Technology

Namely, the average lifespan of a ICE car is 12 years. While it’s definitely better for the environment to replace a functional ICE with an EV after two to four years, buying a new car when you don’t need to is a big financial cost and so it shouldn’t be surprising that many people are waiting until their cars get old to replace them.

Precisely! And while the ongoing environmental cost of burning gasoline is a concern, there's also the environmental impact of the chassis, the internal electronics. That's a sunk cost right now. And that's not counting making sure you have access to charging infrastructure. When I was renting, I simply didn't have street access to a regular home plug. And my workplace also didn't have any electrical infrastructure in its parking lots (despite years of begging from employees.) There are still a lot of reasons an EV might not make sense for individuals.

All that said, my next vehicle will definitely be an EV since I can charge at home now. But only when our car gives up the ghost from a cost to repair perspective.