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Nor any of us here, but it's useful to go through the exercise and see how they could work in certain situations.

THen we're all informed.

The question, for me, is whether it will make sense for a lot of folks any time soonish.

The next vehicle I buy could well be our last, which might be true for several others here.  I think my wife wants one next year.  Bummer.  I'll look at the Honda, Toyota, BMW, and Hyundai hybrid versions of the "CR-V", maybe another one, all around $40 K, which is rather astounding, to me.  Keeping the GTI would be my preference, I really like that car.

I'm going to delay until she gets more insistent.

It's not just financial. If it was financial, we'd see a lot more Hondas and Fords and Hyundais on the road and a lot fewer BMWs and Mercs and Porsches. 

If it was just financial, Badge wouldn't be driving a fancy-ass Merc and lusting over a Porsche Macan. He owns vehicles like that because he likes them and has the means. 

If it was just financial, Lexus and Acura (and Lincoln and Cadillac) wouldn't exist. They're just an upbadged Toyota/Honda/Ford/Chevy. But they do. 

I'm very utilitarian when it comes to cars. But even for me when family changes forced me to move up from the truck, I bought a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon. Did I really "need" the Rubicon model? No. But I wanted it. When I got divorced and didn't have access to a family minivan and needed something larger than the Jeep, I bought a Ford Flex Limited because I wanted the upgraded sound system and the panoramic sunroof in the back seats (and because my soon-to-be FIL had an SEL model and I wanted the higher level trim). So even as a utilitarian I've spent up for unnecessary things. 

There is an emotional component to buying a vehicle. For some people, there's value and they WANT an EV. Maybe they want to be seen as ahead of the curve. Or maybe they view Tesla as "cool" in the way that Apple folks think Apple is "cool" and not just another damn phone. Or maybe they think they're doing something good for the environment. 

Or maybe they just hate filling their car with gas every week or so and like the idea that their car has a "full tank" every single morning they wake up because they plug it into their charger when they get home the previous day. It's like your cellphone. Plug it in at night and it's ready to go in the morning. People make it sound like charging an EV is the equivalent of trying to find an outlet to charge your cellphone, in a crowded airport, in 2012. Yeah, if charging an EV was like that, it'd be hell lol. 

As I've said, when my next vehicle purchase comes up, an EV is within my realm of consideration. The financial bit does weigh highly for me with vehicles, but as I mentioned above, I up-spent for a more capable off-roading vehicle than I needed for someone who almost never goes off-road (and hasn't been anywhere the "Rubicon" package mattered), and up-spent for a more full-featured trim package than I needed in the Flex. So if it comes down to it and I decide I really WANT an EV? I have the means and I'll buy it. 

It's financial for a lot of folks, not for many of us here (meaning we can pretty much buy what we want within reason).

Folks do buy BMWs because of their cache', not because they are really better than a Honda.  And it is for many an emotional decision.  When I walk onto a car lot and tell a salesman I'm interested in Model Q, his first question almost without exception is "What color?".

Color, for me, is well down the list of criteria.  WELL down.  But apparently it's near the top for many.

Yeah, and it's emotional for a lot of folks too. You've all heard my complaints about leasing. Not that leasing is a bad idea; there are instances where it makes sense. But that too many people lease vehicles so that they can drive something nicer than they could afford to buy, and THAT is a bad idea. 

Think of say, a new college grad going off to her first job, making $38K/year. She wants to drive a cute little 3-series BMW. She can't afford it, of course. She COULD afford a 3-year used Civic with low miles, completely pay it off in 3 years, and have an asset. But the lease deal BMW is throwing out means that she can pay just a bit more monthly than the 3-year repayment cost of the Honda, so suddenly the lease wins out. Emotions >> finances.

There are a LOT of people in this world that think this way. They want the best car that they can get for the maximum monthly payment they can afford, and if that means it's just a lease and there's no path to ownership, well as long as the monthly nut works, they'll do it. 

That's a Cayenne I showed. Macan is too small.

Fair enough. I knew it wasn't a Taycan 

I would want an EV at some point, I suspect, they do have significant advantages.  The "dis" parts are too great now, for me, that could change.  I think the range most have is OK, but recharging is not for various reasons noted.  The cost is not OK.  Expense of operation is good.  Handling and acceleration are generally quite good.

Public charging systems that charge based on kWh average anywhere between $0.30 and $0.60 per kWh compared to $0.16 per kWh at home.

An EV needs about 33 kWhr to go 100 miles.  You can see that at 60 cents, the thing is way off the mark, $20 for 100 miles of range.  

That would be 3 gallons of gas in my GTI on the highway, 4 gallons around town, at $3/gallon for premium at Costco.  You HAVE to charge at home (mostly) for it to work at all.