More and more electric cars on the roads, more and more public charging stations, and fewer and fewer cars with combustion engines are being produced. However, some people wonder whether electric cars are actually more climate-friendly than combustion engines, as it is assumed that battery production emits a similar amount of CO2 as an internal combustion engine that has run 200,000 kilometers.
This data comes from a Facebook status post from August 2022, which also claims that the warranty for electric vehicle batteries expires after eight years or 160,000 kilometers at the latest, as a new one would then be required. According to this data, an electric car would then have no advantages in terms of carbon footprint compared to a gasoline or diesel engine.

However, if you look at research from the University of the Bundeswehr in Munich ( HERE ) from February 2022, which the German Press Agency (dpa) also reported in its fact check, you come to the conclusion that, overall, electric cars perform better than combustion engines.
A few details about this:
The researchers from Munich compared 790 current car variants to compare their greenhouse gas emissions. It must be said that truly meaningful comparisons can only be made if the entire life cycle of the respective vehicle is examined.
The publication ( HERE ) of the research results states:
“The emissions from the battery production of a current Tesla Model 3 (…) are comparable to the usage emissions of a Volkswagen Passat (…) over a distance of 18,000 kilometers.”
In addition, when using green electricity, plug-in hybrid and fully electric vehicles could reduce overall emissions by 73% and 89%, respectively, compared to combustion engines. In general, renewable energies and the fuels obtained from them lead to the lowest emissions over the lifespan of vehicles. This means that, apart from the battery production of electric cars, i.e. everyday driving, almost no emissions are released that pollute the environment.
Further studies also confirm the research results
An article in “Auto Bild” also lists other studies from recent years, all of which confirm that electric cars have a better climate footprint.
The study ( HERE ) by the “Yale School of the Environment” from December last year also confirms the conclusion of “Auto-Bild” ( HERE ). The General German Automobile Club (ADAC) even comes to the conclusion that the production-related disadvantage of battery cars is offset by journeys of between 50,000 and 100,000 kilometers. ( HERE )
Quarks magazine also refutes the Facebook posting's claim
The magazine “Quarks” carried out a calculation ( HERE ) which, in relation to the posting on Facebook, compared the CO2 emissions of a combustion engine per 200,000 kilometers with that of producing a battery for an electric car. If you assume an average consumption of 6.8 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers, the CO2 emissions per person on the same route are around 21.6 kilograms. To look at 200,000 kilometers, multiply the value by 2000 and you get carbon dioxide emissions of 43,200 kilograms, i.e. 43.2 tons.
To compare with an electric car, you need the CO2 values for the production of a large lithium-ion battery, which is usually installed. However, these values vary greatly and are difficult to determine. In its study from 2020, the TU Eindhoven assumes an average value of 75 kg/KWh. Around 80 kg/KWh is the result of a study ( HERE ) by the German eco-lobby organization Agora Verkehrswende, which is why this value can be used for the calculation.
If you now look at the largest batteries currently produced for electric cars with a capacity of 100 KWh, each battery produced and therefore each car has a CO2 burden of approximately 8,000 kilograms, 8 tons. The Tesla Model However, both values are far below those of the combustion engine over 200,000 kilometers, namely 43.2 tons. And even with the strongest battery power (100 kWh) and the highest CO2/kg value found (200), emissions are on average 20 tons and are still a lot lower than with diesel.
What happens to the batteries?
The ADAC confirms the information from the Facebook post that the manufacturers have largely agreed on a battery guarantee of eight years and 160,000 kilometers, but it is not automatically necessary to replace the battery after this period. Instead, they can often be reconditioned, which means that by replacing individual modules such as the battery cells, they are returned to a condition suitable for everyday use and are ready for further years on the road. And even after that it's not over. The ADAC reports on the so-called “second life” of the batteries, where they are used, for example, as stationary storage for wind and solar power. The consistent operation, the significantly slower charging and discharging and the resulting protection of the battery make the battery usable for 10-12 years in second life.
“The BMW factory in Leipzig shows how relevant the “second life” of batteries can be. BMW installed a stationary storage system there in 2017, which consists of 700 i3 batteries connected together. (…) The solar and wind power generated at the BMW factory is stored in this large storage facility and then used for production,” says the ADAC .
Sources and references:
Facebook status post
University of the Bundeswehr Munich
Publication: Total CO
2 -equivalent life-cycle emissions from commercially available passenger cars Study: Yale School of the Environment
ADAC: Facts about electromobility: These are the advantages and disadvantages
ADAC: Electric car -Batteries: This is how recycling works
Quarks: CO2 calculator for cars, planes etc.
Study: Agora, climate balance of electric cars
Teslamag
DPA
Also read: No, VW will not discontinue cars with combustion engines in 2024!
Author: Nick L.
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