What is the real cost of charging an electric vehicle at home in Central Pennsylvania?
How much does it actually cost to charge a battery electric vehicle at home in Central Pennsylvania?
I plugged a borrowed 2023 Mustang Mach-E into a home charger with a dedicated FirstEnergy meter in Manchester Township to find out. The Grizzel-E charger is installed on a garage that has its own meter, so it was easy to record the energy use of the charger.
How much?
Charging the battery from 30 percent to 83 percent with the Level 2 (220 volt, 48 amp charger) used 50 kilowatts and cost $7.49. Charging took about four and a half hours.
The Mach-E said that it gained 152 miles of range with my charge.
Compare that to gasoline
For comparison, a similarly sized gas-powered SUV, the Ford Edge, averages 24 mpg. With the current average price of gasoline in Pennsylvania at $3.9 per gallon, according to AAA, the cost to run an Edge on gas for 152 miles is $24.57.
On top of that. the electric vehicle won’t need oil changes and tune-ups. With regenerative braking, brake service intervals will be much longer.
Generally, home chargers are used overnight so you can take advantage of off-peak pricing and downtime of the vehicle. It would probably take about eight hours to fully charge a depleted battery, depending on how large the battery is. Ford says that the extended range battery on the Mach-E is about 312 miles.
In reality, you generally drive much less each day and the battery could be topped off much quicker or only charged every few days. The United States Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration says the average driver travels 37 miles a day.
The cost of electricity was 10 cents per kilowatt plus the assorted added fees per kilowatt FirstEnergy tacks on to the bill, such as distribution, for a total of $.14987 per kilowatt. This is for the unnegotiated cost FirstEnergy provides to the meter. I wasn't including the base cost to run an installed meter, because you already pay that if your house has electricity.
Beautiful photos: Here are the 20 most photographed places in York County: Is your favorite spot on list?
Your results may vary
Your cost to charge may be less or more depending on your cost per kilowatt with Energy Choice in Pennsylvania.
The most economical way to charge your EV is at home. Consumer reports says that 80 percent of EV owners charge their vehicles at home.
I have captured life through the lens since 1983, and am currently a visual journalist with the USA Today Network. You can reach me at pkuehnel@ydr.com.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: What it costs to charge an electric vehicle at home in Central PA
