1. Efficiency
One of the biggest benefits of the modern electric car is how it uses electricity far more efficiently than regular cars use gasoline. When you charge up the battery on an EV, anywhere from 59-62% of that energy goes directly to moving the wheels of the car. On gasoline-powered cars, only about 17-21% of the gasoline’s energy goes to actually moving the vehicle. And range continues to improve across EV fleets. The days of 100 miles or less on a charge are largely a thing of the past. The new normal is now in the 200-250 range for many vehicles. Higher-End Luxury EVs can get 300-400 miles out of a single charge.
2. Electric Cars are Fun to Drive
What many people don’t realize is that every electric car is also a high-performance vehicle, which makes them surprisingly fun to drive. The engine is incredibly quiet both inside and out compared to gasoline-powered vehicles. The all-electric engine is also very responsive with great torque, both of which really enhance the driving experience. The get-up-and-go of an electric car will totally impress you, along with how smooth it is. You might also be surprised at how much preferential treatment you get for driving an EV, such as preferred parking at stores or use of HOV (high-occupancy vehicle or carpool) lanes, and even free public charging offered by a growing number of businesses.
3. Less Maintenance
The electric car needs a lot less maintenance than gasoline-powered vehicles. In an all-electric vehicle, there are a bunch of things that completely disappear off the maintenance list because they don’t exist at all in EVs. These include oil changes, spark plugs, air filters, fuel filters, exhaust pipes, mufflers, and catalytic converters, which means no smog tests, ever!
Another big factor is how much simpler the engine is in an electric car. There are literally only about a half-dozen moving parts, whereas the internal combustion engine of gasoline-powered vehicles has hundreds of moving parts! Simply put, there’s a lot less to wear out, and when key items do wear out, they’re easy to replace. Some people will say an electric car doesn’t have a transmission, but they’re wrong. EVs do have a transmission, but it’s very different from the transmissions in gasoline-powered cars. The big difference is that while a gasoline-powered vehicle has a transmission with a multi-speed gearbox, an electric car has a single-speed transmission.
4. You Can Get Paid to Drive an EV
Receive an incentive up to $5,000 when you purchase or lease a new electric vehicle in New Jersey. Save on a new car with the most generous electric vehicle rebate in the country.
Zero-emission vehicles are exempt from the NJ state sales tax, so you'll save 6.625% on the sale, lease, or rental of a new or used battery electric vehicle (also known as an all-electric vehicle). This exemption does not apply to plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.
Grants to offset the cost to purchase and install electric vehicle charging stations. Eligible locations include public parking lots and garages, apartments and condominiums, workplaces, hotels, retail, downtown areas, rest stops, and more.
Grants to replace old diesel trucks, buses, port equipment, marine vessels, and trains with electric power and to offset the cost of associated charging infrastructure.
Grants for electric shared mobility projects such as electric car sharing and ride-hailing. Projects that benefit low- or moderate-income communities that are disproportionately impacted by air pollution will be prioritized.
Grants to help state and local governments transition to electrically fueled fleets. Eligible applicants (which include state agencies, counties, municipalities, and local utility authorities in New Jersey) can receive reimbursement of $4,000 per vehicle for up to two (2) battery electric vehicles and $1,500 for one (1) electric vehicle charging station.
Electric vehicles are qualified to receive reduced toll rates via the Green Pass Discount through their EZ Pass accounts: 10% discount on the off-peak rate for the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway.
5. Great Tech Features
Because the electric car is the “New Kid on the Block,” they tend to have more cutting-edge technology included. EVs tend to be highly connected and feature more advanced tech as standard options.
6. Better for the Environment
An electric car that burns no gasoline produces ZERO tailpipe emissions. In fact, an all-electric car doesn’t even have a tailpipe! However, that doesn’t let the electric car totally off the hook. After all, it all depends on how the electricity is produced, and a lot of the electricity in the US is still produced by burning fossil fuels, which does produce pollution and greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. Once electricity is on the grid, it’s all the same, so people who are most interested in EVs as a way to fight global warming and climate change should also support the continued transition away from fossil fuels as a source of producing electricity. Right now, the overall electricity picture in the US is that only about 17% of it comes from renewable sources, so we still have a long way to go.
7. Cheaper to Own Long-Term
In order to show you how this benefit works, we’ll have to do a little bit of math, but not much. Let’s assume your electric vehicle has a battery that can hold 100 kWh of electricity. The average cost of electricity in NJ is around 16 cents/kWh, so charging the battery from empty to full will cost you $16 (or less with free charging stations in some places, or off-peak charging at home). And let’s assume you’ve got a good EV that can go 200 miles on that single charge. If you drive the national average of 15,000 miles in a year, you’ll have to charge your battery 75 times, which will cost you a grand total of $1,200. If, on the other hand, you drive a gasoline-powered car that gets an average of 22 miles per gallon and you drive 15,000 miles, you’ll have to buy 682 gallons of gas. If the average price of regular gas in New Jersey hits $4.00/gallon, those 15,000 miles will cost you $2,728 or more than twice as much as the electric car! And that doesn’t even account for the time you waste driving to gas stations. It’s much more convenient to charge an electric car at home overnight. As you can see, however, it all depends on the type of car and how much you drive, but now that you know how to do the math, you can figure out on your own based on different cars and how much you drive.
Now imagine you’ve got solar panels installed at your home to supply your electricity. A good system could reduce the energy cost of driving your car to ZERO! When you think about it, the investment you make into a home solar energy system will pay itself back much faster if you also have an electric car because you’re reducing both your home electricity AND car fuel costs to zero. That’s impressive! And don’t forget that the electric car needs less maintenance, which is another place you’ll save money. The maintenance needed on an EV can average a cost of about one-third compared to a gasoline-powered vehicle.
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