Myths

Electric cars, autonomous driving or the fuel cell are the subject of many myths that like to spread and be disseminated about such new and confusing topics. Here is a collection of helpful details about single topics, which should refute wrong but common arguments and bring some useful facts.

Electric Vehicle Myths

What about the electricity we need from electric cars, the energy we need to provide gasoline or diesel, and the efficiency of electric motors?

Here’s a chart from a study by The International Council on Clean Transportation that shows emissions over the life cycle of internal combustion engine (ICE) and battery electric vehicle (BEV) powertrains:

How many miles does it take a Tesla Model Y to be cleaner than an internal combustion engine? Carbon Brief has a chart for that:

Here is a comparison of the indirect CO2 emissions( of a Tesla Model 3 for the individual European countries, and for comparison the CO2 emissions of a BMW 330 with gasoline (C) Michael Sura.

A comparison to the mining of coal, oil and gas on the one hand (2019 figures) versus the minerals needed for sustainable forms of energy (2020) – including the mineral production of solar and wind energy, geothermal power, hydropower, electric vehicles, battery storage, nuclear power and the expansion of the power grid – are eye-opening. On one side, 15 billion tons per year; on the other, 7 million tons. I.e., coal, oil and gas turn over 2,000x as much volume as sustainable forms of energy. And the minerals of the latter can be recycled, while coal, oil and gas have to be mined fresh every year.

In addition, US power production has seen a shift from coal to sustainable forms. In 2023, energy from wind and solar surpassed coal. In other words, electric vehicles lower their carbon footprint and become ever more ecologically friendly, a feat that combustion engine cars cannot who rely on oil.

Here are more links with detailed breakdowns and numbers:

Calculator for the carbon footprint for different drive technologies and what goes into it
TU Eindhoven: Comparing the lifetime green house gas emissions of electric cars with the emissions of cars using gasoline or diesel
TU Bundeswehr: Total CO₂-equivalent life-cycle emissions from commercially available passenger cars

How environmentally friendly are batteries, how long do they last, and what happens when they can no longer be used in cars?

Fire danger of EVs:

AutoinsuranceEZ: Gas vs. Electric Car Fires [2023 Findings]

How long do EV batteries last?

New Study: How Long Do Electric Car Batteries Last?

EVs in winter (and in traffic jams)

e-Fuel Myths

Transport and Environment: UPDATE – T&Eʼs analysis of electric car lifecycle CO₂ emissions

Lifecycle CO2 emissions for ICE, e-fuels and EVs
(C) UPDATE – T&Eʼs analysis of electric car lifecycle CO₂ e

Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Myths

Is the fuel cell, which is powered only by hydrogen, the solution? How does it work and what is the energy balance of hydrogen?

Fuel Cell: Is it a dead horse?
Bloomberg: Liebreich: Separating Hype from Hydrogen – Part One: The Supply Side
Bloomberg: Liebreich: Separating Hype from Hydrogen – Part Two: The Demand Side

And here from Michael Sura a graphical comparison of the range of a battery electric and a fuel cell vehicle with the same output energy:

Fossil Fuels

Electric Vehicle Myths: How Efficient Is Our Fuel Supply Chain?
The Military Cost of Defending the Global Oil Supply
Answer: minimum $81bn per year from the US alone (16% of military spending)

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