Electric cars: Driver reveals struggle in having vehicle serviced
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A new survey has found that of cars up to four years old, nearly one in three EV owners reported one fault or more, compared to less than one in five petrol cars. Owners of those faulty electric cars then went an average of just over five days without the use of their car while it was being fixed – compared to just three days for petrol cars.
Because of this, Which?, who commissioned the data, is calling on car manufacturers to improve the reliability of electric vehicles.
Among cars four years old or less, the Kia e-Niro, which starts from £32,895, was found to be the most reliable EV and also the most reliable small or compact SUV of any fuel type – one of the most popular classes of car on the market.
Just one in every 17 e-Niro owners reported any kind of fault with their car and only one in 100 said their car had failed to start or broke down.
However, the unlucky few who did have an issue faced an average of around eight and a half days off the road, showing there is still work to do on improving repair times when things do go wrong.
In spite of the high fault rates reported by EV owners in the survey, Kia has proven that electric cars have the potential to be very dependable.
Which? is calling on other car makers to up their game and improve the quality of their cars.
Manufacturers need to gain the trust of drivers to encourage them to switch towards more sustainable cars.
Lisa Barber, Which? Home Products and Services Editor, said: “We know that drivers are keen to make the move to more environmentally-friendly cars but it is vital that they are getting a quality product.
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“Whilst it’s disappointing to see that EVs as a group are the least reliable, Kia’s e-Niro shows there is a significant opportunity for manufacturers to up their game and provide drivers with a reliable and more sustainable car.
“With EVs in particular, our research shows a premium price tag does not necessarily mean a reliable vehicle.
“So we would always encourage drivers to do their research ahead of such a significant purchase to see which cars and brands they can trust.”
Which? says that there is a potential for manufacturers to improve as there are fewer moving parts in EVs than in other fuel types.
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