How Have Electric Vehicle Batteries Become More Affordable?

Over the past half-decade, electric vehicles have become increasingly popular, taking an increasing share of the overall automobile market.

Much of this can be credited to electronic raw material suppliers, manufacturers and researchers who have helped to turn EVs from a curiosity into a phenomenon, but these technical evolutions have also led to a shift in the perception of EVs.

Starting from the revival of EVs as a major part of the automobile market in 2009, there has been a gradual but noticeable shift from prioritising exclusivity and towards prioritising affordability. Here are some of the ways that this has been achieved.

From Silicon Valley, With Wealth

When electric vehicles first returned with early successes such as the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf, the early adopter market was a mix of people looking for a city car for short-distance urban driving and technology evangelists.

These two cars, as well as the popular Tesla Model S which followed soon after, were all successes, but they were also very expensive relative to other, similar petrol-powered cars.

Demographic studies of early adopters within the EV market in both Europe and North America found that the overwhelming majority of EV drivers were high earners.

This shaped the formation of the early marketing and development of EVs, and it is telling that early EVs focused less on their functionality and battery capacity than they did on their technical capabilities.

No Gimmicks Required

The development of EVs throughout the 2010s was shaped by Tesla, then the market leader, which itself was inspired in no small part by the style-driven approach of technology manufacturers such as Apple.

This meant that the focus when creating new models was less about appealing to a mass market, showcasing how EVs could provide a comparable range to a petrol or diesel car for a fraction of the cost without having to wait a long time at a charging station.

Instead, many EVs focused on making the underlying technology appear cool, interesting and exciting. This is why there was as much of a focus on a tablet-style touch screen console, exclusive editions and functions inspired more by science fiction.

The tipping point for this was arguably the reveal and subsequent launch of the Tesla Cybertruck, the apotheosis of an EV market focused on gimmickry and exclusivity rather than practicality.

According to Mashable, there have been eight recalls of the Cybertruck since its launch in 2023, as well as countless other issues concerning the unusually designed EV that make it difficult if not outright illegal to sell in many countries.

EVs are far removed from the early adopter phase and customers want an affordable, reliable, high capacity EV, something that comes from high quality battery materials and careful manufacturing of trusted systems.

Economies Of Scale

One of the biggest reasons why EVs have become more affordable is that batteries have gotten cheaper, and one of the biggest reasons for this is that it is far cheaper per battery to mass produce them at scale.

Whilst there are certain unknowns when it comes to battery manufacturing such as future access to rare minerals, the cost to disassemble and recycle used battery cells and ever-increasing power and capacity demands, the general trend is that as more batteries are sold, their price lowers.

This has allowed some EV manufacturers to offer vehicles at extremely competitive prices to new petrol and diesel cars.

Different Types Of Cars

Initially, the main types of electric cars sold were salons and larger sports utility vehicles that were catered towards the luxury-minded early adopter. It also helped range and capacity in the early days of the practical EV battery pack that the main cars sold were large and intentionally heavy.

Whilst these are still very much available, EVs can also be lightweight, small and less upmarket, making them much more readily available to a much wider range of customers. 

More Accessible Benefits

The main sales pitch for the EV has historically been that whilst they were expensive at the point of sale, that money would be made back through lower recharging costs compared to refuelling and an overall lower total cost of ownership.

Whilst many EVs in the 2010s were sold on the idea that an expensive car now will save money in the long run, a decade of people using EVs as a daily drive has made the realities and benefits of EVs far easier to describe and quantify.

As well as this, reports that EV batteries last much longer in real-world conditions than was suggested through traditional cycle testing means that the used EV market could become larger and more viable than previously expected, further lowering costs.