It’s taken just over a hundred years but gasoline-powered cars are finally getting reliable – even the cheap ones. So what about the newcomer; the electric car. How reliable is it likely to be, without having a hundred years of technology behind it?

If time is an indicator of reliability, then prepare yourself for a shock: The electric vehicle has actually been around for a lot longer than the gasoline-powered vehicle. In 1838 Robert Davidson constructed an electric locomotive which could move at 6 km/h (4 mph). Not bad for 172 years ago.

In essence, electric cars are inherently more reliable because they have fewer moving parts. A good example of this is during a typical electric car conversion, where a gasoline-powered car would have it’s engine replaced with an electric motor and batteries. Some of the parts no longer needed after a conversion are:

• Spark plugs

• Air Filter

• Oil Filter

• Water Pump

• Radiator

• Fuel Tank

• Belts & Pulleys

• Exhaust Pipe & Muffler

Because there are fewer parts, there are fewer devices relying on them. This adds more reliability. In fact an electric motor has only one moving part, compared to the 100+ moving parts inside a typical gasoline or diesel powered engine.

So how long can you expect an electric car to last? That’s a tricky question. Like any vehicle the lifespan depends on the owner, the driving style, and the quality of the parts used. There’s just no black and white answer on how long an electric car will last in real world conditions.

Of course we won’t really know how reliable they are until they’re parked in every driveway, though this should give you an idea: Electric motors are predicted to take the average electric car owner at least one million miles before needing its bearings replaced. Once the bearings have been replaced, you’re good for another million miles.

That’s another million miles without buying a single drop of gasoline. Another million miles without a tailpipe to produce pollutants. It’s also another million miles using locally made electricity instead of imported oil from the Middle East.