Photo Credit: iStockFor drivers worried that an electric vehicle will become a money pit after 100,000 miles, a Reddit thread offered a very different picture: In comment after comment, owners said the battery usually wasn't the source of trouble.Instead, the most common complaints sounded much more familiar — tires, wiper blades, suspension wear, and the occasional 12-volt battery."Is your ev over 100k miles? Have you had any problems?" one Tesla Model 3 owner asked in a post on r/electricvehicles. AdvertisementAdvertisement"Curious to see if anyone has gone over 100k miles and is experiencing any issues with the battery or any other problems? My Tesla 3 will soon reach 100k."The thread drew hundreds of comments.Many high-mileage owners described years of relatively uneventful driving. One BMW i3 owner said their EV had reached 170,000 miles, with the battery's state of health still at 92%, adding that a broken seat-heater sensor needed "a $10 part to fix." Another driver with 105,000 miles said they had bought "tires, 12v battery, and some wiper blades."Battery anxiety remains one of the biggest reasons some shoppers hesitate to go electric. The comments suggest that, at least for many owners, crossing 100,000 miles does not automatically mean a dead battery or a huge repair bill.AdvertisementAdvertisementThe costs many drivers listed were the kinds of expenses any car owner would recognize. Tires, bearings, suspension components, cabin filters, and wiper fluid came up repeatedly.One of the everyday benefits of EV ownership is having fewer routine maintenance items. No oil changes, fewer engine-related wear parts, and less heat and vibration stress can translate into lower upkeep over time — especially for drivers who rack up miles quickly.The thread also pointed beyond battery health to broader reliability questions. A car's charging system, suspension, drivetrain components, warranty coverage, and 12-volt battery history may tell you more about ownership costs than raw mileage alone.Several commenters also pointed to battery age as an important factor. One wrote, "When it comes to battery life, it's not the milage it's the age." AdvertisementAdvertisementAnother shared piece of guidance echoed by commenters in the Reddit thread: avoid leaving the battery at either extreme most of the time, and save full charges for longer drives, though some owners also reported excellent battery health despite less conservative charging habits.Total maintenance history can matter more than odometer numbers alone. A high-mileage EV with mostly tire and filter replacements may still be a better bet than a lower-mileage gas car facing expensive engine or transmission work.Owners in the thread summed it up best. "Complete uneventful ownership," one wrote, while another joked about the minimal repairs they had to make on their EV, stating, "I'll never financially recover from this."Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here.
+55 others
