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Comment by Shivetya | Hacker News Reader

I am quickly coming up to my next car purchase and I am debating the one last hurrah of another convertible or to swap over to an EV. I am still not convinced of the value of the current generation of EVs (200+ mile range only) and don't consider any of the sub 200 viable automobiles.

This might be the first time I consider a lease. I have seen what happens to current and previous generation EVs and unless you just plan to keep it you will get soaked. I also would like to see more movement on availability of charging outside of home.

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About a year ago I leased a Nissan Leaf base model which has a rated range a little under 100 miles. I got a pretty good deal, but it was still a new car purchased from a dealership.

Total cost of ownership per month of the lease is $136. This is not counting KWHs or insurance, but includes all dealer costs, maintenance, and taxes. That's really hard to beat, other than buying some used vehicles. Lots of people spend more than that on fuel. These things are becoming affordable fast.

In my case, it's a 2nd car as my wife has a longer-range vehicle, so I'm fine that I can only use it for commutes and short trips.

> Total cost of ownership per month of the lease is $136.

Wow, that is striking. In the UK you could easily spend £200 a month on petrol costs for commuting, and I think the electricity costs would be small in comparison. There are lease deals for £150-200 a month, you could be paying off a new car and still pay less than just the fuel costs for your old car. I wonder whether this could be crafted into a successful advertising campaign.

Leases are definitely looking more attractive. You could also consider that the battery is an expendable component that you'll be able to upgrade separately to the chassis once the tech improves anyway.

Personally I think software upgradability is the most important criteria, which means either Tesla or lease and let someone else deal with rapid obsolescence.

I agree regarding leases being attractive. I feel like between EVs and self-driving cars the auto industry is in a very rapid period of innovation.

Of course the price of leases may factor that in.

Except that if I recall correctly Tesla has also stated that they expect to upgrading the hardware yearly as well (e.g. sensors). So an apt analogy may be an iPhone. iOS still get updates (which is great) but eventually you are going to need to get a new phone (/car).

Why don't you do both buy a used Tesla Roadster. You'll get one last hurrah with a convertible, and take advantage of the electric car depreciation you seem to be convinced exists.

Except they've managed to hold their value pretty well... Still, and attractive option, especially with the 3.0 battery upgrade available!

You could buy a Chevy Volt.

50+ miles of pure electric-only driving for the majority of your normal driving needs. But can also be filled up with gas for 200+ mile driving days.

If your considering buying an traditional car anyway, it gives you the best of both worlds.

My wife and I have a 2012 Nissan Leaf and a 1999 Toyota Camry. The Leaf gets driven every day. The Camry at least a couple times a week.

Before getting the Leaf I monitored my driving habits. The only days I ever drive more than ~20 miles are because I am going somewhere outside my daily routine. If you have access to a second vehicle, I would really recommend taking a second look at current EVs. Where else will you get heated seats, rear view camera, gps, alloy rims... all on a 3 year old car with 20k miles for less than 12k USD? It can be an amazing deal. Additionally if you have access to free charging at work it is a huge incentive.

Odd take on the range issue. I have a surprising number of friends who appear to rent a vehicle when making long trips rather than drive their own car. They'll drive their 15 year old car around town and to work and back. And then when they go on a road trip they rent. If it's just them they rent a compact car. If 4 other people a large SUV.

These people generally wouldn't be bothered by a car with an 80 mile range.

Depending on your drive cycle, you could consider a plugin hybrid that has enough EV range for your daily commute, but can easily go 300+ miles on gas if needed. We have one, and we barely use any gas, since most of our daily driving is within the EV range.

The selection of PHEV options are really great now. They include the Chevy Volt, Ford Fusion Energi, Ford CMax Energi, Chrysler Pacifica Minivan PHEV. If you are looking for a performance or luxury PHEV, even those are available: Volvo XC90 PHEV, Audi E-tron, and a couple BMW models.

200 miles "only"?

How many days of the year do you actually drive more than 100 miles?

If it's many, then electric is not yet for you yet, unless your destinations are near the Supercharger network.

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