a 2011 Honda Pilot, 179k miles and 11 years later still running strong. Also paid off.

[WendyWzOpinion]

Finally some news on what it's like for EV owners. I've also seen 3 hour lines to recharge, people stranded because their battery didn't make it all the way to work, power outages in certain locations making it impossible to charge their EVs. It's a nightmare "solution" to the gas problem.

[laurar]

I'm glad this local news station covered this story, now we need it in the national news! EV's are NOT the answer. Her car and many others will be on the junk heap making our environment worse than any gas car!

[andrewregard]

Exact reason why I will NEVER buy an EV. I can rebuild my motor, can't rebuild a battery.

[RightAway]

Every democrat solution to any problem always ends up being much worse than the problem itself. Here's yet another example of this.

[flaxseedoil]

EV batteries are actually packs of small individual batteries. If one of those batteries gets outside a specific voltage the entire pack fails.

[swully-ollx]

And that's why the Auto makers dont tell you that there's no second hand market for used batteries for these EV and then you have to buy a new one AND IT COST AS MUCH AS THE DAMN CAR TO REPLACE IT! 🤬🤬

[Tallacus]

my dad always tells me he would give into the electric car when the batteries become cheaper, this just proves him right

[MaximumLagGolf]

This is why I'm sticking with a gas vehicle.

[InfraRedNeck]

What? I was told electric cars ran on love.

[AntsTapDancing]

I've been driving for 50 years and only on my 4th petrol car. The last one I had from nearly new and it lasted me 24 years. Only replaced it because parts no longer available even from a wreaking yard. Enjoying the consternation of EV owners who realise they've been conned and see the pushback against government pressure to buy these ridiculous vehicles when they also learn the taxes involved in paying for the roads etc that petrol and diesels pay now to subsidise EV's.

[williamrutkowski]

The Ford Focus EV was a compliance vehicle that that never had any active liquid cooling system for the battery. If there's no cooling system, the battery will degrade. This is common sense people! I'm unsure why these people and the news seems clueless of this. Batteries from every Tesla, Chevrolet Bolt and all other new EVs except the Nissan LEAF have cooling systems. Also keeping the battery charged up to 80% will keep proper battery health for EVs and electronics.

[lennys]

2002 Toyota Corolla 5 speed still strong replaced the timing belt and fixed an oil leak 4 years ago no problems AC still cold.

[Acecool]

Buyer Beware! Replacing batteries, including rechargeable, have a minimal life span, while manufacturer's get filthy rich.
Deja Vu! Ever experience replacing power tool batteries costing more than replacing the tool itself, constant replacement of Light Bulbs, or ink replacement cartridges costing more than the printer?

[powelllucas]

Another tale of a consumer who got suckered into buying an electric vehicle. They're nothing but crap. I'd rather buy a mule.

[swampwampagus]

Did she try unplugging and plugging it back in again?

[Dobie_Gillis]

This is caveat emptor in bold print. These are basically disposable vehicles. When your mileage gets high and you want to sell, don't worry, there will be a greater fool to buy it from you.

[MYfriendsknow]

WHAT IF IT JUST STOPS WORKING WHILE ON THE FREEWAY??