The study asks responses from over 100,000 purchases and lessees of vehicles acquired in 2024. Study focuses on the first 90 days of ownership.

Internal combustion engine vehicles averaged 180 problems per 100 vehicles. On the other hand, battery electric vehicles got 266 problems per 100 vehicles. That’s 48% higher. The study shows that EVs, even though they have fewer parts and systems, ended up requiring more repairs than regular, gasoline powered cars. We understand that newer technologies used in EVs may increase number of problems – but most everybody expected that fewer parts and systems would result in fewer problems – simply because there is less stuff that could break. Apparently this is not the case.

Tesla gets the blame for dragging down EV score, which makes sense considering the huge number of Tesla vehicles sold. One sore point was the removal of traditional turn signal controls and traditional wiper control – these changes are not seen as benefits by Tesla owners.  Low availability of charging stations continues make EV owners unhappy - especially that thieves keep stealing copper wiring from the charging stations, rendering them useless until repairs are completed. Overall, McKinsey found recently that 46% of EV owners in the US are thinking of switching back to the gas powered cars.

So is there any good news? Well, Stellantis’s along with EVs from Chevrolet, Hyundai, Kia, and Buick were found to be highest in initial quality. So if you are thinking of getting an EV, these are the brand names to investigate.