Electric cars — this time we're really there. At present, setting aside a few "early adopters" — that is, people who are open to change, including in their consumption habits — the battery-powered car is viewed with a great deal of scepticism, held back not only by genuine limitations but also by prejudices. High purchase price, limited range, a shortage of charging points and long recharging times are the main ones. Now, though, something is changing. Something you can see, touch and feel in your wallet. In short, the electric revolution that everyone talks about is under way. It cannot be said to be complete, but the path is set. Here is why.

More and more models

The Frankfurt Motor Show closed its doors in recent days. Among the new releases — not all that many, in truth — presented by the car manufacturers, some stood out above all the others. Not so much, or not yet at least, for the market volumes they will be capable of generating, but for their symbolic significance. Very different cars from one another, about which we have already written everything in a dedicated article, yet with two things in common: being electric and close to going on sale. To these must be added the considerable number of battery-powered vehicles that have come to market over the past year to year and a half. In short, the range of models is expanding not only in strictly numerical terms but also in terms of market segments. In other words, the electric car is no longer merely an indulgence for the wealthy, but a genuine mobility alternative. We explain why below.

Charging points: on the rise in Italy too

It is easy to talk about charging points, but there are many different types. A very important factor is their power output, which is directly linked to the time needed to recharge. In Italy the situation is better than one might think, above all because charging points above 11 kW are increasing markedly. That said, as usual, the picture is patchy. This Legambiente report contains all the detailed figures, which highlight an indisputably positive trend. Looking at points above 11 kW — the lower-powered ones, given the increased battery pack capacity of the latest electric vehicles, are barely worth considering — numbers have grown almost everywhere. In Lombardy they rose from 519 in 2018 to 1,134 in 2019 (a year that, moreover, had not yet ended…). In Emilia Romagna from 239 to 464, in Piedmont from as few as 86 to 488, in Trentino Alto-Adige from 354 to 709. In the south? From 7 to 48 in Abruzzo, from 0 to 79 in Calabria, from 31 to 104 in Campania, from 24 to 126 in Sicily, to cite a few examples. That said, significant shortcomings remain. For instance, the supply of charging points is heavily skewed in favour of cities and transit hubs such as shopping centres.

Running costs falling

The purchase price of a car is in many respects a 1.0 concept — superseded. Today, and especially tomorrow, the conversation will increasingly revolve around usage models. You pay a set monthly sum and in return you get the car and a range of services. These commercial packages are particularly appealing for electric cars, since using one implies (not necessarily, but quite easily) upgrading the home electrical system and installing a charging point in the garage — "complications" that manufacturers often handle on the customer's behalf. What is more, nobody today can predict what the residual value of an electric car will be in 3, 5 or 10 years' time. This is why, for example, PSA Group for the Opel Corsa-e offers a particularly low monthly fee: for the Edition version, 279 euros per month over 48 months is required. This figure includes 15,000 km per year, third-party liability insurance, theft/fire, comprehensive cover, driver protection and legal assistance, routine and extraordinary maintenance, and 24-hour roadside assistance. No less importantly, an 11 kW charger and Opel Connect are also included in the price. Underpinning this offer is PSA's decision to absorb the risk of a potentially sharp depreciation of the Corsa-e — something that does not happen with diesel and petrol vehicles, because the monthly fee is calculated — among other things — on the estimated residual value, which for conventional powertrains is easy to predict (since there is a track record). In short, you will have understood the reasoning behind this section's heading: if the conversation is purely about value for money, buying an electric car outright makes little sense. The best choice is pay-per-use.

Does "range anxiety" still make sense?

Range anxiety has historically been another major limiting factor in the uptake of battery-powered cars. The distances between one charge and the next have, however, increased considerably over the past few years. Moreover, manufacturers increasingly offer differentiated battery packs (at correspondingly different price points). On one and the same model, the range can span from just over 300 to more than 500 km. This too is a way of bringing the electric car closer to people's real-world needs.

Incentives and benefits

On top of all this comes the state Ecobonus: for cars with emissions of up to 20 g/km of CO2 (in practice only electric vehicles) it amounts to 4,000 euros. 1,500 euros, on the other hand, for vehicles with emissions between 21 and 70 g/km (NEDC cycle). The Ecobonus is available to all natural and legal persons who register (both conditions are mandatory in order to receive the payment) a new car with CO2 below the above limits, costing no more than 61,000 euros, by 31 December 2021. The measure — and this is very important — also applies to leasing agreements. The figures mentioned above are supplemented by 2,000 and 1,000 euros respectively (for a total of 6,000 and 2,500 euros) when scrapping a Euro 1, 2, 3 or 4 vehicle (curiously, not a Euro 0). Another very important point is that the state incentives can be combined with regional and provincial ones: in some extreme cases, therefore, a bonus of up to 11,000 euros in total can be obtained for zero-emission cars. This applies in Friuli Venezia Giulia, in the provinces of Trento and Bolzano, and in Emilia Romagna.

Electric car: the ideal choice for everyone?

Up to this point, we have looked at everything that pushes in the direction of electric cars. It is worth making clear that this is a solution to adopt only after carefully assessing one's own mobility needs, taking into account where one lives. For example, those who cover many kilometres every day (a good portion of them on motorways) and those who live in areas with a low density of charging points might perhaps find better answers to their needs in internal combustion engines. But the development of the electric sector is evolving rapidly, and all the signs suggest that in the near future even these limitations will be overcome, to everyone's benefit.