85% of electric vehicle owners plan on sticking with electric for their next car, new research has found. 

The report published by Volkswagen today found a high level of satisfaction among EV owners - although perceptions about chargers and maintenance fees remain barriers for those who drive combustion or diesel vehicles.

Volkswagen surveyed 2,000 of their customers; 700 EV owners and 1,200 non-EV owners.

55% of non-EV owners said they were not planning on making the switch, while 45% said they could be convinced to go electric.

50% of non-EV owners said they expect to be driving an electric car within the next 10 years.

EV Owners

Of the EV owners surveyed, 60% said they would not be returning to petrol or diesel.

25% said that while driving electric took some getting used to, they will stick to an EV for their next car.

2% said they will not buy another EV next time and 13% were undecided.

On The Pat Kenny Show, Vokswagen Ireland CEO Pierre Boutin said some drivers have misconceptions about EVs.

"60% of non-EV drivers said [they would worry] about running out of charge - only 25% of our current EV owners have that concern," he said.

"25% of non-EV drivers think EVs need a full charge every day but only 3% of EV owners think this."

Charging

Mr Boutin acknowledged that 28% of EV drivers want more charging infrastructure in Ireland.

"We're working closely with the policy makers in Ireland and we’re trying to push them to make the investments [in charging infrastructure]," he said.

"We're also making investments as an automaker; our aim is to have 45,000 fast-chargers around the world by 2026 and we're well on our way."

An electric car charging in London, Alamy

Another concern of non-EV owners is battery life - although Mr Boutin said Volkswagen's EV batteries are "beyond what their engineers" initially expected.

"Today, you have a certified battery-approved programme from the Volkswagen brand where you can go and technicians will tell you where your battery status is currently," he said.

"We’ve seen vehicles drive 160,000km and they still have 91%, 92% or 93% of the original capacity of the battery."

Volkswagen EVs have an eight-year battery warranty for the first 160,000km they drive - although Mr Boutin describes this as a conservative estimate of the battery's capacity.

Feature image shows an electric vehicle at a charing port.