Which? survey on electric vehicle reliability - RAC responds

Following a poll by Which? which suggests electric vehicles are less reliable than petrol and diesel-powered ones, RAC head of technical James Gibson said:

“These findings should be taken with a pinch of salt. There is no question there are fewer moving parts with electric cars which makes them more reliable than a petrol or diesel car in the long run, but it’s also the case that the software running them is more complex which has the potential to cause some issues.

“But it’s very important to realise that most software problems can be solved easily, either by wireless updates or ‘restarts’ in the same way as a desktop computer simply by disconnecting the 12v auxiliary battery and ‘rebooting’ the system, something our expert patrols routinely do for our members in these situations. Many manufacturers are also able to help drivers sort issues out over the phone by getting them to carry out certain functions to reboot systems.

“While taking a new electric car back to the dealership is clearly frustrating it can often be the case with any new car, regardless of how it’s powered.”

Quentin Willson, motoring journalist and founder of the RAC-backed FairCharge campaign, commented on the report:

“I’m hugely surprised and rather disappointed by this Which? report because my experience of owning seven EVs over a decade has been one of total, faultless reliability. What’s more, I don’t believe it matches the experiences of the EV community, who report very high levels of reliability and customer satisfaction.”