The durability and longevity of electric cars are still a concern for many prospective EV buyers. Potential customers often fear that these battery-powered vehicles, just like regular mobile devices like smartphones or laptops, will lose a significant amount of battery capacity and range within a few years, which would go along with a considerable depreciation in value. However, this is not necessarily the case, as a long-term owner of a 2017 Tesla Model X has now taken a closer look at the longevity of one of the more popular electric cars.
This particular 2017 Tesla Model X 100D, which is thoroughly examined and discussed in an extensive YouTube video, has been driven for more than 200,000 miles. The owner, who goes by the name of Christian and originally hails from Slovakia, travels a lot for work and says that between 65 to 80 percent of his charging has been done at Tesla’s Superchargers and other fast-charging stations. Nevertheless, the remaining battery capacity of his Tesla Model X is nothing but impressive. After five years of heavy use, the electric car battery, which originally held 93.7 kWh, can now still store around 84 kWh. That corresponds to a battery degradation of just 10 percent, which is certainly less than the degradation of an average 5-year-old mobile device and should therefore lay the inappropriate smartphone battery analogy to rest.
Furthermore, the high-mileage Tesla Model X also has no issues reaching its maximum top speed of around 155 mph on the German autobahn. Unfortunately, the owner had to replace the front bumper due to a minor collision, and the electric SUV also has a few small rust spots that could be criticized. However, the interior is in very good shape overall, but as expected, the leather steering wheel does not look quite as pretty as when the EV was new. In conclusion, it seems like modern electric cars and their batteries can last quite a long time as their lifespan can exceed 200,000 miles. Please refer to the aforementioned YouTube video for further details and a short test drive with the Tesla Model X with 200,000 miles on the odometer.
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Out of Spec Reviews (YouTube) via InsideEVs, Image: Jorgen Hendriksen