Used Electric Vehicles for Rural Areas: Smart Choice for Green-Thinking Drivers

Electric vehicles are a new generation of cars: the environment and people receive many benefits and advantages from their operation. And here are our arguments for why EVs are good for rural areas.

In Indiana, there are places where you won't find not only car sharing or taxis but even public transport. These are the places where the electric car revolution is happening.

A car in the suburbs is not a luxury, but a necessity. Therefore, two or three cars for a family do not become an excess if dad goes to work, mom goes to school, clubs, and shopping, and the eldest son receives a driver's permission and buys a used car for himself - there is enough parking space for everyone in a rural area.

In such a situation, people drive tens of thousands of miles in a year, and not in a decade, so the costs are critical not only and not so much for the purchase but for the maintenance of the car: fuel, changing oils, filters, brake pads, and so on. And this is where the finest hour of electric vehicles comes: charging costs 5-10 times less than gasoline, the electric motor does not require regular maintenance and has a long service life due to its simplicity, there is no gearbox at all, even the pads wear out very slowly due to the system recovery. If at least one car in a family is electric, it helps the environment's safety and creates a good economy for a family budget. 

New electric vehicles are expensive, and charging requires constant access to an outdoor outlet. Therefore, a typical portrait of the owner is a middle or high-income person who lives outside the city and often has a second car in a family — an SUV with an internal combustion engine for long-distance travel. However, more drivers today prefer to combine high cross-country ability and environmental friendliness in one electric SUV or truck.

There is an opinion that there are no savings on gasoline and maintenance due to the initially high cost of electric vehicles. The production and disposal of batteries and electricity generation pollute the environment more than gasoline cars. EVs are only environmentally friendly where they are driven. However, buying a used electric vehicle solves the issue of high cost and allows you to leave a smaller environmental footprint since you are the second or even third owner of this car.

"I'm looking at a Tesla Model 3, tested it at Indy Auto Man. It’s a completely different experience, another universe. A good ICE car then seems like a relic. My wife and I work remotely in IT, live in Indianapolis, and are thinking about trading in our BMW. We are planning to buy a house not far from the city, and that’s where an electric car will come in handy," - says Tom Manson, the Indy Auto Man customer.

So you live outside the city, breathe fresh air, enjoy the silence in the cabin, and not think about regular maintenance and repairs. And when you get tired of the car or the battery starts to hold a charge poorly, just trade it in and buy another one.

When choosing an electric vehicle for the countryside in Indiana, there is no more crucial parameter than range. Of course, comfort, performance, and technology are also vital, but the main characteristic is still the miles an electric car can travel on a full battery charge. We've rounded up five electric SUVs and trucks with the largest range.

The F-150 Lightning SUV’s mission is to be both a versatile vehicle and a mobile powerhouse. Some Ford Lightning models with a larger capacity battery (131 kWh) can travel up to 320 miles without recharging. Not bad for a truck that can tow a 4.5-ton trailer.

The uniqueness of the Chevy Blazer EV lies in the choice of drive options: it can be FWD, RWD, or AWD. So, the RWD version of the Blazer RS is a range champion. It is 320 miles on a single charge.

The BMW iX is a two-row SUV with unique styling that comes in either the M60 or the more off-road xDrive50 version. The latter uses all-wheel drive and is capable of traveling 324 miles on a single charge.

Tesla dominates our list of electric vehicles for rural areas, with two models at once. The first to hit the market was the compact crossover Model Y. In the Model Y AWD version, the SUV can travel 330 miles in rural areas before it needs to be connected to a charger.

Although the Plaid version gets all the headlines, it is the most conservative model of the entire Model X line. It is distinguished by a configuration with two electric motors and a range of 348 miles. It is the crossover with the best range on our list and also the best EV in global EV rankings.

Some factors that can affect the quality of an electric vehicle include the size of the battery pack, electric motor efficiency, and driving conditions (such as terrain, temperature, and speed).

Below are a few ways you can increase the range of your electric vehicle:

• Drive efficiently: Your driving manner impacts your EV's range. For example, accelerate and brake smoothly, use cruise control whenever possible, and minimize the use of interior systems such as air conditioning.
• Properly inflate your tires: Properly inflated tires can help reduce rolling resistance and increase your EV's range.
• Remove unnecessary weight: Additional weight makes the car consume more energy.
• Use quality charging equipment: The right charging equipment will help ensure your EV charges efficiently and increases its range.

You can hardly find out whether an electric vehicle is good for your rural area without first-hand experience. At Indy Auto Man, you can beneficially trade in your ICE car and buy a used electric one to compare monthly expenses, the convenience of charging in your lifestyle, and your driving experience. If you discover it is not your best bet, you can always trade it in once again without losing much value.