Challenging the notion that EVs are superior in terms of quality and environmental impact.

Question

Two studies have shown that electric cars have more quality issues than gas-powered ones and are not better for the environment.

This article from the publication "The Federalist" says that two studies have shown that electric cars have more quality issues than gas-powered ones and that they are not as environmentally free as they are often made out to be. That the production of lithium-ion batteries, which are also used in electric cars, is also polluting. Also, it claims that President Biden's plan to switch to electric cars will not have a significant impact on climate change.  Are any of these points true? Thank you in advance for helping me understand the facts!

Answer 1

To begin, the cited source is not reliable and is cnsidered problematic. The source is hyper-partisan right and has a reliability of 23% based on Ad Fontes Media ratings technology. While the pandemic had a negative impact on all car quality, not just electric cars, it does not mean that they are worse for the enviorment. Electric cars are indeed better for the enviroment. The United States Enviromental Protection Agency and Yale Climate Connections explain that even when considering the carbon pollutiont hat charging the cars takes, EV's are resonpsible for less GHG's. SO while they may have some quality issues due to their newness and covid, they are better for the enviroment so that claim is untrue.

https://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/electric-vehicle-myths#:~:text=comparable%20gasoline%20vehicles.-,Myth%20%231%3A%20Electric%20vehicles%20are%20worse%20for%20the%20climate%20than,EVs)%20have%20no%20tailpipe%20emissions.

https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2022/11/dont-get-fooled-electric-vehicles-really-are-better-for-the-climate/

Comments

I liked how detailed you were in your explanation of why the source used in the claim was not reliable instead of just saying the claim is false. Great job explaining the sources you listed in your explanation!

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Thank you Ella, your answer is fact-checked, well-reasoned, and very informative!

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Nice job reviewing the claim's source and realizing it isn't sufficient to support it. I like your thorough fact-check explanation too and that you included two solid sources! Good work.

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Nice job analyzing and explaining why the source was not reliable as well as providing 2 much more reliable sources instead! Nice work!

Answer 2

Claiming that EVs are of worse quality compared to gas powered cars is inaccurate according to the Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity branch of the Idaho National Laboratory, which states that "the electric motor has one moving part, the motor, whereas the gasoline powered vehicle has hundreds of moving parts." This fact correlates too minimal and lower costing maintenance issues with electric vehicles, proving them to bring a higher quality to consumers. Therefore, this claim is not true. The claim that EVs are inferior when it comes to environmental safety is false as proven by the Environmental Defense Fund. Their writers state that "fewer greenhouse gas emissions" can help to improve our climate crisis. The batteries used to power electric cars are being recycled by some companies which also helps the environment and limits the pollution they cause. 

https://avt.inl.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/fsev/compare.pdf

https://www.edf.org/article/yes-electric-vehicles-are-better-environment-and-answers-more-questions-about-evs#:~:text=EVs%20help%20the%20environment%20because,still%20powered%20by%20fossil%20fuels.

Comments

Your answer is very detailed with resources that back your claim. I found this very well-written.