A used EV might be a smart play right now

As the war with Iran rages on, energy prices have begun to soar. While gasoline prices aren’t at their pandemic highs, many parts of the country have seen prices increase by 50 to 80 cents a gallon in the first week of the conflict. With reports that the Iranians are mining the Strait of Hormuz, plus the country’s attack on Bahrain’s infrastructure, prices aren’t likely to drop any time soon.

So you might be thinking, “Is now the time to dump my gas-guzzling vehicle and replace it with an EV?”

The answer to that question really isn’t much different from what it was a few months ago. There are several things you should consider before making the decision. The most important one is whether you can charge at home or at work.

If you have to rely on DC fast charging as your sole means of keeping your car full of energy, you’re not going to have a great experience. DC fast-charging rates are also much higher than home or work-based level 2 charging, negating many of the cost benefits over gasoline. You’re also just going to get really annoyed by having to constantly go to a fast charger.

If you meet that criteria, then you will have a good time with an EV. That said, you should ask yourself whether you need a new — or new-to-you — car. If your current vehicle is in good working order, just a little more expensive to fill up, it might be cheaper to keep your current car than to spend a large chunk of money on a replacement.

By charging at home, your cost per mile is significantly less than gasoline, regardless of the vehicle, so your payback on any big expense will be quicker. But if you’re only driving a few miles a day, that payback time will still be a long time.

If you need a new car because your current one is broken beyond what can be affordably or feasibly repaired, then it makes more sense to replace it. If you can live with an EV, then it’s a great alternative to another gasoline-powered vehicle.

My friend Jonathan Gitlin over at Ars Technica has been running an affordability series lately, and some of the cars he’s found have been quite the deals. If you can snatch up a Hyundai Ioniq 5, with its 800-volt architecture and rapid DC fast charging rate, for $15,000, you’d be silly not to buy one. I have several other friends who have also purchased new-to-them BMW i3s and are having a great experience with them.

I wouldn’t want to put a timer on anyone purchasing an expensive product like a vehicle, but it is also worth pointing out that, as fuel prices stay high — and if the Iranians successfully mine the Strait, then they aren’t going down for a long while — the price of EVs will start to go up as demand increases for them.

The irony in all of this, at least regarding the automotive industry, is that anti-EV and anti-renewable energy Donald Trump is doing as much — or more — to encourage EV adoption than the $7,500 tax incentive did.