This never fails to baffle me. An ICE vehicle has a hundred times as many moving parts as a BeV. Just how much lower is the BeV production quality to give them more problems?
> The most common complaint? Trouble connecting to Apple Carplay or Android Auto.
They are equating the number of complaints with "car quality" but really what they are directly measuring is the number of times an owner complains.
The limiting factor in the durability of an ICE is maintenance. Friction will eventually wear an engine beyond operating tolerances. But proper maintenance can keep an ICE going for a very long time. 100 years is totally possible so long as wear components are properly greased and rubbers are replaced every 10 or so years.
Whereas, tracing the lineage of a Nissan VQ, GM L-series, or VAG EA motor back to the 90s is very easy.
Choosing 90s was basically a CYA for a "citation needed" claim.
Granted it's a bit of a stretch from B -> Ecotech, but not too far.
Compared to ICE, EV designs and their manufacturing and supporting processes are new.
Plus some EV makes are playing games with requiring in house repairs, which incentivizes (in the near term) getting cars out the door and fixing them later
"Those numbers are complicated by the fact that Tesla vehicles weren’t counted in the study. Fully 75% of the EVs sold in the U.S. last quarter were Tesla products."
The anecdotal experience I've observed among friends is that Tesla owners are happy with the Supercharger network and better software, while other electric makers still are figuring it out, lots of buggy software, slow charging, etc.
For me, the 17" touchscreen is a dealbreaker. So I know I'm not their target market. I have no desire to make my car a computer.
Yes I'm sure they are outliers but with all new tech people that are early adopters will pay the price.
But it's definitely changing as they try to go mass market. Some rich cat buying a Model S as their third or fourth vehicle has very different expectations/needs than a middle class family getting a Model 3 to be their only car and a daily driver.
I have a few friends/neighbours interested in going electric who have recognized this and explicitly chosen to go with the offerings from traditional manufacturers over Tesla— the Kia Soul, Polestar, and in one case a Taycan. Maybe there isn't folksy stuff like plaid mode, farting seats, and biohazard protection, but that long-standing design experience does seem lead to more solid basics like safe, functional interiors, doors and windows that work, and no surprise OTA updates that move around important features in the glass cockpit.