The most important information about the service life of e-car batteries
How long does an e-car battery last?
The average service life of an electric car battery is about eight to ten years, according to TÃœV Nord. However, this does not mean that the battery of the electric car cannot still be used afterwards. For example, it can still be used as an electricity storage unit even if its charging capacity is no longer sufficient for efficient use in the car – more on this below. Incidentally, in order for the battery to be considered efficient, the TÃœV gives the following guideline: As soon as the battery permanently falls below 70 percent of its actual charging capacity, i.e. it can no longer be charged above this value, it should be replaced.
Powerful lithium-ion batteries can withstand about 1000 full charging cycles. Let's assume that your electric car battery has a capacity of 60 kilowatt hours (kWh), and you consume 20 kWh per 100 kilometers. Then your battery will last around 300,000 kilometres – that's remarkable.
How do I extend the life of my electric car battery?
How quickly the battery of your electric car loses charging capacity depends heavily on external factors such as your driving style. So far, there are no batteries that last forever: Even if you didn't drive your electric car at all, the battery would lose performance and service life. Battery-internal electrochemical processes wear out the battery over time, without any action on your part.
The outside temperature and how often you fast charge the e-car also influence the general service life. You can save battery by:
- Park your e-car in a garage all year round to keep the temperatures to which the e-car and its battery are exposed relatively stable.
- never run the battery completely empty and, at best, do not get below 20, at most not below ten percent charge level in order to avoid deep discharge of the battery cells.
- not charge the battery to a full 100 percent, but loudly for daily use ADAC it is best to charge only to 80 percent.
- do not charge exclusively at fast-charging stations.
All these measures protect the battery and can thus extend its service life. Tip: You can find out how to charge your e-car correctly and what you need to pay attention to in our Q&A article.
Latest battery technology for electric cars: Two million miles?
Until now, electric cars have used lithium-ion batteries – these are expensive to produce, wear out quickly and lose charging capacity over time. The latest technologies from South Korea and the USA therefore want to move away from this technology. At Sogang University in Seoul, South Korea, for example, work is currently underway on a lithium polymer battery. Its range as an electric car battery would exceed the current ranges by a factor of ten.
In the USA, on the other hand, Tesla researcher Jeff Dahn is working on a project called the "Two-million-mile battery". As early as October 2020, he was able to present a battery cell that lasted around 10,000 charging cycles and did not lose any significant performance. For an electric car with a range of 350 kilometers, this would mean that the battery would last almost three million kilometers, i.e. two million miles. However, it is still unclear when such an electric car battery could come onto the market.
Can e-car batteries be repaired?
As with the combustion engine, the electric drive can also malfunction. If the e-car no longer starts, it may be that there is a fault in the battery, for example. Maybe only a single cell is broken, or one of the battery modules is on strike. In any case, you should definitely visit an experienced workshop or contact the car manufacturer for repairs. These help you to get your e-car back on the road quickly. By the way, repairs of e-car batteries are even completely free of charge during the warranty period.
Many manufacturers initially only remove individual battery modules during the repair and replace them. Often, this measure already solves the problem - and it also saves resources, because the entire battery is not replaced. The removed battery module is repaired if possible and reused by the manufacturer.
Tip: This repair is much cheaper than a full replacement of the battery, especially after the warranty period has expired.
How much does a new electric car battery cost?
If a repair is not possible and the entire battery needs to be replaced, this is also free of charge if the replacement is carried out within the warranty period. After that, unfortunately, it gets more expensive: You can expect costs from 5000 euros, for some models the price is much higher and can even exceed the 20,000 euro mark. The price range is so wide because different manufacturers use different battery models, each with different battery capacities and components. Dealers and manufacturers will be happy to provide you with information on how much it would cost to replace your battery model.
Can I recycle an old electric car battery?
As long as there is no defect, decommissioned e-car batteries can continue to be used. In the so-called "Second Life", i.e. in the "second life", the batteries are used, for example, as electricity storage.
Many manufacturers put old e-car batteries together with others and set up large electricity storage systems that can supply entire production plants. In this way, they continue to be used until they are actually unusable due to insufficient loading capacities and are given to special recycling companies. Various raw materials and metals are recovered there.
There are government requirements for recycling that aim for the highest possible recycling rate of the many different battery components. This rate is expected to increase even further in the future. This reduces the environmental impact of e-car batteries – and makes e-cars even more sustainable.