Battery electric car prices are higher than equivalent gas burner prices. This is due to the cost of battery packs. Battery pack prices run around $600 USD per kWh. The Nissan Leaf has a 24 kWh pack so the pack cost is around $14,400 on average. Actual prices are different, but it shows that around 1/2 the cost of a new EV is for the battery pack alone.
Battery pack cost is projected to come down with mass manufacturing. Over the next 3-5 years or so it might be possible for the cost to decrease to around $350 per kWh or about half the current price.
The Great Shakeout
2012 was a shakeout year for the battery electric car. Most of the cars on the price estimate list below were never actually produced, produced in small numbers, or may be possibly produced at some future date.
Price Changes and Sales Trends
2013 has the Nissan Leaf slashing prices some $6,000 per car. The Miles Coda has dropped their prices a similar amount. We shall see how much the reduced prices boost sales, if much at all.
Sales trends are showing that the public prefers by a wide margin the HEV or Hybrid Electric Vehicle to the BEV or battery electric vehicle.
Some 435,000 HEVs were sold in the USA in 2012 as opposed to about 53,000 BEVs and PHEVs or plug in electric vehicles. The PHEV is one EV that is growing rapidly in acceptance and sales, but still not near as much as the HEV.
The prices on the list below are estimates. Cars like the Aero EV were never produced in any numbers, so the price is just a best estimate released at the time of last review. Other prices will vary like any car price with location, dealer and other factors. If sales remain stagnant for these cars in 2013, they will be dropped from the list in 2014.
