When buying a new car, costs still play a major role for most people. How do the costs differ for vehicles with different types of drive? An analysis by the ADAC provides some insight.
End of state funding increases purchase costs of electric cars
The generous subsidies for electric cars in the form of the environmental bonus expired at the end of 2023, which will change the cost calculation when buying an electric car and make electric cars more expensive compared to the competition. Some manufacturers, such as Tesla, have reduced prices and hope this will stimulate demand.
When choosing a new car, in addition to the purchase costs, the ongoing costs for maintenance, insurance and fuel or electricity also play an important role. Although electric cars have many advantages, such as lower energy and maintenance costs and lower emissions as well as tax breaks, there are also a number of disadvantages, such as a higher purchase price, a shorter range, the need for new charging infrastructure and a variety of tariffs at public charging stations.
Long-distance drivers should opt for a combustion engine
The ADAC compared different models and calculated whether a petrol and diesel model, a plug-in hybrid, or an electric car is most economically worthwhile in the relevant vehicle category. According to the ADAC, in some cases electric cars perform “cheaper” in a direct cost comparison. There is also a “broader range of electric vehicles”. According to the analysis, the problem of short ranges, which deters many potential e-car buyers, has often been solved by improved batteries, which now make ranges of over 500 kilometers possible in some cases.
According to ADAC, the cost balance of purely electric vehicles can only improve in the future compared to conventional drives if the purchase prices fall and are from now on only slightly higher than those of a comparable conventional vehicle. However, according to the analysis, car owners who have to travel longer distances should still opt for a combustion engine. Commuters and short-distance drivers, on the other hand, could easily purchase an electric car and plug-in hybrid.
Loss of value is the biggest cost driver for all drive types
According to the ADAC, the loss of value of the vehicle is the biggest cost driver, regardless of the type of drive. If you take all the costs together, “depending on the model, electric cars sometimes come out on top, but usually the comparable petrol or diesel model.” When comparing the electric BMW iX2 with the BMW X2 either as a diesel or petrol engine, the ADAC comparison comes to the conclusion that the diesel variant is the cheapest.
When comparing the electric Fiat 500e with the Fiat 400 Hybrid, the evaluation comes to the conclusion that the hybrid, with a base price of 17,490 euros and 41.1 cents per kilometer, is cheaper than its fully electric counterpart (base price: 34,990, 55.5 cents per kilometer).
Editorial team finanzen.net
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