Consumer fear of battery cost persists despite improving reliability
Richard Symons recently drove his five-year-old Tesla Model 3 on a 260-mile road trip across England without needing to stop for a charge. His car, which he nicknamed “Miles,” has logged 247,000 miles and remains capable of long-distance travel, he said.
Symons, who owns a U.K.-based used-car company that specializes in EVs, said the batteries have proved more durable than he expected. “They are proving themselves to be exceptionally reliable,” Symons said.
The experience is consistent with broader data, according to Recurrent, a company that provides battery-monitoring tools for EVs. After five years, the average EV can still drive up to 95% of its original range — better than many in the auto industry anticipated, Recurrent said.
Scott Case, Recurrent’s co-founder and chief executive, said buyer perception has not kept pace with the technology. “I think that people ought to have a lot more confidence than they do,” Case said.
Among EVs built from 2011 to 2016, roughly one in 12 required a battery replacement, according to a 2025 Recurrent study. For vehicles built since 2022, that figure dropped to 0.3%. The earliest electric cars, such as the original Nissan Leaf introduced in 2010, lacked the battery-cooling technology found in modern EVs and were known for rapid degradation.
Viet Nguyen-Tien, a research officer at the London School of Economics who focuses on EVs, said the newest battery-powered vehicles have lifespans comparable to internal-combustion-engine cars, even when driven more miles. He attributed the improvement to advances in battery chemistry, battery-management systems, and thermal regulation. Battery prices have fallen more than 90% since 2010, according to a BloombergNEF report from late last year.
Despite the improving track record, consumer hesitation remains. Jessica Caldwell, head of insights at car-shopping resource Edmunds, said there is “still a lot of trepidation amongst buyers.” A 2025 survey from industry research firm AutoPacific ranked fear of battery replacement costs as the number-one reason shoppers avoid EVs.
An out-of-warranty battery replacement can range from $5,000 to $16,000 depending on the manufacturer, according to Recurrent. But many automakers have begun designing battery packs with replaceable modular components, allowing owners to avoid the full cost of a new pack, Case said.
Not all charging habits are equal. A battery that is frequently fast-charged at high power loses range at twice the rate of one charged at lower power, according to telematics company Geotab. Regularly charging to 100% or leaving the battery at 0% for extended periods also reduces long-term range. Extreme temperatures can further limit range.
In the United States, consumer enthusiasm for EVs has waned after the Trump administration ended federal EV subsidies and emissions regulations. U.S. EV sales are down 25% so far in 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to Motor Intelligence.
Industry analysts do not expect the slowdown to persist. The share of new EVs sold in the U.S. is expected to nearly double, reaching 11% of new-car sales by 2030, according to consulting firm AlixPartners. Globally, EVs already account for 15% of new-car sales and are projected to reach nearly a quarter of the market by 2030.
Ken Yannacci, a market analyst and founder of an EV-ownership website, said clearer evidence of battery longevity could help shift consumer attitudes. “As EVs get a reputation for having that battery longevity, that’s definitely gonna help,” he said.