BMW's Graham Biggs reckons much of the problem when it comes to misconceptions of batteries is due to us being so used to mobile phone batteries.
One of the most commonly-quoted fears when it comes to electric cars is that the battery – the single most important component of an EV and by far the most expensive part of the car – will fail, relatively early on in the car’s life, and need expensive replacement, possibly running into a five-figure sum.
That is indeed impressive performance, and well ahead of most manufacturer warranties which cover batteries, in general, against drops to around 70 per cent of their original capacity in eight years. “While some of the chemistry is basically the same, the technology involved is very different, and so too is the charging. We also have a modular battery design, so if something goes wrong you don’t necessarily need to replace the whole battery, you just need to swap out a module, which is much less expensive. issues. So when I spoke to our warranty guys in the UK, I asked how many whole battery packs had to be replaced? They said none. None. None so far.
While worries have been expressed about EV residual values, Brian Merrigan from BMW’s finance arm said that the best solution for buyers is to buy on a PCP finance plan with a guaranteed residual value, which can protect the consumer from any fluctuations in the market value . “We’re certainly in a transitory time” responded Biggs. “And that always feels a bit uncomfortable. And certainly there have been factors recently which may have shaken people’s confidence. But that’s why we’re here today, to kind of hold people’s hands a bit as we go through this process.