Even when electric vehicles are powered by the most carbon-intensive electricity in Europe, they still emit fewer greenhouse gases than a conventional diesel vehicle. This has been shown in a study by Dr Maarten Messagie from Vrije Universiteit Brussel. In addition, electric car batteries are recyclable. Read all about it in the Bebat e-book, which specializes in the recycling of EV batteries.

If you believe that the battery in an electric car wears out quickly, you are mistaken. The battery life is in fact the greatest asset of a car powered by an EV battery compared to conventional combustion engines. Fossil fuel engines are worn out after approximately 200,000 to 300,000 km. But with an electric car, you can drive 200,000+ kilometers carefree without significant loss of battery capacity. Moreover, the life span of batteries is constantly on the rise. Here are a few tips to make sure your battery lasts as long as possible:

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  Avoid high temperatures.

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  Your battery should always have a charge of between 10% and 90%. Staying below 10% or above 90% too often will make your battery wear out faster.

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  If you are going to park your car for a longer period of time, the ambient temperature and the charge percentage of the battery are important:

  It is best to have your car charged to about 50%. If you leave it parked for a while with a full battery, the battery may lose capacity. Conversely, if the battery runs very low it may enter a discharge state, which will prevent it from being recharged.

An average electric car can easily drive 300 to 450 kilometers on one charge. This means you can cross the country without any problems. What's more, you can charge an average electric family car up to 80% in 30 minutes at a fast charging station. There are 161,426 public charging stations and fast chargers in Europe. And the number of charging points will only increase – you can be sure of that! Click here for a handy list of all charging stations in Europe: Charge map

Most of the charging (90%) takes place at work or at home, so when the car is stationary. At a standard charging station (at home or on the road) you can fully charge the battery in four to eight hours, depending on the car. And if you plug in your car at night, you won't waste any time. If you do have to charge while on the road, look for a quick charger to charge your car up to 80% in half an hour – more than enough to continue your journey.

Electric cars can reach the same top speeds as cars with a fossil fuel engine. What's more, electric engines accelerate quickly, even more so than fossil fuel engines. All you have to do is touch your pedal and you speed up instantly. This is because an electric car can deliver maximum torque (Nm) immediately, while a fossil-fuel-powered car has to be geared up before it can drive at peak power. Bear in mind that if you drive at high speeds, you also use a lot of energy and will have to recharge sooner.

This is not true. There are several studies that claim this, but the results are very different – depending on the party that wrote or financed the study. The European Environment Agency recently carried out an independent study, and the outcome is clear: on average (European average and a combination of green and grey power), an electric car is a lot cleaner than a similar car with a combustion engine, even in cars with a large battery (such as the Tesla Model S 100D).