Written

For

The

Australian

-

Electric

vehicles

versus

hybrids:

why

there

is

a

clear

winner

Tesla sales down 49 per cent in September. Hybrid sales up 96 per cent year to date. So much for the EV revolution — at least for now.

Having owned both an EV and a hybrid, I decided to crunch the numbers on why Australians are voting with their wallets and choosing hybrids two-to-one over electric vehicles.

The financial case for EVs has actually never been stronger. Prices have come down significantly thanks to competition, and the novated lease benefits under the Electric Car Discount Bill are genuinely compelling — particularly for anyone on the 47 per cent marginal tax bracket. You can use 100 per cent pre-tax income to fund an EV up to $91,387, skip the GST, and forget the logbook.

But the tailwinds are fading. State incentive schemes have been wound back. Electricity prices are up 6 per cent over the year (and would be closer to 15 per cent without federal bill relief that ends this financial year). One major public charging network has jacked prices up 80 per cent over five years.

Running the numbers on a Tesla Model 3 ($60,000) versus a Toyota Camry Hybrid ($45,000) over five years at 12,500km annually, the Camry costs $41,000 to own compared with $45,000 for the Tesla. The more you drive, the better the EV looks on running costs — $7.50 per 100km versus $11 — but for most households the maths favours the hybrid.

Then there's lifestyle. Our EV is fantastic as a second car for local runs, especially with solar at home. But for road trips? The 30-to-60 minute charging waits and patchy infrastructure make range anxiety a real thing.

Labor's target of EVs making up 50 per cent of new car sales by 2030 looks fanciful when the current figure sits at 8.5 per cent. Until charging infrastructure catches up, hybrids will keep winning the driveway war.