The biggest obstacle to buying an electric vehicle may not be cost or range, but the fact that your current gas car still works. In a piece published by Canary Media, environmental scientist Elliot Campbell describes asking people why they would or would not switch to an EV. A surprising number responded with a question of their own: what about the car I already have?
The article takes that hesitation seriously, acknowledging that scrapping a functional vehicle feels wasteful. But it argues that the emissions from continuing to burn gasoline can outweigh the environmental cost of manufacturing a new EV, especially as the grid gets cleaner.
Rather than urging everyone to immediately trade in their cars, the piece frames the decision as a climate calculation. For drivers who can afford it, replacing a working gas car with an EV may be a more meaningful step than waiting for the old car to die.