AN expert mechanic has revealed the biggest problem EV drivers face right now – and it’s not a quick fix.
Scotty Kilmer explained the inconvenient issue on his YouTube channel.
SquaredpixelsAn expert mechanic revealed the biggest issue EV drivers face today[/caption]
Scotty, who has 55 years of experience fixing up motors, discussed why owners of electric cars could be forced to pay top rates for maintenance work.
He said: “I was just talking to a guy in London and he said by 2030 [now delayed to 2035] they’re not going to sell gas or diesel cars, so you’ve got to buy electric cars.
“Well nobody can fix them.
“There’s already a real lack of mechanics to fix gas and diesel cars.
“Wait until they become electrified, if ever, and see if anybody is going to be able to fix them.”
Scotty claimed that he had been told that there could be a shortage of up to 25,000 EV technicians in the UK by 2030 alone.
One of the key issues is that EVs are more complicated to work on than traditional models and the high voltage of the battery can even make doing so dangerous for inexperienced mechanics.
Additionally, the skill set needed to repair them is more in the realm of electrical rather than mechanical engineering.
The cost of retraining can be prohibitive to gearheads looking to expand their expertise.
For example, in August, repairman Bilal Khan told The Sun on Sunday that EVs would drive people like him out of business.
He said: “I looked into getting training back in 2018 and it cost around £8,000.
“I have two staff members working for me, so to get everyone qualified it would be more than £20,000.
“It isn’t just the staff training that’s extortionate, you also need specialist equipment which is stupidly expensive.
“The general public will suffer too. Electrical vehicles are lower maintenance than petrol or diesel cars but if they break, it’s very expensive to fix them.”
He added that the lack of charging infrastructure and the increased space needed to store EVs due to fire risks add to the difficulty and cost.
Indeed, figures from the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) show that just 18% of UK mechanics are trained to work on the supposed cars of the future.
The shortage means that, when you do need yours repaired, it can be very costly.
Likewise, insurance experts warned that the potential for hefty maintenance bills could render EVs “uninsurable”.
However, it should be noted that, as Bilal mentioned, EV’s generally require fewer running repairs than cars.
Things like oil changes go out of the window as there is relatively little regular maintenance needed on the battery.
They also have fewer moving parts and so, if they do need repairing, they can be quicker and easier to get back on the road once you have the specialist kit and expertise required.
It comes after a motorist who tested a new solar-powered electric car told how it died in the middle of the road and refused to park.
Meanwhile, new data revealed the most expensive country in Europe to charge up an EV.